Can anyone help me with my confusion over using vinegar to wash my clothes. I need to get my towels back being absorbent and I want to get rid of any detergent residue in all my clothes.
I’ve searched around and the results I’ve found all have different methods.
1) Pour in rinse dispenser only, wash with detergent.
2) Use only vinegar as a replacement for the detergent.
And then there’s the multitude of different amounts of vinegar to use.
UGH! HELP!
When I refresh my towels, I use hot water with vinegar in the detergent dispenser. I fill it to the max for a full load of towels, though it doesn't really matter bc the vinegar shouldn't hurt your towels at all.
No detergent, bc you're trying to get the built up detergents out of the towels.
The no detergent part makes sense now. Thanks!
I don't have a detergent dispenser. I've got one of those HE machines where I have to put in the detergent first in the bottom of the tub, pile the clothes on, and then start it up. And then it's locked and a real pain in the ass to try to get it to stop when I need to open it mid-cycle.
Is it ok to put the clothes right on top of undiluted vinegar?
It’s an HE top load and I’ve tried to stop the thing but it always seems to end up cancelling the entire wash and I have to start all over again. I’m not used to these types of washers. I’ve been using laundromats for decades and then my new apartment came with this fancy, to me, machine.
Do you know the brand? I can look it up for you. There's usually a pause button somewhere on the machine, but the amount of time that you hold it may be why it's canceling the wash.
With a top loader, if you can figure it out, let the tub fill with the clothes/towels in it, then pause the machine and add the vinegar and/or baking soda. Or you can add the diluted vinegar, but some washers just drain the tub when it's not on, so heads up!
This is the model but when I have tried to pause it, all it does is stop but the lid doesn’t unlock. Maybe I need to wait, like it says to do if I want to cancel the cycle. 🤷🏻♀️
https://manualmachine.com/maytag/mvwx655dw0/6345921-owners-manual/
My washer must like you because it allowed me to pause it instead of canceling like it had been doing. 😆
Took me two tries to put the vinegar in after there was enough water because the 1st time I forgot to set a timer to remember to run back to it to see if had enough water. Now I know that it takes a minimum of 5 minutes before there's enough water to safely put in the vinegar.
Thanks for your advice!
Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry. It's been a crazy busy day & my notifications only go back so far.
I'm so happy it worked! I usually have a magic touch with electronics, but this is the first time it's worked through the interwebs 😂 If you have issues again, lmk and I'll def look into it! 🩷
I didn’t know there was a limit on how many notifications one can see.
The last time I had my own washer was from 1998-2003, which makes me a bit rusty with all the new technology.
It's not always limited; just sometimes. Then again, I usually don't have to go that far back. Maybe it was due to all the notifications? Idk
Yea, washers, dishwashers, dryers...technology moves so quickly. If you have a gap of even 5 years, it could be just as foreign as if you were seeing one for the first time as an isolated tribe member lol
The crazy thing is I worked at Lowe’s, in their call center in the repair/warranty department. We were supposed to help troubleshoot but the damn company refused to provide appliances for us to get some first-hand knowledge. We were stuck going online but when you’ve never seen the appliance in-person, it can be hard to tell someone, “It’s the lever/button next to the…”
Wow, really? That's horrible policy which probably leads to confused customers and employees. Crazy.
Glad you don't work there anymore 😂
@see_the_sus
I see you got a lot of suggestions. Regarding the baking soda & vinegar, you can add both together in the wash. I usually just use vinegar.
Do you have a top or front loader? I have a top loader & can pause the wash, which unlocks the door to add clothes or whatever. But I can understand how that's not possible with a side load washer. I also make sure that I use the extra water cycle.
As @arthurpendragon mentioned, you can dilute the vinegar before throwing it in the tub.