Did you know that your habits in the laundry room can shorten or lengthen the lifespan of your washer and dryer? If this is news to you, don’t worry: The appliance experts at Garner Appliance & Mattress created this list of easy ways to care for your washer and dryer so your laundry appliances will keep humming along for years to come.
6 Tips to Extend the Lifespan of Your Clothes Washer
1. Clean your washing machine once a month
Laundry detergent, fabric softeners, and other additives accumulate on the surface of your washer’s drum and inside your dispensers and can cause problems over time. To prevent such issues, set your washing machine to run a heavy cycle with hot water. Instead of laundry detergent, pour one to two cups of white vinegar in the detergent dispenser. Once the cycle is complete, wipe out the inside of the drum with a microfiber towel.
2. Leave the door open between loads (front loaders)
Front-load washers have a gasket that seals the door closed to keep
water inside during a cleaning cycle. If you close the door after you remove a load of clean, wet laundry, those gaskets will hold moisture inside of the machine, which can lead to mildew or mold.
3. Wipe down/clean gaskets and seals (front loaders)
Each time you move a load of laundry from your front-load washer, run a clean cloth along the gasket inside the door to remove any standing water droplets that might mold or mildew.
4. Don’t overfill
Resist the urge to keep adding items until your washer is packed: Overfilling your washer is a double whammy that will shorten the lifespan
of your clothes and your washing machine.
5. Balance each load
It’s stressful to hear (or feel) the ominous thumping of an unbalanced clothes washer in your laundry room because you know that all that thrashing is taking years off your washer’s life. Such detrimental imbalances tend to occur when you wash just one large item at a time. If you’re washing pillows, it’s best to wash two per load; if you can’t fit two pillows in a load, add a few towels to the load to counterbalance the pillow.
6. Don’t wash overly bulky items
While it’s tempting to wash large, bulky items at home to avoid a trip to the dry cleaner, it will cost you more in the long run. If you run a cycle with an item that doesn’t fit inside the drum properly, your washer can overheat, break a belt, or burn up the motor.
4 Tips to Extend Your Dryer’s Lifespan
1. Clean the lint trap after every load
Keeping the lint trap clean will reduce dryer strain, and your dryer will run more efficiently. Clean the lint trap every time you do laundry, and soon it will become an unconscious part of your laundry routine.
2. Don’t overfill your dryer
Your dryer needs to maintain balance just like your washer does, and it struggles to stay balanced when you overfill the dryer drum. In the short term, you might only notice that overly large loads take much longer to dry, but regularly overfilling your dryer will drastically shorten your dryer’s lifespan.
3. Vacuum the dryer’s interior twice a year
Even with an effective lint trap, each dryer load produces stray lint that accumulates inside the dryer. That stray lint will reduce your dryer’s efficiency and make it work harder to dry each load, so clean lint from the dryer’s interior every six months. Use a slim, flexible vacuum attachment to suck out excess lint — you’ll be amazed at how much lint is hiding inside your dryer.
4. Clean the external dryer duct once a year
Lint also tends to gather inside your external dryer duct (the silver metal tube that attaches to the back of the dryer). As lint accumulates, it can obstruct the duct’s airflow and cause your dryer to malfunction, overheat, or catch fire. To prevent dangerous and costly lint buildup, use a duct brush to clean your external dryer duct once a year.
If your current washer and dryer are already showing signs of excessive wear and tear, stop by Garner Appliance & Mattress to check out our selection of washers and dryers. Our appliance experts will help you find the right washer and dryer for your family, and then you can use these 10 tips to maximize their lifespan and minimize potential maintenance issues.