Homeowner Forum / Cleaning / August 2003

Hi Raj,

The answer is - you don't get a smell from nowhere.

In dry cleaning a vomit type odour is associated with bacteria in the
solvent. I would expect that you are experiencing a similar problem,
something stuck somewhere in your machine or drier that is slowly
degenerating and being eaten by bacteria.

I would suggest you try to find any built up lint in the machine and check
the exit pipe in case there's any socks stuck. Then run an emty load on full
boil initially with a strong household ammonia mix and then include a lot of
bleach. If this gets rid of the odour (even just for a time) then you can
repeat the process again in the future. If not it may be that the rubber in
the machine is rotting (ask the manufacturer if that's happened in their
experience).

If it doesn't get rid of the smell then change the way you're drying the
clothes to see if that changes things. Heated conditions are prime for
growth of bacteria and if the outer of a garment becomes hot but the inside
damp it may be that a growth of bacteria happens on the inner of the
garments. Dry naturally or use a dryer.

Hope this helps
--
DrClean
www.DrClean.co.uk
The Best Fabric Cleaning Resource on the Web