How to Get Rid of Extra Suds in a Washing Machine

If you have extra suds from a wash cycle in your washing machine, the good news is that they are pretty easy to remove. The bad news is that extra suds aren’t supposed to be there in the first place. Washing machines are designed to use detergent very efficiently, while it does create some suds to wash your laundry, those shouldn’t be excessively building up and should be gone after the rinse cycle. If this is your problem, here is what you need to do to get rid of the suds and to keep them from coming back.

What is Causing Excessive Suds in a Washing Machine?

Most commonly, excess suds in a washing machine is caused by using the wrong detergent. What usually happens is that someone gets a high efficiency washing machine and uses non-high efficiency detergent. This means that too much detergent was used and more suds are produced. You can also have a similar problem if you use too much liquid dish soap to pre-treat grease stains. Liquid dish soap easily froths.

Alternatively, If your home recently started using water softened water, you will notice an increase in suds. This issue can also be caused by mechanical problems. If your washer isn’t rinsing properly, a build-up of detergent in clothing can cause excess suds. You can also see this issue manifest if there is something wrong with the agitation system as well.

Removing Suds From a Washer

Now that you know what to avoid, getting the suds out of a washer is quite simple. You merely need to run a load with white vinegar. The addition of vinegar quickly breaks down the suds so they can be rinsed away. This will also clean the residue from the interior of your appliance as well. You do want to run it on the largest load so that it does get a good rinse, though.