Hi - here in the UK we have always used front loaders, at least I vaguely remember my mum having a top loader in the fifties/sixties but I have used a FL for 35 years or so. I am a very busy person & was a working mum with a son who played soccer (very muddy game) & daughter who horse rides & my & hubby needing work clothes looking smart so lots of laundry. Also my mother at 90 has only just got a washer(since her brief flirtation with a TL years ago) so used to do a lot of her laundry. Never had time to faff about with complicated laundry arrangements but found a FL absolutely fine. Just sorted clothes into darks, lights and those needing a very gentle wash. Washed at the lowest possible temperature to save energy - easier now as detergents are designed to wash at 30C. However last machine did get a dark stain on the rubber inside door - no smell though. With new Bosch just wash at hottest temp on empty with a descaler every couple of months. I do think on a general note that perhaps my mother was right all along & with a machine we wash things too often. Excepting underwear do we really need to wash clothes after one wear - unless they obviously require it. And I am very fussy about smells.

Front loading washing machines have been the subject of much debate. Some people swear by them, yet others swear at them. Here is my take on front loaders. All machinery requires some maintenance and repair from time to time, and your FL'er washer is no exception. Before you run that first load of wash through your new $$$$ washing machine here are some hints that will help keep you running trouble free. First read the owners manual, it has all the info that the manufacturer needs you to know for proper operation. Next, make sure the installation is correct, those guys that deliver and install your new washer and dryer are not installation guys, they are delivery drivers. On your scheduled day of delivery meet them right at the truck, do not let them remove the shipping bolts until after the machines have been moved to their intended location. Inspect the machines carefully for any damage that may have occured in transit. It is best at this point to do your own installation according to the owners manual. You will need to make sure that the machines are level, and that the water is hooked up properly, also now is a good time to check your dryer venting. Pay close attention to how far the drain hose of the washer goes down into the standpipe, there must be and air gap here or the washer can siphon sewer water back into the machine. One of the biggest complaints is that of a foul or musty smell in the washer, and on clothing. Here are some tips to avoid this common problem. Clean the washer as instructed in the owners manual, once every six months run an empty load with a 1/2 cup of cascade complete added to the wash dispenser, use the hottest temp wash available. Leaving the door open is a good idea if you won't be using the washer for more than a week, I never leave mine open unless I go on vacation, I have never had an odor problem in all the years I have owned FL'ers. Buy a model that has a built in heater with a sanitary cycle, and use it often, we use ours weekly for our whites, the high heat keeps mold and mildew from growing. Use a high quality HE detergent, the only one I will use is Charlies Soap, it cleans great and leaves no residue, plus it is relatively cheap at 80 loads per $14. FL'ers are great machines, but they will from time to time suffer some sort of failure, you can expect a repair every 2-4 years on average, most repairs will be minor ones, you should expect to get around 10 years from your new FL'er. Buy a brand that has easy to get parts and service, before buying check online for parts through major part suppliers, this way you can fix your own washer when something goes wrong. Not the handy type, no problem, just make sure there are reputable service people in your area that can fix your machine. Happy washing everyone.

Thanks! I added more hot water as suggested :) I am using 1 1/2 cups of bleach to soak it. I will wait another hour or so and then let it complete it's cycle to see if it takes care of the problem. So the bleach isn't super strong in that washer but hopefully strong enough to cut through whatever is in there. I figure the hot water soaking will dissolve any detergent build up in the machine. The true test will be when I let it agitate and finish it's cycle. I will report back after it has ran it's cycle. I will fill the washer again after it is done and see if there are any more soap suds, but I think this probably should take care of it. Thanks!

Based upon the general layout of this line it appears that your jurisdiction is primarily under the International Residential Code. The height of the standpipe is fine. By necessity there is always a horizontal section of pipe between the vent and the trap. Under the IRC the minimum lenght of that horizontal section is 2x the pipe diameter and the maximum length is determined by dividing the pipe diameter by the required pitch. All pipes 3" or under are required to have a 1/2" per foot pitch so if this is a 2" line the maximum developed length of horizontal pipe from the vent to the trap may not exceed 2 / .25 = 8'. The horizonatal section of pipe connected to the stack is running parallel to a concrete block wall. A standard concrete block is 16" long and the pipe appears to be equal to the lenght of 4 blocks so I am estimating the length at 4 x 16" = 64" plus another 12" for the offset to the riser. I am assuming the top of the riser is directly behind the quarter bend protruding from the wall at the standpipe location. Allowing an additional 4" for each 1/4 bend we get 64"+12+4"+4" = 84". 84" /12" per foot = 7' so the length of the run is within the allowable 8' however there are two serious problems with this installation. 1. The stack to which the standpipe line is connected is black pipe plastic pipe. We would need to see the writing on that pipe to be sure because they did at one time make black PVC pipe but normally black DWV(Drain, Waste & Vent) pipe is ABS plastic and code prohibits directly gluing dissimilar pipe. (ABS to PVC or vice versa). While that would be considered a code violation, in this case it would have no effect on the problem at hand so for the moment lets disregard that problem. 2. The second problem is that there is a toilet discharging into the stack at some point above where this connection is made. This means the vertical stack is a wet vent and code prohibits connecting a fixture drain to a wet vent downstream of a toilet. There is an easy solution: The IRC will permit an unlimited use of Air Admitance Valves (commonly called Studor Vents). On the horizontal pipe in the basement cut the pipe on the offset or near the offset end of the horizontal from the stack. Install a Wye & 1/8 bend or a COMBO with the side opening point upward. Stub a short riser vertical about 12" and put an 1-1/2" female thread adapter on the top, then screw an AAV into the thread adapter. This would then make the connection legal because the pipe from the trap to the AAV location would be considered the fixture drain but the line downstream of the AAV to the stack is now a vented branch line, which is legal to connect to the stack. Not only would this make the installation legal but it would also provide the additional venting required to resolve your problem.