gzec, does your washer have an internal heater? If so, my suggestion would be to run a couple of sanitary cycles with bleach first and then with liquid dishwasher detergent. If you don't have sanitary, the longest and hottest cycles your machine can achieve should work as well (it may be Whitest Whites, or something similar). Clean out the drain trap, the rubber seal around the door opening (make sure you pull back the rubber seal and get into all the nooks and crannies ;-) and the detergent/softener dispenser (including the dispenser drawer opening in the machine). Oh, and don't forget to run off the cold water before you begin your hot/sanitary cycle. Basically, you need the hottest possible cycle with strong detergent or bleach in order to kill the mold and mildew. My old Duet Sport without a heater had an occassional smell issues when I didn't know any better about HOT washes. My new LG with an internal heater (I regularly run HOT and SANITARY washer in it) has absolutely no trace of mold, mildew or smell after a year and a half of use. Good luck and let us know how you do.

One of your water valves (hot or cold, probably not both) is not fully sealing-off and is seeping water in. Run a spin-only cycle to drain the accumulated water, and turn the supply faucet(s) off, the problem should stop. That'll confirm what is wrong. Call for service. Until service arrives, leave the faucets off when not using the machine. Of course you'll have to turn them back on if you need to wash.

MM3615073 = 36th week of 2002 (it's sourced from Whirlpool; as you probably know, Kenmore is a brand label, products are sourced from other manufacturers). I found an online source $110 for the motor. It shouldn't take an experienced servicer more than an hr to do the job ... except for the stacked situation. Access is from the front, so there's possibility it doesn't need to be unstacked depending on the details ... in a recessed location, or clear to one or both sides. What's your evidence for the motor being bad? Other normal-wear items to check are the drum support rollers, belt idler, belt, and drum seals. No need to replace anything unless it's confirmed bad/worn. Friend gave a 35-years-old Kenmore dryer to me a couple years ago (with a 10-years old washer, needed a $15 part) that they were going to toss out. Dryer was "slow," they suspected the element being weak/bad ... but elements typically either work or not, they don't normally weaken over time toward coldness, so I suspected some other problem. Ended up the top-mount filter had a broken handle so it wasn't pushed fully down (or cleaned very often). The unit was clogged with lint from airflow bypassing the filter. I cleaned it up, replaced the filter and rear drum seal that was aged, sold it for $80. The belt, rollers, & idler were in excellent condition, probably had been serviced at some point in time (the element had been previously replaced). Anyway, the point is that the 35-years-old unit had/has some years of good usage left.

Shawneeks, I won't pretend to be an expert and I don't know what part of the country you live in but a washer lint filter is a good idea in my opinion. I have one that I had installed after having my new septic system installed to the tune of about ten thousand dollars. I live in the Massachusetts on the coast where the soil can be anything from sandy to clay with huge boulders. I also worked in the local Health Department for several years (where the unhappy people came for permits when their septic systems had failed and they were desperate to close on a sale or needed to be able to bath, flush and do laundry). The worse the soil the more expensive the replacement system. So any preventive measure that is as simple as a lint filter is worth it in my opinion. I can recommend a site that is very informative below. Explains how septic systems work and how synthetic fibers particularly can be an issue. This filter is situated above the outlet pipe and the washer drains into it. The actual filter can be lifted out and cleaned very easily. I have a couple of backups for if I want to give a more thorough cleaning but don't want to interfere with the laundry cycle. There are different filters that filter out different size micron fibers. I had trouble with the finer size filter but have used the larger micron filter for probably 7 years now. Some septic systems also have a filter screen between the tank and leaching field which can get clogged with effluent and has to be literally lifted out and hosed off to get the system flowing again. I know of instances where people have complained frequently that their new system doesn't work but it's been because the filter had to be off. There are some things that you just can't help having to flush into your septic sytem but it might not hurt to take the precautionary measure of a lint filter in this equation. In reference to garbage disposals, in Massachusetts septic systems have to be designed significantly bigger to accomadate the use of a garbage grinder adding significantly to the cost of a new system or repair. Most engineers will put a disclaimer on their septic system design plans stating in effect that the system was not designed for the use of a garbage grinder. Most people don't know a lot about septic systems (why would they?). They don't find out there's a problem generally until it's already too late. I wouldn't have known any of this either if not for my job and I've had a cesspool, then septic system ever since purchasing my home 23 years ago. I wish I new then what I know now. Hope this info helps. I know it's been awhile since this was originally posted and you may already have built your house but this is something you can do even after the fact. Here is a link that might be useful: Septic Protector