Towels smell worse when they come out of the washer than when they went in? You just might have a smelly washer.

For some reason, during the summer my towels were coming out of the washing machine smelling much worse than before I put them in. I changed detergents. I added more detergent. I waited in front on the machine to be able to immediately pull the towels out of the machine and get them in the dryer. All to no avail. I had a smelly washer.

My problem began by overuse of detergent and then underutilization of my washing machine. The more my washer smelled the more detergent I used and the less I used my machine. I did discover when I used liquid detergent the smell was much worse than if I used only powdered detergent. But when I washed towels, it was just awful.

Then I tried Smelly Washer. I admit I was skeptical. Remember, I had tried plenty of remedies and none of them had worked. So, what did I have to lose?

I followed the directions and odor removal tips to the letter. I mixed one tablespoon of Smelly Washer with very hot water in a spray bottle and sprayed heavily onto the interior section of the rubber gasket of my front-load washer. I allowed to set overnight and then wiped with a hot, wet towel the next morning. Then, I added one level capful of Smelly Washer in place of detergent and ran my washing machine on the hottest cycle available.

Voila! I am now the proud owner of a fresh smelling washing machine!

The History of Smelly Washer:

Mold buildup in front load washers is such a big problem that major manufacturers of front loading washing machines are fighting class action lawsuits claiming the designs of the washers are at fault.  The manufacturers and washing machine repair centers were taking many thousands of calls complaining of mold odor in the washers and laundry they washed.

Then came Smelly Washer, an all-natural washing machine mildew and odor remover that is the brainchild of Paul Flynn.

Flynn grew up on a dairy farm outside Rochester, Minn. He joined the Navy and served as a machinist for five years on a submarine repair ship at a naval weapons station near Charleston, South Carolina. He and his crewmates made various repairs on the subs that would moor alongside his ship and at the dry dock nearby.

A major part of his Navy life was “Field Day.” This consisted of spending most of the day maintaining and cleaning the machines and the shop. One of the worst jobs was cleaning the coolant residue off the large lathes used for turning shafts. One day, when Flynn was in charge of the field day a senior chief petty officer took him to the galley to show him how to make a cleaner out of food products. The cleaner worked well and they made large batches of it to clean the machines.

Years after the Navy Flynn was laid off from a job late in 2001 he decided to take a Home Appliance Repair course at Dunwoody Institute in Minneapolis. Soon after, he got a job with Sears repairing residential appliances.

A big part of the home appliance calls had to do with the odor caused by mold and residue that collected deep inside front-loading washing machines. He found that even after taking the machine apart and scraping the sometimes thick “goo” that it still wouldn’t be enough to remove the odor.

Flynn remembered his Navy days and the concoction his senior chief had taught him how to make. He decided to make his own batch and use it on the washers he cleaned – and it worked wonderfully!

In 2005, Paul Flynn created Smelly Washer Inc. and launched www.smellywasher.com. Out of his home, he would fill zip lock baggies from large tubs and send them to customers who ordered from the site. Sales went so well the following year he went “professional” and had a friend make a filling machine, bought plastic bottles, designed and printed product labels.   After people started calling about Smelly Washer, hardware stores nationwide began ordering and selling it at their front counters.  Flynn now has distributors in Ireland and the U.K.  He no longer repairs appliances.

Although other washer cleaners have since hit the market but Smelly Washer still enjoys the distinction of:

* being the only all-natural washing machine cleaner available (no scents or dyes and conforms with “all natural” product standards);
* the only cleaner that will remove odor causing mildew and mold spores from towels and clothing;
* and is the only cleaner that has 24 treatments (one year’s worth) per 12-ounce bottle compared to the 1- 3 treatments with other products per industry standards.

Chic Galleria and Smelly Washer are giving away bottles of Smelly Washer to 3 lucky Chic Galleria readers! Want to know how to win? Just leave us a comment and tell us if you have a stinky washing machine. Ends July 16th midnight EST.

All Chic Galleria readers received 10% off by using the Promo Code: chicgalleria

Congratulations to Mari, Louise and Liz!

Tags: Product Review, smells, washing machine