Whirlpool W10135699 Affresh High Efficiency Washer Cleaner, 3-Tablets
by Whirlpool
|
List Price: Our Price: $6.99 You Save: $3.00 (30%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Tools See more product details |
|---|
Tools and Hardware Reviews of Whirlpool W10135699 Affresh High Efficiency Washer Cleaner, 3-Tablets
Customer Review: Maybe the odor is mold?
Summary: 3 Stars
Affresh is a pleasant product, but it might not do what you hope.
I noticed a damp basement / old person smell in our front loading clothes washer. Affresh sounded like a great product to take that lovely smell away. The instructions are pretty simple, toss one tablet in an empty washer, and run a normal cycle with hot water setting. If the smell isn't gone, or the washer is has mold or mildew, repeat two more times.
The results are mixed. The first tablet made the washer smell a bit better, but those old folks were still in there. Since I had my head in the washer smelling around, I decided to study the rubber door seal. Oh, I found the culprit, a big beautiful old colony of black mold growing on the seal.
So a toothbrush, some other chemicals, and another tablet later; the old folks were mostly evicted. I'm guessing that third tablet might lower the smell level a bit. However, I've decided to call in the professionals, or some DIY, and replace the door seal. Until you remove those old black mold / mildew folks, their smell will remain.
I think this is a good product. The tablets do smell very nice - a subtle clean odor, not perfumy. If your washer has a mold build up in a door seal, then it will likely not fix that problem. The old folks will not move out to the retirement community because of these tablets.
I am excited to try the dishwasher / garbage disposal product, Whirlpool W10282479 Affresh Dishwasher and Disposal Cleaner.
Customer Review: Doesn't Work
Summary: 1 Stars
I purchased this product for my front-loading washer; even though I keep the door wide open when not in use, after a year the washer had developed a mildewy smell that transferred to the clean laundry. I tried using Affresh three times, and this product does not work! My washing machine actually smelled WORSE after using it! I finally poured about a cup bleach into the drum of the machine and filled the bleach dispenser tray full in order to get rid of the smell. The bleach worked fairly well but not completely. I don't like to use bleach in my machine because it is corrosive to metal (our drum is stainless steal) and can break down the rubber in the gasket and seals. I finally purchased a box of Borax for a few dollars at the grocery store. Borax is not corrosive and does not damage clothing fibers. In addition to absorbing odor, it is a natural fungicide and kills the mildew and mold that caused the odor in the washer. I sprinkled a half cup of Borax on top of a load of towels and then put the normal amount of detergent in the tray and ran a normal wash cycle. Presto--the smell is gone! My washing machine smells great, and my dishcloths and towels no longer develop a funky odor after using them. I plan to use Borax regularly to keep my laundry and washing machine smelling fresh. It's not a very glamorous solution, but it's cheap and works great! Way better than wasting my money on pricey Affresh tablets that don't help.Customer Review: Great product for new Whirlpool washing machine
Summary: 5 Stars
I recently upgraded my front loading washing machine from an old Frigidaire to a fancy new Whirlpool Duet. After only a couple of months the washer developed a severe funky mildew smell and I was shocked. I was using the machine's "clean" cycle with bleach, per the manual, every time the reminder light went off but it had no effect. I've had front loading washers for over thirty years and NEVER encountered this problem before.
After talking with a friend who purchased a similar front loading machine and had the same problems, I followed his recommendation to use only powdered detergents (which this washer handles very nicely) and alternate between this product, Affresh, and Borax on the cleaning cycle. After the switch to powdered detergent and one clean cycle with Affresh my washer is as good as new and stays that way between clean cycles. I don't know if bleach will do the trick now that I've switched to powdered detergent, but I do know that Affresh did a great job getting rid of the buildup that had accumulated after less than six months in my new washer. I am very happy with this product.
Customer Review: OMG!! They did not make these things MAGIC??? (UPDATED 2011)
Summary: 5 Stars
Gee, these tablets are not magic for people that let their machines get so bad they stink, they are PREVENTATIVE measures. You put one in every month and you NEVER HAVE A PROBLEM!!!! Geez folks, I admit that bleach might so the same thing but I have used these religiously since I got the washer (since the manufacturer recommended it) and I have never had a problem with my washer smelling bad in 2+ years (wonder why??). People never cease to amaze me when they rate something with 1 Star when it's their own lack of understanding of what a product really is and not a shortcoming of the product. I am intrigued by the Borax solution though since my past uses of that product indicate it might actually do the trick. Bottom line is these are NOT MAGIC they are to be used every month and you will never have a problem.
UPDATE: Well here we are after 4+ years and I still use them and my machine still smells and runs perfectly, I still recommend these tablets highly. Once a month and no problems.
Customer Review: Still stinky after the whole bag! :(
Summary: 1 Stars
I got this because our washer stinks and it is causing the clothes to stink too. I did a search and found this product and "Smelly Washer" and found that I was able to buy Affresh at Lowe's by my house so I could use it the same day. I followed the directions exactly and ended up using all three (yes, that is all you get in an $8 packet) in one day. The directions said something like, if it's still smelly, do it again, and again, and again... I wrote to the company and they didn't even have the decency to write back! I will NEVER buy Affresh again because I think that it made the smell worse (it must have loosened the smelly stuff?!) Eventually I broke down and bought Smelly Washer from smellywasher.com and it helped much more and is a much more economic price! Don't waste your money on this!