Front-loading washer smells? Clean the drum monthly, then the door seal and the pump filter

When clothes come out of the wash smelling musty, the cause usually sits in one of three places: the drum, the rubber seal around the door, or the filter at the bottom of the machine. The steps below come from Samsung’s support pages; programme names vary by brand, so check your own manual.

1. Drum clean, at least once a month

Most front loaders have a drum-clean programme that heats water to 60–70°C and clears mould and grime from the drum and the door seal.

• Make sure the drum is completely empty. Never run this programme with laundry inside.
• Switch on, select the drum-clean programme and press start.
• Samsung machines flash a reminder on the panel every 40 washes.

2. The door seal

Water collects in the fold of the rubber, and that is where mould starts.

• Open the door and take everything out.
• Pull the seal back with your fingers and look for stains or trapped objects.
• Wipe it with a soft brush, kitchen towel or damp cloth.
• If it needs more, use diluted chlorine bleach in warm water on a cloth, wearing rubber gloves. Bleach can deform the seal, so go easy.
• Dry it with a clean cloth and leave the door open until the inside is dry.
• Don’t spray water onto the machine.

3. The pump filter, when draining slows or an alert appears

• Unplug the machine first, and never open the filter while it is running: hot water can pour out.
• Have a large bowl ready, since more water comes out than you’d expect, plus a dry cloth.
• Open the small filter cover at the bottom with a coin or key.
• Pull out the emergency drain tube, ease its cap off and let the water run into the bowl.
• Unscrew the filter cap anticlockwise, rinse off whatever has collected, and check the pump propeller behind it turns freely.
• Screw the filter back tightly, refit the drain cap and tube, and close the cover. Leave any of them out and the machine may leak or fail.

Photo: The drum and door seal of a front-loading washing machine. By MichalPL, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Source: Samsung support, “Clean the drum & door seal on a Samsung washing machine” and “How to clean the Debris filter in Samsung Front Loading Washing Machine”, read 20 October 2026.