A large number of washing machine breakdowns occur due to water hardness. For the same reason, the washing process becomes ineffective. The salts in the water settle on the heating element and other parts of the equipment, which leads to the formation of multilayer scale. Many experts strongly advise to systematically clean the machine. The remedy for this prophylaxis is ordinary citric acid. In this article we will tell you how much citric acid needs to be poured, and how to descale a washing machine with citric acid?
Citric acid cleaning steps
The descaling procedure requires only a small piece of dry cloth and citric acid powder. All actions can be expressed in the following list:
- First you need to inspect the drum so that it is empty. Most tissues are discolored by the product.
- Pour about 90-100 g of citric acid into the powder tray. The amount of lemon poured should correspond to the volume of the drum. If you need to clean equipment with a capacity of up to 4 kg, then up to 50-60 g of lemon will be enough. It is also allowed to pour citric acid into the drum itself.
- Next, you need to decide on the regime. It should contain a rinse, spin. If scale has formed in a small amount, it is enough to warm the water to 60 ° C, otherwise the water must be heated to 90 ° C.
- When the drum is empty and closed and the powder container is full of lemon, the washing mode starts.
- After completing the process, it is imperative to inspect the places under the drum cuff. There may be traces of limescale. They should simply be thoroughly wiped with a dry cloth.
- Finally, you need to clean the drain filter, dry the powder container.
When the wash cycle is in progress, you can see limescale fragments that have fallen off under the influence of the acid. This means that the tool has completely coped with its task.
Experienced craftsmen claim that such a preventive technique should be performed at least three times throughout the year. If the water has a high hardness, then after every 30 wash it is necessary to clean the machine. With a weak water hardness, the cleaning procedure will be sufficient twice a year.
See also - How to clean the drain and inlet filter of the washing machine
Why clean your washing machine with citric acid?
It is not difficult to follow step-by-step instructions on how to clean a washing machine with citric acid. The question arises: why is this necessary? Most often, the water supplied through the pipes has a high percentage of salts and impurities.At the moment of heating, the salt contained in the water settles on the surface of the heating element, and scale appears. The same thing happens with dishwashers and electric kettles.
If you do not descale the appliance in time, this will increase the time for heating the water. Consequently, electricity consumption will increase. Burnout of the heating element is not excluded. For this reason, the prevention of the washing machine must be carried out in a timely manner and efficiently.
Using citric acid can effectively descale ten and washing machine drum. When the water is heated, the acid reacts with scale and destroys it. Scale flakes fall off equipment parts and are washed off with water.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Citric Acid
There is no doubt about the positive effect of using lemon. Scale actually disappears. However, is there a negative impact of this remedy?
To answer the question posed - how much to pour, and can citric acid for a washing machine cope with scale? Any remedy is beneficial if applied in the right amount. If you clean the machine with a large amount of lemon, while setting the mode with the maximum temperature for heating the water, the effect will be devastating. Parts made of plastic or rubber will begin to deform when exposed to acid and hot water. The plaque will also chip off, only together with the surface of the plastic and rubber elements.
Important:
The temperature of the water and lemon should not be neglected. The tool will effectively clean plaque even in warm water, hot water only increases the intensity of the process. A temperature of 60 ° C is enough to activate the process of splitting salt deposits.
Many housewives who carefully take care of their household appliances advise using a lemon to clean the washer. The reason is that this mixture is available to almost everyone. In addition, citric acid is harmless to the body, does not provoke an allergic reaction, and is quickly washed out with water.
There are hardly any people who bring water to a boil in their washing machine. And many things have a temperature limit of up to 40 ° C. Therefore, the effect will not improve if more citric acid is added. A positive effect is achieved by the balanced use of the product.
Technique care methods
Is it possible to clean the washing machine with other, no less effective, means? The answer is yes. Specialized departments of stores are inundated with a large assortment of similar products. The use of such goods is carried out in strict compliance with the rules prescribed in the instructions of the tool.
Familiarization with the rules of use should not be neglected. Especially when the prevention of the washing machine was carried out a long time ago. Because an excessive amount of cleaning agent can cause serious malfunctions of individual units or the entire washing machine.
If you decide to clean the washing machine with the juice of freshly squeezed lemon juice instead of citric acid, the result will be low, since the acid concentration in fresh lemon juice is quite low. It is also not recommended to use vinegar instead of lemon, as it can provoke the oxidation of some elements of technology. It's no secret to some housewives that you can clean your washing machine with Coca-Cola. To clean the washer with Coca-Cola, it is necessary to pour about 3 liters into the drum, set the temperature mode to 60 ° C and start the washing process. Read also: how to clean a washing machine with baking soda.
Timely prevention of the washing machine will help prevent the accumulation of large salt deposits. For this, it is enough to know simple washing machine care rules.
- To reduce water hardness, it is better to use emollients for water.
- The amount of powder should be strictly limited in accordance with the norms indicated on the packaging of the product. Automatic washing powders already contain water softeners.
- It is better not to wash too worn and shabby things, as loose threads and pieces of fabric settle on the parts.
- Wash your clothes in a temperature regime not exceeding 75 ° C.
- When the washing process is over, wipe the drum and powder compartment dry and dry them to prevent mold and bad smell in the washing machine. Read also the article on how to get rid of mold in a washing machine.
The rules for cleaning the washing machine with citric acid are quite simple. There are many videos on this topic. You just need to put the necessary amount of white powder into the compartment, start the process, the machine will do everything by itself. It is enough just to handle the equipment well so as not to worry about a lot of limescale. Now you know how to descale your washing machine with citric acid.
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