I’m a housewife – the reason your washing machine smells like mold & how to solve it with my hands-off cleaning method

HAVE you ever opened your washing machine and been hit with a moldy smell?

A cleaning expert explained the area of your washing machine where mold often grows, and how to remove it with little effort.

Instagram user Nicole Jacques, who runs the account The Board Housewife, revealed the reason why your like mold, and how to fix it.

The cleaning expert explained: "The smell comes from the rubber lining where moisture builds up and causes mold spores."

"Usually the icky smell comes from build up of detergent and moisture so mold and mildew grow," she added.

Nicole also told her followers that dirt, grime, and even sunscreen can also become trapped in this rubber rim and cause your machine to smell.

The cleaning expert shared her easy hands-off method for tackling this problem.

"Saturating an area in vinegar is a great way to prime spaces for easier cleaning, with 10 to 30 minutes of soaking. Let’s double down and add baking soda action to this," Nicole said in the caption.

She continued: "Soak two towels in cold water with baking soda. Spray distilled vinegar on the rubber rim of the washing machine. Let both set for 30mins or an hour."

Nicole told her followers to ring out the towels and add them to the washing machine, running on a hot cycle with distilled vinegar instead of detergent.

"Wipe out the rim and it’s as good as new," the Instagrammer told viewers.

She added: "For an extra icky washing machine, consider vinegar soaked rags or paper towels set into the grooves of a narrow moldy space overnight."

Nicole's followers took to the comments section to share their thoughts on the cleaning tip.

"But then how do you clean the towels?" joked one viewer.

Another user said: "I like how my front loader [high efficiency] cleans, but can’t decide if for my next one I should go back to a top loader and stop fighting the mold/mildew."

"It works a treat. Great for cleaning showers and sinks too. Besides cleaning like you do, we started leaving the door open between loads and it really helps," commented a third person.