Home » Overloading Your Washing Machine

Overloading Your Washing Machine

Washing machines are certainly complex appliances in many respects but they are also very strong and hardy machines. They would have to be to regularly take in water, wouldn’t they? Many people are also very respectful of washing machines and know how to use them safely, however, there is one problem that many people fall into accidentally.

This problem well as you may have guessed is overloading! Overloading your washing machine is easier to do than you might think, you could easily think there is plenty of room in your washing machine, but it could be a lot more packed than you realise.

Even if it looks like there is room it could actually be packed. So, let’s take a look at overloading, find out what exactly it is, why it is so damaging and see how you can help prevent it. No matter what type of washing machine you have this is a problem that can always occur so read on to find out more.

What Is Overloading?

Overloading is when you pile too many clothes into your washing machine, now this doesn’t always mean that you have gone above the weight limit either. It’s perfectly possible to overload your washing machine and still stay within the weight limit, so the two issues aren’t as closely related as you might think.

Overloading your washing machine basically means that you have put too many clothes into the drum so that when the washing machine spins they don’t have the freedom of movement they need to effectively clean themselves. Now, this might seem like an easy problem to avoid but many people overload their washing machines without even realising it.

Why Is Overloading Bad?

Overloading your washing machine is bad for a number of reasons to better explain why let’s look at the three main things a washing machine needs to clean effectively. To clean clothes effectively a washing machine needs heat, motion and finally detergent.

The heat will loosen dirt and stains and is what activates the cleaning properties of any detergents you use. The motion of your washing machine turning is what shakes the particles of dirt free and helps wash them away. Whereas the detergent is what actually helps power through the stains, so they can be washed away.

Now as you can probably guess from that an overloaded washing machine effects all three of these areas in one way or another. The main area it effects is motion because when clothes are packed in tightly together they won’t have the motion they need to spin effectively and therefore they will likely be unable to shake particles of dirt free.

They also affect the heat and detergent though because when a washing machine is overloaded the clothes will be tightly packed against one another and therefore they’ll be unable to evenly spread throughout the clothes.

This means that your clothes won’t be washed properly and will often be left with white streaks of soap or come out smelling. So, as you can see overloading your washing machine might not seem like a big issue, but it can cause a lot of problems. So, let’s see what you can do to fix it shall we?

How Can I Prevent It?

Overloading might seem like a relatively easy problem to solve, all you need to do is load your clothes into your washing machine carefully and make sure there is plenty of room, right? Well, unfortunately, no not in every case anyway.

If you want to wash larger items like sheets or blankets you should feed them in slowly around the drum so it doesn’t get tangled. Instead place clothes in slowly one at a time instead of putting them all in one big group, we know this mind sound annoying but it’s the best way to prevent any overloading issues.

You should also make sure there is a 10cm gap around the washing machine’s drum, so your clothes have the motion they need to effectively spin around the washing machine. And while weight is an important issue you should also take the volume into account. It’s true that weight isn’t always a great measurement to use when it comes to overloading but you should still take it into account.

So, that is everything you need to know when it comes to overloading your washing machine, yes this might not seem like a big issue. But repeatedly overloading cycles can cause a lot of problems and can even cause serious damage to your washing machine and you may need the help of a qualified appliance engineer. So, make sure you are always careful when loading your washing machine, so you can ensure you avoid this all too common problem.