My Washing Machine Stinks (literally!)

Seven years ago I purchased a Maytag Neptune washer on the recommendation of one of RC Willey's finest piranhas/employees. It has been an okay washer considering how I feel about laundry.

The first red flag came several years ago when I received a class action settlement letter in the mail. Apparently the Neptune front load washing machines have a tendency to grow mold and actually smell like mildew. So what was my piece of the pie? I got a 10% off coupon for my next Maytag washer and dryer. Yippee! whatever.

So fast forward a few years and my washer just flat out stinks. Fresh towels that I have washed on hot and put in the dryer within minutes of the buzzer going off--come out smelling like mildew. Some of my gym clothes stink before I've even worked out in them! There is nothing like getting out of the shower and putting a clean, fresh, warm towel to your face that smells like a dirty gym sock.

I went online and apparently this is a problem with most front-load washing machines. The manufacturers now recommend that you either leave your washing machine door open after every wash to let the inside dry completely, or wipe it out with a towel after every wash. As if.

Am I the only one with this problem? Are your front-loading machines decent? I'm ready to walk into the Willey and lay down 400 bucks for an old school top loader. Is there really any advantage to the front-loader?

Airing My Dirty Laundry

The other day, Luke took a look at the overflowing laundry basket and asked Sam why I never do laundry. Sam told Luke it was a great question and of couse, shared it with me. I promptly cornered Luke and told him to do me a solid and not ask dad those kinds of questions.

I have three baskets of clean unfolded laundry in my hall right now. They've been there all week folks. Now I'm doing laundry again and I still haven't folded and put away the laundry from last week. Granted, it was Halloween and there was a lot going on. But this happens every week. Each morning, Sam says "go fish" and reaches into one of the baskets to find a clean pair of, er, socks.

The truth is, I'm never on top of the laundry. I hate that you do load after load and even as I'm running the machine, new dirty laundry is finding it's way into the hamper. It doesn't help that I am very anal when it comes to washing and drying. Nothing navy, black or red or anything that I care about really, will ever go in the dryer. That means I have this bad boy in my bedroom just about full time. I don't even see it anymore.

This is really a cry for help. Does anyone enjoy laundry? What are your tricks for not having it take over your life? I prefer to do it all on one day because otherwise I feel like you have to dig through the hamper every day to put together a load of darks, colds, whites, etc. Help!