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I would ideally like to add bleach to some of my washes. I have an Indesit WIB 111 front-loading washing machine. It doesn't seem to have a dedicated bleach dispenser: just pre-wash detergent, detergent, and fabric-softener compartments. The pdf manual does not even contain the word "bleach".

Google searches repeatedly seem to turn up the advice "wait until the wash has been going for 5 minutes before pouring in the bleach" which blithely seems to assume that one's washer is top-loading and can be opened mid-cycle without disaster.

How should I proceed? Pour bleach in the fabric-softener compartment? Dilute the bleach and pour it over the clothes at the start?

jez
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  • I have seen people using bleach before putting the clothes in the washing machine. Fill something big with water and put some bleach, then add the clothes to stay for some time. Then remove the water and put the clothes in the machine. Are you sure it is safe for the machine. – vladiz Feb 08 '16 at 13:25
  • Safe for the machine? I don't know. Like I say, the manual doesn't have the word "bleach" in it at all. So it doesn't say how to use it, but it also doesn't caution against using it. – jez Feb 08 '16 at 13:37
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    I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it is a how-to/technical support question about how to use your washer. A "life hack" is a seemingly intractable problem that can be solved by thinking outside the box. Unfortunately, technical support is outside the scope of this site. Sorry about the confusion. – Robert Cartaino Feb 08 '16 at 14:26

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Wash the clothes on a quick rinse to soften the clothes, then put them on to wash as normal mixing the bleach with the detergent...

Arazio
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    Okay, this is exactly what I'm talking about. Every google search leads to almost exactly this wording. And yet, as far as I ever knew, a front-loading machine would lock its door when it starts, and wouldn't let you open it (to add either bleach or clothes) precisely because the water would spill out everywhere. Am I wrong about this assumption? I guess I might be but I don't feel inclined to experiment... – jez Feb 08 '16 at 12:37
  • That's if you try and add it through the door! Use the detergent dispenser – Arazio Feb 08 '16 at 12:41
  • Thanks for the clarification. So if I've understood correctly: you're saying I should use the detergent dispenser for bleach, which means I'm not using it for detergent. Instead, you say add detergent before putting in clothes: that means I'm putting detergent powder (and Calgon) into the drum with the dry load of clothes at the start...? – jez Feb 08 '16 at 12:51
  • Read edit, all you really have to do is mix the bleach in through the detergent dispenser :-) – Arazio Feb 08 '16 at 12:56
  • @jez did you try it? I think when you start the machine it will wash away the detergent from the dispenser and after that you can add bleach. And some machines allow to stop it and open the door, add something and continue washing, because the water level is below the door level. – vladiz Feb 08 '16 at 13:13
  • @vladiz Thanks, that's good to know. I've never opened the detergent drawer after the start so I don't know how long it takes to clear. It's worth a try. – jez Feb 08 '16 at 13:34
  • @Arazio: thanks for the edit, that also sounds like something I could try. I had hesitated to mix bleach directly with undiluted detergent/calgon (especially in powder form) because... well, because of a non-specific fear of chemistry I suppose. – jez Feb 08 '16 at 13:34
  • @jez No problem, I understand, as would I – Arazio Feb 08 '16 at 13:43
  • @Arazio The bottle of bleach I am having here states explicitly to not mix detergent with bleach as this can lead to toxic gases.

    Has anyone here tried adding diluted bleach through the detergent dispenser while the machine is already running (and the detergent has already been flsuhed out)?

     – retrovertigo Dec 10 '21 at 07:18