Stinky Clothes And Towels...please Help!

This thread was marked as solved. Here's a summary of the problem and the fix, generated from the discussion below.

Musty smell on towels and clothes from LG top-load HE washer improved after repeated cleaning

The problem

An LG top-load HE washing machine, around two years old, was leaving towels and clothes with a funky, rusty-pipe type odour, especially noticeable after a couple of uses. The smell had developed over the previous couple of months.

Likely cause

The discussion most strongly supports odour build-up from mould or mildew inside the washer. Other possible causes mentioned were an item trapped between the inner and outer drums or a plumbing-related smell, but these were not confirmed.

What fixed it

The accepted advice was to check standard washing machine odour causes, consider whether an item was trapped between the drums, and rule out plumbing smells. The original poster then carried out repeated clean cycles during the week, using hot water added to the clean cycle as well as vinegar and bleach, and began leaving the lid open after each wash for ventilation. The poster concluded that regular weekly or fortnightly clean cycles help keep mould and mildew down.

Checks to try

• Repeated washer clean cycles were run
• Vinegar and bleach were used during cleaning
• A gallon of hot water was added to the clean cycle
• The lid was left open after each wash to improve air circulation
• Possible trapped item between inner and outer drums was suggested
• Possible plumbing-related smell was suggested

Parts or tools mentioned

• Vinegar
• Bleach