Can you post a photo?

What exactly did the tech do when he was there? I'm wondering if he could have put a lubricant in there or something. Maybe some graphite or something? That's my first suspicion.

Well I should have taken a pic, but didn't think about it as I was grossing out over what I was seeing!
I don't think the tech did anything to be honest, besides exposing the unit to take a look. My son said he had it opened up, but the tech didn't fix anything.
No, this isn't graphite as I did a load of light colored pillowcases this morning and they had some leftover debris on them. I did not see any in the wash water etc. or left on the inside drum, so I surmise it's ick inside the inner drum coming out.
I picked most of it off the pillow cases after I hung them on the line. It's very small and not inky, but more of a gel like consistency, kinda gummy, but not sticky either!
I have not laundered anything that would have caused this BTW. It's enough debris to notice and is on most items and not in one spot.
I popped the cap off the impeller again and it was clean as a whistle.
I still would like to take the impeller off to see what's underneath it. The bolt is 5 or 6 sided, I counted and forgot! Can I use a wrench without striping the threads?

ss,
I use Bio-Kleen, not exclusively, as you had used prior to your Charlie's swap. I remember reading a post a long time ago about you having some issue with it. Can you remember what it was?

What else can I try to clean the inner drum of any build-up?
I have to be a bit careful since I'm on septic.

Thanks for your help!

Upon taking the impeller off, I think I found the source of the debris!
Note before and after PICS of the underside of the impeller.
I used an old toothbrush and some Q-tips to clean the unreachable areas.
This build-up was NOT slimy but dry and hardened. When I used hot water and the shower head to rinse it off it somewhat resembled the debris left on the clothing.
Now.... there is a small amt. of visible water below the tub when looking thru the small slots. Is this normal?
No smell or slime present as shown.
I couldn't figure out how to open the top of the machine to expose the inner tub and washer shell... darn!

Hope this helps anyone that has this problem or just wants to ck their impeller for buildup.
Oh, this machine is a Kenmore Oasis (3yrs. old in March)
BTW, this impeller is a replacement I installed due to scratches in the old one caused by zippers etc.. I now zip and button pants and haven't had a problem since.

{{!gwi}}
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bookert

That looks like the mold I found in my Frigidaire washer soap compartment before I got rid of it, I can imagine where else it was in the washer. YUK!

Does it smell like mold? have your clothes been smelling moldy?

Do you leave the soap compartment & door open to dry out?

I didnt know I was suppose to when I had my frigidaire. I wish I would have because it was a much better fl than my new Whirlpool Duet.

EW!!!!

Now I'm worried... I've been using BIOKLEEN for about a year now and I hope my machine doesn't have the same issues. I'm not getting any black deposits on my clothing, and I just checked the pin trap and pump impeller -- clean as a whistle!

Still worried tho...

mc58,
This didn't resemble the mold I had in my older Neptune that was notorious for major mold buildup. (that machine was not the new model FL Neptune I took back because of suds issues)

No smell, odor, anywhere in unit or transferred to clothing.
This was NOT slimy, but like dried chocolate for a lack of a better description. The debris is like little specks of stuff, I should have had my son take a pic of some on the clothing before I cleaned things up.(I have NO idea how he managed to post the pics!)
The Oasis utilizes a traditional dispenser unit like that of regular TL machines, therefore they are exposed to air all of the time. Having had a few other FL's that had the drawers, yes, I used to do that to prevent any mold issues.
I do leave the lid up for awhile after washing, but with this unit I've never had any slime in the dispensers period. They dry out quickly.
I used to have a Duet that I really liked, but it developed issues for me before a years time and I was able to return it. I have heard that the Frigidaire FL's are good units, but hang in there with the Duet, it's also a great choice.

Funny, all growing up we had funky washers and never once had any issues with mold!!
I'm in the middle of doing another load to see if cleaning the impeller fixed the problem. Will post my findings soon!

I will add that I'm very careful with the products I use as I've learned the hard way and have also gotten great advice here on this forum. I don't use FS except for vinegar and on a rare occasion I will use Ecover FS diluted at least 50/50.
This is not to discredit ANYONE who uses traditional detergents and products, I myself, have developed sensitivities to most of them, so I stopped using them.

Oh, now that was disgusting...

So, am I reading correctly that you've had this machine about a year using mostly biokleen during that time, but a recent venture into home made soap???

My machine is almost 2 years old (bosch fl)... I used all free & clear liquid for about 4 months (he version) and then switched to charlies... I sure hope I've got nothing going on inside like that....

Have you tried hot washes with cascade complete powder for the dishwasher??? It should be fine for the septic (it's what I use in the dishwasher with a septic)

Do you close the lid when you tl in not being used??? My maytag (pre the bosch) manual said to always leave the lid open when not in use... I'm guessing this was to air it out... I always did, althoug I know most people do not leave their tl's open...

plumbly22,
This unit is 3 yrs. old. No, I am funny, I like to use different detergents, soaps on certain loads so the Bio-Kleen is used less than 40% of the time sometimes less. Yes, the homemade soap venture is very recent and only involved approx. 25 loads as I gave the rest away because I couldn't handle the smell! =)
I have used the clean washer cycle using bleach as required, but have not used Cascade yet! Good idea, I will run cycle using some tonight!
I close the lid when I'm sure everything is dry.(before going to bed) I'm in SoCal and especially now, believe me, it doesn't take long to dry out! Clothes sometimes dry in as little as 5-10 min. on the line depending on the fabric and if a hot breeze is blowing! I have a laundry room that has an outside door with a window so there is more than enough air flow. I do a TON of laundry almost daily so the unit gets lots of use!!! I do not use bleach except for Ecover Oxyclean unless I do the "clean washer" cycle.
Most of the loads are done using warm wash as I even wash delicates in warm water with no problems. Water heater is right next to the laundry room too!

Cool pics huh! I was grossed out, but am also happy I was able to discover it and clean it off!

ss,
Sorry didn't see your post come up last time.
IMO the Bio-Kleen isn't an issue. I mean we can say any detergent is a culprit when we discover buildup. It would have been different if the machine was having buildup early on etc... then maybe I might question a detergent or soap that I was using, and that's a maybe.
My machine doesn't have an internal heater and I'm curious to know if your Asko? has any buildup inside. Maybe the high heat dissipates the formation of buildup occurring? I'm just reaching for straws here. Forgive me if I sound dumb here, I'm not a techy, but love to learn!

So for the follow-up results...
Have done several loads using various cycles, including a king sized blanket that uses the bulky cycle and therefore almost entirely fills the drum w/water.
NO DEBRIS!
I haven't run Cascade through a cycle yet, but I will, just because.
I am happy that I was able to easily clean the impeller without having to schedule a service call. Service contract or not, it still requires you to be home ALL day and wait!!!

I'm still waiting for someone to chime in and tell me how to pop the top off the machine to expose the inner tub and shell. My son didn't watch the tech so he is of no help.
I'm very curious to see if there is any buildup there too!!
(I'm thinking not, but hey, why not ck it out just in case!)
Great day to all!

Looks like fungus. Plastic takes a long time to dry. I would guess if you do a load, allow the washer to dry open as long as usually do, then remove the wash plate, it will still be wet. You could try borax in the wash regularly, and of course, no fabric softener.

Here is a link that might be useful: Cabrio washer teardown.

Kool Aide???

I question adding a food item to your washer to clean it. You may be feeding the mildew, which is what that is, not mold. Leave the lid open and avoid the homebrew soaps.

(chuckling at Kool Aid as a "food item"!) Uh, actually Tang, lemonade and the like are recommended for cleaning dishwashers because the citric acid in them. I'd be careful though since Kool Aid is a pretty good dye for certain things and often difficult to remove from clothing. And even if you used the sugar added version, it'd dissolve and be washed out. I don't think Kool Aid would have much impact, good or bad, on the washer. For a washer, I'd use bleach and possibly the dishwasher detergent with enzymes. Some dishwasher detergents of course have bleach in them. I use DW detergent as a laundry booster occasionally and it's quite effective.

It looks like mold to me by the little dot pattern. I've seen it before although not in a washer. To be honest, the only place I have ever seen that kind of mold was in a toilet or walls. It doesn't take a lot of water for it to grow either. Usually good humidity or a little condensation over time is enough for it to develope. Not tryng to be offensive or gross, just saying what I've seen. This particular type of mold does not have a strong smell and the odor does mimic water so that would explain no smell. It also has the same consistancy you spoke of.

What kind of water do you have, well or city supplied? How often do you clean the machine, and what do you use to clean it?

To all,
Let's see.........
I used the Kool-Aid thing because of it's citric acid content. Didn't want to buy a big container of Tang is why I chose it.
I do use Borax although not in every load and I only use F.S. on a rare occasion.
Am on well water, but also have a whole house filter hooked up to the water heater that is changed every few months or sooner. I use better filters not just the basic ones.
The machine has a special cycle to clean the machine and it says to use regular bleach only. I only use chlorine bleach for this cycle as I otherwise only use oxy bleach. The homebrew soap was not used for every load and I only used it for a short period. Now I'm not saying this didn't have an impact on the resulting ick, but you can be sure I'm going to inspect the impeller every few weeks to ck it.
The dot pattern you mentioned was actually the larger chunks of debris. I have dealt with mold before on walls and the pinkish slime that can sometimes build up in toilets, but these spores or whatever were not raised and active as it may have looked like. It looked like a crud like texture, but hey if it was mold I'm all over the idea of ridding the machine of it!

mrmensch,
Thanks so much for the Cabrio tear down link!!! I will most certainly be cking it out and will report back if I'm able to get the lid off! I'm actually excited about it!!!

To update, I haven't had any debris on clothing or in the drum since I cleaned the impeller and I continue to have no issues to date!

BTW, I just received my order of C.S. and will test it out and see how it performs with my hard well water. I do not know how to determine the grain hardness and the closest water testing that the county uses is an hour away. Any suggestions on how to ck it out cheaply?
I was told to add some STTP or more washing soda in case my results were below average. I will relay my findings soon!

Again thanks to all, no really!!! =)

My first thought was 'mineral deposits'.

weedmeister,
Would well water be the culprit?

I took the dispenser trays apart last week and didn't find any buildup on them or in the inner trays. So far so good!

I will further my search and take apart some more of the machine to see if there is any buildup inside.

Note: I did see a ever so slight rusting of the inner lips of the machine. Can I spray WD-40 on those areas to stop the rusting? Is there a gooey grease that might stay on better? Now this is very, very minor, but noticed it when I shined a flashlight under the lid and looked beyond the tub to the inner shell.

Thanks much!

"I do not know how to determine the grain hardness and the closest water testing that the county uses is an hour away. Any suggestions on how to ck it out cheaply? "

cheap way to test hardness...
I think some big box stores sell test kits.. However, what I use (and I'm not saying this is an exact science, but it's pretty close as I've actually had a lab test my water and compared results) is to purchase a hard water test kit from a pet/fish store. You fill the vial, add 3 drops of one chemical, 4 drops of next... then you count the drops on the 3rd chemical until water turns blue. Each drop of that 3rd chemical represents 1 grain hardness. Again, not an exact science as the drops can differ in size (based on angle of dropper, etc) but is definitely close. (and cheap)

If you have a culligan store or a sears store nearby, they will test water for free. However, realize that they WANT TO SELL you a product... (read that as you want to)

Obviously the very BEST way to check hardness is to have a reputable lab do the testing.. It's really quite reasonable to test for some basics (hardness, iron, manganese, etc).

What is FS? lol

FS = Fabric Softener