Laundry

I feel your pain OP. I'm not exactly a domestic goddess, but laundry shouldn't be as difficult as I find it either! I hate the fact that I'm having to do laundry practically every single day to make things are dry before I need them. How is that energy efficient?! Luckily I haven't dyed anything (yet), I'm glad you asked the question about the bio/non-bio as I hadn't a clue. And I'll have to find out if ours has a filter to clean. We are renting, so our machine didn't come with a user's manual so I've just been guessing how to use it.

I have very sensitive skin too, so I never use anything with perfumes/fragrances/dyes. I luckily found the Ecover brand at Homebase. Its a brand we used in the US that is environmentally friendly and ok for sensitive skin.

I feel so out of my element on the household chores its not even funny.

We are renting, so our machine didn't come with a user's manual so I've just been guessing how to use it.

Google make and model.
As long as its a name brand (and not a store own brand) you should be able to download a .pdf document with the instructions.

I feel your pain OP. I'm not exactly a domestic goddess, but laundry shouldn't be as difficult as I find it either! I hate the fact that I'm having to do laundry practically every single day to make things are dry before I need them. How is that energy efficient?! Luckily I haven't dyed anything (yet), I'm glad you asked the question about the bio/non-bio as I hadn't a clue. And I'll have to find out if ours has a filter to clean. We are renting, so our machine didn't come with a user's manual so I've just been guessing how to use it.

I have very sensitive skin too, so I never use anything with perfumes/fragrances/dyes. I luckily found the Ecover brand at Homebase. Its a brand we used in the US that is environmentally friendly and ok for sensitive skin.

I feel so out of my element on the household chores its not even funny.

Glad to hear I'm not the only one. It makes me feel normal! Thanks for the suggestion, Bluegrass Lass. I'll keep an eye out for Ecover.

For now, I just keep in mind that for everything I ruin, it's an opportunity to upgrade.

We're renting too, but luckily the entire apartment came with a manual! The landlords, bless their hearts, include bus info, restaurant info, and manuals for every appliance we have. Unfortunately the dial settings on the washing machine has mostly worn off, so that part has been a guessing game.

But thank you all for all their top tips. Oh and for letting me vent.

Unfortunately the dial settings on the washing machine has mostly worn off, so that part has been a

Ok- so, since your machine seems to have been used for a while, then perhaps you might need to do a good clean of it. Not sure where you live but places with hard water will have an impact on your appliance, limescale buildup could be a problem and it could be hidden inside the machine and only come out during the wash. What I would do is to do an acid wash (buy some citric acid and use it as a detergent) and run a couple of cycles without any clothes inside. Also, do a couple of empty washes at very hot temperature.... Same thing applies to dishwashers...

On the bio vs. non-bio thing, keep in mind that the UK is one of the only markets that uses non-bio detergents.  So if you are worried, remember that Tide and all the others in the US were bio, so it doesn't have to be as big a deal as people think it might be.  I just avoid harsh additives like perfumes and colours.

I had trouble with our machine holding on to colours and found that it wasn't draining properly.  Take a look at what splashes up during your final rinse.  If the water is still looking pretty sudsy when it should be cleared, you may not be getting a good drain.  Most brushes inside the machine only last a year or so and are an easy fix to make it drain better, sometimes other parts need more attention, but if it's an old machine, it may just need some TLC and will then work fine for you.  Call a repairman--our last guy fixed everything for £30.