You’ve heard of a body cleanse? Well, today I’ve decided to give my washing machine a cleanse.

According to a story from a CBS Early Show last year, with each load of laundry, your laundry machine accumulates bacteria shed by the clothing being washed. Add my son’s Max’s potty-training mishaps to the mix, and I’m sure I’m starting to build up some unsanitary (or OK, “gross”) conditions in my ol’ washing machine. 

I’ve been meaning to do this for a while, but it seems like every time I go near my washing machine, I’m carrying basket loads of dirty laundry … and the thought of washing my washer was far from my mind.

But Day #4 of the 7-Day Clorox® Bleach Challenge is the perfect opportunity to finally get around to this task. So today, to sanitize my machine and give it a body cleanse of its own, I ran my washer as usual, but I didn’t include any clothes. Instead, I just added ¾ cup of Clorox® Regular-Bleach and turned that machine on. Voila! One cycle later, I had a sanitized washer!   

I also learned that since I own an HE machine, I am supposed to run one of these “cleanses” at least once a month.  I should also leave the door of the washer open to allow water from the load to evaporate.  Apparently, the water doesn’t completely drain from these washing machines, which means the retained water is ripe for bacteria and mildew to breed. Uh, no thank you!

So that was my so-called “cleanse” for the month.  Better the washing machine than me!

Don’t forget to leave a comment or bleach tip in the section below during this week-long challenge for a chance to be randomly selected to win a $100 Visa Gift card!

No Purchase Necessary. Open to legal residents of the 50 United States and DC who are at least 18 years of age at the time of entry. Void where prohibited. http://www.clorox.com/legal/promotions/ for full rules. Contest starts 10/20/11 & ends 11/2/11.