--- title: "Whirlpool Clean Machine: a cycle, not a failure alert" description: "What Clean Washer means on Whirlpool Clean Machine: a cycle, not a failure alerts, what to check before booking, and when it is not a failure at all." url: "https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/whirlpool-clean-washer-affresh/" --- # Whirlpool Clean Machine: a cycle, not a failure alert Clean Washer with affresh is a utility cycle on Whirlpool front-load and all-in-one washer/dryers, recommended for best performance to keep the drum from developing residue and odor over time. ## What Clean Washer actually means. Clean Washer with affresh is a utility cycle on Whirlpool front-load and all-in-one washer/dryers, recommended for best performance to keep the drum from developing residue and odor over time. Whirlpool home appliance display · also shown as Clean Washer with affresh® What to do when Clean Washer shows on the home appliance ### Kind of code Reminders, not failures Nothing has broken; the appliance has been counting hours, cycles or gallons and is asking for its routine care. A refrigerator lights a filter icon after about six months of water, a front-load washer suggests a tub-clean cycle after a set number of loads, a steam oven or a dishwasher asks for descaling or rinse aid, and some dryers remind you to check the exhaust. Do the task the reminder names, reset it the way the manual describes, and write the date in the service record. ### Usually leads to No service Open the washer door and remove all clothing and items from the drum first. ### Shows up as Appliance Maintenance Code or Reminder Light: Filter, Descale, Vent Check An appliance maintenance code is a reminder, icon or short code on a display asking for a filter change, descaling, a tub clean, rinse aid or an exhaust check rather than reporting a broken part. ### Make Whirlpool Whirlpool appliances fill kitchens and laundry rooms across the country, and most of their upkeep is simple: filters rinsed or changed, coils brushed, lint paths cleared. ### Source Whirlpool support: Clean Washer with affresh, All-In-One Washer Dryer Documented on Whirlpool's All-In-One Washer/Dryer under the Tools button's Utility Cycles menu; equivalent cycles appear under different menu paths on other Whirlpool washer platforms. ## Before you book, in this order. Each step comes from Whirlpool's own guidance for Clean Washer on its home appliances. Follow it to the end: the last card says whether this is a visit. 01 Open the washer door and remove all clothing and items from the drum first. 02 Add one affresh Washer Cleaner tablet directly to the drum — never to the bulk detergent dispenser. 03 Close the door, select the Clean Washer with affresh cycle, and touch Start/Pause; do not add detergent or run it with a load. 04 Leave the door open after the cycle finishes so the drum can air out. ### Cleared? The reminder is gone from the display, the filter, the screen or the tub has been cleaned or swapped, and the appliance runs a full cycle without calling for it again. A clean-filter light or a descale prompt that returns in days rather than months usually means the part it watches is fouling faster than normal, so mention that when you book. ### What not to do This is a preventive cycle, not a response to an error code. Skipping it regularly is a common cause of a musty smell developing, but the cycle itself does not fix a drain, door-lock or motor problem if one exists. ## What you may notice with it. The home appliance problems Clean Washer tends to arrive with. Answer these at the home appliance before anyone is booked. [All problems](https://appliancemaintenance.center/problems/) Before you call ### [Appliance Maintenance Code or Reminder Light: Filter, Descale, Vent Check](https://appliancemaintenance.center/problems/appliance-maintenance-code/) [All 8 causes, cheapest first](https://appliancemaintenance.center/problems/appliance-maintenance-code/) It also comes with - [**Laundry Drum Smelling Musty: Door Boot, Drain Filter and Detergent**](https://appliancemaintenance.center/problems/laundry-drum-smelling-musty/) Problem ### Appliance Maintenance Code or Reminder Light: Filter, Descale, Vent Check 8 causes, cheapest first No service indicated ## Nothing to service. Nothing has broken; the appliance has been counting hours, cycles or gallons and is asking for its routine care. A refrigerator lights a filter icon after about six months of water, a front-load washer suggests a tub-clean cycle after a set number of loads, a steam oven or a dishwasher asks for descaling or rinse aid, and some dryers remind you to check the exhaust. Do the task the reminder names, reset it the way the manual describes, and write the date in the service record. [How to read what your home appliance is telling you](https://appliancemaintenance.center/problems/appliance-maintenance-code/) ## Whirlpool home appliances. Whirlpool appliances fill kitchens and laundry rooms across the country, and most of their upkeep is simple: filters rinsed or changed, coils brushed, lint paths cleared. [Whirlpool home appliance maintenance](https://appliancemaintenance.center/brands/whirlpool/) More Whirlpool codes [AF](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/whirlpool-af-check-vent/) [Door Filter](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/whirlpool-door-filter-lint-screen/) [Clean Filter](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/whirlpool-clean-filter-compact-washer/) [Replace Filter](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/whirlpool-water-filter-status/) Reminders, not failures on other makes [ASKO Sterile Tub alert](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/asko-sterile-tub-alert/) [Bertazzoni Turn milk froth adjustment knob to CLEAN to start cleaning](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/bertazzoni-coffee-milk-clean/) [Café Time to Clean light](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/cafe-time-to-clean/) [Cove Add rinse aid. Press Enter once added, or press Cancel to ignore.](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/cove-add-rinse-aid/) [Dacor Rinse Refill](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/dacor-rinse-refill/) [DCS DOOR flashing](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/dcs-outdoor-ice-door-flashing/) [Fulgor Milano PRESS CLEAN!](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/fulgor-milano-coffee-press-clean/) [GE Rinse Aid Indicator Window](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/ge-low-rinse-aid-indicator/) [All 29 codes of this kind](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/#family-mode) Whirlpool builds this ### Cold storage Upkeep for everything in the house that keeps things cold: refrigerators, freezers, wine and beverage units and ice makers, cleaned and checked before they start struggling. Whirlpool builds this ### Cooking appliances Upkeep for ovens, ranges, cooktops, hoods, microwaves, steam and speed ovens: burners and igniters cleaned, gas joints checked, grease filters and descaling done on time. Whirlpool builds this ### Dish care Upkeep for dishwashers and disposers: filters rinsed, spray arms cleared, the door seal and drain loop checked, and hard-water scale kept off the parts that heat and spray. ## In Whirlpool's own words > Add an affresh® Washer Cleaner tablet to the washer drum. [Whirlpool support: Clean Washer with affresh, All-In-One Washer Dryer](https://producthelp.whirlpool.com/Laundry/All-In-One_Washer_Dryer/Control_Panel_Operation/Tools_Button/Utility_Cycles/Clean_Washer_with_affresh%C2%AE_-_All-In-One_Washer_Dryer) [Whirlpool support: Clean Washer with affresh, All-In-One Washer Dryer](https://producthelp.whirlpool.com/Laundry/All-In-One_Washer_Dryer/Control_Panel_Operation/Tools_Button/Utility_Cycles/Clean_Washer_with_affresh%C2%AE_-_All-In-One_Washer_Dryer) [Whirlpool support: Clean Washer with affresh, All-In-One Washer Dryer](https://producthelp.whirlpool.com/Laundry/All-In-One_Washer_Dryer/Control_Panel_Operation/Tools_Button/Utility_Cycles/Clean_Washer_with_affresh%C2%AE_-_All-In-One_Washer_Dryer) Every code on this site is taken from the manufacturer's documentation, never from a forum or a parts listing. Documented on Whirlpool's All-In-One Washer/Dryer under the Tools button's Utility Cycles menu; equivalent cycles appear under different menu paths on other Whirlpool washer platforms. ## Whirlpool Clean Washer home appliance maintenance, where we come out. The same visit in every metro below: the code, the model number, and a diagnosis before any part is ordered. 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Open the washer door and remove all clothing and items from the drum first. If it comes back, it needs a visit. ### Can I run the Clean Machine cycle on my Whirlpool machine with a load of clothes in it? No — Whirlpool is explicit that this cycle should not run with a load. Remove everything from the drum first, then run it empty with only the affresh tablet. ### Where does the affresh tablet go on a Whirlpool machine? Directly into the drum, not the bulk detergent dispenser. Whirlpool calls this out specifically because the dispenser is designed for liquid, not a dissolving tablet. ### How often should I run Clean Machine on my Whirlpool machine? Whirlpool describes it as recommended for best performance without a fixed number of loads attached, so a simple monthly habit is a reasonable target for most households. --- **[Read on the site: Whirlpool Clean Machine: a cycle, not a failure alert](https://appliancemaintenance.center/error-codes/whirlpool-clean-washer-affresh/)** **[Book a visit with ApplianceMaintenance.center](https://appliancemaintenance.center/schedule/)**