Washing trainers in a front loading washing machine can cause the plastic drum paddles (sometimes called drum lifters) to come loose or even break. This in turn can cause damage to laundry that subsequently snags on the sharp holes revealed.
If you have loose or broken drum paddles you can get them here Washing machine drum paddles (or lifters)
It may be that trainers will survive washing in the washing machine but they are too heavy and you risk damaging the drum paddles – especially with cheaper washing machines.
Having said all that, some washing machines now have special programmes for trainers. If yours does and the drum paddles break I would complain to the manufacturer, or if you get nowhere complain to the retailer under the sale of goods act as if they provide a special programme to wash trainers the washing machine must be capable of carrying out the wash without breaking.
UPDATE: Recent developments have seen some manufacturers making washing machines where the drum paddles (or lifters) do not come off and the drum cannot be taken out due to having a sealed outer tub. This makes washing trainers in a washing machine even more risky.
can washing ugg boots in a washing machine cause the washing machine drum to go off centre? my husband says it can cause the drum to go offline? is this true
are big american style washing machines and dryers better than uk models
Hello Sara: I’ve never heard of these boots but a quick check online shows they look mostly bigger and heavier than trainers so they are even more likely to damage the plastic paddles in the drum.
They can’t physically cause a drum to go off centre permanently but they may be impossible to distribute round the drum evenly so the washing machine could go out of balance and bang around on spin, either that or with modern washing machines fitted with out of balance detection software they may just not spin at all.
American washing machines tend to be top loaders, which aren’t as good as front loaders in many ways although they are probably a bit more reliable Which is best, a top loader or a front loader? (washing machine)
Many indesit washing machines come with a programme for your trainers – I know because, as a keen runner, this is important to me!
check this one out you can wash your trainers easily;
[ link removed as it no longer worked - model seems to have been discontinued ]
The Indesit washing machine is one of the cheapest available and the paddles (or lifters) commonly come loose. Trainers could cause problems particularly in cheap washing machines with plastic drum paddles (lifters) and most engineers would advise against washing them in a washing machine. However, I’m sure there are plenty of people who might say they wash trainers without incident.
If any washing machine does have a special wash program for trainers then at least they can’t charge you for repairs to the lifters under guarantee as it’s clearly an endorsement to do so. However, I believe the programmes are more a response to public demand and a potential sales advantage to people wanting to wash trainers in the machine. They may not really care that trainers are likely to loosen or even cause the lifters to come away over time because they can sell plenty of replacements.
In a Hotpoint washing machine this can be achieved by using the Wool cycle, as the machine runs at distribution speed throughout!