Remove Chewing Gum from a Dryer Drum
Forgetting to empty your pockets before throwing your clothes in the washing machine and dryer often can lead to problems, especially if the item left inside your pocket is chewing gum. The gum not only ends up leaving traces of itself on your clothes, but also leaves a sticky mess on the walls of your dryer drum as well. If something like this happens, using common household items that you probably have under your sink or in the cabinet can clean the gum from your dryer and save you from replacing the unit.
Contents
Steps
Using a Natural Oil
- Spray PAM cooking spray on the gum. It’s similar to WD-40 in that it lubricates areas and erodes sticky substances, but it’s a natural alternative. If you don’t have PAM or a spray version of a cooking oil, you can use a bottled version of canola oil. Wipe some canola oil on a cloth and rub it on the gum.
- Soak the gum in the oil. Apply or spray a generous amount of oil. Then, let it sit so that the gum can absorb it. Letting it soak softens the gum and makes it easier to remove.
- Wipe the sticky gum area clean with an old sock or rag. If you’re not able to remove it by wiping it away, then apply a little elbow grease and scrape it off with a nylon scraper. You can even use your fingernail if you don’t mind.
- Re-apply the cooking oil spray. This is just to make sure you removed everything. Let it soak again. Scrape off any gum residue and wipe clean with a cloth. You’re done. The beauty of this method is you don't have to worry about plastic or glass parts scraping off the finish inside your dryer. And, there is no smell.
Using An Ice Cube
- Rub an ice cube over the chewing gum. Put an ice cube in a ziplock bag and rub it over the gum. Or, if you prefer, hold it in your hands. Continue to rub the gum over the ice until it hardens.
- Scrape off the chewing gum with a spatula or plastic knife. Apply only the necessary pressure because if you scrape too hard, you could damage the surface of the dryer. This is also the reason why a plastic knife is preferred over a metal knife; the metal knife will scrape the finish off.
- Wipe the inside of the dryer with vinegar. Moisten a rag with some water, and then add some white vinegar. Rub it over the remnants of the gum to remove any traces of it. But if you find that there is still gum that needs removing, then repeat steps one and two.
Using Laundry Detergent Paste
- Mix a tablespoon of powdered laundry detergent in a bowl. Use very little water to make the paste. Start with a teaspoon. Then, mix it together with the detergent. Continue to apply water in 1/4 teaspoon increments until it forms a thick paste.
- The exact amount of water to apply will vary depending on the type of the detergent.
- This is a good method to use if the ice cube method does not completely remove the gum residue. However, you’ll need to let the gum warm back up to room temperature before trying this method though.
- Scrub the gum off with the paste. Apply the mixture to a clean rag. Then, rub the paste on the gum area in the dryer. Continue scrubbing the gum with the paste until it is completely removed.
- Wipe off any remaining detergent paste. Simply wet a clean rag and wipe down the inside of the dryer drum. Make sure to wipe down the entire drum so that all the paste is gone. You don’t want the detergent to dry up and clump inside of your dryer.
- Run a cycle in the dryer. Don’t do this with your clean clothes though. Dampen some old rags and put them in the dryer. Then, run a cycle. This will help to remove any remaining gum residue and make sure that none ends up on your clothes.
Using A Dryer Sheet
- Dampen some dryer sheets with water. Place the wet dryer sheets on the areas of the dryer that have traces of the sticking gum. They should stick to the gum area. But if they don’t, you’ll have to hold the dryer sheet on the affected areas.
- Leave the dryer sheets on the area for 10 to 15 minutes. So, if you are holding the drying sheets, you’ll have to hold them on the area for 15 minutes. Holding them on the area gives them time to loosen the gum. Eventually, you should see the gum sticking to the dryer sheet, and in extreme cases you may need to hold it there for longer than 15 minutes.
- Wipe the gum residue off the dryer. Once the gum residue starts to loosen, use the dryer sheet to wipe the gum off. Rub and scrub, if necessary, with the dryer sheet until the gum is completely removed.Then, wipe the drum down with a wet rag.
Using Commercial Products
- Spray WD-40 over the gum area. If you don’t have WD-40, you can use Goo Gone. Apply some Goo Gone to a rag, and rub it over the sticky gum area. Let the chemicals soak in so that it can loosen and eat away at the gum.
- This should be the last resort if the other methods don't work, since it involves introducing chemicals that could potentially rub off on your clothes.
- Rub the area with a rag. You can continue to use the rag that you applied the Goo Gone to remove the gum. Rub, wipe and scrub the area until the gum comes off. If necessary, apply a little more WD-40 or Goo Gone and continue to rub if it’s not coming off as easily as you’d like.
- Wipe down the inside of the dryer drum. Wet a rag and apply dish detergent to it. Then, wipe down the dryer and make sure to wipe off all traces of WD-40 or Goo Gone completely. Allow the dryer to air out before you use it again.
- Run a cycle in the dryer. To make sure that all traces of the WD-40 and the GooGone have been removed, wet some rags, put them in the dryer and run a cycle. Now, the next time that you dry your clothes, you can be fairly certain that no cleaning chemicals will end up on your clothes.
Things You’ll Need
- Ice Cubes
- Plastic knife or spatula
- Rags
- Vinegar
- Powdered laundry detergent
- WD-40 or Goo Gone
- Mild dish detergent
- Dryer sheets
Tips
- When scraping off the gum from the dryer, be thorough but gentle enough not to damage the surface of the dryer.
- Run one cycle in the dryer with dampened old rags after each method to ensure that all traces of gum residue and cleaning agents are removed, and the dryer will be clean for your next load of clothes.
Warnings
- When using chemical-based methods to clean out your dryer, air it out before the next use to ensure that any traces of the chemicals have already dried out. You'll also want to wipe it down and run a cycle with damp rags to clean off any residue.
