The washing machine is main responsibility is to wash clothes but there are other things that it can do aside washing clothes.
Mop heads
These need to be cleaned after every use, but if getting them washed with your hands seems tedious, throw them in the washing machine. Just set the water setting to ‘small load,’ the water heat to ‘hot’ or ‘sanitise,’ and pop the mop heads in a mesh bag. Your mop heads will come out looking like new.
Teddy bears
If you have kids, this tip is a must. Put dirty stuffed teddy bears in mesh bags and wash them using the ‘sanitise’ setting to get rid of germs, bacteria and other nasties.
Toys
This may sound crazy, but it’s true. You can clean small toys in the washing machine. Put them in a mesh bag and set the washing machine to ‘sanitise.’ The toys will be grime and germ-free.
Silicon trivets and oven mitts
These can be tossed in with your regular loads, as long as they’re not too dirty. All they need is a warm wash cycle. If putting them in with clothing worries you, put them in with a load of towels.
Rugs
Bathroom and small rugs can also be washed in the washing machine, but you need to be careful about your settings.
Always use warm water and a gentle cycle. Cold or hot water can make them shrink or can crack the rubber liner on bath mats. Before you put your rug back down, secure it to the floor with Velcro to prevent slipping hazards.
Bed pillows
Bed pillows gather dust, dead skin cells and dust mites. To sanitise them, put one pillow in the washer with fabric softener and your regular detergent. Use the ‘sanitise’ mode or set the water temperature to hot and switch to the small load setting. This trick works with both down and synthetic pillows. Afterwards, fluff your pillow in the dryer.
Sneakers
The next time you do a load of towels, throw in your sneakers. The towels muffle the noise that shoes can make in the washer and the warm water setting make the shoes look like new.
Curtains
The only precaution to take is to use warm water since cold one can make plastic curtains and liners crack and rip. Also choose a ‘small load’ setting to save water.
Backpacks
Children can often spill snacks and other liquid items in their backpacks. To get their backpacks like new, simply turn them inside out and put them in with a warm water load.
Lunch bags
Apart from backpacks, cloth lunch bags and sacks can be thrown in the same warm water load. Just turn them inside out so that the grimiest area can be easily cleaned by the wash cycle.
Source :( cnet. com)