Laundry expert shares why washing machine’s final minute is ‘longest ever’

An expert has revealed why the last minute of your clothes wash feels torturously long.

We've all done it - thought we'd be really clever and time efficient and lob on a quick clothes wash while we pop out to the shops or walk the dog.

You come back and tootle around the house a bit doing some chores before checking on the machine, seeing it's only got one minute to go and thinking, 'Perfect timing,' so you can empty it just before you dash off to work.

But a minute later, you go back to check on the machine and to your horror, you see it's still one one minute to go.

What on earth is going on?! And you wonder why so many people have trust issues...

A TikToker known on the platform as 'That Ginger Fella' - @thatgingerfella - has shared a video of all the things you can do in the final 'one' minute of a washing machine cycle.

In his post, he says: "Oh look, the washing machine's got one minute left. That means I've got enough time to go for a walk.

"Grab a drink, get some food. May as well get some more drinks because I'll still make it home just before it's about to end."

Other TikTokers have flooded to the comments in commiseration over the excruciating final one minute of the clothes wash cycle.

One user said: "Longest one minute. Ever."

"There should be a Netflix Special: Why do Washing Machine Clocks Lie, the Untold Story," another wrote.

A third commented: "Yes! I’ve stood there waiting and it took another five minutes!! I was so mad."

And a fourth said: "I nicknamed my washing machine Gaslighter."

Thankfully, for both That Ginger Fella and all the rest of us, an expert has the answer to why our washing machine lies to us.

Laundry category manager for Hotpoint, Vivien Fodor, told the Lancashire Post it's fair enough people are frustrated because people 'rely on their washing machine and dryer times to plan chores around their day'.

Alas, she notes the washing timer certainly doesn't 'always reflect the total time set at the start, and in the end, can differ by a few minutes' too.

Thankfully, there is a 'perfectly good explanation for this'.

Fodor explains: "There are a number of checks that a washing machine will do during its cycle. These are usually automated and are there to tell the machine if it is taking more or less time than expected to fill, wash or spin.

"As a result, the machine will adjust the time to end at certain points of the cycle - sometimes sooner, sometimes later. The only difference is that people only notice when it’s the latter."

It may be infuriating, but the laundry expert notes it's 'actually helping you save energy and money' in the long run, so next time, try to fight the urge to just yank open the door or scream at your machine in rage.