Washing machine cleaning in District 4 — Ben Van Don, Xom Chieu, Khanh Hoi

The old District 4 is compact, about 4.18 km², enclosed by the Ben Nghe Canal to the north and west, the Te Canal to the south and the Saigon River to the east. Resolution 1685/NQ-UBTVQH15 left it with just three wards, Xom Chieu, Khanh Hoi and Vinh Hoi, from 1 July 2025, the day wards took over from districts as the city's local units. Mergers half a year before had already changed some ward numbers, which is why the lease and the utility bills for one apartment can name different wards. The development's name and your unit number are enough for us to place the address.

All three wards are in our regular area, with bookings taken from 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM throughout the week.

Xom Chieu ward

The old Wards 13, 16 and 18 with part of Ward 15. Three canal-side developments are here: The Tresor at number 39, Saigon Royal at 34–35 and Icon 56, with 312 units, at 56 Ben Van Don.

Khanh Hoi ward

The old Wards 8 and 9, parts of Wards 2 and 4, and what remained of Ward 15. Masteri Millennium at 132 Ben Van Don, around 650 units, carried a Ward 6 and then a Ward 9 address before it came under Khanh Hoi.

Vinh Hoi ward

The old Wards 1 and 3 with the remaining parts of Wards 2 and 4, looking across the Ben Nghe Canal to District 1. Mostly older apartment blocks, townhouses and alley houses.

Most new apartments in District 4 are compact: studios, officetels (units that serve as office and home) and one- or two-bedroom apartments. The laundry is pushed out to the service loggia, beside the aircon outdoor unit, or tucked into a small recess by the kitchen. On a loggia that faces the canal, the machine takes damp wind and driving rain; in a closed recess, the steam from each wash has no way out. Either way, mould gets a hold on the door seal and on the outside of the drum.

The city's official portal gives a yearly average humidity of around 79.5%, and the seven months from May to November are the rainy season. An aircon outdoor unit right beside the machine keeps its casing and rubber seal warm, and dust from the unit's cooling fins can settle on the lid and in the detergent drawer.

Many apartments along Ben Van Don are bought to let, long term or short. Tenants change with the seasons, and the machine that comes with the apartment usually has no cleaning record at all.

Before handover to a new tenant

Clean the machine once the previous tenant has moved out; the Up Report's before-and-after photos can be filed with the handover record.

Tenant who has just moved in

If you do not know when the machine was last cleaned, or the first load already smells, have the drum removed instead of relying on the tub-clean programme.

Officetel used for living and working

The machine is typically a small front-loader in a kitchen recess. The visit can be set for a weekend or an evening if the building permits.

Loggias and laundry recesses in District 4 tend to be tight. Send a photo of the rating label and a wide shot of where the machine stands; the Up specialist, our trained and identity-verified staff member, plans how to draw the machine out.

Small front-loader in a kitchen recess

The familiar set-up in studios and one- or two-bedroom apartments. The machine is slid out into the kitchen aisle onto a tool mat before dismantling; seal, detergent drawer and drain filter are each cleaned on their own. Roughly two to three hours.

Top-loader in a townhouse or large apartment

Often found in the townhouses of Vinh Hoi and Khanh Hoi. The pulsator, the wash plate at the base, is lifted out and the drum separated to clean the shaft and the bottom of the outer tub. One and a half to two hours.

Washer-dryer

Many canal-side residents choose one for the rainy season. It is charged like an ordinary machine with the same door, plus 150,000 VND; for models whose outer tub is moulded in one piece, the extent of cleaning is spelled out at the quote stage.

To know the cost, read the label on the machine: a front-loader is 690,000 VND (up to 9 kg) or 790,000 VND (over 9 kg), a top-loader 450,000 VND or 550,000 VND, and a machine that also dries adds 150,000 VND. The set-ups below are ones we meet often along Ben Van Don.

One price covers the whole visit: the check before dismantling, covers for the loggia or kitchen recess, cleaning of the inner drum, outer tub, seal, drawer, filter and drain hose, refitting, a test run and the Up Report.

Studio or officetel

One 7 kg front-loader in the kitchen recess: 690,000 VND.

2-bedroom apartment at Masteri Millennium or Icon 56

One 9 kg front-loading washer-dryer on the loggia: 840,000 VND.

3-bedroom apartment at The Tresor or Saigon Royal

One 10 kg front-loader: 790,000 VND.

Townhouse in Vinh Hoi

One 12 kg top-loader on the roof terrace: 550,000 VND.

Landlord with two rental apartments in one building

Two 8 kg front-loaders: 1,380,000 VND, with an Up Report for each apartment.

Taking a washing machine apart is technical work inside an apartment, so many management offices want the contractor registered beforehand, as they do for small repairs. Circular 05/2024/TT-BXD obliges each apartment building's rules to deal with security and environmental hygiene, and the way they are applied can differ even between neighbouring towers on the same road. We ask which hours are permitted and which lift may be used, and start early enough to finish inside that window.

• A specialist who arrives on time and then waits at the reception desk to be signed in is not counted as late.
• Dirty water is caught in a bucket and emptied in the apartment's own bathroom; the loggia and the shared drainage are left alone.

Three commitments

The right price: nothing extra without your written agreement. On time: more than 15 minutes late, and that visit's invoice is 10% lower. The right place: things kept on top of the machine or on the loggia are put back where they were.

Clear about limits

We clean and do not repair. An operating fault, a strange noise or a leak is written down so that you can take it up with the manufacturer or a repairer.

For a machine in daily use, the reference is a drum-out clean about every six months, and a rental apartment should have one at each change of tenant.

• Leave the door and detergent drawer ajar after each load; for a machine in a kitchen recess, open the cupboard door for a while as well.
• April, before the steady rains begin, is a sensible time of year to book.

Guide: smells from the washing machine

The causes, the cleaning you can do yourself, and how to tell that the drum needs removing.

Advice, quotes, booking confirmations and the Up Report are available in English as well as Vietnamese. If you need the specialist to speak English at the apartment, write that in your booking; when it cannot be arranged you hear from us before the day, and we assist by phone or message.

Buildings along Ben Van Don commonly expect residents to register outside staff with management in advance. We send you the specialist's name and photo, together with a reminder the day before, so that reception has what it needs.

You can stay at work. Leave the key with reception, building management or a family member: only the specialist assigned to your booking handles it, the handover times are written down and the key is never duplicated; for a smart lock we suggest a temporary code. The walk-through, in which the finished work is checked with you, can be held by video call.

Payment comes after the walk-through, in cash or by bank transfer. Tell us in advance if you need a VAT invoice.

To book, send the building name, your unit number and photos of the machine's label and of the loggia or kitchen recess to +84 968 726 135 on WhatsApp or Zalo, or choose on the Quote page.