Smelly washer bottle/liquid?

[GuyGhibli]

Over the past few months, whenever I use the windscreen washers on our car, there is a stale/stagnent water smell - I have tried emptying the bottle and re-filling it with different washer fluids, but ultimately the smell has not gone away (at best I have masked it with the smell of the fluid...).

I am guessing I have a bacterial issue in the bottle/pipes - I don't want to use a household cleaner/bleach that may damage the rubber pipes or paintwork and am not sure if something like Sterident will clog the pipes?

Any suggestions please?!

[fourfoldroot]

Apparently people have contracted Legionnaires disease and died from infected washer fluid. We decontanimate dental water lines with a mild bleach solution. I reckon it should be ok with paintwork if you rinse it off after flushing the system.

[Rob81]

I have always popped a couple of Milton tablets (for sterilising baby bottles) in mine.

[Justin Cyder]

Stick a bit of Dettol in the bottle. 10,000 windsurfers can't be wrong.

[Rawwr]

A whole bottle of Tesco Value mouthwash.

[PaulGT3]

I just filled mine with neat concentrate. Been fine since

[Ozzie Osmond]

50/50 methylated spirit and water with 2 drops of detergent. Great anti-freeze and nothing can grow in it.

[themanwithnoname]

I just use concentrate and dilute out a little bit. But then i go through about 5l a week with the bloody xenon washers spraying more than the windscreen nozzles.