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There are a few reasons this could be happening. My neighbor lives in the top unit of a duplex and the same thing happens to him.
You didn't state the age of your house, or what type of washing machine you have, but if you have old galvanized plumbing, or old cast iron waste lines, there could be blockage due to those lines being restricted by sediment and interior corrosion...as was the case with my neighbor. The suds being lighter than the water, will tend to rise up and seek escape via the roof vent pipes as the water tries to make it's way through the drain, which sort of pushes them upward.
He also has a stackable washer/dryer unit. It appears that the stackable washers tend to expel the sudsy water with more speed and force than regular washers. (This was what a very reputable plumber told us.) He also told us that using liquid detergent vs. powdered can also cause this because it is so much more concentrated and produces more suds, and that people tend to use more liquid detergent than is necessary.
The plumber used a motorized snake and cleared the drains, which helped tremendously. Then he started using 1/2 the amount of liquid detergent he'd been using (he started following the directions on the container) and the problem stopped.
Try having a plumber snake the drain lines, and if you use liquid detergent, try experimenting with the powdered and see if that helps.
I used liquid dish soap in my dishwasher ONCE, and I had suds seeping out around the doorof the dishwasher, and into both kitchen sinks...it was a mess and I had to run the dishwasher three times with it empty to dilute the detergent...so I think it may be the same principile.
Thanks for the help. Just an FYI... the house was built in 1979. I have the very basic model GE side by side (relatively new). I do use liquid detergent, but I do follow the guidelines on the bottle; however, I can switch to powder to see if that helps.
I will call a plumber and have hime snake the lines.
