Flowable laundry treatment agents can be added in automatically metered dosages via a metering line to a laundry treatment process by means of an automatic metering system comprising a reservoir. Advantageously, a metering line of is flushed with a rinsing agent, particularly water, after adding a dose. In order to prevent the development of germs in the residues of the rinsing agents, comprising diluted residues of laundry treatment agents, when remaining in the fluid lines for a longer period of time, exemplary embodiments of the invention provide for the metering line to be flushed immediately before adding a dose.