Do you need steam in your washing machine?

Despite the fact that washing machines are now found in virtually every home, marketers continue to tout new, more advanced models. The steam feature in washing machines has been making headlines lately, but is this feature really necessary, and is it worth buying a washing machine with steam?

What is this?

Why use steam in a washing machine? Firstly, steam is very hot, which helps remove germs and dirt from clothes even better. Secondly, steam prevents clothes from drying out, resulting in less wrinkling and less "wooden" texture.

A standard steam program uses steam twice per cycle: before rinsing, to allow water to better penetrate the fibers of the garment and remove dirt, and during the wash cycle itself, to maximally dissolve detergents and improve their efficiency. How does a steam-generating system work?

• The washing machine “takes” some amount of water and sends it to the generator.
• A generator equipped with a heating system heats the water.
• After this, the hot cloud is injected into the machine drum through a special valve.

Important! While steam is being released, the machine drains the water from the drum to avoid damaging the washing results. Only after all steam cycles have been completed does the machine begin spinning the laundry.

When is the best time to enable the feature?

It's worth summarizing the specific cases in which steam is ideal for your needs. First, if you want fresh laundry. Steam itself cleans clothes well and leaves them smelling pleasant, so if you don't feel like doing a full wash, simply place the laundry in the drum and run the steam cycle, and the odor and stains will quickly disappear.

Steam can also help make laundry soft to the touch without using fabric softener. In this case, it's best to use this feature in conjunction with your chosen wash program rather than on its own. On some machines, the steam washing functions are divided into a refreshing function and a softening function, respectively.

Another major challenge is difficult-to-rinse laundry detergent, which is a strong trigger for allergic reactions. The advantage of steam is that it removes all allergens and other residues from washed clothes.

Types of steam treatment

Depending on the washing machine's design, there are two types of steam treatment: standard and TrueSteam. The difference is that the former is less sophisticated: steam is generated by heating the bottom of the washing machine to 75 degrees Celsius, while TrueSteam uses a steam generator to heat water to 100 degrees Celsius, which is, of course, more efficient.

In any case, innovations in washing machines are rarely harmful, but whether they are so vital that it is worth spending large sums on them, or whether you can easily do without them, is up to you to decide.

   

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