Self-clean (CL)
The unit runs a routine to clean or dry its own indoor coil — by freezing and thawing it, or by running the fan to dry it after cooling — to cut dust, mould and smells.
What pressing it does
Midea’s Active Clean freezes the coil and thaws it rapidly to wash dirt off; Gree’s Auto Clean (hold MODE and FAN for 5 s with the unit off) cools and heats rapidly and shows CL; Daikin’s MOLD PROOF dries the inside after cooling, and Samsung’s Auto clean runs once the unit is switched off. Cool or warm air may blow during it (Gree).
What it does not do
It does not replace cleaning the air filter: Samsung’s own schedule still lists filter cleaning every two weeks, and Gree says the routine will not run in very hot or very cold weather.
Makes differ, check your unit’s manual: the same drawing can mean different things on different brands, and only your model’s manual says exactly what a button does and which modes it works in.
- What it looks like
- CL on the indoor display (Gree), Samsung’s own auto-clean indicator, or a CLEAN button or icon on the remote.
- Names makers use
- CLEAN / Active Clean (Midea); Auto Clean, CL (Gree); Auto clean (Samsung); MOLD PROOF (Daikin); Clean (Airwell)
Where makers differ
Freeze-and-thaw washing (Midea, Gree) versus drying after use (Daikin); Samsung’s Auto clean runs after the unit turns off. CL is a status message, not an error code.
Other symbols with the same shapes
Sources
No single published standard defines air-conditioner remote icons, so this meaning is taken from 4 makers’ own manuals, each fetched and read on the date shown:
- Midea: Midea — Remote controller owner’s manual, RG51A(2)/E and RG51B(2)/E (PDF) — Active Clean: “washes away dust, mold, and grease that may cause odors when it adheres to the heat exchanger by automatically freezing and then rapidly thawing the frost.” Checked 2026-09-26.
- Gree: Gree Comfort — Vireo GEN3 indoor unit owner’s manual (PDF) — Auto clean: with the unit OFF hold MODE and FAN 5 s; “the indoor unit displays ‘CL’ and the unit will cool down and heat up rapidly … will not work under excessively hot or cold outdoor temperatures.” Checked 2026-09-26.
- Daikin: Daikin web operation manual — MOLD PROOF operation — MOLD PROOF: “The inside of the air conditioner is dried to reduce the occurrence of mold and odour … After DRY or COOL operation stops, the air conditioner starts MOLD PROOF operation automatically.” Checked 2026-09-26.
- Samsung: Samsung — Wind-Free 2.0 air conditioner user manual, AR**TSFA*** (PDF on Samsung HVAC’s document store) — “Use the Auto clean function if the indoor unit produces odors”; Auto clean indicator on the indoor display; maintenance schedule: clean the filter once every two weeks. Checked 2026-09-26.
Written in our own words; quotations are the makers’ wording.