Rinse
On a dial: a rinse-only programme with no detergent wash. On a display or phase bar: the machine is rinsing now. On a button: sets how many rinses.
What it is for
Rinsing hand-washed items, getting detergent out of a load, or adding fabric conditioner or starch on its own. Beko’s Rinse programme is for when you “want to rinse or starch separately”; Hotpoint’s Rinse & Spin rinses and then spins.
Makes differ, check your machine’s manual: the same drawing can mean different things on different brands, and only your model’s manual says exactly what a programme does, how hot and how long.
- What it looks like
- A wash tub with water pouring or spraying into it from above — a jet of drops — or a tub brim-full of wavy water.
- Names makers use
- Rinse (Bosch, Samsung, Beko, Hoover); Rinse & Spin (Hotpoint)
Where makes differ
Hoover draws “a basin with a jet of water”; Beko’s phase bar a tub with a shower of drops; Bosch a tub filled with waves; Samsung a sink, whose button sets the rinse count (up to five). A plus beside any of these is Extra rinse.
Often confused with
Adds one or more rinses to the programme, or rinses with more water, to take out more detergent.
Other symbols with the same shapes
Sources
No single published standard defines washing-machine or dryer programme icons, so this meaning is taken from 5 makers’ own guides and manuals, each fetched and read on the date shown:
- Hoover: Hoover UK — What do the symbols on your washing machine actually mean? — “A basin with a jet of water for the rinse cycle.” Checked 2026-09-25.
- Bosch: Bosch Home UK — Washing machine symbols guide — Rinse symbol (a tub full of wavy water): “The programme process is shown as rinsing.” Checked 2026-09-25.
- Samsung: Samsung UK support — What do the symbols on my Samsung washing machine mean? — “The button with a sink and no + icon is used to set the rinse count for a current cycle” — up to 5, depending on the cycle. Checked 2026-09-25.
- Beko: Beko UK — WI 1382 washing machine user’s manual (PDF) — Display: rinse among the programme indicator symbols (pre-wash/main wash/rinse/softener/spin). Rinse programme: used when you want to rinse or starch separately. Checked 2026-09-25.
- Miele: Miele — Operating instructions for washing machines, WWV 980 WPS Passion (PDF) — Programme chart: Separate rinse, max 8.0 kg — for rinsing hand-washed items; reduce the spin speed for items which crease easily. Checked 2026-09-25.
Written in our own words; quotations are the makers’ wording.