Steam and steam refresh
The machine makes steam: as a wash option to help with stains or hygiene, or as a short programme that freshens dry, clean clothes and relaxes creases without washing them.
What it is for
Freshening worn-once shirts and jackets, reducing creases before ironing, or boosting a wash. Hotpoint’s Steam Refresh takes about 2 kg of dry, clean items, uses no detergent or softener, and leaves them a little damp to hang up.
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 cloud, or wavy lines rising like vapour; Hoover’s Fresh Care is a T-shirt with a puff of air.
- Names makers use
- Steam (Samsung, Hoover); Steam Hygiene / Steam Refresh (Hotpoint); Fresh Care (Hoover); Steam (Whirlpool dryer)
Where makes differ
Samsung’s clouds icon means the steam wash option; Hotpoint has both Steam Hygiene (a wash option that lengthens the cycle) and Steam Refresh (a programme for dry clothes); on a Whirlpool dryer, Steam adds humidity to smooth wrinkles. Hotpoint says Steam Refresh is not recommended for wool or silk.
Often confused with
Makes the wash longer and more thorough for heavily soiled laundry.
Other symbols with the same shapes
Sources
No single published standard defines washing-machine or dryer programme icons, so this meaning is taken from 4 makers’ own guides and manuals, each fetched and read on the date shown:
- Samsung: Samsung UK support — What do the symbols on my Samsung washing machine mean? — “The clouds icon indicates that the steam option has been turned on. Steam is used to improve stain treatment and use less water when washing colourfast clothing.” Checked 2026-09-25.
- Hoover: Hoover UK — What do the symbols on your washing machine actually mean? — “Steam for the appropriate steam cycle”; Fresh care, “indicated with a T-shirt symbol and a puff of air”, uses steam to freshen up garments. Checked 2026-09-25.
- Hotpoint: Hotpoint washing machine Quick Guide (GB, PDF) — Steam Refresh: dry, not dirty items only (2 kg, about 3 items); refreshes by removing odours and relaxing fibres; no softener or detergent; not recommended for wool or silk. STEAM HYGIENE button on the panel. Checked 2026-09-25.
- Whirlpool: Whirlpool product help — Control Panel Symbols and Usage, Compact Heat Pump Dryer — Steam: touch to activate the Steam option, which adds humidity to help smooth out wrinkles. Checked 2026-09-25.
Written in our own words; quotations are the makers’ wording.