basespirit- I think you are talking about the SteamFresh Cycle. Sugar was talking about the SteamWash Cycle, which is different. The SteamWash cycle should have been able to deal with those stains. It uses the normal level of water plus the steam during the wash segment. I think a better bet for removing the deoderant would be to use the normal wash cycle, with the Water Plus option, and maybe one additional Soil Level.

Basespirit yes I was talking about the wash cycle. I think I'm good with the fresh cycle. I basically use it to freshen and take wrinkles out of items that aren't dirty.

sr712 thank you for responding, so when would I use the steam wash cycle ? Is it for clothes that aren't that dirty ?

When do you use it ?

I just got my Steam washer (tromm) about 2 weeks ago. I *guess* I'm loving it. It's better than having water leak all over my basement from my old washer. LOL I have a lot of the same questions as you and find the manual to be VERY vague. Now, I'm not a total flake, but I couldn't even *find* the steam button for a while, only the steamFRESH cycle, so it took me a while to understand the diff. Finally found it and there's NOT MUCH info in the manual about it/when to use it/why it's so great/what it does, etc. I believe the steamfresh is not a gimmick...that I get, but is the steamwash a gimmick??!? Isn't the Sanitary Cycle (VERY HOT) kinda the same thing? We cloth diaper and I'm trying to figure out which I should use. Which one would be better?

Also....WHY is there NO MENTION of Load Size in the manual? I don't want to overload it, as I've heard from some that their drum/weight sensor thing had to be replaced soon and were told they were overloading it. Shouldn't they say? I'm used to choosing load size, and I know there is a sensor for how much water to use, but how much is too much? When do I NEED to use "water plus", etc.? I just find myself very disappointed in the company's supplying of information. I bought this based on the consumer reports rating (btwn. LG and Kenmore HE5T). You would think for a #1 rated washer, they would really be SELLING this thing, selling the features. Right now, I'm thumbing around trying to figure out why it's so great. Any thoughts? Help? Info. you've found would be GREAT.

I am so infatuated with this concept...and the colours!!!
I haven't done the reno of my laundry area yet so haven't purchased this dream machine. I did try and read through the manual and was totally lost. The salesman told me that you HAVE to really load it up to have it function properly so I am thinking of keeping my old machine in the basement because it has variable loads, including mini...and even with 6 kids still at home, not every load is a huge one.
Tell me if this is so??

I also get the idea and value of the stream fresh cycle. Doesn't seem to be a driving force that would make it the only machine worth considering, but if all the other functions meet your needs, and the added cost doesn't turn you off, why not go for it?

Some people have reported here that the steam wash feature might do something different from a sanitary wash, but nothing conclusive. It's hard to imagine injecting a little bit of steam into a large drum filled with wet clothes and a drum full of hot water is going to have much cleaning effect. Generating steam requires a boiler inside the washing machine and a 120V - 15A appliance just can't have that much power to generate all that much steam especially since it has to use that power to run the machine and also heat the water.

you HAVE to really load it up to have it function properly

You need more than an item or two so that the machine can balance, but if this machine cannot run on a light load then it would be the only FL in existence with that problem! - DR

HaHa. The machine runs fine with just a few items. This salesman has probably taken the concept that the washing action is produced by clothing rolling around against each other, to an absurd extreme. You can overload it. I have never gotten an error from the machine, but I have packed it so full that even when wet, the clothes had little room to slosh around and "clean". Didn't hurt the machine, but didn't do a good job of cleaning, either. Some items, like comforters don't get much smaller when wet, so they are more difficult to wash. Same concept applies. I load it to about 4/5 full of loose dry clothing, which when wet, takes up about 1/2 of the tub. I'm sure this is rather universal with Front Loaders.

Rigbybrowndog: You will have to try the settings out to see what situations to use them. The LG uses little water in a normal wash. I like to use the "water plus" option often. I like the results. I don't mind spending the $$ for a little more water. A little more sloshing action. Its better than not having any control over that at all. You will need to find these things out for yourself. The manual gives general guidelines. Practically, you may find you like certain combinations of wash/steam/stain/waterlevel/clotheslevel.

I tend to believe that the SteamWash function was an afterthought. I think they wanted to have a SteamFresh clothing steamer, so they built in a steamer assembly, and then they thought, well, we might as well activate it during a wash cycle, too.

PS. I got a lot more info out of the Service Manual than I did anywhere else.

Does the LG steam machine give you some way of cleaning out the steam generating boiler? Is the boiler flushed out as part of normal operation? Moderate to hard water will leave the boiler crusted with mineral deposits over time if there isn't some flushing/cleaning mechanism. SR712 - does the service manual talk about this?

Does the LG steam machine give you some way of cleaning out the steam generating boiler? Does the service manual talk about this?

No instructions on how to clean the boiler but it does describe how to remove the "Turbo Steam Generator" from the washer. I assume one could then run some sort of descaling solution through it. OTOH someone on here posted that the boiler is made from a special material that won't attract lime scale - the service manual doesn't mention anything about that.

Alex

I assume a "Turbo Steam Generator" is a fancy name for a boiler. Don't know of another way to make steam other than boiling water, and hardness minerals are left behind (if they are present in your water of course) regardless of the material used to make the boiler. Some steam humidifiers build-in RO water filters to reduce TDS in the water as these humidifiers have a similar issue with hardness mineral build-up. Doubt LG has gone that far. Hopefully the boiler auto flushes which is another way to control the problem.

In the espresso machine world, some companies have tried boiler coatings (like teflon, and anodization of aluminum) for this, but the material tends to flake off after a couple of years (plus you can't coat the element, where scaling has the greatest negative effect), so it has generally been abandoned. - DR

FWIW - The boiler in our steam cleaner expands and "shrinks" (so to speak) when it heats up and cools down, so lime scale just flakes off and can easily be flushed out. However, a steam cleaner's boiler obviously reaches much higher temps (302°F) and pressure than LG's steam generator.

Hey guys, loving the convo about the washers, learning alot here. I purchased mines as a huge discount at a scratch and dent spot, but anyways, wondering has anyone used regular detergent or are all of you using just the HE detergent. Didn't want to risk it yet as I have to print off the manual b/c mines didn't come with one.

So a dryer steam removes odor? I'm wondering can you use any steam wash or steam fresh to only remove odors off of thrift clothing?

i'm using steam wash for the first time for a comforter. Do I also steam dry? Or should I just do a regular wash and then steam dry? Is it ok to do both?

Steam in a washing machine is nothing more than a gimmick. What manufacturers really need to do is move to 220v/240v machines and give us heated cycles. Short of that, no amount of "steam" in your washing machine is going to do anything to clean your clothes.