LG SteamWasher cleans clothes without water

Given that we're a crew of slovenly, pajama-clad bloggers, devices that will help us cut down on our dry-cleaning bills don't exactly have a lot of appeal here at Engadget HQ (something to clean the air in here, however, could be in order). But, yes, we know a lot of you do actually dry clean at least some of your clothes, so if you want to cut down on those trips to the cleaners, you may want to check out LG's SteamWasher, a washing machine that also includes a water-free steam cycle that the company says can "remove wrinkles and odors from clothing without the use of water or detergent." Of course, you'll pay something of a premium for all those wrinkle-free suits: the SteamWasher goes for about $1,500. So, either way, you're being taken to the cleaners.

[Via PopGadget]

[Tony @ Dec 21st 2005 3:08PM]

I've always thought steam was the best way to go with cleaning!! Pretty neat that a company finally came out with a washing machine like version!

[Lohgan @ Dec 21st 2005 3:08PM]

Uh...isn't steam water?

[Mark @ Dec 21st 2005 3:15PM]

I too was wondering what it uses to make that steam. The cost of the washer considering it's a front loader isn't bad if it actually does use water. But if you have to spend a ton on some sort of non-waterbased cleaning agent, I imagine you'll spend more than the washer in no time.

[huh? @ Dec 21st 2005 3:19PM]

Lohgan, easy there, college boy. I think the distinction comes from the fact that water is the liquid phase of H2O, while steam is gaseous. I'd like to know what this would do to all my wool sweaters. Smells like to live on them so I'd love to get them cleaned more often, but I think the steam would ruin them, right?

[neonenergy @ Dec 21st 2005 3:24PM]

Uh... he got ya there

[snapa @ Dec 21st 2005 3:27PM]

Dear Lohgan,



Steam is the gas state of H20

Water is the liquid state of H20

Ice is the solid state of H20



The More You Know...



-snapa

[tiuk @ Dec 21st 2005 3:55PM]

The point is that water (as stated previously, the liquid state of h2o) will not come in contact with your garments.

[TIMMAH! @ Dec 21st 2005 4:31PM]

Yeah, but yer saying that no water is going to condense out of the steam? I still think if you open the machine mid-cycle, your clothes are going to feel damp...

[happy gilmore @ Dec 21st 2005 4:39PM]

tiuk:

of course it would! when the steam contacts the garment, it will condense into water. sheesh!

[Geoffrey @ Dec 21st 2005 4:41PM]

Well, even though steam is not technically called water, it still is the same molecular component so I would not recommend using it on your wool sweaters if you take them to the dry cleaners. Dry cleaners do not use H2O in any of its states (steam or otherwise). Instead they use a chemical called perc. Bottom line, if you wouldn't wash the garment with the liquid state of H20 then I wouldnt recommend washing it with the gaseous state.

[Mike @ Dec 21st 2005 4:44PM]

Can't we all just get along? Traditional dry cleaning is considered "dry" because it uses solvents (non water based) in the cleaning process. This is more of a "make me less stinky and wrinkly because I forgot to go to the cleaners".

[fred j @ Dec 21st 2005 5:27PM]

you damned retards! everyone knows you can wash wool in water! Has anyone ever heard of woolite? and i dont think there are any records of sheep dying in a rainstorm. Its the drying of wet wool that makes commercial drycleaning desirable as you dont need to use heat which will cause shrinkage/deformation to occur. Thus the process doesnt take as much time.

As far as your pregrinations regarding the physical states of water which, as long as it hasnt become gaseous i.e., seperated into hydrogen and oxygen, is always water regardless of the temperature, and i would think LG would have the washer setup to maintain water in its vapor state which is a little different from a gaseous state and i'm calling you on this because you were being condescending towards loghan and you are WRONG. there is no gaseous state of water. if any gaseous states occur it will be represented by two seperate gases: hydrogen and oxygen. these will eventually bond to together, condense, being they are abundant if the temperature is right and form a vapor which is somtimes referred to as steam.

Bottom line: steam SHRINKS wool due to the heat required to maintain water in this form. As i mentioned earlier heat is BAD for wool, and therefore i would think twice about using this device to clean wool or cotton.

[Andrew @ Dec 21st 2005 5:59PM]

Dear fred j:



You have obviously NOT graduated from high school if you think there is no gaseous state of water. All matter, if you change the temperature (and/or pressure) enough, will melt from a solid into a liquid, and evaporate from a liquid into a gas. The fact that a dish of water left on the counter disappears after a few days is evidence enough that the gaseous state of water exists. In fact, the existence of the gaseous state of water is also proven by those shrinking ice cubes in your freezer. Over time, solids can turn directly into a gas through sublimation.



Furthermore, oxygen and hydrogen react to form H2O, they don't "bond to together, condense, being they are abundant if the temperature is right and form a vapor which is somtimes referred to as steam." One hydrgoen gas molecule (H2) combines with one half of an oxygen gas molecule (O2) to form H2O, which is a brand new molecule not resembling either oxygen or hydrogen. Geeze man, if your gonna say someone else is WRONG, get your facts straight first so you don't sound like such a moron!

[Hice @ Dec 21st 2005 6:19PM]

Guys,

I think you all miss the point somewhat. Speaking as a consultant who has to wear a shirt everyday, I would relish the opportunity to avoid the daily 'morning iron'.

It inhibits approximately 4 minutes of sleep daily.

Over a year, that amounts to a fair few lie ins.

As a contractor, just think of the extra hours I could bill/trains I wouldn't miss.....

If it does indeed work, sign me up....

[stonefry @ Dec 21st 2005 6:32PM]

The point is:

Saying that there is no water in steam is like saying that there is no water in ice. Just use your brain. The title of the article is misleading, intentional or not.

[Hiptrigger @ Dec 21st 2005 6:36PM]

Possible to have cold steam.. just that's not the way we make steam at home. Also RTFA (follow links) LG appears to be making a semantic distinction between "steam" and "water", focusing on the sloshy gallons typically used and the bill every month. They really didn't geek-out on molecular states using Avogadro's number and such. It's called MARKETING... sounds better to say "it doesn't use any water." 95% true is close enough for the spinmeisters. Whatever. Anyone who puts a nice wool sweater in a mechanical tumbler is no expert on laundry. Wool socks, etc. - sure. Anyway, who cares? Just buy your girl the machine and get back to whining on some blog.

[fred j @ Dec 21st 2005 6:46PM]

really so if you are the wiz, what is the distinction between a vapor and a gas? what is humidity? what i am trying to say is water being a molecule comprised of two elements at some point ceases to be distinguished as water. and if you ask a chemist about a gas called water...c'mon...the post said gas and water is never a gas. now you ca use the term gaseous to infer it is like a gas, but it is never a gas! who's the moron?

[evo @ Dec 21st 2005 7:14PM]

I wish the comments hadn't started working...

[fred j @ Dec 21st 2005 7:32PM]

well ok i made a mistake by using the word gaseous because frankly i was a little enraqed by someone's post stating "steam is the GAS state of H2O". So i was quick to type, and i used gaseous unconsciously because its applicable to water. yes i fully agree water has a GASEOUS state. But to clarify: water is never a gas and this is what i meant. and you should acknowledge that i never made a statement regarding the "evaporated" state of water, such as water left in a dish on a table somewhere. water in its evaporatve isnt a gas. Furthermore your statement that "all matter will evaporate into A gas" is flawed because please tell me into specifically which GAS water evaporates.

[moomin @ Dec 21st 2005 8:25PM]

Reading these comments - I have't laughed in such a long time..



fred j, FYI, relative humidity (everyday quoted) is the ratio of the mass of water vapour in a given volume compared with that as if it were saturated. Have a look at a psychrometric chart for all your humidity action.



Also to clear something up for you all, water in a non solid/liquid state is refered to as a vapour not gas, i.e steam is a vapour. It all depends on the saturation temp as below this you'll have a liquid/vapour mixture. Have a look at some temperature/entropy graphs for more thermofluid goodness. Of course these temps will all vary with pressure. Example, dew is the result of the water vapour in air being cooled to its saturation temp (at atm pressure)..

[Kevin @ Dec 21st 2005 8:51PM]

evo - I'm with you there. With the comments back on, it makes all the weblog inc. sites seem like they're part of the internet again, and not in a good way. :-(

[Huh? @ Dec 21st 2005 8:53PM]

My question is...why does anyone care?If you dont like it,dont buy it!gosh...

[Noor Tazudeen @ Dec 21st 2005 10:30PM]

okay, IDIOTS, anyone who has taken a high school chemistry class knows that water exists in a gaseous state--called WATER VAPOR. And guess what? water vapor is another word for STEAM. yeah, go look it up, steam is defined as the vaporized, gaseous state of water.



Yeah, when you boil water, you know what comes up out of the pot? WATER VAPOR/STEAM. no, not the stuff you can see, because that is still liquid water, but WATER VAPOR, an invisible gas, the gaseous state of water.

[Bovine @ Dec 21st 2005 11:06PM]

Huh?: Because the nerds posting don't have the interpersonal skills to just give it a rest.



...but if you have a bowl of popcorn handy, it can be fun to watch the bloodpressure rise. ;)



I guess I'm going to be a target now for this post.

[bophojones @ Dec 22nd 2005 2:08AM]

I just think it's funny how an article about a cool new gadget like this turned into a debate about H20 and all of its glory. Have fun guys.

[rye&ginger @ Dec 22nd 2005 3:06AM]

some of you obviously never took any chemistry in high school, yet choose to post nonsense.



Steam cleaners clean wool carpets just fine, along with drapes.

[tsunam @ Dec 22nd 2005 3:36AM]

this true not need water to wash clothes?, how it can work?

[mike @ Dec 22nd 2005 6:15AM]

This is awesome. It's 5:00 in the morning and I've been up all night cleaning up my kid's virus induced projectile vomit and diarrhea. There is absolutely no chance I'll manage to get any sleep before my board meeting this morning so I'm sitting here reading battle of the half-wit nerds.



Not so sure what this says about me, but blogs rock!

[Lee Gibson @ Dec 22nd 2005 3:01PM]

I'd be pretty annoyed if I bought something that's advertised as using no water, and I had to hook it to a water line.



I wonder how the manufacturer is going to get steam into the machine, if not by heating water? Are they going to sell bags of steam at the store, that you take home and put in your washing machine? Can't imagine how that could possibly be an utter disaster or anything...

[sldfjk @ Dec 22nd 2005 5:51PM]

I actually like the smell of detergent and bleach in my clothes.