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Wearing crisp, wrinkle-free clothes can immediately lift your mood for the workday. Irons and steamers are common household appliances, but are absolute essentials for every home

Here's a guide to help you choose the right iron and steamer for your requirements

Topics In This Buying Guide

● Types of Irons

● Factors to Consider

Types of Iron

Dry Iron

A lightweight and user-friendly iron, this type comes with the basic features. These are easy to set-up & use; they have variable temperature settings for different types of fabrics

You have to sprinkle water on the fabric to get the best results

Steam Iron

Steam irons have a small built-in, refillable tank you fill with water. As the iron heats, it emits steam from the water, which gives a smoother press

Steam irons are typically more expensive & heavier than Dry irons and come with multiple features such as Auto Shut-off, Self-clean mechanism etc.

Factors to Consider

Power & Wattage

For irons, higher power equals better performance. Irons with higher power will heat up fast and remove wrinkles & creases easily

Design & Build

Modern iron bodies are typically made up of hard plastic with a metal soleplate

It is important to choose an iron with an ergonomic handle, so that the iron can be easy to lift and use.

Shape of the soleplate can also play an important role in how easily the iron glides on the cloth. There are 2 main shapes of soleplate

Traditional: Usually tapered at top and help in ironing places like seams, cuffs & between buttons

Multi-dimensional: These have soleplates which look like there are multiple pieces fused together. With this shape, you can easily iron in any direction and get into small details without changing the ironing position

Weight

Traditionally, irons were made heavier for better performance, but the newer models are much lightweight and perform efficiently without the need to put much pressure while ironing

Type of Soleplates

Soleplate is the part which comes in contact with the cloth and distributes heat

Choosing a wider soleplate will help cover a larger area while ironing

Choosing the right material for the soleplate is also essential

Aluminium Soleplates: Aluminium soleplates heat well but can get scratches on surface after prolonged use. They also tend to get sticky after ironing lots of clothes and are difficult to clean

Ceramic Soleplates: Ceramic soleplates distribute the heat evenly and are long lasting. These soleplates also glide very smoothly on any type of fabric

Non-stick Soleplate: Non-stick soleplate consists of Aluminium or metal plate with non-stick coating. These are easy to clean and maintain

Stainless Steel Soleplates: Irons with stainless steel soleplates are durable, corrosion free and scratch resistant. They help make ironing easy and effortless.

Heat Setting

Heat settings are configuration buttons or knobs so that you can choose the intensity of heat based on fragment type

Look for an iron which has easy and precise controls on it

Cord Swivel & Cordless Irons

This feature allows the cord to swivel 360 degrees in any direction. It helps to reduce wire fatigue and prevent the cord from getting in the way while ironing

If you don't want to deal with cords at all, consider a cordless iron. These irons warm up on heat plates and allow you free movement while ironing. They only retain heat for a few minutes at a time and need to be returned to a hot plate for reheating

Water Tanks

Having a water tank, which can be easily filled by a tap will give you ease of operation

Some brands offer transparent water tanks as an additional feature. This helps in knowing the water levels while ironing and avoid overflow while refilling.

Some brands also offer anti-drip seals so that the water does not drip or leak through the water tank to avoid any accident

Garment Steamers

Garment steamer is an alternate to traditional irons. While irons use heat, steamers use steam to smooth out wrinkles from the fabric

Garment steamers are typically vertical and handheld tools, so can be used effectively even on vertical surfaces. This makes it best suited for removing wrinkles from curtains, carpets, and upholstery. Also, steamers are best tools to be used for suits, silk blouses, delicate fabrics, and flowing garments

Factors to Consider

Steam Flow and Power

Steam is the main element in anti-crease. The higher the steam output, the better the efficiency of the garment steamer in removing creases

Similarly, higher power / higher wattage will give you better steam, therefore better results

Water Tank

Look for a garment steamer with a water tank of capacity of around 150 ml to 250 ml. This will provide enough steam to use the steamer for 8-10 min before you need a refill

Accessories

Garment steamers are not only useful for clothes, so an extension to reach out to the top of curtains can be useful. Also look for various steam settings to suit various types of surfaces