# Garment Steamer in Lieu of Iron?



## PorterSq (Apr 17, 2008)

Hi all,

I recently saw a reasonably priced garment steamer that claimed to replace the need to iron. Do any of you have experience with these? How do they work on OCBDs? Khakis? Do people have recommendations as to brands or tips for using them?


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## Wisco (Dec 3, 2009)

I am a big fan of using a steamer for wool trousers, suits and jackets. It freshens things up and removes wrinkles from daily use. A steamer plus a good brushing is all I do for day-to-day tailored wool clothing maintenance. I have tried to steam heavier cotton trousers or coats with mixed results. I believe that a warm iron + steam is a better choice for pressing shirts as well as putting a crease on trousers.

My ideal clothing maintenance tool chest would be a steamer, iron + ironing board and trouser press. I have the first 2 and may acquire a Corby trouser press sometime this year.


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## Patrick06790 (Apr 10, 2005)

No steamer will replace ironing for shirts.

I have a handheld steamer that I rarely use and a Whirlpool steamer that is freestanding and extremely handy for jackets, trousers etc. - so much so that I haven't used a dry cleaner in three years.

It seems to be back in production. I got mine on eBay a few years ago for far less than this.
https://www.whirlpool.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=513

I have a few non-iron shirts that have lost some of their finish. I tried to get out of ironing them by putting them in the steamer, with middling results.


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## The Rambler (Feb 18, 2010)

Is it the fancy kind with a hanger, tubes, etc, or the hand held model? I find that steamers are very good at removing wrinkles from wool suits, jackets, and slacks (though they can take the crispness out of a pants-crease) and good to freshen a felt or straw hat, but they are not a substitute for ironing shirts or khaki wash type pants. Then again, my steamer is a tea kettle. (oops, Patrick posted while I was composing)


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## PorterSq (Apr 17, 2008)

Thanks, all for the responses. The version I was looking at was a $100 Costco model. I hate ironing (but also don't care for the look of a totally rumpled shirt), so I was hoping this would substitute for it. Sounds like, at least with respect to my standard daily wardrobe (OCBD and khakis), I'll need to stick with the ol' iron. Many thanks for the input!


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## Thewaxmania (Feb 20, 2008)

PorterSq said:


> Thanks, all for the responses. The version I was looking at was a $100 Costco model. I hate ironing (but also don't care for the look of a totally rumpled shirt), so I was hoping this would substitute for it. Sounds like, at least with respect to my standard daily wardrobe (OCBD and khakis), I'll need to stick with the ol' iron. Many thanks for the input!


I have a Conair unit and it works great to freshen up wool clothes and tailored clothes, but it certainly doesn't replace ironing. A trick I use is so steam shirts from the inside and they generally come out much better, especially heavy OCBDs. As long as I'm not looking for a crease or a super-dressy look with the OCBD, I can get away with the steamer and not having to iron it. Otherwise, the collar is almost impossible to steam properly without ironing. Get a good steamer and a good iron, and you're all set. I have a Shark iron and it works really well. Best I've ever used. It was a gift, but I've seen them at Kmart and the like for around $50.


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## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

I've found a Rowenta commercial steamer and a Rowenta iron to be an unbeatable combination. As others have noted, the steamer is employed to keep sport jackets, suits, and casual jackets looking in their best form and the iron is employed against the wrinkling in shirts (and almost everything else), as they come out of the dryer. LOL. Given that use of the steamer falls on my shoulders and that my wife does virtually all of the ironing, I suppose I could make the argument that using the iron is somewhat labor intensive!


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## Bermuda (Aug 16, 2009)

I only use a steamer nowadays. Most of my shirts are non iron, and trousers are pressed at the dry cleaners, so I'm usually just getting out minimal wrinkles. It is tough however on items like khakis and corduroys to get out all the wrinkles. But once you wear khakis or cords they start wrinkling right away anyways. I've ruined too many items with an iron though and hate getting out the ironing board, etc.


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## triklops55 (May 14, 2010)

A steamer is a completment to an iron. Steamers are good at taking out wrinkles, but they won't leave a garment looking ironed or pressed. The steamed garment will simply not be wrinkled. To get the creased and pressed look, you have to iron or have things pressed.

I use a steamer to take out the wrinkles in clothes just before I'm about to wear them. Usually, these clothes have been previously ironed or pressed but have developed some wrinkles from hanging in the closet or from having been worn previously.


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## Brooksfan (Jan 25, 2005)

Got my Rowenta for Christmas as I requested. Thought I might be able to eliminate the need for Mrs. Brooksfan to stand there and iron my OCBDs but it's no substitute. It does a great job of removing wrinkles from suits, trousers and even shirts that become wrinkled while packed for my travels. It's a great product but it will not take the place of your iron.


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## stubloom (Jun 6, 2010)

Most tailors warn against the liberal use of steamers.

So before you decide to run your steamer all over your finely tailored garments, take a few minutes to read today's post on Jeffery Diduch's highly educational blog, tuttofattoamano (translation: made entirely by hand).

Jeffery aptly titles his post "Why I hate steamers".

Here's the link....
https://tuttofattoamano.blogspot.com/2011/02/ironwork-or-why-i-hate-steamers.html


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## Jovan (Mar 7, 2006)

"*Sorry, the page you were looking for in the blog Made by Hand- the great Sartorial Debate does not exist."*


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## stubloom (Jun 6, 2010)

Sorry, my error. Link has been updated.


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## dcjacobson (Jun 25, 2007)

Steamers are invaluable for getting those "accordion" wrinkles out of your pants. I bought the one Andy recommends, My Little Steamer. Inexpensive, and works great. Steamers ain't for shirts, but do get one for your trousers.

Good luck,
Don


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## Wisco (Dec 3, 2009)

stubloom said:


> Most tailors warn against the liberal use of steamers.
> 
> So before you decide to run your steamer all over your finely tailored garments, take a few minutes to read today's post on Jeffery Diduch's highly educational blog, tuttofattoamano (translation: made entirely by hand).
> 
> ...


Seems like a credible opinion, but also just that... an opinion.

I have used a steamer to remove wrinkles behind the knee and in the crotch for trousers and on the back and arms for jackets for many years with no ill effects. I guess I fail to see how spot or area steaming affects the 3d-ness of a garment. Certainly steamed trousers do not keep a sharp crease, but I don't care for military sharp creases in my clothing anyway.


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## Kurt N (Feb 11, 2009)

Wisco said:


> I guess I fail to see how spot or area steaming affects the 3d-ness of a garment.


I thought his point was that steaming the garment will cause it to relax out of its desired state (fibers stretched in one direction, compressed in another). The garment as a whole is still 3D, of course, but individual panels become flatter and thus there's more wrinkling as they "try" to hold their 3D shape.

None of this is an issue with shirts and chinos, so far as I know.


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## godan (Feb 10, 2010)

Wisco said:


> I have used a steamer to remove wrinkles behind the knee and in the crotch for trousers and on the back and arms for jackets for many years with no ill effects.


This is my experience, too. I have steamed wrinkles out of quality OTR and some MTM suits many times with no apparent ill effects to any garment.


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## stubloom (Jun 6, 2010)

Wisco:

For minor wrinkles in the elbows of a jacket or the crotch of a trouser, a steamer might relax the wool fibers and cause those wrinkles to become less pronounced. 

The problem arises when the steam emitted by the head of the steamer is applied directly to areas THAT SHOULD BE OUT-OF-BOUNDS TO ALL STEAMERS -- the collar, lapels, shoulders, upper sleeves and front of a jacket. That could result in the bursting of seams, puckering of the fabric and internal construction of the garment, and distortion of the shaping and moulding of the fabric imparted by the tailor during the construction of the garment.

I'm sure Jeffery Diduch's zero tolerance position on steamers is borne of experience. He's probably seen countless disasters that were directly caused by the IMPROPER application of steam.

One further point: Steaming is not a substitute for the proper hand pressing of a garment.


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## Jovan (Mar 7, 2006)

Wool trousers benefit from a proper pressing, too, according to this other post: https://tuttofattoamano.blogspot.com/2009/09/trouser-fitting-completion.html


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