6kg Load Button

I think I might have been a bit dozy with my Hoover AL130.

I'd always assumed that the 6kg load button on the front panel served the same purpose as the 'half load' button on my old washing machine. My daughter, son in law and their new baby are living with us temporarily and daughter has just chuckled at me and pointed out that it says 6kg, which is the max load of the machine.

It seems pretty obvious, but can another owner confirm that the button should be pressed if you want to do a full load, and that the default mode is for a half load?

If that's so, I think it's crazy, but I'll learn to live with it. Our clothes have always come out clean, so I guess our wash loads haven't been the maximum weight or bulk, but really, what sort of family does mostly small wash loads? There are five adults and a baby living in this house at the moment and the washing machine gets no peace at all! Having read about some of the problems others have experienced with this model, I'm just praying it won't let us down now!

TIA,
Avril