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Tips For Washing Technical Jackets

Keep your waterproof jacket clean and it will reward you with like-new performance

By: evo + Save to a List

Many people spend a lot of money on an expensive waterproof jackets, but don’t know how to care for them properly. This can leading to a lot of frustration six months down the road when the jacket doesn’t seem to be waterproof anymore. Technical fabrics require a little extra care to keep them clean and performing well, so make sure you follow these guidelines to keep your technical jacket looking, and performing as good as new.


How Waterproof Jackets Work:

To understand why technical jackets need to be washed differently than normal clothing it’s helpful to know just a little bit about how waterproof outerwear works. It’s very easy to make just a waterproof jacket, trash bags are waterproof after all, so why is there a big hubub about technical outerwear? Well, technical outerwear isn’t just waterproof, it’s also breathable. That means that technical jackets let the warm, moist air created when you exert yourself and sweat, flow out through the same material that’s also keeping you dry. That means you stay a lot more comfortable than you would in a purely waterproof jacket. Think of the trash bag again, sure it will keep you dry from rain and snow, but you’ll create your own personal sauna inside if you sweat at all. The fact that technical jackets are breathable means extra care needs to be taken when you wash them.

Technical jackets like those from The North Face or Arc’teryx use a couple of technologies to do their job. One of the main ones is Gore-Tex. Gore-Tex is a waterproof material that jacket manufacturers can license. Gore-Tex is a waterproof breathable membrane, and if your jacket includes it, it will say so on the tags. Materials like Gore-Tex work on the molecular level, they let air molecules pass through the material, but keep water molecules out.

The second technology that allows technical jackets to do their job is DWR. DWR stands for Durable Water Repellent. It’s a coating on the outside fabric of the jacket that makes it water-resistant. That doesn’t mean water-proof, water can still pass through the material, but the coating makes it much more difficult for that to happen by making the water bead up on the surface, instead of allowing it to soak through.

How to Wash Your Jacket:

When you’re washing your technical jacket it’s important to keep these two features in mind, because improper washing can make them less effective, while washing your jacket well, in the right way can make them last a lot longer.

Most manufacturers include washing instructions on the tags of the jacket, for instance, if you have a Patagonia jacket, it will come with detailed instructions. Always check and follow those.

When you wash a technical jacket, never use normal laundry detergent. Normal laundry detergent treats your jacket’s DWR coating as grease and tries to break it down. That will make it easier for water to soak into your jacket. Instead, use a detergent that specifically says it’s made for technical outerwear. This will get your jacket clean without breaking down the features that make it work.

If your DWR coating stops working as well, try running it through the dryer on low to medium heat for about twenty minutes. This will reactivate the DWR coating and help it protect you. If that doesn’t work, it may be time to re-apply the DWR coating. There are several ways to do this, DWR comes in both sprays, and wash-in products. For technical jackets your best choice is a wash-in product. You’ll run a load, with just the jacket and instead of adding detergent, you add the wash-in product. It will re-coat your jacket with DWR and you’ll be back to shrugging off water. Just make sure not to run anything else in the load with your jacket, unless you’re looking to DWR coat your underwear.

Then, when drying your technical jacket, make sure not to overdo it. Dry on low heat for half an hour or so, if your jacket is still damp, hang dry. A little bit of heat is good for the DWR coating and actually makes it more effective, but too much will break it down.

If you have to be so careful cleaning your technical jacket, why do it? Why don’t you just try not to get it too dirty? Well, cleaning your jacket properly is actually really good for it and will extend its life. That’s because of that first piece of technology we talked about, the membrane. Any dirt or oils (even from your skin) that the jacket is exposed to will clog that membrane. That means it will get less and less breathable the longer you put off cleaning it. So don’t procrastinate, follow these simple steps and clean your technical jacket every couple of weeks.

We want to acknowledge and thank the past, present, and future generations of all Native Nations and Indigenous Peoples whose ancestral lands we travel, explore, and play on. Always practice Leave No Trace ethics on your adventures and follow local regulations. Please explore responsibly!

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