I've a couple of arc teryx alpha sv's which i have been fairly reluctant to wash.

The welded draw cord covering inside had all frayed so i dropped it off with them and they asked if i ever washed them. They said you need to ao that the fabric works as intended

I am pretty sure they sold nik wax products in there

I'm no hardcore outdoor warrior with any sort of extreme gore-tex protection needs, but I've used the Nickwax wash-in stuff over the years to keep my various gore-tex (and similar coating) jacket & pants shells refreshed.

It seems to work well - they come out of the wash beading water like a champ, so I take that as a good sign :)

I don't have any reason to think it makes anything worse, so I've considered reasonably priced peace-of-mind.

Cheers, Chris

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Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball

I can't help but any time I hear "goretex" I think of this.

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How does Danny Hart sit down with balls that big?

Reaching way back in the memory banks to when I worked for an outdoor retailer.. There are two parts to this - cleaning the Gore-Tex membrane so that it doesn't have anything clogging the pores, and renewing the DWR on the outer shell.

DON'T use a normal liquid laundry detergent because it will interfere with the membrane. Find something specifically formulated for use with Gore-Tex (Nikwax Tech Wash, etc).

Once it's clean, then use something like TX Direct to restore the DWR coating on the shell fabric. If I remember, the spray-on version is supposed to work better than the wash-in because it's only getting applied to the outside of the jacket, but it's more of a PITA to apply evenly and completely.

I would trust the collective internet more than my own experience but I had a GoreTex rain coat that I was told to put in the dryer anytime it stopped working. Every time it came out of the dryer it beaded water like a champ, but each time I did that there would be less time before it needed to go through the dryer again.

Putting it in the dryer - on a LOW setting! - just "redistributes" what is left of the shell's DWR coating, and temporarily.

^^^ This right here. Applies to Event fabrics as well. Appropriate washing keeps the membrane working; renewing the DWR helps as well.

dont be! wash them and put them in the dryer. it keeps them working well. this is what they told me a couple years ago when they warrantied my 10 year old coat. they gave me a free replacement. they have the best customer service!

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who's smarter than you're? i'm!