How to waterproof gortex jacket?

Triathlon Forum
1

I have a 2 years old gortex jacket that is not nearly as waterproof as it should be. I tried in the past to wash it in warm water and put it in the dryer with limited results. There are some waterproofing products on Amazon, as usual, mixed reviews.
Any suggestions?

2

so, the actual goretex membrane under the surface fabric is what truly makes it waterproof and breathable. but the surface fabric will have a chemical treatment called “DWR” that helps water to bead up and roll off. that prevents the face fabric from ‘wetting out’ and feeling clammy, and helps breathability too.

if it hasn’t been worn too much, sometimes a good blast of heat will revive the DWR and redistribute it around the jacket. just putting it in a hot dryer for a cycle can do it.

if that hasn’t worked, you need to do a new treatment. first i’d suggest maybe washing with a ‘tech wash.’ some regular detergents have emulsifiers that aren’t great for waterproofs. next, you can either buy a spray-in or a wash-in treatment. essentially you’re just re-applying DWR surface treatment. then, you lock it in with heat - another trip through the dryer.

lots of reputable brands here - i use NikWax but there are plenty of others.

3

I have a 2 years old gortex jacket that is not nearly as waterproof as it should be. I tried in the past to wash it in warm water and put it in the dryer with limited results. There are some waterproofing products on Amazon, as usual, mixed reviews.
Any suggestions?

In my experience, it will never be as water resistant as it was when brand new. Using a detergent made for technical gear and reapplying DWR will definitely help get it back a lot of the water resistance but not all. Also, it helps if you do an extra rinse cycle to get all the soap out, especially if you are using normal laundry detergent.

4

Nikwax tech wash first to properly clean, the Nikwax TX direct wash in for waterproofing. Machine dry low/med heat. I have a couple of gortex jackets and some other technical ones, returns the waterproofing every time. Follow the directions on the bottles.

5

Thank you all :slight_smile:
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