For all outdoor activities, waterproof clothing is an essential. Here is our advice on caring for trousers, jackets and gloves with water-repellent or waterproof properties. Well-maintained kit provides better protection against the elements and lasts longer.
Before washing
Group all your waterproof garments together and wash them at the same time (jacket with softshell membrane or hardshell membrane).
Before cleaning, close all fastenings: front zip, pockets and underarm vents. Also fasten any flaps and straps.
One more important point: if certain parts of your jacket fasten with magnets (such as the Storm Pro and Advanced models from Cimalp), place them in a laundry bag to prevent the magnets from sticking to the drum and getting damaged.
Washing a waterproof garment
Use a small amount of liquid detergent — specifically a specialist technical garment cleaner (avoid standard supermarket detergents, which are too harsh for technical membranes).
Machine wash at 30°C.
Rinse twice and select a gentle spin cycle.
Do not use powder detergent, fabric softener, stain remover, or bleach.
Do not wash your garment at the same time as heavily soiled items.
Drying
Air-dry your garment (avoid direct sunlight) or tumble dry on a moderate temperature, delicate cycle. Never dry it at high temperature.
Once dry, tumble dry your garment for a further 20 minutes to revive the long-lasting water-repellent (DWR) treatment.
If you don't have a tumble dryer, you can use an iron. Iron on a gentle, steam-free setting.
Place a cloth or towel between the iron and the garment to protect it.
Move on to this step as soon as you feel the water repellency needs to be reactivated.
Caring for waterproof garments: restoring water repellency!
If water no longer beads or runs off the surface after washing, you will need to reapply a long-lasting water-repellent treatment (DWR or Durable Water Repellent).
To re-waterproof a garment, use the DWR product of your choice: spray or machine treatment.
After application, tumble dry for 20 minutes to activate the DWR treatment.
Alternatively, iron the garment when dry, setting the iron to "delicate" (moderate heat, no steam) and placing a towel or cloth between the iron and the garment.
