Old School
Aug 19th, 2008
Aug 19th, 2008
Patagonia, From the Trenches - How do I take care of my waterproof shell?
From time to time, Patagonia posts some great insights from their Customer Service Department. Please read the sample below, and go to the Patagonia blog, The Cleanest Line to read the full review and other insights from the Patagonia trenches.
From the Trenches Our Customer Service Representatives (CSRs) are our front line of communication with Patagonia fanatics far and wide. The crew here at our Call Center in Reno, NV are at it seven days a week, taking orders, helping with returns, and most importantly, answering the astonishing range of questions our customers fire at us. Like flocks of swirling swallows or shimmering schools of tropical fish, our customers swoop in with mysteriously synchronized concerns and questions on a regular basis, prompting the need for ready answers. Times like these, nothing would be more handy than magically beaming knowledge out into the ether. Our very own Old School is here to do just that. He's stepped back from the front lines to answer some of these popular questions, straight from the trenches.
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One of the most common questions we get here is “How do I take care of my shell?” Normally, we get this question after a customer has worn their jacket in the rain and they find that it is getting soaked on the outside (in outdoor-speak, "wetting-out").
Modern waterproof/breathable shells most often used layered construction, consisting of an outer face fabric (what you see), a waterproof barrier stuck to (aka "laminated") inside of it, and a coating or fabric lining on the inside. On the surface of all this is a chemical treatment called "Durable Water Repellent" or more commonly, DWR.
This is the stuff that makes water bead up and roll right off your shell. Keeping the water beading off your shell is not just cosmetic, it also keeps your shell breathing at its optimum level. We receive a number of returns from folks who claim their jackets are leaking. Most often, the outer fabric of the jacket is wetting-out and perspiration is condensing on the interior of their shell instead of passing through the membrane like it would if the DWR was working properly.
Unfortunately DWR doesn't last forever so it does need care and maintenance to keep it working properly.
There is a common misconception that washing your shell ruins the DWR when, more often than not, the real culprit is not washing it. Whenever someone calls about their jacket wetting out, my first question is always “When was the last time you washed it?” The answer almost always: “Never.”
For a more detailed look at some of the history and technology of Waterproof/Breathable fabrics see previous posts here. Keep reading to learn more about proper shell care and maintenance.
From the Trenches Our Customer Service Representatives (CSRs) are our front line of communication with Patagonia fanatics far and wide. The crew here at our Call Center in Reno, NV are at it seven days a week, taking orders, helping with returns, and most importantly, answering the astonishing range of questions our customers fire at us. Like flocks of swirling swallows or shimmering schools of tropical fish, our customers swoop in with mysteriously synchronized concerns and questions on a regular basis, prompting the need for ready answers. Times like these, nothing would be more handy than magically beaming knowledge out into the ether. Our very own Old School is here to do just that. He's stepped back from the front lines to answer some of these popular questions, straight from the trenches.
_________________________________________________________________________
One of the most common questions we get here is “How do I take care of my shell?” Normally, we get this question after a customer has worn their jacket in the rain and they find that it is getting soaked on the outside (in outdoor-speak, "wetting-out").
Modern waterproof/breathable shells most often used layered construction, consisting of an outer face fabric (what you see), a waterproof barrier stuck to (aka "laminated") inside of it, and a coating or fabric lining on the inside. On the surface of all this is a chemical treatment called "Durable Water Repellent" or more commonly, DWR.
This is the stuff that makes water bead up and roll right off your shell. Keeping the water beading off your shell is not just cosmetic, it also keeps your shell breathing at its optimum level. We receive a number of returns from folks who claim their jackets are leaking. Most often, the outer fabric of the jacket is wetting-out and perspiration is condensing on the interior of their shell instead of passing through the membrane like it would if the DWR was working properly.
Unfortunately DWR doesn't last forever so it does need care and maintenance to keep it working properly.
There is a common misconception that washing your shell ruins the DWR when, more often than not, the real culprit is not washing it. Whenever someone calls about their jacket wetting out, my first question is always “When was the last time you washed it?” The answer almost always: “Never.”
For a more detailed look at some of the history and technology of Waterproof/Breathable fabrics see previous posts here. Keep reading to learn more about proper shell care and maintenance.
