Hey anyone, a new member who has finally got round to getting the inernet and joined a forum.

My point is this.  Why is it whenver I used to go walking in my old waterproof jacket I got soaked (an over exageration but not a total lie) any time it started to get cold or wet.  

Is this 'Guaranteed to keep you dry' a total load of rubbish or what.  Has anyone else found their 'breathable' jacket not 'breathing'

Charlie 

Some 'breathable' materials aren't particularly brilliant at managing moisture produced by your body, especially in the wrong circumstances (wet, humid conditions especially). A jacket's breathability also depends on the way it's cut, the way the seams are taped, the type of face fabric, etc. And of course, what you wear underneath it. Sadly, lots of supposedly breathable fabrics are rubbish. What type of jacket was it, out of interest?

That doesn't really help. Berghaus use 2 types of membrane, goretex in their high end stuff and aquafoil in their budget stuff. Aquafoil is ok if you are lying down doing nothing in temperatures around 5-6°C but the minute you raise an eyelid or some such exertion you'll start to get wet from condensation.

did you get soaked from the outside or the inside?

have you cleaned the jacket regularly? redone the durable water repellent lately?

condensation is the biggest culprit of moisture build up inside waterproof garments.

I have a B'haus Mera Peak (No i'm not a Scally ASBO CHAV) and I bought a size larger than required, mainly due to a couple of factors

1. Give me more room between me/base layers and the jacket so as to improve air circulation and thus reduce condensation build up. I tend to run with the cuffs fully open and draw strings loose unless it's Baltic and then I just let a P'tec 100 layer take up all the sweat.

2. It allows me to layer up with a Down jacket underneath in the winter without the jacket compressing the down and thus reducing it's loft and insulative properties.

Mondi, if it is wetting out and you have water transferance through from the outside thats a differant issue alltogether. W.L Gore Ltd offer a G'tee on the waterproof membrane *G'teed to keep you dry* so fire it back to the shop from whence it came saying that it's not fit for purpose, they in turn will send it back to B'haus who will test it and come to the conclusion that the membrane has faulted.

If it's "Aquafoil" B'haus's in house brand of waterproof membrane thats failed, ebay the jacket and buy another as it's only good as a wind stopper.

I had a Lafuma G'tex jacket that failed on the shoulders and across my back, took it back to decathlon who said it was condensation and they would not exchange or refund the cost of the item, I waited a week and went back the next Saturday in pouring rain wearing a light blue long sleeve T-shirt underneath, stood out in the rain for 40mins outside the shop until it started seaping through, then went back and saw the manager again, who again spouted condensation until I took the jacket off and showed her the wet dark patches on my Tee' she swallowed her words and exchanged the jacket and reluctantly gave me a £20 gift voucher for having to visit the shop twice and getting wet poving the issue.

All I'll say Mondi is this, google the Terms of the Trade Descriptions act, print them out, highlight the clauses that relate to your problem and go down to the retailer from which you bought the jacket,  give them the jacket explain the issue and ask for an EXCHANGE. Bear in mind they may want to send the jacket to B'haus, this will take a couple of weeks, any longer and the retailer may just be fobbing you off. Always try to to visit the shop when they are quiet and be discreet about the conversation re- the fault.

If they get funny present the TDA with the points highlighted and ask the manager which law they would like to break 1st today!!!!!!!

Drew

Cruxster... mate.... that is fantastic! Great perseverance... I'd love to have seen that!

Mondi,

I have posted on several threads why I don't expect any current membrane to match my perspiration rates during activity : simple maths - when you are generating excess heat through exercise, you're sweating upwards of a litre per hour. Lab tests on all the membranes suggest that they fall short of being able to transmit that vapour to the outside world at that rate; and those tests are done in 'ideal' conditions rather than the real world.

That being said, jackets made of eVent seem to have a significant advantage over the competition as far as vapour transfer goes. Or do away with membrane technology altogether and try Paramo, Furtech or even Ventile (I have no personal experience of any of these as I follow the strategy below...)

But my personal recommendation is to wear as little as possible when you are on the move (baselayer plus windproof pertex or equivalent when necessary) and keep your waterproofs and insulation dry for when you need it most - i.e. when you stop moving. This will reduce your sweat rate (helping to avoid dehydration too) and you'll be less tired at the end of the day.

Mondi,

my more detailed explanation was in this thread if you are interested in the science behind it all.

I like your style Drew....

What fabrics were you wearing underneath? That is the question in my mind.

For an inappropriate, or too thick as John says, base or midlayer will render your jacket's breathability inoperative.

Wow, impressed at the response, especially from Cruxter man.  Good story about your situation and a fair bit of determination to win the battle.  If I new how to do a clapping expression on a forum I would.

Sorry it has taken a while to add my answers.  I start work very early in mornings so Iam an official na mates during the week coz I have to go to bed so early.

It was a Gore-tex fabric Berghaus that I wore.  I had a couple of layers on beneath.  One was a helly hansen base, the other a trespass lightweight fleece.

While the Helly I still use, the Trespass has gone in the bin because it didnt keep me warm on its own, scratched my neck and had a ridiculous zip pull thing that caught in my jacket zip all the time.  

I know that if I had worn more layers then I would have simply boiled alive and the layers closest to me would have reduced my ability to retain heat completely.

I still have that jacket locked away in the cuboard just waiting till I gut the place one spring day and throw it in the trash.

I dont however have the reciept, that has long gone.

Paramo perhaps ... 

Paramo

- every time-

The "P" word...how dare you scoundrels use language like that on a G'tex thread.

Kate, have you tried wearing Paramo without a base layer underneath, ie next to the skin?

I do wear a Velez in the depths of winter with a base layer. Wouldn't want to risk going out without a base layer in case I got so hot I needed to take the Velez off.
I once had a student take off the big jumper she was wearing in a lecture. She'd forgotten she wasn't wearing a t-shirt underneath!!!

Paramo is absolutely fantastic stuff!

I regularly go commando in mine - when the weather is warm.

It just last and lasts and last and lasts and last and lasts and lasts and lasts - you can see a pattern emerging cant you.

Kate, just duck behind a bush/rock/sheep to change (okay, maybe not the last one, since it will almost certainly wander off at the crucial moment).

Or, if none of those are available, wait till no-one's coming, crouch down, and change quickly.

Once again, the guys have it easy ...

Although, since I assume your Velez isn't skin tight, you'll probably find it cooler than you think with nothing beneath since there's plenty of air flow next to the skin.