I bought a TNF Apex jacket recently, and I need to reproof it already. I guess that's down to using it snowboarding recently, falling at high speed into relatively packed snow is probably pretty hard on the shell.
Anyway, I bought some Nikwax Tech Wash, and "TX-Direct Wash In" and was about to use it when I read this on the bottle: "Easy to use WaterBased waterproofer which restores and improves water-repellency of breathable fabrics without wicking/absorbent liners."
The two jackets I intend to use it on both have lightweight fleece liners, and one of them has insulation of some form in the arms. Does anyone know whether using this stuff is ok? Or should I find a spray on one so that I can just apply it to the outer shell?
Great, well that was a bit of a waste of £10 then. This stuff is really expensive :/
I used a spray on proofer last time I had to proof my other jacket, but it didn't work very well. In fact, after washing and reproofing, it was waterproof for a couple of rain showers, then it started to soak water up, a lot worse than it had done previously. That's why I opted for wash in stuff this time.
tom, use the stuff you've got only if, and it's really very easy:
do you give a toss about the fleece wicking or not? if you are not wearing it next to your skin then wicking is total blx for the performance.
the wicking/absorbent bit refers to gore tex type stuff which use the incorrectly named wicking/absorbent words to hide the fact that they're only there to mitigate your drenching in condensation.
be brave and give it a good non-conditioner detergent wash first to get rid of any crap that's on it. then rinse, tech wash and then proof. tumble drying gets the best results (on LOW!) but you can iron it instead - through a tea towel to protect it from direct iron heat.
