 Hello All,
A few weeks ago my Rab e-vent jacket started to leek after washing it in tech wash then reproofing with tx direct so i put a thread on om.
The jacket went back to rab for a closer look!! lots of you got into the thread and a nice lady from montane said that there could be a problem with the tech wash. anyway 4 weeks later rab have said they will replace the jacket.
So what happends next i wash the jackert again in 6 month and it becomes unwaterproof angain???
your thoughts please!!!
Many thanks Rob!!
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 I'm watching this with interest - washed and reproofed mine for the first time last weekend, and haven't worn it since. Cold be interesting!
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Best thing to do is to try in on in the shower thats what i did just to make sure!!!
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 Hi Rob,
it's that nice lady from Montane here again (thanks for that :-))
I was speaking to the technical rep from eVENT last week and spoke to him about the forum. He reinforced what I've been saying for years which is that if you owned a Ferrari you wouldn't run it into the ground and still expect it to purr like a pussycat and not give you any problems. The same is true of ALL technical clothing. For eVENT, Gore etc to maintain a good level of moisture vapour transfer then the cleaner it is the better. What could have happened with your jacket before was that the face of the jacket was wet and so breathability was reduced massivley. A lot of what may have been inside your jacket in the form of a leak was actually your sweat building up inside because it couldn't escape as fast as it usually does.
We seem to take technical clothing for granted and assume that the more money you spend the less it needs looking after, when in fact the opposite is true. Technical clothing to work at it's best, needs to be well looked after, and this includes keeping it relatively clean. If you allow a piece of kit that is used regularly to get ground in dirt and grease it becomes harder to remove it. If you clean it regularly (which depends on the amount of wear)then it will continue to give you years of reliable service.
With eVENT grease and dirt (from your skin) if it is allowed to build up over time it can start to block the membrane (picture a layer of grease over a sieve). It is not however, anything like 1st generation Gore-Tex. Remember that eVENT has an Oleophobic and Hydrophobic (will not absorb oil or water) polymer applied to it, 1st gen Gore was Oleophilic (loves to absorb oil). Once oil got into the Gore membrane it was virtually impossible to get it out. With eVENT, detergent has the power to pull the dirt/oil/grease etc out.
My advice is to keep an eye on your jacket and look at it like you're everyday clothes, if it's dirty then wash it, if it's smelly (bacteria feeding on your skin/grease and dirt left in the jacket...yuk)then wash it, if the face fabric stops beading then wash it (If it's clean and stopped beading then it's time for a reproof).
Does this help at all?
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Thank You Julie,
Thanks a Great help If i could i would change my Rab for a Montane!! just because you have been so helpful!! i am just glad Rab have said they would exchange the jacket.
(I just wish Rab was as helpful as you have been) oh well can't win them all.
Thanks Rob
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happy to help :-)
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 Yeah but if he's trying it on in the shower (with cold water i presume?) how can it be sweat if he's just standing there?
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 Insensible perspiration? Our skin 'leaks' water vapour all the time, even if it's not actively sweating to reduce body temperature.
Even if you draped the jacket over a dummy, and thus eliminated any bodily perspiration, you would get condensation from atmospheric moisture, where the fabric was cooled by the cold water playing over the outside. Have a look at your cold water pipes and see if there's condensation on them. Or the windows in your house (assuming they're not double glazed).
The only way to really tell if it's a leak, as opposed to condensation, is to perform a pressure test. Which is a little difficult to rig up with household equipment...
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 why wait 6 months. when you get the replacement. have a trip under the shower to "road" test it. then wash and reproof it and see what happens.
then you'll know if it's something wrong with event or something wrong with your washing.
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captain - yes i know all that, 1 and half litres during the night etc etc, but this is a jacket designed to breath when you are active not just stood in a shower. Unless whoever wears it perspires like an elephant then i am sure that just standing in a shower would not soak you in sweat.
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Standing under a shower is very heavy rain, so there may be an almost continuous layer of water: no breathing.
Also, if you're just standing under the shower, you won't be putting out much heat to drive the moisture out.
Without knowing what Chob experienced under the shower, it's hard to comment with any degree of accuracy; I was just offering possible explanations.
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Hello All,
I would have thought there was a problem with the jacket or the membrain or Rab would have not givin me a replacement???
Right when i tested the jacket in the shower the water was cold for the test at the start of the test the jacket was beeding the water off fine then after a few minuets the water started to come thought the inside of the jacket was wet to the touch.
What i will say the jacket was fine intill i washed the jacket with tech wash then reproofed the jacket with tx direct maybe there is a problem with tech wash???
Hope that helps Rob
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p.s. i think i might go back to gore xcr!!!
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Even if there was a problem with the tx Direct or tech wash you used the jacket still shouldnt leak since its the event layer thats keeping it waterproof.
However if the either of them have blocked up the Event then that could stop the breathablity thus producing a build up of water inside.
Its hard to exactly say what may be up with though without actually having the jacket to hand.
You could try washing it with normal powder (on a low temp) then buy another bottle of TX Direct to re-proof it straight after.
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Hello All,
I am lead to beleave it was the tech wash that blocked the e-vent then the tx direct made sure it would sayed blocked???
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 So what should we wash our Event jackets with. I've got a Superfly BTW.
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a few points on this:
cold water will create condensation on the inside of a jacket, just like cold tap water in a glass creates moisture on the outside of it,
the jacket may have been replaced for customer satisfaction, i know this happens alot with some companies, it is very awkward to suggest that a customer hasnt looked after the product, without accussing them of miss-use
as julie says, about looking after products, sports cars change the oil every 3000 miles, ford, vw, vauxhall, can have up to 20000 oil change intervals now, treat your technical clothing like a ferrari....
as to the washing of event, as i understand it..
regularly wash in tech wash, and cool iron or tumble dry, whichever is recommended,
every 6 or so washes, or sooner if required use tx-direct wash-in, and dry, you know it needs re-proofing if you have tech washed and dried and face does not bead water.
if very dirty, use detergent, rinse wash at least twice, then tech wash then tx-direct, then dry,
if you regularly wash you should not have to resort to detergent,
on a lighter note... dont do what i did last year and try going to event dot com remember its eventfabrics.com!
and yes its one of those pawn sites,
hope this answers q's and strengthens what julie has said
cheers gb
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