murraylove
12-17-04, 11:41 PM
I have a new Burley Rock Point jacket for riding in the rain. It's one of the waterproof/breathable type, of a fabric called Gelanots. For the first several rides in the rain, I was very happy with the jacket--water beaded instantly, and I stayed dry, even in heavy showers.
Then I washed it. Exactly according to the manufacturer's instructions, with a double rinse to get rid of all traces of soap (which apparently interferes with the waterproofing). But this one, single wash has dramatically decreased my jacket's effectiveness. The outside is still somewhat water-repellent, but the water now sticks around instead of beading and running off. But inside is worse--the jacket now feels wet within ten minutes of riding in the rain. I get a cold, clammy feeling in the sleeves and other exposed places.
I suspect that what I'm feeling inside the jacket is condensation, perhaps caused by the water sticking around on the outside of the jacket, since that's about the only thing that's different. The rain conditions are no worse than they were before I washed the jacket, and the temperature is similar (I live in the Pacific Northwest).
I know I could Scotchgard the jacket to attempt to restore the original level of water repellency, but I've never had great results from doing that to other jackets in the past, and besides--a $200CDN "waterproof" jacket should be able to withstand a wash without losing its major characteristic. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I should do? (I've contacted Burley, but they haven't responded.)
Thanks
Then I washed it. Exactly according to the manufacturer's instructions, with a double rinse to get rid of all traces of soap (which apparently interferes with the waterproofing). But this one, single wash has dramatically decreased my jacket's effectiveness. The outside is still somewhat water-repellent, but the water now sticks around instead of beading and running off. But inside is worse--the jacket now feels wet within ten minutes of riding in the rain. I get a cold, clammy feeling in the sleeves and other exposed places.
I suspect that what I'm feeling inside the jacket is condensation, perhaps caused by the water sticking around on the outside of the jacket, since that's about the only thing that's different. The rain conditions are no worse than they were before I washed the jacket, and the temperature is similar (I live in the Pacific Northwest).
I know I could Scotchgard the jacket to attempt to restore the original level of water repellency, but I've never had great results from doing that to other jackets in the past, and besides--a $200CDN "waterproof" jacket should be able to withstand a wash without losing its major characteristic. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I should do? (I've contacted Burley, but they haven't responded.)
Thanks