DWR re-treating hunt cloths & how often?

[Kilboars]

DWR or Durable Water Repellant that most of our hunting cloth come treated with but I notice it wears off in the wash over time.

How often do you re-treat your gear with DWR and what product is best and scent free?

Thank you

Andrew

 

[Samson7x]

Interested to hear responses on this. I think I need to retreat some of mine. Nikwax is fairly popular I believe.

 

[Poser]

Really varies quite a bit depending on how much use your gear gets, how its stored and how old it is.
A rain jacket will usually last me around 4 years before I start getting delamination issues.
That's with a lot of use and wearing a bino harness and a pack will be real hard on the DWR treatment.
1st year, I may wash it in tech wash a couple of times following hard use. 2nd year, I'll actually start applying DWR, probably 2-3 times that year + a couple of Tech Washes. 3rd year, probably 3-5 times for DWR + however many tech washes. Around year 4 is where I usually notice a bigger decline in performance.

Basically, you need to reapply DWR when water stops beading up. You can always do a shower test to see how well its holding up. Wash in Tech Wash anytime your gear needs laundering: if its dirty, been exposed to dirt or has been used hard.

 

[willtim]

Retreat when it stops beading. Kuiu recommends Granger products.

 

[COJoe]

It's my understanding that if you put your items in the dryer the heat renews it. I don't normally use my dryer but if it helps I will start using it for my jackets. I'm not sure how true that is though.

 

[Poser]

It's my understanding that if you put your items in the dryer the heat renews it. I don't normally use my dryer but if it helps I will start using it for my jackets. I'm not sure how true that is though.

It will help revive the factory DWR, but once you get to aftermarket products, it doesn't seem to help in any meaningful way.

Would really be nice if there was a service for applying factory grade DWR applications under high pressure, but nothing like that exists.

 

[MuleyFever]

Whats the best product to apply?

Whats the best product and temperature to wash DWR treated clothing in to reduce the degradation of the DWR?

 

[Wheels]

Whats the best product to apply?

Whats the best product and temperature to wash DWR treated clothing in to reduce the degradation of the DWR?

Grangers Performance Repel for waterproof clothing. It says on the bottle to "wash according to care label instructions and air dry or tumble dry.
Clean with Granger wash first.

 

[fishslap]

I just used this on my outdoor research foray rain gear since it was on their website. I use grangers down wash on down and use their cream on boots.

Hardshell DUO-Pack - Nikwax NA

The Nikwax Hardshell DUO-Pack is the complete care system for cleaning and re-waterproofing wet weather clothing. Non-flammable and PFAS-free.

nikwax.com