Washing, drying, waterproofing: how to take good care of your outdoor equipment

• Check the product for tears, do up any zips and close any Velcro fastenings.

• Is your washing machine’s drum big enough? Household machines can be a tight squeeze for down products with a filling weight of 750 g and up.

• Before you wash your down sleeping bag, soak it in cold water for an hour so the down can absorb the water.

• Use specialist detergent – and never add fabric softener. Choose a delicate cycle (max. 40°C) and add an extra rinse if you can. Spin at a maximum of 600 RPM.

• Put three tennis balls in the drum with your item to prevent the down from clumping up.

• Carefully squeeze out the water (don’t wring it!) and lie your sleeping bag over a clothes horse to drip dry.

• Put the product in the dryer on a low temperature (approx. 40 °C) with three tennis balls or dryer balls.

• If you don’t have a tumble dryer, lie the item flat to dry and shake it from time to time to stop the down clumping up. This will take five to ten days, depending on the filling quantity.

Store your down jacket or down sleeping bag unzipped in a dry, dark place or in a large, breathable net bag. Never store your down items squashed into their storage bags.

• Remove the shoelaces so you can clean hard-to-reach areas, too.

• Get rid of dirt with cold water and a brush.

• Fill the shoes with water and a drop of soap (don’t use oil or greasy substances) overnight to remove salt from the membrane in waterproof GORE-TEX® shoes. Then, give them a good rinse.

• If required, take the inner soles out to air them and wash if necessary.

• Leave your shoes to dry unfastened (without shoelaces) for one or two days. Never do this in direct sunlight, over a fire or near a radiator, as this could loosen the glue. Plus, leather goes brittle when heated.

• Newspaper helps speed up this process: stuff your shoes with newspaper and change it regularly to avoid mould.

• Dry all metal parts (hooks and eyelets) carefully to prevent rust forming.

• Treat nubuck and split leather with a thin coat of wax (e.g. Granger’s G-Wax). Use a brush to apply an even layer, then remove any excess.

• Maintain and waterproof shoes with a GORE-TEX® membrane using the recommended product (e.g. Nikwax).

• Treat oiled leather occasionally with wax; apply an even amount with a soft cloth.

• Rub a leather care product or regular moisturiser into the inner lining of the shaft from time to time.

• Popping your shoes into the freezer for a night banishes unpleasant odours by killing smelly bacteria.

• Do up all zips and close all Velcro fasteners.

• Use specialist detergent (no fabric softener!).

• Choose a delicates cycle with reduced spin speed and an extra rinse to remove detergent residues from the fabric. 

• Use care products designed for breathable textiles, such as Fibertec Green Guard.

• Waterproofing won’t make your clothing watertight, but it will cause water and dirt to pearl on top of it. In turn, this will prevent the fabric from soaking up water and keep your waterproof jacket breathable. This also applies to softshells.

• Reactivate the water-repellent effect by tumble-drying it on medium heat.

• Check your washing machine’s drum to make sure it’s all in good shape.

• Do up all zips.

• Wash the Merino garment on its own for its first wash, then you can add it to a normal load of washing with similar colours for subsequent washes.

• Turn it inside out or wash it in a net bag.

• Use specialist wool detergent (such as Granger’s Merino Wash) and avoid fabric softener: it contains enzymes that can break down and damage the delicate Merino fibres.

• Generally, a cold or warm wash at max. 40°C is fine.

• Don’t tumble dry your Merino garments.

• Ideally, put them on a well-ventilated surface. Alternatively, fold them in half over your washing line or a hanger and leave them to dry.

• Wool can shrink by up to five percent in the wash.

• Only iron your Merino wool on the wool setting or at max. 130°C; protect it by placing a cotton cloth between the iron and your garment. Don’t push the iron to and fro: just steam the wool.

• Pure Merino wool is less robust than synthetic fibres, especially when wet.

• When storing your Merino garments, protect them from pests such as moths, silverfish and carpet beetles.

• Be careful around sharp objects like thorns, belt buckles and jewellery.