Nikwax Wash In Water Proofing

[nextmayor]

The ORC Soft Shell thread reminded me of the Nikwax wash in water proofing. I've used this stuff before on my Gortex skiing equipment with good results, but was wondering if anyone had tried any of their other products. I see that they now have wash in water proofing for fleece, cotton, and soft shell clothing. Just wondering if any one has tried any of these other Nikwax products. Specifically, the fleece and cotton water proofing interest me.

 

I know this stuff worked well on my gortex stuff, so I'll use that for my ECWCS gear and I'll give the Softshell Proof a go, but I just can't believe anything would really make fleece or cotton water proof, even for a short amount of time.

 

Here's a link to Nikwax:

 

http://www.nikwax.com/en-us/index.php

[tome]

Nikwax is pretty impressive stuff. I remember when i was working for an outdoor shop and the Nikwax rep did a demonstration of a fleece washed in "tent and gear proof". The fleece was able to have a glass of water poured into it and hold it up as a puddle without any soaking in.

 

Though it has to be said that "tent and gear" is not supposed to be used on clothes (use it on a mates towel and listen out for the confusion and fustration from the bathroom hehe)

[chillindrdude]

worked well on my snowboarding jacket start was starting to loose its water repellency. as long as the garment is nylon, it should be ok. nikwax also makes a laundry detergent specifically for waterproofed jackets so you don't remove the waterproofing that occurs when using regular detergents

[Chimpy]

I use Nikwax CottonProof and TX.Direct both are awesome products. Didn't know they actually had a SoftShell version and the TX.Direct works fine for use on my shells without wicking liners.

 

Also a big fan of the Fjallraven wax for more serious proofing of cotton outers.

[Vostok]

I've gone through a ton of the stuff, and I gotta say it works great.

[millest]

anyone know where you can get this stuff in the uk? ive got a couple of waterproof jackets that need redoing so im curious as to what i need to get to do them and keep them in tip top condition

cheers

millest

[tomo]

Try your local outdoor shop - Blacks, Field&Trek etc, they'll have the stuff. I've used this stuff on all sorts of gear, from tents to triple ceramic waterproofs - works well. Make sure you get the right product for the job though!

 

web site link below

 

http://www.theoutdoorshop.com/Outdoor/Prod...;language=en-GB

[England Wonder]

works well, I prefer to hand wash stuff when dealing with it to make sure there's not detergent residue to mess things up.

 

Paramo work very well to (though maybe not for airsoft)

[tom lawson]

ive just come back from the Brecon Beacons in Wales, and it rained a lot, and i wore my Gore-Tex waterproof gear that was coated in Nik Wax TX Direct before i left, and they worked fine, nice and waterproof, even though the garments themselves are about 5 years old

[doc_newstead]

It's good stuff, but the guy in Blacks (an outdoors shop) says it isn't worth worrying too much about the specific types. My mate couldn't find the Down wash-in, and the bloke in the store just said use the normal, vanilla Tekwash. As for cotton and fleece; don't expect miracles.

[EdrrakNolat]

I use this for all my snowboarding gear, and it works great.

[England Wonder]

I've had mixed advice from staff in outdoor shops, some say it'sfine using whatever you've got others wont.

 

With down stuff you may reduce the loft of the filling if your not careful. I wouldn't risk it

the leather/farbric stuff is fairly similar but the leather stuff containings tanning agents

[tome]

A point that i don't think has been made yet. Nikwax won't make your fleece/cotton "waterproof" in the sense that it's maximum hydrostatic head will be minimal compared to a waterproof fabric such as Goretex, Triple Point....etc. However it will give it some pretty extreme water repellency.

 

The result of this is that if you, for example, wear a "cotton-proofed" item in the rain it'll likely behave much like a cheap rain mac, though the minute you start to push the water onto the fabric via backpack straps or slings then it'll more than likely push the water through at those points

 

Hope that helps.

[Duff Beer]

Exactly right. I used to work at Blacks and Gore-tex (and accompanying products), Maglites and Leathermen were my areas.

 

If you are going to use Nikwax products I would suggest doing them in the washing machine, but I would recommend that you put the washing machine on a rinse cycle on empty first to clear all the detergent out as detergent is not the friend of waterproofing. Once you have done that wash a couple of your garments that you want cleaned with up to half a large bottle of Tech wash (the one with the green top) on a 30ºC delicates/silks cycle.

 

Once this is done and the items are still in the machine do another wash with the correct product. For Gore-tex, Sympatex, E-vent etc use TX-Direct. For fleeces use Cotton Proof. If for example you have a Gore-tex with a fleece lining then you can get the spray on TX-Direct and let it dry.

 

The main difference between Nikwax and Grangers is the way in which Nikwax is activated. Grangers requires heat to activate it whereas Nikwax doesn't, and as it's water based it seeps into all of the seams with the water in the wash for total impregnation.

 

If you have any problems please PM me.