How to wash a down jacket?

How to wash a down jacket

Today, one of the most popular types of winter clothing is a down jacket, and all thanks to the down filler, which is characterized by relative lightness and excellent thermal insulation properties. At first, down jackets were made exclusively for members of Arctic expeditions and canadian loggers, but now almost every family member has such clothing. However, in order for the down jacket to serve for a long time, it needs proper and careful care.

The fact is that the real and quite expensive product is filled with duck, goose, Swan or eiderdown and the label has the inscription "down". In cheaper, budget models, down is mixed with a feather, so the label will be labeled "feather" (feather). These are the products that are often found both in our domestic markets and sometimes in boutiques (which is a little strange) and require special careful handling. Especially when washing.

In general, according to the recommendations of manufacturers, clothes with peropukhovymi fillers can not be washed or ironed due to the fact that the fluff is poorly washed out of powder products and when wet, it gets off. But the experience of our enterprising Housewives proves the opposite. Down jacket can be washed if you follow certain rules. This way you will not only learn how to wash down products without harm to things, but also significantly save the family budget on dry cleaning.

How to wash a down jacket in the washing machine

Before loading the down jacket into the washing machine, prepare the product for washing: fasten all the available buttons and zippers and turn it inside out. Otherwise, the fabric of the zipper and the place where the buttons are sewn will undergo deformation, which will certainly lead to a deterioration in the quality of the product.

In the drum of the washing machine at 1 time, do not load more than 1 down jacket, it must "hang loose" in order to wash well not only its outer part, but also the filler.
As for the washing mode, choose a delicate mode at low speed with a water temperature of no more than 30 degrees. Since dry powder products are poorly rinsed out of the down and feather, it is better to wash the thing with special liquid products sold in large supermarkets, for example, "Upipuh", "Unipuh" or "Sport Fein Fashion". Sometimes in stores, when purchasing a product, consultants offer to additionally purchase such means for washing down jackets.
And some models are sold together with special balls that need to be placed in the drum of the washing machine during washing. This is done so that the fluff does not have time to get lost in clumps when wet. If there are no such balls, resourceful Housewives advise you to take the usual three or four tennis balls. The effect will be the same.
Rinse the down jacket in a gentle mode is necessary, and at least three times, so that later there are no soap stains. You can wring it out in the washing machine, but again - at minimum speed and with tennis balls that will beat the fluff.
Some Housewives offer to dry the product in the washing machine, but the venture is quite risky, and if you do not want to see the damaged thing later, it is better to choose vertical drying.

How to dry a down jacket correctly

After washing and rinsing, remove the down jacket from the machine and hang it to dry in the bathroom on hangers. If the hangers are too small for this product, they need to be wrapped several times with a Terry towel. This is done so that neither the shoulder line nor the sleeve is deformed during the drying process. After the water drains, it is better to transfer the product to dry in a room or on a balcony, where the humidity is not so high.
It is not recommended to dry the down jacket near heat sources (batteries and radiators), since during heating the feather may become brittle and lose its thermal insulation properties. Or, even worse, it will start to emit a small amount of fat, and this threatens to cause sloppy yellow spots on the surface of the product.
During drying, the processed item must be periodically shaken and whipped in different directions (as if whipping a pillow) and the more intense the better. So as the feather and down dries, they will not stick together, but will straighten out and return to their place. If the correct mode of washing and drying is fully observed, then after drying the product will look like new.
If the down jacket is not too dirty or you do not trust the washing machine for some reason, you can try to wash it with your hands.

How to wash a down jacket manually

In any outerwear, the collar, pockets and cuffs are most exposed to contamination. Apply some household soap or mild shampoo to these areas, RUB lightly with a soft brush, and wash off the foam with a wet cloth.
If you need to wash the entire down jacket, it is better to place it vertically over the bathroom, for example, hanging on hangers. This way you are less likely to wet its filler. Lightly wet the cloth and lather it completely with a brush. Then wash off the foam with a shower jet. Dry the down jacket after hand washing as well as after washing in the machine — in a vertical position and periodically shaking.
Sometimes there are situations that seem to do everything correctly, and after washing and drying, the appearance of the product still deteriorates, there are ugly yellow spots or fluff gets knocked off. In such cases, you can resuscitate clothes, the main thing is not to give up and do it without extreme fanaticism.
For example, a down jacket does not always become clean after the first wash, but all because when sewing the product, industrial dust gets inside, which later turns out to be outside. All you need to do is just wash the down jacket again.
Yellow spots — this is the same fat that is released from the feathers, enterprising Housewives when they appear, recommend simply washing the product in a dishwashing liquid. Miracle spots will disappear!
And, finally, what to do if the fluff is still lost. Here everything depends on your resourcefulness: some people save themselves with a hair dryer, blowing the product from all sides and helping to straighten the fluff with their hands, someone takes a vacuum cleaner in their hands, but many girls use a regular carpet beater. To do this, you need to fasten all the buttons and zippers, turn the product inside out, put it in a bag (you can put it in a pillow case) and just knock it out. Only on your intensity depends on how soon the down jacket will acquire its original appearance. In most cases, it was possible to resuscitate the outer clothing.
But remember that frequent mechanical impact adversely affects the product, especially on the impregnation of the material and over time, the protective properties of the down jacket deteriorate. If you plan to change it to a new one in two years, feel free to erase it. If you are going to wear a down jacket or coat for at least 5 years, in this case it is better to prefer dry cleaning.