P

Despite the name, Durable Water Repellents (or DWR – the water-shedding coating usually combined with a waterproof membrane like Gore-Tex to keep you dry) do eventually wear off. And when that happens your waterproof will start ‘wetting out.’ Essentially this means the garment’s outer layer soaks up instead of ‘beading’ and shedding raindrops, which with enough pressure (i.e. from rucksack straps) can be pushed inside. Sometimes a quick, lowheat spin in the tumble dryer is enough to ‘revitalise’ your DWR, but if that’s not effective, you can top-up the DWR using Nikwax’s TX-Direct, Storm’s Eco Proofer or Granger’s 2-in-1.