I discovered this morning that my Altura Attack 3/4's are not quite as waterproof as they were. Whats the best way to reproof them?

Cheers 🙂

Wash with pure soap/techwash then reproof in machine.

nikwax works well if you can apply heat afterwards

Interested in seeing what people recommend as I've tried various products from outdoor/camping shops (e.g. Nikwax, etc) and never had great results – i.e. they restore some water repellency for a few rides/outings, but it soon wears off and they're not waterproof anymore.

Bitchumen

I used some Nikwax Techwash on them earlier on this year but have to say not hugely impressed as when I've worn them since then they've wet out straight away 😮

IIRC there was mention of putting them in the tumble dryer or ironing on low heat but was advised not to do this with these shorts.

I have tried different products with not much success to be honest, so I have now decided not to buy expensive waterproof jackets any more.

What is wrong with just wearing bin liners? Worked for me for years.

The problem with Gore type fabrics is essentially they're based on a thin membrane between 2 layers of fabric. Invariably in a high friction environment e.g. between your legs & the saddle with crap constantly been thrown up in between the friction surfaces the membrane soon wears out. When this happens the best you can hope for is to reproof the DWR which is what the standard commercially available reproofers do. Which is at best a temporary/partial solution.

In saying all of that I'm quite happy with my attack shorts even if they aren't perfect any more they're still worlds better than wearing regular baggies when it's miserable.

use nikwax on my stuff and then tumble on low heat. seem to work for 4/5 months then reproof again.
two washes and reproofing should see you through a winter.

Grangers All in One is pretty sweet – remember to tumble dry

Nikwax works for me but I tend to do the proofing in the sink rather than the machine. Perhaps getting a longer soak in less diluted solution yeilds better results. Ive even given a couple of softshell jackets that wernt perticually designed to be waterproof a good dunk and been very impressed with the results.

Get Goretex…. it lasts longer, a lot longer.

Same happened with my Altura Night Vision…. I sent it back and got a refund – not fit for "waterproof" purpose.

I've just done this for all my waterproofs. took ages as only meant to be two bits of kits per wash. used nik-wax cleaner and re-proofer, and having been out in the past week every thing is 'better' than before but i wouldn't say as good as new.

+1 for Grangers. Reminds me, I need to do my jacket again. Well I will if I go out tomorrow night going by the forecast.

Based upon many a cock-up…. just remember to clean the detergent draw of your machine BEFORE you put your precious, expensive waterproofs in the drum.
Residue from your regular washing powder or fabric conditioner (the silent assassin of all technical garments) will not help at all.
If washing before proofing then pure soap flakes are as good as TechWash type stuff and I find it better to wash then proof separately. The low heat tumble dry can be replaced with hanging on the line on a hot sunny day if like me, you don't have a dryer.

Related question: Does this reproofing stuff like nikwax apply to any waterproof fabric, or does it depend on the membrane? I.e. Would you do the same thing for heletech xp, as with goretex performance shell, as with northface hyvent dt?

I did my Endura Stealth, Endura eVent trousers and Gore Cosmo a while ago – and they're all just like new!

1 – Make sure your washing machine has NO detergent/conditioner residue by running an empty wash, on the highest temperature.

2 – Throw clothing in the wash with Granger's 30°C cleaner.

3 – Repeat step 2 with Granger's 30°C proofer.

Leave to drip-dry.

Don't tumble-dry the Stealth. The 30°C proofer doesn't need high temperatures to activate it, and the Stealth is not made to be tumble-dried.

Enjoy : )

@robinbetts:
The reproofing gubbins 9nikwax, etc) doesn't reproof the membrane, just the DWR (durable water repellency) of the face fabric. If the membrane has gone flaky, it's not going to keep water out.
What usually happens before that is that the outer fabric loses it's water repellency, and then 'wets out' making it less than breathable. This prevents your sweat from escaping through the fabric, making your expensive 'breathable' jacket into a plastic bag with zips. This often happens when the garment is dirty and the water sticks to the dirt and that's why it's often a good idea to wash the jacket first before restoring the repellency.

Will it ever be factory fresh, like new? No, but it will almost always be a hell of a lot better than a dirty waterproof that gets wet and stays wet!

EDIT: the only difference between some types of re-proofer is what style of garment they're designed for, so spray on nikway is better for lined garments where you WANT the liner to wick sweat, (and not be waterproof and therefore repelling the sweat back towrads you!) as opposed to a wash-in solution.

Grangers. Do it regularly – no bother.

Well I've decided to try re-proofing in the sink and see how that works out. I have always used the washing machine to do it before what can possibley go wrong… 😯

I've left it to soak for about an hour and have thouroughly handwashed it also. I'm going to pop them in the tumble dryer for a short period and see what occurs.

Any updates on the wash and reproof in the sink as I intend to try this method this week sometime with some Nikwax?

Cheers,
Will