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garth
10-22-2007, 21:11
well...I just found a down sleeping bag I had custom made 10 years ago...it was of course bagged up tight....it has some clumps in it...what should I do for this bag....just let it fluff for a few days? also I would like to put some H2O coating on it what do you recommend? thanks in advance....Garth

Egads
10-22-2007, 21:22
Hand wash it with down soap in the tub. Then drive to a commercial laundromat with a good book and ~$15 of quarters. Dry it with a few tennis balls until you run out of quarters. See attached instructions.

http://www.westernmountaineering.com/index.cfm?section=Product%20Tips%20and%20Care


Egads

take-a-knee
10-22-2007, 21:23
If it is a well-made bag you can put some new down in it, other than that it should make a good throw pillow.

Fiddler
10-22-2007, 21:36
What worked one time for a garage sale bag was to take it to a dry cleaners for a professional cleaning. Tell them to do whatever they do to restore loft. Might cost 5 or 10 bucks over the regular cleaning charge. I don't know the rating of my down bag, there were no tags on it when I got it. The lady said it was about 20 years old. But I do know it's got to be around 20 degrees or colder or I can't stay in it. It will loft up like a new one.

Jim Adams
10-22-2007, 22:00
Hand wash it with down soap in the tub. Then drive to a commercial laundromat with a good book and ~$15 of quarters. Dry it with a few tennis balls until you run out of quarters. See attached instructions.

http://www.westernmountaineering.com/index.cfm?section=Product%20Tips%20and%20Care


Egads
This should work great HOWEVER it will be very heavy with the water soaked through. Gently sqeeze the water out of it against the bottom of the tub and then roll it into a ball and carry it to the car in a laundry basket. It will most likely rip open from the weight of the water if you try to move it any other way.:eek:

geek

Nightwalker
10-22-2007, 22:34
Hand wash it with down soap in the tub. Then drive to a commercial laundromat with a good book and ~$15 of quarters. Dry it with a few tennis balls until you run out of quarters. See attached instructions.

http://www.westernmountaineering.com/index.cfm?section=Product%20Tips%20and%20Care


Egads

Where I do mine, it takes 75 cents to 1 dollar. I use 2 tennis balls. First quarter, use medium heat; next 2 or 3, use low.

P.S. I use the super-size front-loading machine at the laundromat with down soap or Woolite. My bag has held up well with 3 or more washings per year for 3 or 4 years now, and I've never washed it by hand. Use the warm and gentle setting

rafe
10-22-2007, 22:38
Why not wash AND dry it at the laundromat. Use a front-loading washer. Use care when carrying it from the washer to the dryer.

shelterbuilder
10-23-2007, 07:39
What worked one time for a garage sale bag was to take it to a dry cleaners for a professional cleaning. Tell them to do whatever they do to restore loft. Might cost 5 or 10 bucks over the regular cleaning charge. I don't know the rating of my down bag, there were no tags on it when I got it. The lady said it was about 20 years old. But I do know it's got to be around 20 degrees or colder or I can't stay in it. It will loft up like a new one.

The problem with dry cleaning is that there are two different types of solvents - one is okay, but the other one will STRIP the natural oils right out of the down, which you don't want to do. All that you really want to do is to remove the dirt - which you can do at the laundrymat. Front-loading washers are best - they don't have agitators that can strain and stress the internal baffles of the bag. And when lifting a down bag that is damp, lift it from underneath - if you try to grab the top of the bag and haul it around, the weight of the water-soaked down will rip out the internal baffles and leave you with a big cold-spot somewhere!:(

Fiddler
10-23-2007, 08:36
The problem with dry cleaning is that there are two different types of solvents - one is okay, but the other one will STRIP the natural oils right out of the down, which you don't want to do.
You are right. But you want to tell the cleaner that it is down so they use the proper solvent.