Sealing boots

[chris]

I have a pair of Raichle leather boots (like the old Mountain Legends) that I use for light off trail hiking and in the winter time when snow precludes the use of running shoes. They are two years old now and haven't seen too much abuse. I sealed the seams and along the rand using Freesole and have been using SnoSeal for water proofing. However, the last two times I went out in snow, my feet got wet rather quickly. I reapplied SnoSeal before each time out. Is it possible that SnoSeal (which is also 2 years old now) degrades over time? Snow generally scrapes off sealant, but on the past two hikes, water came through at a much faster rate than expected. Thoughts?

[DebW]

My can of snowseal is probably at least 10 years old and still works fine. I don't think the stuff degrades. I apply it and then melt it in with a hair dryer. Seems to last for a few months if you don't scuff the boot alot. Not that your boots will be completely impervious to water, but a quick step in a stream should result in minimal or no leakage. I use it on my xc ski boots and never have problems with the boots getting wet.

[Peaks]

All of the boot experts recommend an acqueous based waterproofing. Nikwax is the common brand. They do not recommend a wax or petroleum based waterproofer like sno-seal.

[DebW]

Yes, I have heard that also. But I've been using snowseal for ~30 years now and my boots last a decade or two. I met the inventor of snowseal, Ome Daiber, and spend a couple nights in his house in Seattle after we climbed Ranier in 1982. He is deceased now, but was a relative of a friend of mine. So guess I'm just partial.

[rainmaker]

Sno-seal shouldn't break down since it's mainly beeswax . I've usually had good success with it although I had some leakage on My last section hike . It either rained or snowed for 7 out of 10 days . Leakage was not real bad , but noticeable. My conclusion was I didn't do a good job working the sealant in with heat.