proba
06-14-2009, 07:34 PM
The Idea of Multi-Layer Outdoor Clothing is good for any kind of sport or outdoor activity. Its main purpose is keeping your body temperature constant regardless of physical activity level or weather conditions.
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/outdoor-layering-clothing-explanation.jpg
Generally, three layers are used in such clothing: the inner (base) one - to wick the moisture away from your body, the mid (insulating) one – to provide it with warmth and the outer (shell) one – to protect you from rain and wind. The key feature of this multi-layer approach is that you can quickly adapt your garments to the weather conditions and your own body activity level with just taking off the excessive layers when it’s warm or putting on the additional layers when it’s cold. There are many materials which combine two layers functions in one (when also reducing the quality of their functional abilities, though).
For a long period of time the multi-layer approach was the best idea for athletes and outdoorsmen, but now there is another possibility also – the Soft Shells. This kind of technical clothing combines the functions of both outer (shell) and middle (insulating) layers. And in addition to that it has a better breathingability.
Let’s look closer at each outdoor clothing layer:
Base (inner) layerdraws the sweat away from your skin. This layer is highly responsible for the body thermoregulation. Have you ever put on a cotton t-shirt under the raincoat when joggling? Even if such a garment will protect you from the rain, shortly you will feel cold. When your clothing accumulates moisture it starts to cool down the body even while the outer clothing layer is successfully resisting the rain and snow.
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/base_layer_underwear2.jpg
The cotton absorbs moisture easily but slowly dries it out. The synthetic polyester wicking materials, such as Polartec® PowerDry® and CoolMax® effectively transfer the sweat from outside. They don’t accumulate moisture but spread it on the layer’s outer surface, where it quickly evaporates. So you feel comfortable even when sweating. It is very important to keep you body dry if you don’t want to overheat yourself in the summer or get the hypothermia in extremely cold conditions. There are generally different models of each thermal underwear (light, medium and warm) so it can fit any weather conditions. It is very important that underwear fits your body snugly, so the sweat wickers quicker.
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/base_layer_underwear.jpg
Mid layer provides your body with warmth. It keeps the warm air trapped near your body. Fleece coats, jackets and pants are good examples of mid layer outdoor garments. They are good at keeping the air warm and their polyester material fibers also transfer the moisture away. Wool and down are also known to be good insulators. Though, unlike synthetic fabric, these natural materials accumulate excessive moisture. Polartec® and Thinsulate® provide good insulation for different conditions while having the minimal weight. The down is superlative for extreme low temperatures but can only be used in dry air. The fleece clothing due to its great insulation and breathability is the most widespread layered clothing now. These clothing goes on keeping its insulation functions even after it becoms wet outside, and it also dries faster than the wool. In order to avoid overheating when doing hard physical activity (sports like cycling or running) it is recommended to use lighter kinds of fleece, such as Polartec® Micro. For colder weather use the thicker fleece materials - like Polartec® 200, Polartec® 300 or Polartec® Thermal Pro. Also you can put on clothing with wind protection membrane materials: Gore® Windstopper® и Polartec® Windbloc®.
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/fleece_jacket2.jpg
Fleece clothing (likewise thermal underwear) doesn’t need any special care. Yes, there are liquids specially intended for washing fleece materials, but you can easily wash them with detergent for a delicate wash and water not hotter than +104°F (+40°C). If you wash Soft shells, though, use ONLY SPECIAL DETERGENTS (!!!) which are usually liquid. Don’t be greedy and buy only these special care detergents, otherwise after two washings your clothing will lose all of its functions!
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/fleece_jacket1.jpg
There are materials which combine fleece insulation and, like Hardshell, almost don’t let the water through. They are called Soft Shells. They are usually of very light weight and not thick - though, they loose some of water resistant abilities with that. Almost every Soft Shell is windproof (up to 31 km/h (50 km/h) wind speed). Different Soft Shells have different functions and names: Softshell, Windblock, Windwall, Windstopper, WindPro etc. Each producer invents its names. = The Soft Shell breathability is worse than fleece’s, but better than of ANY membrane fabric!
Why softshell?
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/arcteryx-hercules-hoody-soft-shell-jacket.jpg
The key of the “soft shell” approach is using one layer with the maximum effectiveness, so that it can substitute three or more other layers. This idea includes invention of the clothes which are effective and comfortable at the same time, making wearing additional layer (such as a t-shirt or a jacket) reasonable only for extreme air temperature conditions. This simplicity made the weight lighter and the price go lower and also made a person more free in his motions. The essential advantage of Soft Shell system is, of course, that it can give you the greater ability to control your temperature balance (one layer is just easier to adjust than three).
I‘ve, personally, been using the Soft Shell Clothing for years. Why? Because it is light, windproof has great insulation abilities, dries out fast and сan easily repel a small rain. I use the same soft shell jacket both for snowboarding at considerably warm weather (down to +23°F (-5°C)) and for bicycle rides when it’s not higher than +59°F (+15°C) outside.
Soft shell clothing types
Light soft shell clothing includes compact jackets and pants made of material with a firm resistant outer and a fleecy inner surfaces. As I said before, this clothing is extremely water-resistant, windproof and rub-proof, and at the same time it’s very breathable. This “breathability” and light weight makes it ideal for aerobic activities: cross-country skiing, hiking, biking, downhill skiing, snowshoeing and various kind of usage in the urban area. Also it can act as good additional layer under your waterproof and windproof clothing. The essential element of Soft shell clothing is its micro-fleece inner layer. This layer is of considerable volume and low density and it’s hydrophobic – that all making it warm while being very light in weight. It traps very little of sweat inside and most of the moisture goes out of it quickly. Micro fleece consists of tiny fibers reducing material and body contacting area to minimum. That’s why when this clothing gets wet it still stays dry if touched: the body dries out each separate fiber just in a second. The jacket outer coating blocks any wind and water from outside and at the same time instantly absorbs the moisture coming up from the inner layer - transferring it to the outer surface where it then evaporates quickly: this all helps to keep the necessary microclimate conditions under the soft shell clothing.
The Soft shell clothing has greatly developed and expanded for the past years. Initially, this kind of clothing didn’t have waterproof models but then new materials appeared and waterproofing in Soft shells became real. To make the waterproofing absolute you can use the soft shell clothing with membrane interlayer which absolutely blocks the water from outside. Pants and jackets made of Polartec(r) Windbloc(r) Softshell, Polartec(r) PowerShield, Gore(r) Windstopper(r) Softshell easily repel the rain and can be used as full-functional foul-weather clothing. Some of the soft shell membrane materials can be covered with a special adhesive tape which stops seams- through water penetration. Moreover, warm inner fleece layer will provide you with good thermal insulation when the weather is cold. So, instead of the classical windbreaker + fleece layer combination, you can buy just one apparel with lesser volume, lighter weight and (what’s also very important) – lower price.
If you need even warmer clothing – there is a solution: some of soft shell clothing models are made with cold-protective materials or have a good layer of micro fleece which keeps the warmth inside on cold days. Garments with synthetic cold-protective materials (like Primaloft One) keep warmth even when they gets wet on the outside: this gives them a real advantage in comparison with the down parkas, especially in cold and humid conditions. And don’t forget to add to that main soft shell clothing advantage – light weight and compact size.
How to choose the right soft shell?
Nowadays we can see the real soft shell clothing expansion in the shops, making it hard to understand what kind of soft shell you really need. Here are some tips. First, ask yourself a question: “Why do I need this clothing?” Then look at the style and cut. The newer soft shell clothing tends to look more and more like usual everyday urban clothing and becomes more and more fashionable without loosing its technical functions. This unique combination makes its usage more universal than hard shell’s one. If you are planning serious physical activities and a lot of motion in moderate climate and you want to wear the clothing of lighter weight and lesser volume – the Soft Shell clothing is just what you need. For severe weather conditions you can put on a combination of soft shell, standard foul-weather hard shell garment, warm fleece clothing and thermal underwear.
Your outer (shell) layer is your wind, water and snow protection. If the clothing is made in a proper manner, it keeps warmth inside and transfers water vapor (your sweat) out. Without appropriate venting, the moisture can not evaporate and starts to condensate on the inner surface of your shell layer. For any kind of physical activity you need your outer garments to have great ventilation and breathing abilities. Moreover, it should be loose-fitting inside to give the space for the other layers and not hinder your movements. The materials with waterproof coatings or membranes, which block wind and water, are ideal for the outer layer clothing (waterproof zippers are also used).
Below are the most popular outer (shell) layer materials.
* Waterproof/Breathable – these materials are just what you need for almost any kind of activity and weather. Good examples: Gore-Tex®, Dermizax®, Marmot MemBrain™
* Waterproof/Not Breathable – these are generally firm nylon fabrics with polyurethane coatings which have wind and water proofing abilities. This is nice low-budget choice fits well for wet conditions and light physical activities.
* Water Repellant/Breathable – materials for your breathable outer layer clothing. Good for high level physical activities in a temperate climate with light rains. Generally, this materials are made of windproof dense knit fabrics covered with a special durable water-repellant coating (DWR) from outside.
Sometimes people wear insulated clothing as outer layer clothing. This can be good in extremely-cold, freezing weather, but at the same time insulated clothing is less multi-functional and cannot be used in many other weather conditions.
Hard shell
Now let’s take a look at third layer of your clothing. It’s called Hard shell. Materials which are used in Hard shell clothing are windproof, waterproof and breathable. This clothing can be only membranous. There are three kinds of membranes: porous membranes (Gore-tex, Dermizax, SimpaTex....and so on), hydrophilous membranes (“laninates” and other names), and "coatings” (outer surface is “glued” with water-resistant chemicals or wax - this kind of waterproofing has even more names). All this types of membranes work in different ways, but here we just need to understand their features.
http://images.arcteryx.com/S09/355W-png/Beta-AR-Jacket-W-Black.png
Porous membranes have best functionality, but they are also most expensive ones. The price for a jacket of porous membrane fabric starts from $400. Porous membranes have the highest breathability level. Hydrophilous (“laminated”) membranes' breathability index is close to zero, but they are also 99, 9% waterproof. “Coatings” don’t “breathe” at all and often loose they waterproof qualities after first washing.
You can see two figures on your outerwear labels. One of the figures shows the height of a water column which can be suspended above the fabric before water seeps through. Another number indicates how many grams of water vapor per 1 meter2 (10.7639 ft²) of fabric per 24 hour period. In reality, most companies exaggerate these figures.
Waterproof index is a more important parameter here. For example, you look on your clothes label and see “10 000 mm” (394 in). But that doesn’t mean you can use these pants for diving! A rain drop falls from the sky with a great speed, and when it hits the fabric, it causes certain kind of pressure. Wearing pants with "10 000 mm” (394 in) on their label you will stay dry in any rain. Basically, even pants with “500 mm” (197 in) label will protect you from any rain.
Breathability level is a more complex parameter. The process of “membrane breathing” is such a delicate one, that it is almost impossible to feel. Membrane’s breathability depends on humidity of the environment: the higher humidity is, the harder membrane "breathes”. Sometimes it turns out, that your clothing doesn't breathe at all.
Summary:
* For a region with cool, windless and not rainy weather – wear thermal underwear and a fleece jacket.
* For not rainy, but windy weather region – put on thermal underwear and Soft shells over it.
* For a region which weather is cold and rainy – wear fleece and a membrane jacket on top and put thermal underwear and membrane pants on your legs.
When washing membrane fabric clothing, use ONLY SPECIAL DETERGENTS – and this is obligatory! If you wash membrane fabrics with usual detergent in washing machine, your clothing may loose all of its qualities.
Taken from:
http://outdoor-equip.com
Best Outdoor equipment and gear catalog<br><br>Post edited by: proba, at: 2009/06/14 15:43
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/outdoor-layering-clothing-explanation.jpg
Generally, three layers are used in such clothing: the inner (base) one - to wick the moisture away from your body, the mid (insulating) one – to provide it with warmth and the outer (shell) one – to protect you from rain and wind. The key feature of this multi-layer approach is that you can quickly adapt your garments to the weather conditions and your own body activity level with just taking off the excessive layers when it’s warm or putting on the additional layers when it’s cold. There are many materials which combine two layers functions in one (when also reducing the quality of their functional abilities, though).
For a long period of time the multi-layer approach was the best idea for athletes and outdoorsmen, but now there is another possibility also – the Soft Shells. This kind of technical clothing combines the functions of both outer (shell) and middle (insulating) layers. And in addition to that it has a better breathingability.
Let’s look closer at each outdoor clothing layer:
Base (inner) layerdraws the sweat away from your skin. This layer is highly responsible for the body thermoregulation. Have you ever put on a cotton t-shirt under the raincoat when joggling? Even if such a garment will protect you from the rain, shortly you will feel cold. When your clothing accumulates moisture it starts to cool down the body even while the outer clothing layer is successfully resisting the rain and snow.
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/base_layer_underwear2.jpg
The cotton absorbs moisture easily but slowly dries it out. The synthetic polyester wicking materials, such as Polartec® PowerDry® and CoolMax® effectively transfer the sweat from outside. They don’t accumulate moisture but spread it on the layer’s outer surface, where it quickly evaporates. So you feel comfortable even when sweating. It is very important to keep you body dry if you don’t want to overheat yourself in the summer or get the hypothermia in extremely cold conditions. There are generally different models of each thermal underwear (light, medium and warm) so it can fit any weather conditions. It is very important that underwear fits your body snugly, so the sweat wickers quicker.
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/base_layer_underwear.jpg
Mid layer provides your body with warmth. It keeps the warm air trapped near your body. Fleece coats, jackets and pants are good examples of mid layer outdoor garments. They are good at keeping the air warm and their polyester material fibers also transfer the moisture away. Wool and down are also known to be good insulators. Though, unlike synthetic fabric, these natural materials accumulate excessive moisture. Polartec® and Thinsulate® provide good insulation for different conditions while having the minimal weight. The down is superlative for extreme low temperatures but can only be used in dry air. The fleece clothing due to its great insulation and breathability is the most widespread layered clothing now. These clothing goes on keeping its insulation functions even after it becoms wet outside, and it also dries faster than the wool. In order to avoid overheating when doing hard physical activity (sports like cycling or running) it is recommended to use lighter kinds of fleece, such as Polartec® Micro. For colder weather use the thicker fleece materials - like Polartec® 200, Polartec® 300 or Polartec® Thermal Pro. Also you can put on clothing with wind protection membrane materials: Gore® Windstopper® и Polartec® Windbloc®.
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/fleece_jacket2.jpg
Fleece clothing (likewise thermal underwear) doesn’t need any special care. Yes, there are liquids specially intended for washing fleece materials, but you can easily wash them with detergent for a delicate wash and water not hotter than +104°F (+40°C). If you wash Soft shells, though, use ONLY SPECIAL DETERGENTS (!!!) which are usually liquid. Don’t be greedy and buy only these special care detergents, otherwise after two washings your clothing will lose all of its functions!
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/fleece_jacket1.jpg
There are materials which combine fleece insulation and, like Hardshell, almost don’t let the water through. They are called Soft Shells. They are usually of very light weight and not thick - though, they loose some of water resistant abilities with that. Almost every Soft Shell is windproof (up to 31 km/h (50 km/h) wind speed). Different Soft Shells have different functions and names: Softshell, Windblock, Windwall, Windstopper, WindPro etc. Each producer invents its names. = The Soft Shell breathability is worse than fleece’s, but better than of ANY membrane fabric!
Why softshell?
http://outdoor-equip.com/media/arcteryx-hercules-hoody-soft-shell-jacket.jpg
The key of the “soft shell” approach is using one layer with the maximum effectiveness, so that it can substitute three or more other layers. This idea includes invention of the clothes which are effective and comfortable at the same time, making wearing additional layer (such as a t-shirt or a jacket) reasonable only for extreme air temperature conditions. This simplicity made the weight lighter and the price go lower and also made a person more free in his motions. The essential advantage of Soft Shell system is, of course, that it can give you the greater ability to control your temperature balance (one layer is just easier to adjust than three).
I‘ve, personally, been using the Soft Shell Clothing for years. Why? Because it is light, windproof has great insulation abilities, dries out fast and сan easily repel a small rain. I use the same soft shell jacket both for snowboarding at considerably warm weather (down to +23°F (-5°C)) and for bicycle rides when it’s not higher than +59°F (+15°C) outside.
Soft shell clothing types
Light soft shell clothing includes compact jackets and pants made of material with a firm resistant outer and a fleecy inner surfaces. As I said before, this clothing is extremely water-resistant, windproof and rub-proof, and at the same time it’s very breathable. This “breathability” and light weight makes it ideal for aerobic activities: cross-country skiing, hiking, biking, downhill skiing, snowshoeing and various kind of usage in the urban area. Also it can act as good additional layer under your waterproof and windproof clothing. The essential element of Soft shell clothing is its micro-fleece inner layer. This layer is of considerable volume and low density and it’s hydrophobic – that all making it warm while being very light in weight. It traps very little of sweat inside and most of the moisture goes out of it quickly. Micro fleece consists of tiny fibers reducing material and body contacting area to minimum. That’s why when this clothing gets wet it still stays dry if touched: the body dries out each separate fiber just in a second. The jacket outer coating blocks any wind and water from outside and at the same time instantly absorbs the moisture coming up from the inner layer - transferring it to the outer surface where it then evaporates quickly: this all helps to keep the necessary microclimate conditions under the soft shell clothing.
The Soft shell clothing has greatly developed and expanded for the past years. Initially, this kind of clothing didn’t have waterproof models but then new materials appeared and waterproofing in Soft shells became real. To make the waterproofing absolute you can use the soft shell clothing with membrane interlayer which absolutely blocks the water from outside. Pants and jackets made of Polartec(r) Windbloc(r) Softshell, Polartec(r) PowerShield, Gore(r) Windstopper(r) Softshell easily repel the rain and can be used as full-functional foul-weather clothing. Some of the soft shell membrane materials can be covered with a special adhesive tape which stops seams- through water penetration. Moreover, warm inner fleece layer will provide you with good thermal insulation when the weather is cold. So, instead of the classical windbreaker + fleece layer combination, you can buy just one apparel with lesser volume, lighter weight and (what’s also very important) – lower price.
If you need even warmer clothing – there is a solution: some of soft shell clothing models are made with cold-protective materials or have a good layer of micro fleece which keeps the warmth inside on cold days. Garments with synthetic cold-protective materials (like Primaloft One) keep warmth even when they gets wet on the outside: this gives them a real advantage in comparison with the down parkas, especially in cold and humid conditions. And don’t forget to add to that main soft shell clothing advantage – light weight and compact size.
How to choose the right soft shell?
Nowadays we can see the real soft shell clothing expansion in the shops, making it hard to understand what kind of soft shell you really need. Here are some tips. First, ask yourself a question: “Why do I need this clothing?” Then look at the style and cut. The newer soft shell clothing tends to look more and more like usual everyday urban clothing and becomes more and more fashionable without loosing its technical functions. This unique combination makes its usage more universal than hard shell’s one. If you are planning serious physical activities and a lot of motion in moderate climate and you want to wear the clothing of lighter weight and lesser volume – the Soft Shell clothing is just what you need. For severe weather conditions you can put on a combination of soft shell, standard foul-weather hard shell garment, warm fleece clothing and thermal underwear.
Your outer (shell) layer is your wind, water and snow protection. If the clothing is made in a proper manner, it keeps warmth inside and transfers water vapor (your sweat) out. Without appropriate venting, the moisture can not evaporate and starts to condensate on the inner surface of your shell layer. For any kind of physical activity you need your outer garments to have great ventilation and breathing abilities. Moreover, it should be loose-fitting inside to give the space for the other layers and not hinder your movements. The materials with waterproof coatings or membranes, which block wind and water, are ideal for the outer layer clothing (waterproof zippers are also used).
Below are the most popular outer (shell) layer materials.
* Waterproof/Breathable – these materials are just what you need for almost any kind of activity and weather. Good examples: Gore-Tex®, Dermizax®, Marmot MemBrain™
* Waterproof/Not Breathable – these are generally firm nylon fabrics with polyurethane coatings which have wind and water proofing abilities. This is nice low-budget choice fits well for wet conditions and light physical activities.
* Water Repellant/Breathable – materials for your breathable outer layer clothing. Good for high level physical activities in a temperate climate with light rains. Generally, this materials are made of windproof dense knit fabrics covered with a special durable water-repellant coating (DWR) from outside.
Sometimes people wear insulated clothing as outer layer clothing. This can be good in extremely-cold, freezing weather, but at the same time insulated clothing is less multi-functional and cannot be used in many other weather conditions.
Hard shell
Now let’s take a look at third layer of your clothing. It’s called Hard shell. Materials which are used in Hard shell clothing are windproof, waterproof and breathable. This clothing can be only membranous. There are three kinds of membranes: porous membranes (Gore-tex, Dermizax, SimpaTex....and so on), hydrophilous membranes (“laninates” and other names), and "coatings” (outer surface is “glued” with water-resistant chemicals or wax - this kind of waterproofing has even more names). All this types of membranes work in different ways, but here we just need to understand their features.
http://images.arcteryx.com/S09/355W-png/Beta-AR-Jacket-W-Black.png
Porous membranes have best functionality, but they are also most expensive ones. The price for a jacket of porous membrane fabric starts from $400. Porous membranes have the highest breathability level. Hydrophilous (“laminated”) membranes' breathability index is close to zero, but they are also 99, 9% waterproof. “Coatings” don’t “breathe” at all and often loose they waterproof qualities after first washing.
You can see two figures on your outerwear labels. One of the figures shows the height of a water column which can be suspended above the fabric before water seeps through. Another number indicates how many grams of water vapor per 1 meter2 (10.7639 ft²) of fabric per 24 hour period. In reality, most companies exaggerate these figures.
Waterproof index is a more important parameter here. For example, you look on your clothes label and see “10 000 mm” (394 in). But that doesn’t mean you can use these pants for diving! A rain drop falls from the sky with a great speed, and when it hits the fabric, it causes certain kind of pressure. Wearing pants with "10 000 mm” (394 in) on their label you will stay dry in any rain. Basically, even pants with “500 mm” (197 in) label will protect you from any rain.
Breathability level is a more complex parameter. The process of “membrane breathing” is such a delicate one, that it is almost impossible to feel. Membrane’s breathability depends on humidity of the environment: the higher humidity is, the harder membrane "breathes”. Sometimes it turns out, that your clothing doesn't breathe at all.
Summary:
* For a region with cool, windless and not rainy weather – wear thermal underwear and a fleece jacket.
* For not rainy, but windy weather region – put on thermal underwear and Soft shells over it.
* For a region which weather is cold and rainy – wear fleece and a membrane jacket on top and put thermal underwear and membrane pants on your legs.
When washing membrane fabric clothing, use ONLY SPECIAL DETERGENTS – and this is obligatory! If you wash membrane fabrics with usual detergent in washing machine, your clothing may loose all of its qualities.
Taken from:
http://outdoor-equip.com
Best Outdoor equipment and gear catalog<br><br>Post edited by: proba, at: 2009/06/14 15:43