How to wash a down jacket so that the down does not get lost and streaks do not appear

When it is necessary to wash a jacket, a large number of questions usually arise about how to wash a down jacket without ruining an expensive item.

It is important to understand that cleaning can also be done in a washing machine, taking precautions and following the advice of professionals.

Manufacturers of winter jackets with natural or synthetic filling give recommendations regarding washing, but only in dry cleaners.

If you cannot use such services, you can try to wash the item yourself, but following the instructions given in the article. This way the down jacket will retain its original appearance.

How to prepare a down jacket for washing

You can wash a down jacket in a machine only after preliminary preparation. Here's what to do:

Checking your pockets

People often have unnecessary items in their pockets, which, when washed, can damage the fabric of the jacket. There may also be money or documents that cannot be recovered after reacting with the detergent.

Unfasten the fur parts

Fur parts must be unfastened before loading into the drum of the machine. Faux and natural fur can become deformed from reaction with water and chemicals, losing its attractiveness and shape.

We wash out the stains

If there is heavy soiling, streaks, or stains on the jacket, they need to be washed. As a rule, the most worn places are the sleeves, areas on the elbows, hem and collar.

Washing in a machine will not get rid of old stains in problem areas. For washing, you can use stain-removing soap.

Powdered stain remover should not be used for down products - they foam well, and washing does not require a lot of foam, as it will be difficult to wash and there is a risk of strong stains.

Turn the jacket inside out and fasten all the fasteners

Now, after completing all the steps, the jacket is zipped up and turned inside out, since snags or damage may form on the outside. It is also important to fasten all buttons, Velcro and fasteners. This will keep them intact and not damage the jacket.

Preparing a down jacket

First of all, look for the care label on the product. If you see a picture with a crossed out bathtub, washing a down jacket is contraindicated. You won’t be able to wash it without streaks either by hand or in a machine; in addition, the filling may become loose and the clothes will lose their shape. Your path lies to the dry cleaner.

If washing the product is allowed, proceed to the preparatory stage:

Empty the pockets, unfasten additional parts - hood, belt, edge. Immediately set the edge aside; it needs to be cleaned separately.
Turn the down jacket inside out, having first fastened all the buttons - locks - buttons.
If the household has a laundry bag, place the item there.
Distribute the jacket evenly over the drum of the machine.
Place a large terry towel next to the down jacket; it will absorb some of the water, preventing the clothes from swelling.
Don't forget about laundry balls - they are required when handling down jackets. An alternative to balls is soft tennis balls or rubber pet balls.

Washing rules

It is very simple to understand whether a down jacket can be washed in a washing machine. It is important to decipher the symbols on the tag - these are the basic rules for cleaning and drying, which help maintain the durability of the jacket.

For items that cannot be washed in a certain way, this information is almost always encrypted on the tag.

Click on the picture to enlarge it

Usually, to wash a down jacket, it is enough to follow these rules:

Wash the jacket separately from clothes and other outerwear;
use a liquid cleanser;
rinsing is required at least 2 - 3 times;
place 3 – 4 tennis balls in the drum to prevent the formation of lumps from the filler;
It is advisable to dry it in the open air, so that the jacket is not exposed to direct sunlight; it is also possible in a room away from heating appliances;

These rules will help keep both children's and adult items looking great.

At what temperature should you wash a down jacket?

To properly wash a down jacket in a machine, it is important to select a special program with a low water temperature. The optimal temperature is 30 degrees. Hand washing is also carried out in cool water.

How to wash a down jacket in a washing machine

Basic rules for choosing a detergent for washing a down jacket:

It is forbidden to use ordinary powders - they almost always leave stains.
The best option would be to use special products, but any other liquid product will work well; gel capsules are also used.

Be sure to pay attention to studying the composition of the product - it should not contain phosphates, chlorine and bleach.

You can wash your down jacket in the washing machine using Uni Down. It has proven itself on the positive side due to its affordable cost and excellent cleaning characteristics.

Using it, you can even give up tennis balls, according to the manufacturer of this product. The filler will not roll off and will maintain breathability. Weasel for wool is also suitable.

How to wash a down jacket by hand

If you don’t trust dry cleaners and automatic washing machines, you can wash your down jacket at home manually. Preparation and selection of the product are no different. The only thing is that the jacket does not need to be turned inside out.

Main features of how to wash a down jacket at home by hand:

Hang it on a hanger and place it in the bathroom.
To properly wet the product, direct the shower from top to bottom in a tangent direction.
Treat the product with the product, paying special attention to worn and dirty areas - cuffs, collar, pockets.
Rub the jacket with a brush or stiff sponge.
Rinse off the detergent by directing the stream from top to bottom. Do this procedure several times to completely get rid of the foam.
Start drying.

If there is only one stain on the jacket, and it still does not look dirty, then you can wash it, rub it with a brush and the chosen detergent. This way, you don’t have to wash the entire down jacket.

If the jacket is too dirty, you should soak it - run warm water into the bathtub and add detergent. Place the jacket there for 30 - 40 minutes, then lightly rub and dry thoroughly.

Is there a difference in how to wash a light (white) and a black item?

To wash a white down jacket, it is recommended to use a detergent for light-colored fabrics.
Black is for blacks.
For a colored down jacket - a product that enhances color brightness.

In addition, before washing a light down jacket, you need to wash the most dirty areas (sleeves, pockets, collar) with liquid or regular soap.

It is not necessary to thoroughly rinse the detergent after this; you can immediately proceed to loading the product into the drum of the washing machine and the next stage of washing.

On black jackets, it is not recommended to pre-treat contaminated areas , since such manipulation can lead to loss of color brightness.

How to wash a down jacket in a washing machine

Nowadays, almost everyone has a washing machine, so the question is how to properly wash a down jacket in it.

If you follow certain rules, you can easily clean your jacket in a washing machine using the delicate setting.

For safety and preservation purposes, tennis balls are placed in the drum. They prevent the formation of lumps from the filler.

It is not recommended to use regular powder - you should purchase a liquid detergent for washing down jackets in an automatic machine.

The process of washing a down jacket in a washing machine step by step:

Remove stains before loading items.
Turn the jacket inside out, fasten the zippers, snaps and buttons.
Place a twist with tennis balls.
Set the desired mode, the temperature should not exceed 30 degrees; some machine models are equipped with a “delicate wash” mode in cool water.
The spin is set to a maximum of 600 rpm, preferably 400, otherwise intense impacts will cause fluff to come out.
To thoroughly rinse the detergent, the rinse mode after the main wash is set an additional 2 or 3 times. When using a rinse aid, you need to use a special product, otherwise there will be streaks on the down jacket.
After the jacket is removed from the machine, it is straightened and thoroughly dried.

Modes for washing a down jacket in different washing machines:

LG – “delicate wash”;
Samsung – “delicate wash”;
Indesit – “delicate fabrics”, mode 10 or 11;
Bosch – wash for 30 minutes, first use the regulator to reduce the spin speed or set the “wool” mode.

How to dry?

It is important not only to wash it properly, but also to properly dry the down jacket after washing. To do this, you can use any of the following methods:

Down coats are dried horizontally. After the procedure, the down jacket is hung horizontally over the bathtub to drain the water. Then the product is placed on a blanket or terry towel. The horizontal drying method is effective as it prevents fluff from clumping and guarantees uniform drying. It is important to shake the item from time to time and change wet towels to dry ones. You can hang the jacket on a hanger when it is almost dry.
You can dry your clothes in a washing machine. To do this, activate the gentle drying program with a minimum temperature and leave the item in the drum for 3 hours. Then they take out the down coat and shake it several times.
When the down jacket is on a hanger, you can dry it with a hairdryer from the inside out.
Dry the product away from heating devices, otherwise characteristic light spots will form on it. If they do appear, wipe them with a clean sponge soaked in a solution (water and detergent), and dry the wet areas with a hairdryer.

By following these rules, you will prevent the occurrence of divorces.

Is it possible to spin a down jacket in a washing machine?

If possible, do not turn on the spin mode, it is better to wring out the item manually - do this with extreme caution, do not wring out the down jacket by twisting it, it is better to do this with light squeezing movements, removing excess water.

Do not try to squeeze out all the water; the remaining water will drain off during the drying process. It will be right!

If, nevertheless, you decide to wring out the jacket in the machine, then only at minimum speed, usually this value is 400. This way the jacket will not bunch up.

How to wash a down jacket without the down getting lost

Sometimes, even if you carefully follow all the settings for washing a down jacket in an automatic washing machine, the filler deteriorates and clumps together.

To prevent the fluff from bunching up, you will need to wash with several tennis balls or use the Uni fluff product mentioned earlier.

But if this happens, then to return to its original appearance, you need to carry out the following manipulations:

Use your hands to straighten the lumps, shaking the jacket periodically;
place the dry down jacket on the bed or sofa and lightly beat it with a carpet beater;
put the jacket back in the machine with tennis balls, turn on the spin cycle at the lowest speed;
treat the down jacket with a vacuum cleaner with a nozzle for blowing air - under the influence of dry hot air, the filler straightens out, the clothes return to their former fluffiness.

Drying the product

It’s easy to wash a down jacket in a washing machine, but to ensure that the item looks decent after drying and doesn’t look like a thin windbreaker with lumps of fluff in the corners, we’ll tell you a few secrets:

It is best to use the function for drying synthetics; your automatic machine probably has such a program. And always remember about tennis balls! Once drying is complete, shake the jacket thoroughly and hang it on a hanger to air it out. Be sure to fasten all the zippers, in this state the product will not be deformed. During this time, try to beat the filler several times.
If you see lumps of fluff in some places, try drying them with a hairdryer and then using a vacuum cleaner. Turn it on at low power, remove the nozzle and move the pipe up and down, perform circular movements. This will cause the filler to fluff up and the fluff will lie flat.
During the drying process, it is important to shake the down jacket thoroughly. Start with the hem, shake it both from the wrong side and from the front, if necessary, help smooth out lumps with your hands.
Never dry your jacket horizontally to avoid the filling from rotting. The material must be freely ventilated, otherwise the fluff may rot and develop a bad odor, which is difficult to get rid of.
Also, you should not dry the product on a radiator or near heating devices, as there is a possibility of unwanted stains. In addition, dry hot air can damage the structure of the filler; feathers and down will fall off and begin to come out of the jacket. Avoid exposure to direct rays of the sun and strong drafts - this also negatively affects the condition of the fluff. For drying a down jacket, room temperature will be ideal; it doesn’t matter in the house or on the balcony, as long as it’s not on the sunny side.
If, after drying, your down jacket takes on a wrinkled appearance, do not use an iron under any circumstances! For these purposes, only a clothes steamer is suitable.

How to wash down jacket fur

The edge of a winter jacket requires delicate care, so when the need arises for washing, it is better to unfasten it and clean it separately. To prevent it from becoming a shapeless ball of fur, you must follow these rules:

Do not wash, let alone wring out, fur in a washing machine;
dry it only in a place protected from light;
Do not use chlorine cleaning products or boiling methods;
cleaning is carried out in the direction of fur growth - if the pile is long, and against it - if the pile is short;
before wet cleaning, you need to check how the fur reacts to the product - apply foam to a small side area of the edge and dry to see the result;
do not rub, do not wrinkle, do not deform the product, do not try to squeeze it dry, the water will drain and evaporate on its own, without any mechanical influence;
The water temperature should not be more than 40 degrees, otherwise the substrate and the fur itself will be damaged.

These precautions are easy to follow and will preserve the appearance of the product for a long time.

How to dry a down jacket correctly

Drying is an integral stage of the purification process. Even with properly organized washing, drying can ruin the filler and the fur will become tangled.

Drying is also carried out in stages:

Wring out the down jacket by hand or trust it to the machine.
When drying in a machine, the setting should be gentle, with tennis balls in the drum.
After washing, the down jacket needs to be shaken several times - this will help straighten out the filling. This should be done easily, otherwise the fluff will get lost.
The temperature in the room where drying is carried out should not be higher than 28 degrees.
It is forbidden to dry the item on the radiator; it must be placed horizontally on a special dryer. The water should drain within a few hours.
After hanging the jacket, you need to sort it out with your hands, breaking up small lumps.
Leave the product to dry, but periodically you need to approach it to knead the filler, paying more attention to the chest area and sleeves. In winter, the jacket can be placed outside for several hours: this way the water between the down freezes and prevents it from sticking together.
A down jacket can take a long time to dry, but you should not use prohibited methods to speed up the process. These include any heating devices, batteries, radiators. In this case, you can use a hair dryer, set the temperature to medium and blow on the product at a distance of 15 cm.
After complete drying, you can treat the jacket with a special water-repellent impregnation.

Prohibited actions when washing and drying

Some actions during the washing process and subsequent drying can ruin the down jacket so that it will no longer be possible to save and return it to its previous appearance:

Carrying out washing in a semi-automatic machine;
wash the jacket with other things;
intensive washing and high water temperature;
using plastic balls rather than tennis balls;
too frequent washing, it is enough to clean the down jacket only 2 times a year;
use of non-specialized rinses and conditioners;
placing a drying jacket near radiators or heaters;
ironing;
placing the jacket vertically while drying.

All of the above actions damage the jacket irreversibly; it will no longer be possible to restore the fabric with filler.

A down jacket is a very practical type of clothing. But it requires proper care to maintain its appearance, breathability, and ability to retain heat.

You can clean the product using any chosen method, provided you follow the rules for washing and drying, as well as the choice of detergent.

Reasons for divorce

You can’t immediately blame the detergent for the fact that today you definitely won’t wear a down jacket because of the stains that have appeared. This may not be the only reason:

The item was damp for quite a long time after washing. For example, you did not immediately remove the down jacket from the drum of the machine immediately after the signal about the end of the cycle.
The item was not dried correctly.
The filling of the down jacket is a low quality material (it is precisely this that could fade like that).
The rinse mode was selected incorrectly - the detergent did not have time to be washed out of the dense product.
The washing instructions (on the label of the down jacket) have been violated: the washing mode has been selected incorrectly or the wrong temperature has been selected.

Always look at the label!