To straighten out lumps in a down jacket, you need to shake the clothes, try to soften and fluff up the caked areas with your hands. There are a number of ways to additionally process stray fluff, one of which will definitely help.
If something went wrong and lumps appeared
A sign that the filler has gone astray is the presence of tubercles and compactions. The first thing is to use the same washing machine.
This method is effective and simple. Turn the down jacket inside out and place it in the drum along with 3-4 tennis balls. They can be successfully replaced by small plastic balls, wooden cubes or other smooth ones of similar weight.
Advice. Choose heavy objects so that they break up clumps of fluff or filler well. Light rubber balls do not cope well with this task.
The machine starts in re-spin mode if the jacket is still damp. For a dry jacket, set the mode with rinsing and spinning. Although for dry clothes they use only a spin with balls.
As the drum rotates, the balls will hit the clothes, breaking up the fluff. If everything was not straightened out the first time, then the cycle is repeated. The jacket is removed from the drum and beaten by hand. The fluffy filler will separate in volume on its own.
When is the best time to dry clean it?
Some down jackets have a special water- and dirt-repellent impregnation, which can be washed off when washed in a washing machine.
You will find information about this on the product label along with a recommendation to dry clean this item only. If you don’t want to spoil the item, don’t neglect this rule. Here are the basic methods of how to quickly and efficiently restore a decent appearance to a down jacket at home. We hope that our advice will be useful to you and you will easily cope with the task.
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Mechanical method
After the item has completely dried, the following operations should be performed one or more times.
Fluffing using a stick. You will need a flexible stick, for example, for beating out carpets, or a plastic handle from a mop or brush. Even a jump rope will do. The main thing here is not to overdo it, so as not to damage the fabric.
Fasten the down jacket and beat it several times. Lay it out with the sleeves outstretched on the bed or sofa and straighten it thoroughly. Lightly beat the filler over the entire surface. The stick should lie flat. Repeat the procedure on the other side. Process the front and back several times. Shake the jacket vigorously and smooth out the remaining lumps with your fingers.
The procedure can also be carried out suspended on a rope, as when knocking out dust, but the effect will be weaker.
Important point. When knocking out, carefully treat the areas near the pockets and in the lower part. They take longer to dry, and excess moisture leads to more lumps of filler.
Specialized products for washing down products
In order for a puffed jacket to retain its thermal insulation properties longer, you need to take a responsible approach to the cleaning process. Typically, information on how to wash a product correctly is placed on sew-in labels. You can use machine wash if there is a corresponding icon.
To avoid having to take a long time to bring your jacket back to its original form, use specialized products. They have a number of advantages over conventional washing powders:
- prevent the formation of lumps;
- effectively remove dirt;
- treat fabrics with care;
- do not leave streaks;
- give the product a pleasant smell.
The list of the best products for washing outerwear at home includes:
- Gel Heitmann. The product was made in Germany. It helps the fluff fall off less and removes stains from fabric well. Can be used for both machine and hand washing. It is not cheap, but it is used economically.
- Gel Woly Sport. Allows you to return the original appearance not only to down jackets, but also to membrane clothing with synthetic padding. It successfully removes most stains, but has a rather strong odor.
- Gel Unipukh. Inexpensive and effective product made in Russia. Does not leave streaks even on dark fabrics and helps maintain the volume of insulation. After washing with gel, it does not take long to break up lumps. To restore the fluffiness of the jacket, just shake it after drying. The product is good because it does not contain aggressive compounds.
- Gel Domal “Sport Fein Fashion”. Inexpensive and economical product made in Germany. Helps revive a down jacket after intense wear. Among the disadvantages is the need for pre-washing in case of serious contamination.
- Laska gel “Magic balm”. This is not a specialized product for clothes with down, but it helps to even out the insulation just as well as other gels. It is inexpensive and available in every store. The downside is the strong smell.
Temperature effect
If the down in your down jacket has become loose after washing, one of the following procedures will help.
- Using an iron and a dust blower. It will take about two hours to implement the method, but the result is guaranteed. Straighten the down jacket on a solid base and use a beater to go over all the knotted areas. Turn inside out. Prepare gauze or thin cotton fabric. The jacket is smoothed through it. The presence of steam will speed up and facilitate the process. Repeat the procedure 3-4 times. Between approaches, the item should have time to cool completely.
- You can restore a down jacket by changing the temperature regime. In winter, after drying, the jacket is placed in the cold. Then the item is brought into the room to warm up. After 3-4 hours, the procedure is repeated. Each time the jacket needs to be pinched, fluffed and shaken. The product must go through several cycles. The contrasting effect of temperatures helps soften and fluff the matted filler. Finish processing by kneading manually.
Air blowing
- With a vacuum cleaner. For these purposes, you need a vacuum cleaner that has a reverse air supply. It can be replaced with a small household compressor, for example, for painting. Place the down jacket in a plastic bag without holes. Place the vacuum cleaner tube there and tie the edge with a ribbon. Then suck out all the air. The result will be vacuum packaging. Then use reverse and start pumping air back. Change the feeding direction several times until the desired result is achieved. Finally, shape the product with your hands and shake it. 15-20 minutes are enough to bring the down jacket back to life.
- Household hair dryer. The device is used with a stream of cold air. The flow is directed inside the product, and with the other hand, the filler under the material is straightened. The procedure will help speed up the drying of a still damp down jacket. Using warm air will cause the fabric to overheat, which is not desirable.
Steam treatment
Steam treatment successfully removes loose filler. For these purposes, use an iron with a steam function or a steam generator.
To steam, hang the down jacket on hangers and run a brush with steam over the surface on both sides. The distance from the brush to the product must be maintained at 15-20 cm. You should start from the top of the back, gradually moving to the sleeves and shoulders. The processing direction should be from top to bottom. Vertical steam will fluff up crumpled holofiber, fluff or padding polyester. Finally, the jacket should be wiped with a dry cloth.
If you don’t have a steam device, the traditional and simple method will help. To do this, fill the bathtub with hot water, and hang the jacket above the surface from which steam rises. The item must be kept like this for several hours, periodically shaking and straightening it with your hands. As a result, the filler will straighten and fluff up, and the upper fabric will get rid of folds and creases.
Steam exposure in any of the ways will give the down jacket a presentable appearance, refresh it and get rid of clumps.
By hand (inside the jacket or taking out the filling)
If none of these methods gives the desired effect, then you can use the most complex and painstaking method. It will take a lot of time to break the lumps of padding polyester manually, but as a result the jacket will take on its previous appearance.
First you need to carefully examine the product, determine where the most problem areas are concentrated. After this, the lining is peeled off to straighten the padding polyester. When the material is completely smooth, it needs to be secured in several places with a needle and thread. To complete the work, the lining is sewn back on.
If the padding polyester is very deformed, then it can be restored by contacting a sewing workshop. A professional seamstress will be able to completely replace the insulation pad.
In some cases, it is possible to loosen the matted parts of the padding polyester without tearing off the lining. The complexity of the process lies in the fact that you have to work through the fabric. It is quite difficult to break lumps blindly, but if you make every effort and show perseverance, you can achieve good results.
Original fluffing method
When time-consuming and tedious actions do not bring the desired success, proprietary methods invented by users come to the rescue.
Combine drying and straightening down into one task. To do this, the item is straightened out on a wire dryer or hung. And here comes the main point - you need a professional compressor with a nozzle. A powerful air flow will create a pneumatic shock necessary for blowing and whipping the filler. The nozzle must be moved over the entire surface for uniform impact. A vacuum cleaner and a hair dryer cannot do this task.
How to avoid lint getting lost
Following the basic rules for caring for your down jacket will help avoid the formation of lumps.
- Wash products only in warm water up to +30°.
- Detergent only liquid for delicate washing.
- Machine wash cycle “delicate”.
- Medium spin mode – up to 600 rpm.
- Use the extra rinse mode.
- Washing with tennis balls or balloons will prevent the insulation from bunching up.
- Rinsing with conditioner helps soften the fabric and makes it easier to distribute the filler.
- After washing, shake the damp item and beat thoroughly.
- Hang the jacket on a hanger or lay it out on the dryer.
- Dry the down jacket in natural conditions, periodically shaking and straightening the seals.
Advice. Immediately after removing it from the washing machine, it is recommended to leave the still damp down jacket in the cold. Because of the cold, the fluffs will freeze and will not bunch up into lumps.
- The down is able to recover until it dries completely, and this time should be used to remove clumps.
If none of the rescue measures helped, then you can contact a professional dry cleaner to restore the down jacket.
Knockout
If the fluff is crumpled, then use a carpet beater or any strong stick without sharp corners. The specified objects are applied to the down jacket in the following sequence:
- After washing, the item is taken out of the machine, straightened and shaken.
- They hang it on hangers in such a way that it can be approached from all sides.
- The product is struck with medium force blows from all sides.
The item can be knocked out by placing it on a horizontal surface and covering it with a sheet on top. This minimizes the risk of damage to the product.
When knocking out, pay special attention to the sleeves and the area under them. Pockets and the lower area of clothing are treated with greater care, as these places take longer to dry and more lumps accumulate in them.
