Washing & Care

All 686 Technical Apparel is 100% washable, but you must follow the instructions below in order to keep your garments in top quality after your washing.

Zip up all zippers and attach all Velcro before loading. Zipper sliders and teeth can easily be damaged in the washer and/or dryer. Velcro gets clogged up with fuzz from other garments and can snag your other clothes, causing damage to both.  

Use a front-load washing machine only. Using an agitator-style top-load washer could possibly do damage to your 686 technical outerwear or clothing.

Wash on gentle cycle only and use cold water. Cold water aids in maintaining your waterproofing and DWR coating.

Use outerwear-specific detergent - we highly recommend the specifically formulated Nikwax Tech Wash. Using liquid detergent that is not outerwear-specific clogs the pores of technical fabrics and damages the DWR coating, greatly reducing the performance of the garment.

Hang dry in shade or tumble dry on low heat.  Drying with excess heat can damage or melt fabric, zippers, and/or trims.  Leave in until “almost dry” and change to NO HEAT or hang dry to finish.  Low heat actually helps re-activate waterproofing after washing.  

Replenish DWR waterproofing as needed. The DWR coating (the gypsy magic that makes water droplets bead up on your outerwear) on all technical fabrics will become less effective over time and use - especially if you are around campfires, smokers, oily lift pulleys, or other contaminants in general. You can revive the performance of your 686 technical outerwear by washing as instructed, then using a wash-in or spray-on waterproofing product such as NikWax TX-Direct.

Do Not Use The Following On Your Garments

Bleach - your colors will fade.  Technical outerwear in white should not use bleach either.  It can damage the waterproofing.
Fabric  Softener - clogs the pores of technical fabrics and can damage the waterproof coating, greatly reducing the performance (waterproof/breathability) of the garment.
Iron  - you may damage the performance of your technical fabric, or worse, melt the fabric itself.  
Dry Cleaning - dry cleaning products can damage the performance of your technical fabric.  
Damage during washing is not considered a manufacturer’s defect and is not covered under warranty.

GLOVE CARE

infiDRY® Gloves

The surface of most infiDRY® gloves can be spot cleaned simply by gently rubbing the soiled area with a solution of Nikwax PFC FreeTech Wash and water. (Follow manufacturer's directions). Fabric gloves, even with leather palms, can be hand washed with Nikwax PFC FreeTech Wash. (Follow manufactures directions). Be sure to rinse thoroughly to remove all detergent. It is a good idea to have your hands inside your gloves during the wash & rinse process to help maintain the shape of the gloves. Never wring out your gloves, it will ruin the internal stitching and lining materials. Let the gloves air dry away from direct heat. To reinvigorate DWR finish or in instances of degraded DWR performance on the infiDRY® fabric, we recommend using Nikwax TX Direct Spray On application.

Leather Gloves

Use supplied Nikwax Waterproofing Cream for Leather prior to first use. If leather gloves or mitts require cleaning, follow next steps. Clean the outside of leather gloves with a mild leather cleaner. It is recommended that you have your hand inside your glove as you gently clean it and then let air dry. When dry, you should reapply Nikwax Waterproofing Cream for Leather. We do not recommend you clean the insides of your gloves.