Why wear a down gilet?
A gilet helps to keep the body warm. It protects the chest, neck and kidneys as these areas are especially sensitive to chills. It’s sleeveless so it saves weight in your backpack, provides even more breathability during exercise and excellent comfort of movement when worn under a jacket. Worn underneath the MT100 down jacket, it can provide 6°C extra warmth when compared to a down jacket worn without the gilet.
The advantages of a duck down and feather filling
The filling power of down has 3 advantages for mountain sports:
- Thermal insulation thanks to the air trapped in the down and feathers.
- Ultra-lightweight: down is lighter than synthetic wadding while offering the same degree of warmth. This saves even more weight in your backpack.
- Ultra-compressible.
How to measure the fill power of a down and feather wadding?
The fill power is a measure of the down's thermal insulation capacity and its potential to "trap" air. It is expressed in CUIN (cubic inches). So, down with a higher fill power (higher CUIN number) will occupy more space, trap more air and provide greater thermal insulation. For this down gilet with its 90% down and 10% feathers filling, the fill power is guaranteed to be 800 CUIN or more (international standard).
How to care for a down and feather gilet?
The down jacket can be worn throughout the winter and will certainly need to be washed. But the less you wash it, the more it will retain its thermal insulation and water repellency.
Our advice:
1/Machine wash with a detergent suitable for down or technical garments, at 30°, with 2 or 3 tennis balls. Gentle spin between 800 and 1000 rpm.
2/ - Tumble dry on cotton mode with 2 or 3 tennis balls, repeat 2 or 3 times until dry.
Water-repellent property of component (not to be confused with waterproofing)
The water repellent property of a fabric is its ability to make water run off its surface without absorbing it. This prevents the fabric from swelling, and keeps it lightweight and warm. The fabric of this down jacket is water repellent, however, we recommend that you wear a waterproof jacket over it in the rain. The fabric is made water-repellent by treating (PFC-free) its outer surface, however this property may deteriorate with use. We recommend that you restore it after each wash.
How to restore the water-repellent properties?
Once you have cleaned your padded jacket, we recommend you use a water-repellent reactivator spray to preserve the hydrophobic properties of the outer fabric. This renews the fabric’s water repellent properties and optimises its performance throughout the lifespan of your garment.
A snag? Here's how you can repair your sleeveless down jacket
A tear on a padded jacket can happen when trekking! The good news is that it can be repaired with a repair patch to prevent the tear from getting bigger or feathers from escaping. Don't you feel at ease carrying out this repair yourself? Don't worry! some in-store Decathlon workshops offer a repair service to mend your padded jacket using a heat-bonded patch.
Weight of the filling
XS: 67.5 g
S: 71 g
M: 76.5 g
L: 82 g
XL: 88 g
2XL: 94.5 g
3XL: 101 g
