KNOW-HOW

 

Waterproof Rating & Breathability

 

Why Waterproof and breathability ?

For any type of outdoor activity, you’ll want something waterproof and breathable.


Waterproof so you stay dry, and breathable so you don’t overheat.

A good rule is, the more you’re working, the more breathable your garment should be.

 

Waterproof Rating

Waterproof Rating is expressed as the height of the column of water that the fabric can withstand. The height of the column of water is measured in millimetres

A waterproof fabric must withstand a 1,300 mm column of water, but most manufacturers apply a higher limit of 2,000 mm.  At levels exceeding 10,000 mm (ie. military & industrial standard), waterproofness values can no longer be distinguished as these are all clearly adequate.

Here's the rating of some waterproof fabrics:

Gore-Tex Pro Shell :
28,000 mm
Gore-Tex Performance Shell : 28,000 mm
Triplepoint Dynamic :
20,000 mm
Sympatex : 10-25,000 mm
Triplepoint XC :
10,000 mm
Entrant DT : 10,000 mm

Breathability Rating

A fabric’s breathability rating, represented in units of g / m² / 24hrs, tells how many grams of water vapor pass through a square meter of fabric in a day, in labratory tests. A fabric with a breathability rating of 10,000 g / m² / 24hrs is considered highly breathable while those which hit 20,000 g / m² / 24hrs (eg. Lowe Alpine Flash Jacket and Seam Free Jacket) are extremely breathable and rated to be more breathable than even Gore-Tex Pro Shell (with its 12,000 g / m² / 24hrs breathability rating). In the outdoor context, a jacket having a better breathability rating is usually more important than one having a high waterproof rating (>10,000 g / m² / 24hr), and when the highly breathable jacket performs to expectations, it means greater comfort, safety, and performance for the jacket user.

Triplepoint Dynamic :
20,000 g / m² / 24hr
Gore-Tex Pro Shell :
12,000 g / m² / 24hr
Gore-Tex Performance Shell : 8-9,000 g / m² / 24hr
Triplepoint XC :
8-9,000 g / m² / 24hr
Entrant DT :
8-10,000 g / m² / 24hr
   


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