Waterproofing a fleece

footman

footman

footman

Soldato
Joined
21 Oct 2002
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I've just had a 10 minute lecture from an assistant at Cotswolds as to why it's inadvisable to waterproof fleeces.

Come home and googled and found that Nikwax do a product called Polar Proof that appears to be ideal.

Am I missing something or was he talking rubbish?
 
I'm going on safari to South Africa next week and it will be cold for the early morning and night game drives.
I'm looking for a solution which will allow me to wear the fleece to keep out the cold but also deal with any rain showers that may occur.
I really don't want to take my bulky waterproofs with me.
 
Who said anything about bulky? Plenty of single-layer water proof jackets out there that fold [read, scrunch :D] into something you can shove in a pocket.
 
Fleece material is designed to be quick-drying - especially micro fleeces. They aren't waterproof which, as bloodiedathame said, would remove the breathability. This means that any sweat you create will stay exactly where it is. Urgh.
Just get a microfleece (typically 100 weight) and a lightweight shell - there are plenty of them, even the Regatta ones are good at keeping the rain off! - this should suffice.
 
Why did I read thread title as Watercooling a fleece? Guess those drops I had in my eyes earlier are still doing their thang. :)
 
It can ruin the pile/weave/whatever which can mean it loses it's ability to trap heat. The thing is, a fleece is really meant to go under a wind/water proof layer. They can't trap heat on their own.

To the OP, just buy a thin waterproof layer, something you can shove in your bag or pocket. You don't need much if it is just showers.
 
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