From September 21 to 25, Arc’teryx is hosting a GORE-TEX Wash Week at all of its stores. Customers can bring in Arc’teryx jackets and get them both washed and DWR-treated for free. The brand will then mail your jacket back to you by October 21 — just in time for cooler weather. But before you sign up, check your local store’s availability. Some locations are already full and are no longer accepting appointments.
GORE-TEX shells get dirty like any other garment. Oils, grime, and mystery stains inevitably appear when you use jackets, pants, or bibs through seasons of outdoor adventure. Some brands recommend washing GORE-TEX products after every 150 hours of use. Arc’teryx recommends washing its GORE-TEX products every 5 to 8 days of use and after every 10 to 20 days of use for jackets with lighter day-to-day wear.
You can wash and DWR your Arc’teryx GORE-TEX jackets at home on your own. But for 4 days this September, the brand will do it for you free of charge. All you have to do is sign up online, drop your dirty gear off at the Arc’teryx location of your appointment, and before the end of October, your garment will arrive back at your front door, clean as a whistle and as waterproof as the day you bought it.
There are some caveats, though, as not all Arc’teryx GORE-TEX gear will be accepted.
Arc’teryx Wash Week: A ‘Shoulder Season Spa Session’ for Your Gear
To get your GORE-TEX washed for free through Arc’teryx Wash Week, check to see if there are any locations near you that still have available appointments. Visit the brand’s webpage for Community Events and scroll through your options. When you find one, select it and press “Secure Your Spot.” Enter some basic information, and your appointment is set.
For this promotion, Arc’teryx will wash and DWR treat up to two garments per customer. But it will only accept Arc’teryx GORE-TEX jackets and insulated jackets — no GORE-TEX rain pants, ski pants, or bibs. If the jacket you bring has any visible signs of delamination already happening, Arc’teryx told GearJunkie it will not be eligible for Wash Week.
When you drop off your jacket(s), you’ll sign a waiver and fill out a form directing the brand where to ship the jacket once it’s washed and waterproofed. Then, Arc’teryx does the rest. By October 21, the brand will ship it back so you can get after upcoming fall and winter adventures in a crisp, clean GORE-TEX shell.
How to Wash GORE-TEX Apparel at Home
If there aren’t any available appointments at an Arc’teryx store near you, you can still wash and DWR treat your GORE-TEX gear yourself at home. GORE-TEX offers a guide on its website. So does Nikwax.
Essentially, the process goes like this: Zip up the zippers and close all jacket pockets. Wash it with a small amount of liquid detergent at 105 degrees. Then dry your jacket on a tumble cycle. After the first dry cycle, GORE-TEX recommends tumble drying for another 20 minutes to reactivate the DWR.
You can apply additional spray-on DWR after that if water still isn’t beading off the GORE-TEX membrane. Some brands, like Nikwax, also offer “wash-in” waterproofing treatments that are added directly into the washing machine.
Do not use powder detergents, fabric softeners, stain removers, or bleach on your GORE-TEX. Do not dry at a high temperature. And do not wash your GORE-TEX jacket alongside other heavily soiled garments.
Free Washes All Year — But Only at Select Locations
While September 21-25 are the only days when all Arc’teryx locations will be offering washing services, the brand does offer free washes for GORE-TEX gear all year round. Any location with washing facilities allows customers to bring in Arc’teryx GORE-TEX garments and get them washed free of charge.
Some of these locations, like the Boulder Pearl Street Arc’teryx store, also offer ReBird repair services. So, if you have a broken zipper, busting seam, or some other problem, they can fix it for you right there in the store.
The Boulder Arc’teryx location and the new Broadway store in NYC are currently the only stores in the U.S. that have washing facilities and offer free washes for its GORE-TEX gear year-round. If you can’t make the trip there but need your GORE-TEX Arc’teryx gear washed before things start cooling down, check out the brand’s Community Events page and sign up for your Arc’teryx wash week appointment.
