Here in Portland, GORE-TEX earns its keep. It's the gear you reach for when the sky turns that familiar grey, and it's also the gear most people are afraid to wash. There's a myth that cleaning GORE-TEX ruins it, so jackets and shoes get worn season after season, caked in trail dust and city grime, slowly losing the very waterproofing they were bought for. The truth is the opposite: a dirty GORE-TEX layer performs worse than a clean one, and washing it correctly is how you keep it working. Let's walk through how to do it right.
Why does GORE-TEX need cleaning at all?
GORE-TEX keeps water out with a microporous membrane, but that membrane doesn't work alone. The outer fabric is treated with a DWR finish (durable water repellent) that makes rain bead up and roll off. Over time, body oils, sweat, sunscreen, dirt, and detergent residue coat that outer fabric and flatten the DWR. When that happens, the face fabric stops repelling water and starts absorbing it. The material looks soaked and feels clammy even though the membrane underneath is still doing its job. This is called "wetting out," and it's the number one reason people think their GORE-TEX has failed when it actually just needs a wash. If you want the full picture of how the membrane and DWR work together, our explainer on what GORE-TEX is breaks it down.
How do you wash a GORE-TEX jacket?
Machine washing is not only safe, it's recommended. Close all the zippers and fasten any flaps so hardware doesn't snag the fabric. Use a small amount of liquid technical wash or a mild powder detergent, and run a warm gentle cycle. The two things to avoid are fabric softener and heavy built-up detergent, because both leave a residue that smothers the DWR. Give the jacket a second rinse if your machine allows it, just to clear any leftover soap. That's the whole wash. Nothing exotic, no hand-scrubbing required.
How do you clean GORE-TEX shoes?
Shoes are a little different because of the midsole and the laces. Pull the laces out and knock off loose dirt first. Then use a soft brush and lukewarm water with a dab of mild soap to work over the upper, paying attention to the seams and the tongue where grit collects. Rinse the brush often so you're lifting dirt away rather than grinding it in. Avoid dunking the whole shoe in a sink of soapy water; you want to clean the outer fabric, not soak the interior. If your GORE-TEX shoes have suede or leather panels, treat those areas the way you'd treat any suede or leather sneaker, which we cover in our guide to cleaning white, canvas, and suede sneakers. Stuff the shoes with paper and let them air dry away from direct heat.
Can you put GORE-TEX in the dryer?
Yes, and for jackets this step is actually the secret. A warm tumble dry, or a cool iron with a cloth between the iron and the fabric, uses gentle heat to reactivate the DWR finish and stand those water-repellent fibers back up. After a wash, a lot of gear that looked like it had "died" comes back to life with nothing more than a warm dry cycle. For shoes, skip the machine dryer entirely; the heat can warp the midsole and adhesives. Let shoes dry at room temperature instead. The heat trick is for jacket fabric, not footwear.
When and how do you reproof the DWR?
Washing and drying will revive a DWR finish for a long time, but eventually the treatment wears off for good. You'll know it's time when water no longer beads on a clean, dry jacket even after a warm dry cycle. That's the moment to reproof. Wash-in and spray-on DWR treatments both work; spray-on lets you target just the outer face and is the better choice if the jacket has a lining you don't want to coat. Apply it to a clean garment, because reproofing over dirt just locks the grime in. GORE-TEX is a technical material, and like the other performance fabrics we get asked about, such as Cordura, it rewards a little maintenance with a lot of extra life.
The mistakes that actually damage GORE-TEX
Most "ruined" GORE-TEX wasn't ruined by washing. It was ruined by fabric softener coating the fabric, by heavy detergents leaving residue, by high heat melting seam tape or warping a midsole, or simply by never being cleaned at all until the DWR suffocated under years of grime. Wash it clean, dry it warm (jackets) or cool (shoes), reproof when beading stops, and your GORE-TEX will keep shrugging off Oregon rain for years.
A quick word on where your gear comes from
Every pair of shoes we send out is inspected and authenticated in-house here in Portland, Oregon before it ships. That's the Verified & Shipped standard, and it's the same reason we want you to get the longest possible life out of what you buy: real gear, taken care of, is gear you keep.
— Anthony from West Coast Deals