You鈥檙e stumbling out of a hut on a backcountry ski trip and you catch your sleeve. Or you鈥檙e carrying a pair of freshly tuned skis on your shoulder. Or you catch your jacket on a branch thundering through the powdery woods. The long and short of it: you鈥檝e ripped or sliced a hole in your favorite down puffy and you鈥檝e got to deal before you鈥檙e shedding feathers like a plucked goose. If the filling hasn鈥檛 blown out of the baffle, backcountry emergency repairs are easy to do, and they can last indefinitely.
Brent Zwiers, Director of Operations for , manufacturer of some of the best down jackets, sleeping bags and booties money can buy, advises, 鈥淗ow you fix a tear in your down jacket depends on the size of the hole.鈥
If you鈥檙e dealing with a dime-sized hole, Zwiers says that the most inexpensive and effective option is to apply to the outer surface of the jacket fabric to bond the torn edges to each other. 鈥淪eam Grip is Flexible, it adheres well, it doesn鈥檛 get stiff when it鈥檚 cold out, and it will keep the down from leaking out,鈥 says Zwiers. Plus, you may already have a tiny tube with you if you鈥檙e tenting鈥攃heck your tent repair kit. Duct tape also works. Cut the tape bigger than the hole and round the edges so that the tape is less likely to catch and peel off from dirt or abrasion.
If your hole is quarter-sized or larger, Seam Grip won鈥檛 be enough to keep it closed. The best solution for a larger hole is repair tape. Peel and stick, it comes in loads of colors as well as clear. Like with duct tape, cut your patch bigger than the hole you鈥檙e trying to patch and round the corners to reduce possible peeling.
Zwiers says stay away from sewing your jacket鈥檚 hole or slit. 鈥淢ost down shell materials are fragile and it takes better than average sewing skills to make a fix. If you sew through the shell and lining, you鈥檝e cut the insulating value of the jacket in that area. And, because lightweight fabrics used in down jackets require extremely small stitch count and ultrafine needle and thread, it鈥檚 possible to do more damage than good,鈥 says Zwiers. 鈥淚f you鈥檙e not precisely on target, you can perforate the fabric and it will tear along perforations after it鈥檚 sewn, or down will migrate out through the needle holes.鈥
If you鈥檝e torn your Feathered Friend鈥檚 jacket, and home repair isn鈥檛 working, you can send it back to the company for a fix. They鈥檒l cut out the torn section, re-stuff it with down and return it back to you as good as new for about $60/hour. Most repairs take one-half to one hour. If your jacket isn鈥檛 Feathered Friends brand, and you鈥檙e concerned about your own repair job holding up, get in touch with or , two Seattle-based gear repair shops that are Feathered Friends approved.