I washed a down jacket and expected it to survive?

[Justsewsew]

I bought an as new Land's End down jacket from Vinted and washed it today on a 30 degree wash. The filling has clumped up in the channels and I now notice it should have been a cold wash only. I've tumbled dried it on low but it's mot getting any better. Is there anything I can do to redeem it? 😭

I did this with one of my dd's coats 😄

No advice but solidarity - it went straight in the bin x

I don't know but I just wrecked a similar monsoon coat it's is VERY upsetting

Stick it in the dryer with a few tennis balls to unclump!

Wash a pair of trainers and stick them in the tumble dryer with it, tumble dry it until you think it is dry, then tumble dry it again.

It will need dried much longer than you think it needs. Tennis or drier balls and back on.

It's more likely the agitation from the washing machine that's done it in, I'm afraid. Ought to wash on a delicate cycle with little to no spins. Stick it in the tumble dryer with some tennis balls and run it on the lowest heat you can for 2 - 4 hours.

I’ve got a down sleeping bag which I dry outside on the line (in summer usually), but it takes ages and I have to keep teasing the clumps of feathers into smaller and smaller chunks until they finally get some air into them and can fully dry.

It’s not wrecked, that’s what always happens when you wash a down jacket in a machine.
You need lots and lots of tumble drying with tumble dryer balls, even out the filling in each section then give it a good shake. Tumble again if it’s still flat. It will eventually plump up. Don’t forget to waterproof it as well. I do that before I dry mine.

I agree tumble dry with tennis balls . Good luck

I've given up on at least 2 coats I've done this to. Should have learnt the first time. Hope you can save it!

It’s probably fine. It takes many cycles of tumbling and shaking to loosen the clumped down so it dries out properly. I have a few down items and I wash them on 30 - with Nikwax down wash - with no problem.

Tennis balls in the tumble. Also use a bit of heat. I just put mine on 'timed' for 1hr30 and all down coats and cushions come out beautifully.

It will be absolutely fine. You need to dry on timed cycles rather than relying on the moisture meter in the dryer though - it won’t get dry that way as for some reason the dryer doesn’t seem able to pick up the moisture in the feathers. Infuriating but you’ll get there in the end. And yes, tennis balls.

You need to tumble and occasionally pull the clumped bits apart.

It’s actually more tragic that the Geese were tortured so you could have a jacket - which In our climate you don’t need, but hey who gives. F**k about geese having their chest down ripped off and stitched up again

Down is often a byproduct of the meat industry* Of course there are intensely cruel practices, which is why it’s important to know where out products come from.

You don’t help your cause as much as you think you do when you reply like this.

*I'm a vegetarian, so wouldn’t have down, but better to have minimum waste if animals are going to be slaughtered for meat.

Projection….Like I said. Who gives a f**k eh?

Live plucking is a controversial and often illegal practice where feathers and down are forcibly ripped from the skin of conscious geese
.

• Physical Trauma: Birds frequently suffer skin tears, bleeding, and broken or dislocated wings from rough handling.
• Wound Care: Open gashes are often stitched by workers using a needle and thread without anesthetic or pain relief.
• Frequency: Geese can be plucked every 5 to 8 weeks, with parent birds suffering this process up to 16 times before slaughter.
• Legality: The practice is banned in the UK and European Union, yet investigations have uncovered ongoing "secret" plucking at farms in countries like Poland and Hungary.
• Loopholes: Some farmers use "gathering" (collecting loose feathers during natural molting) as a legal loophole to hide live plucking, as birds do not molt simultaneously.
• Certification Issues: While standards like the Responsible Down Standard (RDS)exist to prevent live plucking, critics argue that gaps in auditing and complex supply chains allow live-plucked feathers to enter the global market.

No biggie, I wash down coats often, dont have a tumble dryer.

Just keep shaking the coat vigorously as its drying a few times.. It will seem completely pointless at first but then as its nearly dry it jsut starts separating and spreads out evenly.

Ethical down.

featheredfriends.com/pages/our-down?srsltid=AfmBOoqGnQrYeExaUxUjea_hK8_ZjgUVw5X45Yg8x0IvX4bAVnscE4Hc

Balled up socks in the tumble dryer work as well - occasionally taking it out and trying to separate the clumped bits.

I discovered half way through that my tumble dryer actually has a down setting!

I don't have a dryer and I declump mine by hand once its dry. I work through each section and spread out the filling within each section and fluff it up by pulling the filling apart. It's time consuming but I just sit down and put a film on while I'm doing it.

@FedUpWithDilemmas your general laissez faire consumer is not interested in ethical down it’s too expensive and like I said TWICE nobody gives a f**K anyway 🤷🏻‍♀️

You can buy drying balls from Lakeland.

Once dry I give it to DH who is tall and strong - he gives it a really good, hard, long shake and it all puffs up just fine.