It is chilly today, and although the sun is out it does feel like autumn has suddenly burst into being. This is the time of year where we dig out our wooly hats and gloves and shuffle our warmer clothes to the front of the wardrobe.
Insulated jackets are an essential bit of kit if you plan on heading into the hills around this time of year, the two most popular types of insulation for your puffy jacket are down and synthetic. Each have their strengths and weaknesses, so in this post we’ll take a look at down and synthetic insulation to help you choose the most appropriate jacket for your needs.
A note on insulated jackets: they are just that! You make the warmth and your insulated jacket is designed to keep it inside. The more effective the insulation, the warmer you will stay.
Down insulation
Down is the fluffy plummage from birds, usually geese and ducks.
Chris and co. on the summit of Aconcagua in the Andes: Down insulation is a good choice for cold, dry conditions where weight and pack size is an important consideration.
Gram-for-gram down is the most effective insulator, so you get more ‘warmth’* for bulk and weight. This makes it great for any activity where you want to keep your pack as light and compact as possible.
However, down is pretty useless (and very heavy) when wet and it will take time and fuss to dry it properly. You can get hydrophobic down which has been treated with a water repellent coating and is able to handle light showers, but it won’t stand up to sustained rain or humidity. In rain you’ll need to protect your down jacket with a waterproof: a sweaty affair as down is not particularly breathable!
Read more about down jackets on Alex’s article here.
Synthetic insulation
Synthetic insulation is made of synthetic fibres that mimic the properties of down.
Oli in his Patagonia DAS Parka: Synthetic insulation is well-suited to the cold, damp Scottish Winter conditions.
It retains thermal properties when wet (so it still insulates you when wet, albeit not as effectively as when dry). It is also low maintenance and dries relatively quickly, so it’s your best bet for damp, humid conditions and multi-day trips where you won’t have the space and time to dry out a down jacket properly.
The compromise is that in dry conditions you don’t get as a good a warmth-to-weight ratio as with down. Synthetic insulation is heavier and less compressible than down.
Cost and durability
As always – price is an important consideration when buying gear. Generally you’ll pay more for down insulation than synthetic. However down is incredibly durable: a down garment/sleeping bag can last for years or even decades if well looked-after. Synthetic insulation will lose its loft over time, but if you put a hole in your jacket it will remain inside for the most part (down will escape EVERYWHERE if you let it!). A down jacket with lightweight fabric is therefore best kept away from sharp and abrasive things!
If price is a key consideration: sample sales/factory shops can be great for getting discounted insulated garments, and you can often find secondhand down kit on Outdoor Gear Exchange (Facebook group). It’s a waiting game, but if you’re in no rush to buy a jacket it can be well worth it.
Cost to the environment
Ultimately all new garments will come at a cost to the environment. Down is an animal product from birds, you can look for ethically sourced down by looking for the RDS (Responsible Down Standard) logo. This means that the down was sourced without cruel practices like live-plucking, moult-harvesting and force-feeding. You can also get garments that contain recycled down; recycled down cannot be RDS certified, but you can look out for the GRS (Global Recycled Standard) for recycled insulation.
Synthetic insulation is not without its cost to the environment as synthetic products have a very long life and can break down to microplastics which pollute our ground and ocean. Many outdoor clothing companies now use mostly or all recycled synthetic insulation in their garments. Primaloft have also created Primaloft Bio which breaks down to a far greater degree than their other insulation.
Conclusion
It would be lovely to have a jacket for every eventuality, but it is a both costly and space-consuming tactic! Think about what you’ll be doing with your garment and what the priorites are, this shoulds also help you to decide how insulating your want your garment to be.
Summary: Down insulation
Pros: warm for its weight; more compact pack size; durable; uses natual fibres (biodegradeable and renewable)
Cons: useless when wet; takes a long time to dry; high maintenance when wet
Best for: cold and dry conditions where weight and compactness are important
Learn more about buying a down jacket on Alex’s blog here.
Summary: Synthetic insulation
Pros: insulates when wet; quick drying; low maintenance
Cons: less warmth for the weight; more bulky pack size; synthetic products pollute the environment; insulation breaks down with prolonged use
Best for: cold and damp conditions where convenient care is important (multi-day trips, Scottish winter, damp England)
Hati
More articles on down products
PHD the world’s lightest down clothing.
Rab Mythic ultra down jacket first impressions
More articles on synthetic products:
Rab Xenair Alpine Jacket first impressions
Rab Solar Ultra 1 Sleeping bag first impressions
Beyond the Edge Ltd is based in the Peak District, easily reached by train from London and within easy travelling distance from Sheffield, Manchester, Leeds, Nottingham and other Northern towns and cities.
We are one of the UKs most experienced providers of climbing, walking, scrambling, mountaineering and navigation training courses.
Most of our courses are run in the Peak District National Park which has some of the finest rock climbing, bouldering, walking and hiking in the world.
