UKH

Ive tried a few different waterproofers over the years an am still none the wiser as to what will work with what.

Im not keen on the wash in type ones as I dont want the linings of my clothing to get treated too and dont really see how it can work anyway.

Ive tried Fabsil spray, Fabsil Gold spray, Nikwax spray on, Nikwax wash in. Ive read good things about Fabsil Gold (non spray version) but feel it might take a long while to cover a jacket properly?

What would work for Goretex waterproof 3L, other brands 2.5L, Softshell.

Your thoughts and experience please good folks.

bump

what problems are you having with the products that you have used so far? 

any decent jacket manufacturer should recommend a product for reproofing their jackets. if in doubt I've always got on OK with with nikwax cleaner followed by nikwax wash in. trouble is i have  to re-do it regularly to keep anything waterproof, and even then i'll normally wear softshell type stuff and accept that getting wet is gonna happen. 

This video from Arcteryx is good:
youtube.com/watch?v=I4N6ZuKTZ_c&

And I've had success following this procedure with Goretex jackets:

1. Do an empty wash cycle to clean the machine
2. Wash using Granger's Techwash
3. Use spray-on re-proof using Granger's spray - on the outside surface, whilst the jacket is still wet
4. Tumble-dry (my Bosch tumble dryer has a specific setting for membrane fabrics)

The tumble-dry stage is crucial...not something they mention when people buy this kit!

I am sold on Nikwax wash-in and have been using it regularly on Goretex, Sympatex, microfibre, Paramo and other types for about 20 years now. It was the only show in town back then but others have caught up since. It comes in different varieties optimised for wool or polycotton or whatever but often I'll just chuck stuff in with the Paramos or Gortex. After a while you get a feel for what's going to work best and you know where the leaks are going to come first. Sometimes I'll spray extra onto difficult seams or hard-wearing areas as well as the wash-in. I don't have a tumble dryer just now so that option is not available to me currently. It has been in the past and sometimes tumble drying is all you need to rejuvenate the proofing. 

Is your jacket leaking? Re-proofing isn't making a jacket waterproof again, it is just re-applying the water repellant finish which helps the water bead on the surface and therefore aids breathability. There's a limit to what you can expect from aftermarket reproofers and they all do the same thing. There's no harm to reproofing the inside of your jacket with a wash in product, what harm will it do? Water wont travel out of your jacket from the inside, it's designed to allow vapour to pass through which wont be affected by a wash in reproofer.

I used to use tx direct when I worked in an outdoors shop because we got it free. I very rarely wash or reproof my gtx jacket now, it's probably getting on for 10 years old and the surface wets out but the only place it actually leaks is where the membrane has been abraded or pierced. It's one of the biggest cons in the industry imo, especially when you get to the stage of running empty wash cycles and getting the hair dryer out. I wonder what our wax jacket clad ancestors would think.

You're splitting hairs with your choice of reproofer, they all do more or less the same thing and they all get less and less effective and need more frequent treatments the older your jacket becomes.

This! 

I've used a number of reproofing agents and none work well without heat at the end. I don't own a tumble dryer so I use an iron on low heat. 

Ironing on low works usually pretty well too, if you don't have a tumble dryer. The heat treatment is the essential step (perhaps depending on the DWR formula) for proper polymerisation and function of the DWR. Just don't melt your jacket with the iron

Actually, if the original (rather more durable) manufacturer's DWR has not completely worn off, you can even somewhat restore it (after proper washing) by the heat alone.