Cleaning of floodwater soaked tents and bags.

[sbkittrell]

I've got three sleeping bags, two tents, and a bivy bag that were soaked in brackish flood water during the Irene hurricane. After the storm I put them in the barn and spread them out to dry. Since then I've had other priorities (namely my house) and haven't done anything to them. They don't look mildewed. What is the best way to clean them? Two of the bags are hollofil and the third is goosdown. Will dry cleaning damage the bags? The tents I plan to soak in fresh water and hang them up to dry. They are a timberline Eureka, a Half Moon, and a North Face Bivy sack. The bags are North Face.

 

[blind & lost]

I believe there should be care tags (cleaning instructions), somewhere inside the bags, follow that advice, or maybe contact North Face directly. I have washed my down bag in the bathtub with woolite before, but rinsing is a pain, and if you pick up the bag with too much water still in it, you will likely rip the internal baffles which keep the down in it's proper place. Sorry for your flood damage, good luck.

 

[madmax]

My tents and bags get saltwater on them (spray off waves from the wind) from camping on the beach often. You probably have alot of organic material in them as well from the flood. Your tents and bivy will likely be fine doing as you suggested. That's what I did last week with mine from a camp on a Jax, FL beach. The synth bags I just wash and hang. Down will need some special care to save from getting clumpy and funky. I second the suggestion to email NorthFace and ask.

 

[Peacelovingirl]

they have a webpage dedicated to care instuctions fo thier products... they recongmend getting it professionally cleaned by a cleaner that knows how to clean it... if you dont have anybody local that cleans down you can send it to them where they send it to thier cleaners... http://www.thenorthface.com/en_US/contact-us/product-care/#faq_5

 

[ohski]

My house got flooded this summer and I washed/cleaned everything while it was still wet... Everything can be cleaned at home in either the washing machine on "hand wash" or in the bath tub.

•Down: For down bags, hand-washing in a bathtub works best. Fill the tub with warm water and add one of the above-recommended cleaners. Put the bag in and gently work in the soap, then allow it to soak for 15 minutes. Drain the tub and press out any remaining water. In a cold-water rinse, work the soap out gently, let the bag sit for 15 minutes and drain. Press out any remaining water. Repeat the rinse until all the soap is out. It's also possible, (according to some bag manufacturers) to machine wash a down bag, as long as a front-loading washer is used. Never use an agitator-style machine as the motion can damage the stitching and insulation. Make sure to wash on the gentle cycle in cool water with one of the aforementioned down soaps.

This was from REI's website and pretty much how I've washed my sleeping bags for 25 years.

I used Tide free on some things and Nikwax Down Wash 2.0 on my good sleeping bags.

Ski