By far the most common wear-and-tear damage to shell clothing is either the loosening of taped seams in the shoulders, neck and hood, or zipper failures.
- Taped seams — In 9 out of 10 cases, taped seams in the shoulders, neck and hood release because of sweat build-up that has slowly dissolved the taping glue over time. This is easily avoided by wiping the inside of the garment after heavy use — typically during warmer months of the year when you sweat a lot — first with a dry towel and then with a slightly damp cloth.
- Zippers — It’s a good practice to open and close the zippers on shell clothing calmly and gently. This is because it usually isn’t the zipper itself that breaks, but the runner that malfunctions — typically when a user has pulled it too hard to its top or bottom position.
- Washing — On those infrequent occasions when you need to wash a shell garment, follow the instructions on the inside label. Never use fabric softeners (see “Why Not Use Fabric Softeners?” section below).
- Drying — Dry in a drying cabinet or tumble dryer; if access to either is not available, iron on low heat with a towel between the iron and garment. Heating the garment in some way after washing restores the water-repellent treatment.
- Ironing — The garment does not need to be ironed until it is completely dry; use a steam iron on low heat and place a towel between the garment and the iron.