The Hood

There has been much debate over the years surrounding how much heat is lost via your head, with claims ranging anywhere between 7-50% (depending upon rest or exercise). Since the brain controls your ability to think, move and maintain a particular body temperature, it requires the most blood; this is controlled by your cardiac output. The harder the body works the more blood is circulated to the head, causing the heat to be radiated away quicker; hence why protecting your head against cold weather is always strongly advised and why the hood is arguably the most important feature!

Features to consider and look for:

Hood Space- Is there enough room to fit a hat or climbing helmet under the hood for extra warmth or protection?

Fixed or detachable hood- A matter of personal preference, but it is considered that a fixed hood will provide an overall better performance; these can often be stowed away in the collar to create a compact, smarter appearance.

Drawcords- Used to secure and shape the hood around your face for greater flexibility the shape and size of the jacket, for a more tailored and desirable fit. Consider what length of jacket would suit you best...

Stiffened hood awning- Some jackets have plastic incorporated in the hood material (surrounding face area or on the peak) providing a stiffened effect for maintaining shape, streamlining the hood for extra shielding, and providing a run off for rainwater to protect your face from drips.

Chin/Face guard- Designed to protect sensitive areas of your face against the harshest weather conditions, a chin or face guard does exactly what it says. A soft fleece material often lines the inside of the guard material offering extra warmth, comfort and protection if the weather turns.

Zips

Zips are responsible for the fundamentals. They help to aid ventilation (primarily in the core area), create access for you to get your jacket on when the weather comes in, or take off if the sun comes out. They also close the jacket off to any penetrating weather; creating a complete guard for the body.

Features to consider and look for:

'Pit Zips' (under arm zippers) - The purpose of pit zips is to provide additional air-circulation to the underarm and core area, allowing unwanted heat and sweat to escape, keeping you comfortable whilst on the go. Pit zips are great in horrible weather conditions when you start to feel a bit hot and sweaty but it is not ideal to undo the main zip!

Full or ½ Zip- Again this is down to preference, the majority of waterproof jackets will have a full length zip, creating greater flexibility for access and ventilation. However, if the weight and pack size is paramount and access is not a priority, a ½ zip can be a good option.

Storm flap- Zips need to be waterproof as possible to prevent any rain water from slipping through the teeth. A storm flap is designed to help protect the zip against any penetrating weather, protecting your clothes or contents of your pockets from getting wet. A storm-flap is quite simply an additional strip of the jackets outer fabric that covers the zip, often secured by Velcro or poppers. A water resistant zip (pit zips especially) are otherwise used, or with some more technical jackets a split sealed seam design, reducing bulk and weight.

Interactive/Internal zips- Interactive zips allow for a compatible fleece to be zipped into the inside of a jackets outer shell, creating a one-piece insulated garment rather than multiple layers. Interactive zips allow for fast and easy layering by adding or removing garments to control temperature.

Pockets

Pockets come in all shapes sizes and locations; how many and where can often vary. Designers are constantly looking at the location of pockets and how to improve their accessibility, but more often than not there will need to be some compromise.

Most outer pockets will be designed to minimise water ingress and may have storm flaps, or split seam tape to guard the zips opening and teeth; helping to keep the contents dry (no pockets are fully waterproof). A number of jackets now come with an internal media pocket (some with head phone ports) ideal for storing your IPod or mobile phone safely on the inside of your jacket, without risk of dampening. As a minimum we recommend you opt for a waterproof jacket with a pocket to store your map and compass in, and also somewhere to put your hands.

Useful Tip: Can you access the pockets or would they be obstructed by rucksack straps, hip belts or a climbing harness? What best suits your chosen activity and needs?

Fit & Design

A jacket must fit properly to ensure maximum effectiveness in comfort and moisture control as part of the layering system. There should be enough room to wear a fleece and other layers underneath if extra insulation is needed, but not excessive room to prevent perspiration escaping. Many technical jackets are designed with a trim athletic cut for weight purposes and best suited for a corresponding body type; for some people this may feel more snug than usual. Remember to keep the layering process in mind and go up a size if necessary; comfort and suitable protection are essential.

Waterproof jackets often come in short, mid and longer designs and nearly of them will have waist drawcords enabling you to adjust the shape and size of the jacket, for a more tailored and desirable fit. Consider what length of jacket would suit you best...

Mid length waterproof jackets are most common, providing protection for the waist and the top of the trousers (the hem is designed to rest just below the hips). Mid length jackets offer a great compromise between flexibility and protection for the waist area against the elements, making them ideal for most outdoor activities.

You may feel that a longer length jacket would be better for you? The longer design may restrict your movement more in comparison to shorter styles, but it will give you additional protection around your waist, bottom and the top of your legs against low-level intrusions from whipping winds.

For ultra pack-weight and size conscious explorers, a shorter length jacket may be your preference. Shorter length jackets will offer you the best flexibility on the go, using minimum amounts of material for a barely-there feel. However, be aware that you will forfeit lower-back protection when bending and stretching and are likely to be more exposed to the elements.

Drop tails- Some jackets have drop-tails, this is where the material at the back of the jacket is longer than the front; dropping down below your bottom. The shorter cut at the front allows for flexibility in the waist and legs, whilst the drop tail protects the lower back.

Snow Skirt- A snow skirt is an additional elasticated lining found on the inside of a ski jacket that does up snugly around the waist area like a belt. The purpose of a snow skirt is to prevent snow from getting inside the jacket and down the top of your trousers when you fall over.

Collars and Cuffs- Most waterproof jackets allow you to loosen and tighten the collar and cuffs using Velcro or drawstrings (if they are not already elasticised), giving you the ability to adjust the fit around your wrists and neck keeping the weather out.

Materials Used

Waterproof and breathable materials are designed to act as a both a shield for protecting you against the elements, keeping you and your clothing dry, whilst also enabling your body to breathe by allowing perspiration vapour to escape. This is achieved by either laminate or coating technologies. Many individual brands like The North face and Berghaus now have their own fabric technology providing a waterproof/breathable finish, as well as the more well known brands like Gore-Tex and eVent.

Laminates- e.g. Gore-Tex & eVent. A waterproof/breathable membrane ePTFE- known as Teflon, Polyurethane (PU) or polyester films is bonded to the inside of the jackets exterior. Laminates offer superior waterproof, breathable and durable protection compared to a coating and particularly favoured in more technical waterproof jackets. Coating- e.g. HyVent (The North Face) and AQ (Berghaus) A liquid solution is spread on the inside of the jacket providing waterproof/breathable characteristics. Coatings offer very good waterproof and breathable technology at a more budget friendly price.

Price

Wondering why there is such a price range between jackets?

With features such as leading fabric technologies (usually involving a waterproof/breathable laminate), scrupulous seam-taping, exceptional detail, tailoring and durability, 'high quality' rainwear can often come with what may seem a high-end price tag. It is simply true to the saying 'you get what you pay for'; but there is no point in paying extra for special features or cutting edge fabric technologies unless they benefit you and your activity

There is the option of lower-cost rainwear, this is generally cut looser and often uses waterproof/breathable coatings rather than laminates (generally less breathable than laminates). There may be fewer features but they are often lightweight, easy to pack and budget-friendly!

Taped Seams

In a nutshell, for a waterproof jacket to be classified as a waterproof the seams must be sealed.

When a jacket is manufactured, panels of fabric are sewed together in various areas to construct the overall design and shape; thus the tiny needles create puncture holes along the seams. These puncture holes must be sealed on the inside of the jacket with a tape, otherwise rain will be able to seep through the stitch holes. Virtually all top-brand waterproof garments offer factory-taped seams. Bear in mind that Soft-shell and windproof garments often don't offer such expensively taped seams, as the fabric itself isn't waterproof but water-resistant.

Critical seam taping. This means only seams in high rain exposure areas are taped; side seams, for example, may be omitted.