Does Wool Keep You Warm When Wet? [TESTED]

Testing an army surplus style wool blanket to see if it will really insulate effectively when wet. This video is part of a series of tests to find out what the best insulation materials are for the outdoors man or woman. Whether hiking, bushcrafting or wild camping, learn a bit more about the materials we use.
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big-skies.co.uk

[@RockyMountainBushcraft]

In below freezing weather, when water freezes and the evaporative process stops, is where wool has a major advantage in that it retains it's loft to insulate, whereas as down and other forms of insulation loose their loft and can no longer insulate. I've had the same experience with polar fleece retaining insulation when wet in extreme cold. In fact, all modern arctic explorers use layers of polar fleece underneath a DWR nylon shell exclusively for their clothing system because polar fleece mimics wool's properties during extreme cold, but is half the weight. I say this as someone who's reviewed extreme cold weather gear for Wintergreen Northern Wear, The North Face, Kelty, and Smartwool. But it is true that during warmer weather, wool evaporates and cools. That's why older US Army canteen covers were lined with wool, so that water could be poured over them which kept your water cooler during hot weather. Cheers, Jason

[@bigskies2202]

Thanks Jason. Yup down is a disaster when wet for sure. I think when it comes to clothing systems that tried and trusted combo of merino base layer with polar fleece mid does a great job of warmth and moisture management. I think the ability of the merino base layer to absorb some water is something of an advantage in that limits condensation on the inside of the shell whilst still remaining dry to the touch. Material drying and water holding capabilities is another thing will be looking at.

[@Mapriex]

where can i get polar fleece? is it winterfleece?

[@sw0mpy]

It would be interesting to see the results if you added somekind of dry (synthetic) outer layer to the mix as well. Like people usually wear some kind of other layer on top of their base layer. Having one layer on top of wet wool makes it probably dry a bit slower and maybe the results would be different.

[@bigskies2202]

Really nice idea for a test thanks. Now the weather is cold again it's a good time to do a pile more tests and will include that. Certainly slowing down the evaporative cooling effect should maintain heat better. At the expense of staying wet longer but that's a choice based on circumstance.

[@SpudUna]

I like the tap

[@wc8792]

Hi. Helpful video. Over the years I’ve read more than once, that wool, by the time that it is harvested, processed, and delivered to your door, has been stripped of most of its lanolin (The key to its hydrophobic properties) Re-treatment is probably a prudent idea, particularly when depending on such gear when way out in the back country. I love wool, in particular blankets. And also love it for its fire retardant properties. But these days I’ve come to the conclusion that the double layer synthetic fleece blankets, in addition to being very warm, are a better bargain for those on a budget.

[@bigskies2202]

Thanks @wc8792. Lanolin isn't something have expored yet with the blankets, but topping up the damp proofing for an outer layer wool blanket, or coat sounds a good idea. I did buy a traditoinal "oiled wool" jumper/pullover at the start of the winter, which has not been stripped of the lanolin, and really like it. Very warm, very weather resistant but heavy and expensive. 100% agree on the budget issue. For pure bang for buck hard to beat synthetics, although would like to use wool more as a personal preference so keen to extract the most from it and accept some compromise.

[@Inkling777]

Thanks for your research. I suspect in this experiment the fact that the un-wet control insulated better is unfair. In a wilderness environment, the choice isn't between wet and dry. It is how an insulating material responds to being wetted by rain, mist, or melting snow. Someone with no blanket of any sort will be subject to the chilling of that moisture and that may be worse than any insulating material. That's why layering is so important. The outer layer keeps inner layers from getting wet.

[@bigskies2202]

Hi Michael, very good points, for sure it's wildly more complex in the field than I can reflect in basic experiments so I see the data gained from these tests as part of a bigger picture that needs to be factored in to each circumstance based on experience. As per your example of ongoing precipitation, rain/snow, absolutely I would rather be using the wet blanket as a loose shelter/ throw to keep more moisture off than be exposed to it. But by the same token if I had dry underlayers I wouldn't want to have the blanket tightly round me with no rain/snow happening as that could accelerate heat loss. So in a sense what I am getting at is that the phrase we hear a lot of "wool keeps you warm when wet" is probably not accurate as a bald statement. But it certainly can work well used correctly. As I say at the end of the vid if you are actively exercising and that can help dry the wool that is also something would often make sense.

[@wullieg7269]

i have a DONKEY JACKET 98% wool its never been beaten by weather

[@WeatherWool]

Hi BIG SKIES and thanks for the video. As a wool guy (wool clothing maker), i love to see people checking out what wool can do. I think the key to understanding wool is to remember that wool is clothing made by Nature to enable a sheep to maintain a constant body temperature with minimal expenditure of energy. Lucky for us, our body temp is just slightly lower than sheep. So, when we wear wool, we are asking the wool to do the job for which it was created. All kinds of testing are fun, interesting, etc. But the only test that actually matters is the FIELD TEST. What does a person experience? How does someone feel? So I jumped in a river in 2017, in winter, and we posted on our channel. kzbin.info/www/bejne/fqnFcmqljt90h5I ... It seems strange to me, but since then we've gotten quite a bit of pushback, but always from people who have NOT jumped in the river. One of the critics sent me to your video. Thanks for the efforts and the interest in wool. I look forward to more of your vids! If you do jump in a river, please be sure to wear pure wool. Most of the woolens are the market now have cotton or synthetic mixed in. All the Best and Keep getting out there!!! --- Ralph

[@bigskies2202]

Thanks Ralph. A big fan of wool generally, and as ever the devil is in the detail. Not everything is created equal so I like to avoid blanket statements (no pun intended). Now we are moving towards the colder months I plan to conduct some more tests, and more wool experiments definitely in plan, including more field tests for my plastic free sleeping setup amongst other things. Heavily wool dependent!

[@WeatherWool]

@@bigskies2202 Keep on truckin!!!

[@soldier-Dave]

So you didn’t try wearing a wool garment then wetting it to test your theory😂😏

[@bigskies2202]

Hi DJT. It's not a theory if it's tested ;) but a test always has specific limitations. This one tells us that a saturated surplus style warm blanket loses more heat to evaporative heat loss than it is able to generate or maintain. So a blanket statement (no pun intended) "wool keeps you warm when wet" is clearly incorrect. However that's not to say wool can't keep you warm when wet. As it didn't perform hugely worse than the uninsulated test beaker I suspect a better quality wool, would provide positive insulation. The alpaca, which has been the pound for pound best performer in the dry tests I would stake money on doing better. Additionally as I say in the video, exercising in the wet wool is one of my suggestions for getting the wool drier and providing positive insulation more quickly. Overall I am a big fan of wearing wool, especially base layers which are great for moisture management. I have also done a sock test where I was wearing a wet sock and testing skin temperature against a bamboo sock, where the wool much outperformed the bamboo. Maybe I will repeat that versus the bare foot. Pt. 2!

[@sw0mpy]

​@@bigskies2202Why do you think wool is great baselayer? It absorbs up to 30% of its weight in moisture, compared to 1-2 percent of synthetics. And because it absorbs a lot of water, it takes for ever to dry. And as you showed in your test, it does not keep you warm when wet. Wouldnt synthetics make more sense as baselayer? They dont absorb so much sweat, they dry 10 times quicker than wool. Only benefit that wool has, that it does not get stinky.

[@bigskies2202]

@@sw0mpy very fair questions. What I tend to find is that light absorbance of water in the fibres leaves it feeling dry to touch. The heat from exercise tends to transition that moisture out quickly in cold conditions so they remain dry and comfy. If it's super wet which means it's inherently slightly warmer and I was working hard, i.e. fast hiking in hilly terrain I would still probably choose the synthetics from the cupboard. So it's a conditions choice. I think for cold and not super wet, I prefer the wool. For absolutely sopping wet and slim likelihood of not overwhelming the wool the synthetics are a better choice. I did another little vid on base layer drying times and "spoiler alert" whilst the synthetic does win good quality light wool base layers can still dry pretty quickly.