Everything you need to know about winter jacket tech

We have come a long way since the age of animal fur.With snow falling in Florida and temperatures well below zero on the East Coast, the need for a good winter jacket is higher than ever. The heat of your body wants to escape into the frigid atmosphere-it's simple thermodynamics-but even if the temperature reaches "polar vortex" or "bomb cyclone" level cold, a good jacket is it Can be prevented from escaping.

The best portable fan in 2022

At some point in humanity, animal fur and fur were the best bet. They were excellent insulation and gave a cool "north of the wall" look. Currently, there are more efficient ways to bottle body temperature, but the process of buying a winter mug with many inconsistent standards and industry-specific jargon is cluttered. Here is a guide to finding the right jacket.

What to look for

There are some indicators that can be used to guide you in buying a jacket, but no one is perfect for everyone's needs. Woody Blackford, Vice President of Global Design for Columbia Sportswear, said: "There are other factors, such as how active you are. To stand at the bus stop every day, you need a different jacket than going out for a run."

Almost all winter jackets have three main components: shell, insulating padding and lining. The breakdown of each section is as follows.

Full

Almost all winter clothing is designed to provide excellent insulation. What's on the jacket works much like the husky pink fiberglass material on the walls of the house. Individual threads and strands of material form small pockets that trap warm air. "You create a microclimate around your body," Blackford said.

Down

The most popular padding for winter jackets is still underneath, a fluffy insulation layer extracted from the skin of poultry such as ducks and geese. Companies often mix it with common feathers to keep costs down. Down is a highly efficient insulation, easy to compress and pack, and has been the gold standard for jacket insulation for decades. Disadvantages: Not very effective when wet.

The variables to consider when purchasing a down jacket are:

Fill power is one of the stats that jacket companies like to brag about, as it's basically an indicator of the overall quality of down-fill. This number is typically between 300 and 900 and directly represents the amount of cubic centimeters an ounce of down occupies when compressed by a calibrated weight in the cylinder. High quality downs aren't compressed that much, which gives you more space for air pockets (remember: we love them) and makes them more effective insulation.

The United States and Europe use the same method to determine this number, but Europe uses wider cylinders and heavier weights. The combination of these variables means that the numbers are about the same on paper.

In addition to better insulation, higher padding is often converted to a more comfortable jacket. Below the 500 range, the material begins to harden and become lumpy. Anything in the 800 or 900 range falls into the premium category.

Once you have decided what kind of down will fit in your filling weight jacket, you need to find out how much it is. Filling weight is the amount of jacket down measured in ounces. Yes, mineral down is better, assuming the filling power remains the same.