Life expectancy of down sleeping bags

I have had my WM Ultralite cleaned professionally once – and that does not mean dry clean, but a professional specific down cleaning. Before and after I have always only washed it with specific down soap. I therefore do hope that the feathers have not been stripped of their natural oils because it has never been exposed to aggressive detergents.

Thanks for all in the input!

Christine

"I don't want to be flogging a dead horse and invest more money into dry cleaning or washing a bag that is basically dead… therefore my question."

Christine,
Great! I was hoping you had not dry cleaned it. But the above excerpt left me "scratching my head."

Damaged down can lead to loss of loft, I guess. But, I have never experienced it. In every case, it has returned after a good drying and/or washing. Stripped down is just ruined.

Contamination in the bag, as you are probably experiencing, is usually cleared by rinsing it out 2-3 times in HOT water. Check your water temps, or, if you use a commercial laundromat, run the water over a thermometer. The water should be no hotter than 140F or 60C. The down will not be effected, but the shell *can* be at hotter temps. Let it cycle through with no soap to rinse. Again, using a commercial washer is iffy. Make sure it is detergent free. Body oils, softeners, some down DWR rinses, soap, etc. These can be food for bugs. I have had some worms in an older military coat(arctic parka.) It led to clumping and dusting, also. With small black or grey chitin husks in it.

Dry it on medium or low. Again, the shell is the worrisome part. Check it frequently till you know the dryer temps. I checked mine by dropping in a thermometer for a little while. Again, it should not exceede 60C. Dry it thuroghly with 2, 3 or 4 dryer balls or tennis balls. When you get it home hang it out for a couple days. This will take a LONG time. For my 0F bag, it takes about 3 hours. Just reverse the bag (inside out, or outside in) about half way thru the drying. Most home dryers are OK. I can sit and study anywhere, though.

Down, itself, can take high heats. I use down for some fly tying. I steamed the batch over a boiler to straighten them. Heat, up to boiling or steam heat, does not hurt a down plume. The shell is usually some sort of synthetic and can be damaged by excessive heating, though. Use caution and check the temps.

Usually, the bag will come back at, or a little above the origonal loft. There should be few or no clumps. Clumping usually indicates some sort of contamination. Even mechanicaly damaged down (usually from use) should straighten with some heat and not have permanent loss of lofting. You might get a few badly tangled clumps. Do not be afraid to break these apart. Again, breaking the down fibers loose will have no appreciable effect on loft.

@James
Thank you so much for your in depth advice. You have encouraged me to try again and wash the bag another time. I will rinse it a lot which seems to have been the problem in the first place. I am staying at a place right now with a brand new washing machine – therefore detergent residues will not be a problem now.
Thanks again for your help,
Christine