Really Waterproof Gaiters

[William N]

I have the notion that I just might be able to make some water-tight gaiters : neoprene lowers with silnylon uppers. Neoprene just undersized so it stretches tight onto the boots. If they’re tight and cinched enough on the top of my boots, while they might never be really watertight, they might significantly minimize water intrusion. Shallow water of course. (Water pressure builds rapidly. For instance humans cannot breath through a snorkel below 12″). I’ve googled and googled and can only find  gaiters waterproof fabric, but no one is even pushing the limits–not even close.

Dullards. I’ve already made some snow gaiters I like out of really cheap ripstop (probably some kind of ploy), It wasn’t all that difficult to figure out. I made them loose enough that I can slip them on over my boots.
My neoprene idea would require taking off my boots. No zippers. The neoprene would be tight, but unlike a full wetsuit only the ankle area would be a squeeze.  Like my snow gaiters they’d be over the knee–it’s an easy place to hang them.

My second wild notion would be to run a bead of silicone around the boot,  that would ‘seal’ against the   neoprene. The real trick is the cinch strap. Instead of webbing dyneema or steel cable. Maybe even at the heel. Lacing and tongue…. maybe a neoprene strip under the laces.

Anyone have thoughts, know of anything like this? (Maybe I’m trying to reinvent the wheel here.) Thanks

Couple of points. The old WWI gaiters. They must have been pretty effective, they were also laced up tight, so either they got close to ‘sealing’, they were only for mud, or they kept a lot of water out because they were so tight.

There are running gaiters that have no under-loops. The hook only to the laces in front. Of course they would just ride up in the back. And that’s what the negative reviews say. One ‘Best gaiters of…”  sites recommends them. Disgusting frauds.

I’ve got a sewing machine (use it barely) but neoprene is 1. glue (works like contact cement-which really helps) then 2. Hand stitching from one side-There would be no effective way to seal machine made holes. Neoprene stretches a lot.   (There are special neoprene machines.$$$)

[William N]

OK. So no interest. That’s okay. Here’s something I learned.

1. Berghaus Yeti Gaiters sort of has a reputation for being watertight, but if you google them, they seem to be mostly known for being nearly impossible to put onto your boots. I emailed the company, and they say they don’t promise watertightness. Some report perfectly dry feet, but to what depth.
2. I’ve taken my idea to the point of neoprene lowers (spats), heavy duty boat-cover uppers (it was on hand) and a few hooks and webbing sewn right through the neoprene. Not a recommended method.
3. I get pretty good contact all the way around my boot, and I think with some clever lacing (dyneema-the thin stuff) side-to-side (under the sole-nothing new), but also pulling down from the front part (near the laces hooks) and a wrap behind the upper heel. This should give me a good shot at my goal.
4. My materials and versions. This is sort of Version 1.D. I made a neoprene boot cover that has a nice fit. Then as I fiddled with it I saw where it needs to stretch and so cut it back. So at the ankle it’s 100% of the size it needs to be, but on the boot top it’s probably closer to  85%. About 15% is  the stretch factor I arrived at by pulling at the material. It is covered both sides with the spandex material, which will wick water. I might try to remove it, seal it. We’ll see. So now that I’ve updated this I will feel compelled to press on.

[Jerry Adams]

You want them to keep water out of your boots if you walk through water, like a foot or more deep?

[BlackHatGuy]

Sounds a lot like the 40 Below Supergaiter, though you’re taking a slightly different tack.

Here’s a pretty good article on the Supergaiter with better pics.

[Sam Farrington]

Tried to respond, but the page kept freezing up. Will try another time.

Second try:

There is a soled product called Neos that goes over a trail shoe.  While the name implies neoprene, they are much more water resistant than neoprene, and can be sized to fit over a trail shoe.  Then there are also stretchy rubber galoshes, some of which have cleats or ridges on the soles that will hold up more on gravelly stream bottoms, and can fold up into a smaller package.  When just a ford or two are expected, the latter are lighter and more packable.  When faced with more extended slogging, the former should hold up better.  Both come in various heights ranging from ankle to calf, so it is just a question of how much extra weight is necessary to handle the depth of water expected..

[William N]

To test the neoprene for water tightness– something I should have done first, I just grabbed a store-bought water bottle, pressed a bit of neoprene over the opening with my thumb and tipped it upside down. Slow but steady trickle of water. I’d coated one part of the spandex covering with neoprene cement (sort of like glue)– still leaked.  I guess the next step will be to finally sew on all the fittings, loops and such, give it a test: foot in bucket, and when my socks get wet, paint the spandex with thinned-silicone caulking (like the stuff to seal silnylon seams. Seems to work for everything).

The Supergaiters seem to be like the Berghaus Yetis.  They both raise an obvious question: Why not just use something like Wellingtons (rubber boots in the US, bottes-en-caotchouc in Quebec)–covered all the way around with it’s own tread on the completely sealed bottom?  I can see for the Supergaiters if used for mountain biking they’re probably idea.

Also I was going to replace my waterproof winter hiking boots (Keen’s) 34 ounces, but all the other mesh boots seem to weigh the same or more. Probably not worth the bother.  I have seen the most negative response being  directed at Goretex boots and shoes. This makes sense to me. 1. Goretex doesn’t work very well when it’s dirty 2. They don’t keep water out if it’s pouring in over the top, but they also won’t let it out unless it’s water vapor. I spent ten years wearing plastic baggies as boot liners and never noticed my feet being more sweaty to the point it was a problem.

A lot of the gear we use is the way it is because the expectation is that it should look a certain way. So I whip up a lightweight carry on dry-bag and it looks like a cheap laundry sack. Well no one is going to want to pay real money for that, and yet… it is better (the assumption here is that it was sewn by someone with some skill). While I was looking for examples I came across ‘super lightweight carry on bags.’ None weighed less than 4 pounds. Mine weighs 8 ounces.

 

[Paul McLaughlin]

If you still want the most waterproof gaiters you can make, I think you’d be best off starting with some heat sealable fabric. OWF has heat sealable oxford; somebody – maybe quest – used to have heat sealable taffeta. with those you could make a completely waterproof tube, only question then would be how to get the best seal around the boot. For that you need something stretchy, grippy and completely waterproof. Whatever the kayak guys have on the cuffs and neck of their drysuits would be the ticket if you can find it.

[William N]

Heat sealable, and taped seams, would be a good way to go. I wasn’t able to come up to speed quickly enough to utilize either.

When my son bought a pair of boots for our upcoming trip at REI, the clerk said most people come in wanting waterproof boots. Well, my waterproof boots (bought for snow) are not really waterproof. So that’s an issue.

Funny you should mention rubber gaskets on dry suits. I just cut them off my old drysuit. New they are impossible and they strangle you,  but then they get easier about two weeks before they tear and need to be replaced. Very soft stretchy, gummy, rubber. A thicker variant of this with some kind of a stiffening ridge to press them against the boot upper would probably work. The bead of silicone sealant seems to work pretty good. I could see a gaiter ‘spat’ with parallel beads being a possible option.

 

[Author]

Posts