HOW TO KNOW THE BREATHABILITY OF RAIN GEAR

Since cycling is an active mode of transport, it is important that cycling equipment is breathable .

breathability

The breathability of a textile is measured by its thermal evaporative resistance (RET) , that is to say the energy required to pass water vapor through this textile. It is measured in m2.Pa/W, thanks to the Hohenstein's test , defined by the EN ISO 11092 standard . This test consists of placing the textile above a heated porous metal plate through which water passes in the form of steam. The passage of steam through the textile generates heat loss. The RET is the energy required to maintain the metal plate at a constant temperature. The lower it is, the lower the resistance of the textile to heat transfer, and therefore the higher its breathability:

  • 0 to 6: Extremely breathable
  • 6 to 13: Very breathable
  • 13 to 20: Breathable
  • 20 to 30: Slightly breathable
  • Over 30: Not breathable

We advise you to choose a rain suit whose RET is less than 15 . The waterproof cape from TOMO Clothing has a RET of 6, and is therefore extremely breathable. The rain pants and rain trench coats from TOMO Clothing have a RET of 8 in bottle green, and are therefore very breathable .

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