The North Face Futurelight Not Waterproof - Summit Series L5 jacket

After owning TNF L5 Futurelight jacket for 10 months it started leaking.
After 6 months I had the suspicion that the jacket was not waterproof after walking through the rain for 3 days.
I brushed it off with the thought that I was probably not wearing the hood correctly.
But unfortunately last week my doubts were confirmed.

I was cycling through the rain with a gray hoodie beneath my jacket.
This hoody was wet on multiple spots, not just at the seems.
So I decided to run the test you see above.

I returned my jacket to the Dutch outdoor shop Bever.
They ran a Hydrostatic water pressure test.
This confirmed aswel that the jacket was not waterproof.

I hope you find this consumer advice helpfull.
Cheers✌🏻

Insta: @Diedsen

[diederio]

Thanks everyone for the comments.
Currently I’m on the 3e jacket.
This jacket also started to leak.
I went to Scotland to climb around Ben Nevis for 4 days.
The weather was mixed snow and rain.
The jacket became fully socked after each day.
Currently in the process of returning the jacket.
After 3 jackets and treating them like babies, it is very apparent TNF claims are inaccurate.

[timurhant]

Thank you very much! Saved me some trouble!

[jebrehbaker]

Ive had to retreat mine a few times, but it will repel again for about a year. They have s pretty good warranty and may take it back, or offer to treat it for you.

[profiterlolz]

Im glad its not just me. While my Summit Series Futurelight jacket looks superfly it doesnt hold up for long in a sustained downpour which is why i bought it. The fabric stops beading, becomes saturated, and then water seeps through to the mid layer. The northface eco DWP hasnt worked (both machine washing and soaking), Im going to try Nikwax spray next as last resort but sad I can't trust it to keep me dry/safe for the price they charge. It loses any breathability when wet too so genuinely feel better off with a cheap poncho

[achimberend]

My futurelight ski trousers are also leaking when skiing spring snow. Also I get a wet bottom in the chairlift.

[rodrev_hiking]

Wow . Bad luck mate . I have my Futurelight since june and it went to Iceland and Norway with me faced all types of weather from light to heavy rain and wind, been on summits it performed well in keeping me dry, warm and will hiking it breaths super well.
Im absolutly satisfied.
I sprayed them before use with Nikwax Impregnation how they advise it and i did same with my Rainpants from Endura.
Sad that u had a bad jacket .
Me and my buddy ( he owns the futurelight flight series) can say waterproof and super breathable

[cemcallioglu]

Hi guys, my future light L5 jacket also had that problem last year. I gave it to main dealer and they wanted to test it. After test, they pay me back. Never future light again sorry. Back to Gore-tex pro.

[peteru]

Agree, I have 2 futurelight jackets. Both leaks a lot from day one.

[HolyDaveLP]

I bought the North face Dryzzle Futurelight and I have the same issue. After using it for a week, it won't even hold light rain anymore. Washing doesn't bring anything. I exchanged it already once and the second jacket had the same issue...

[AmphibiousAltug]

Hi, I have the Apex flex Goretex jacket from Northface, it's the same here. Even in light rain, the shoulder area of both sides got always some moisture on my t-shirt

[jonomichi]

Coz they stopped using goretex .. good review

[ГеоргиГугов]

First of all, he doesn't know about Nikwax, it's completely normal to soak after few months of use, after wash with tech wax and dt direct from nikwax I think everything will be fine, just have to wash it and take care of your membrane with this products. If he washed the jacket with normal liquid soap I understand the results, have the same problem with Salomon xa pro gtx after a year of use, but after first treatment with Nikwax everything was fine. L5 Is amazing jacket maybe suck for that kind of people who cannot afford it. Now is with 50% discount and for 300 euros I think is amazing jacket.

[bennnainggolan]

Bad luck my guy. Ure probably got the bad quality jackets, cuz a have a futurelight jacket and mines still waterproof after 1 year of intense use. I used it almost everyday on motorcycle and it does it's job well even on hikes and other activities. No leaks on high rain situations, not to mention that i live in jakarta where the tropical weather is quite extreme.

[hansteem]

Does the Dutch outdoor shop Bever do waterproofing tests for you?

[Miguel-cqms]

Same here. Couldn’t believe that after 15 min of rain the shoulders area got moisture inside. These are not worth it.

[onion_wind]

I'm pretty sure the L5 stuff is designed for Alpine conditions no? Better suited to cold dry conditions like on mont blanc where you're physically pushing yourself hard allowing the material to do what it's best at and that's breathing and never really needing to worry about rainfall.

[TechSpaceYT]

How have you washed the jacket? What cleaning products have been used? Have you applied any DWR on it (Grangers, Nikwax, etc..)? How have you stored it? Did it have much friction on the fabric during the usage?

[raymondcarmichael]

I used this same jacket in Washington on a day hike in the rain 2 years ago. This jacket left me soaked with rain in 40 degree weather. Absolute garbage!

[geothelameule]

Same problem 3 wash and not even a year of use

[OnTheScout]

I think that this needs to be known more widely that after a few wears the Futurelight material is compromised and NOT waterproof.