Men's Aequilibrium Lite GTX Jacket vs Men's Quest Mono Jacket: which is safer?
The North Face Men's Quest Mono Jacket is our pick, better on PFAS and on the overall hazard picture.
La Sportiva
Men's Aequilibrium Lite GTX Jacket
PFAS grade
Bad 20/100
Overall grade
Bad 6/100
Verdict
Skip
Hazard flags
⚑ 2
Material
GORE-TEX (Teflon-family coating membrane)
Confidence
50%
PossibleAntimony in polyester
ReportedMicrofiber shedding and textile degradation
Our pick
The North Face
Men's Quest Mono Jacket
PFAS grade
Bad 20/100
Overall grade
Bad 12/100
Verdict
Skip
Hazard flags
⚑ 2
Material
Nylon shell with water-repellent coating (water-repellent coating) finish
Confidence
45%
Possiblewater-repellent coating composition (fluorochemical unknown)
PossibleNylon fiber shedding and microplastic release
Where these two actually differ
- We flag Antimony in polyester and Microfiber shedding and textile degradation on the La Sportiva and not on the The North Face.
- We flag DWR coating composition (fluorochemical unknown) and Nylon fiber shedding and microplastic release on the The North Face and not on the La Sportiva.
- The La Sportiva is GORE-TEX (fluoropolymer membrane) where the The North Face is Nylon shell with DWR (durable water repellent) finish, which is most of the difference in these two grades.
- These two are level, close enough that price and fit should decide it rather than our grade.
Both products run through the same public rubric, which covers materials, coatings, brand disclosure, lab findings, and recalls, plus a beyond-PFAS hazard analysis. Grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests. How grades work →
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