Women's Untracked Jacket vs Men's Volcom Tester 3L Gore-Tex Jacket: which is safer?

Patagonia Women's Untracked Jacket is our pick: better on PFAS and on the overall hazard picture.

Our pick

Patagonia Women's Untracked Jacket

Patagonia

Women's Untracked Jacket

PFAS grade

Poor 35/100

Overall grade

Bad 17/100

Verdict

Skip

Hazard flags

⚑ 3

Material

recycled polyester with water-repellent coating treatment

Confidence

42%

PossiblePFAS in water-repellent coating finish

ReportedMicroplastics shedding from polyester

PossibleCoating degradation and leaching

Men's Volcom Tester 3L Gore-Tex Jacket

Volcom

Men's Volcom Tester 3L Gore-Tex Jacket

PFAS grade

Bad 20/100

Overall grade

Bad 0/100

Verdict

Skip

Hazard flags

⚑ 3

Material

Gore-Tex membrane with water-repellent coating finish

Confidence

45%

LikelyFluorinated water-repellent coating finish (PFAS)

PossiblePolyester antimony catalyst residue

ReportedMembrane delamination and microfiber shedding

Where these two actually differ

  • We flag PFAS in DWR finish, Microplastics shedding from polyester and Coating degradation and leaching on the Patagonia and not on the Volcom.
  • We flag Fluorinated DWR finish (PFAS), Polyester antimony catalyst residue and Membrane delamination and microfiber shedding on the Volcom and not on the Patagonia.
  • The Patagonia is recycled polyester with DWR treatment where the Volcom is Gore-Tex membrane with DWR finish, which is most of the difference in these two grades.

Both products run through the same public rubric: 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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