Packing while swimming

Lots of folks ask about using packers while swimming so we'd thought we help to clarify some of these issues. 

1- All the packers that we sell can be submerged in water for extended periods of time. Silicone packers, usually our top choice no matter what you are doing, are non-porous so they should be zero problem. We have done some in-house testing of some of our non-silicone packers and all were fine even after being left in water for 3 days. That said, we tried them with tap water, not chlorinated water, so long term exposure to pools and such may cause degradation that we are unaware of.  We also had a friend test a non-silicone packer in Florida saltwater and found that it caused no harm to the packer. So yay!

After wearing in water for a period of time, be sure to air dry it completely before storing. 

We also wanted to be 100% sure that they did not get any heavier, so we soaked non-silicone packers overnight and found that they weighed EXACTLY the same wet as they do dry!

2- You are probably going to need a packer holder. Chances of conventional swimwear holding your packer firm in place is slim, so you might want to consider wearing something under them. The Pete Freestyle and Trunks are made of water-friendly material and will probably do the best job of not stretching out if you wear them while swimming. Make sure if you are using a packing strap under a swimsuit that it does not have any leather on it. 

3- Chlorine is not awesome. From what we know, chlorine can degrade binders and other materials over time so limit the exposure of your clothing items if you can. We also cannot say for sure how it affects packers although we are fairly confident that your exposure to chlorine would have to be for an extended time in order for it to have an effect on them. Our friends who swim what they call "occasionally" in chlorine say it has no impact on packers. 

 

For more info on packing and swimming and for dealing with locker rooms, check out Hudson's FTM Guide