How to care for your Waterproof Alpaca Coat

Waterproof Superwarm Alpaca and Llama Coat Care

WASHING MACHINE

We recommend using a machine to wash our alpaca coats as it is the most effective at killing bacteria
Follow these steps to wash your alpaca coats.

1. If there is visible mud and muck on the jacket, hose it down first so your machine doesn’t have to deal with it.
2. Clip the buckles closed so they do not bang around in the machine and catch on anything.
3. Cold washing or warm washing (below 40˚C) is the ideal temperature to prolong the life of your alpaca coat.
4. If your alpaca coat shows signs of scours, wash at 60C to kill bacteria
5. Wash alpaca coats with mild detergent but don’t add fabric softener.
6. Afterwards you may want to do an empty cycle to get rid of any hair or dirt before you put your clothes in for a wash.
7. Hang out to dry. Do not put them in your tumble dryer.

HAND WASHING

There are 3 main ways to hand wash your alpaca coats:

1. Use a large container filled with water, add mild detergent and scrub the jacket with a brush to replicate what a normal washing machine would do. Rinse thoroughly after washing to ensure no detergent remains.
2. You can lie the alpaca coat flat on some clean concrete, spray with the hose, add your detergent and then scrub them with a brush or broom. Again rinse well after to clear out all detergent.
3. If you have a power washer you can hose the alpaca coat with that which will do an effective job at cleaning or even take them to your local car wash and use their high-pressure nozzles.

Post Cleaning Tips

Ensure the coat is completely dry before putting them back on the alpaca or into storage, a damp jacket on an alpaca will suck the heat out of them and can cause skin irritation.

Storing away a damp jacket can cause mould to grow which will require another clean before you can use it again so save yourself time and do it right the first time.

If you find a rip and you want to sew it shut you can use dental floss as the thread as it is thicker and stronger than normal sewing thread and will last longer.

After cleaning and refitting them to the alpacas it is a good time to ensure you have the right sizes in your inventory to ensure the jacket fits the animal well so your avoid in issues with rubbing or sores.

Here are our Top Tips for maintaining longevity and maximising the benefits of your alpaca coat.

1. Make sure the alpaca coat fits the alpaca correctly and covers the whole body, from neck to tail. See our size guide how to measure here
2. Ensure your alpaca coats are completely dry before fitting them.
   Adjust the straps weekly to accommodate for growth. We have lots of different sizes available here. 
3. Check to ensure no straps are rubbing that could create raw spots on Alpacas’ skin.
4. Depending on your type of alpaca coat, you may be required to change the jacket should it become wet for any reason.
5. Bedding is still important. Be sure alpacas have clean, dry, deep bedding in which they are able to nest.
6. In warm stretches, monitor alpacas to see if they are sweating under the jackets. If so, remove them during the day, as daytime sweating can cause night time chilling.
7. You may wish to change over to our lightweight waterproof alpaca coats please see selection here
8. Wash them when necessary as it not only improves the wellbeing of the alpaca but also greatly increases the life of the alpaca coat.