Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of clothing?

[pjclinch]

Rohan have been doing sun protection testing for 20 years now, and they have a range of stuff which is tested at UPF 40+. I imagine other builders of travel and outdoor wear will do similar.

While obvious "how see through is it" is a pretty good starter guide it turns out to be more complicated than that... I have pale skin and burn reasonably easily without protection, but using old Rohan Tropic Waffle shirts, which seem pretty see-through held to the light, I've never been burned through them, including all day out in hot sun with little or no shade (much the best hot weather shirts I've ever found, sadly they stopped making them because there were too many QA issues, but highly recommended if you come across them on eBay: any that got to market should have been fine, it was the pre-sale rejection rate that got them canned).

Pete.

[Bonefishblues]

Cheap, effective:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hanes-Mens-Lon ... B07CQ84F2J

[Postboxer]

The sunlight is more powerful at altitude - it has travelled through less air before hitting you. Part of the reason why skiers need to wear suncream, coupled with the snow reflecting the light back at them from all angles.

[Bonefishblues]

The sunlight is more powerful at altitude - it has travelled through less air before hitting you. Part of the reason why skiers need to wear suncream, coupled with the snow reflecting the light back at them from all angles.

Similarly for those on the water.

[mjr]

I've got a very good "expedition shirt" from a brand I don't recall. A very good brand though. It has a very high UPF. There are loops to button up the sleeves if you want them up. It's a very light but wind resistant fabric that's synthetic so handles sweat well, without going dark and looking nasty like cotton can.

The most interesting feature IMHO is the collar. It looks like a normal collar when down but you flip it up and then another folded bit flips up even further to cover the whole of your neck at the back and sides. I've got a fairly long neck and it covers it right up over the hairline.

Sounds like a Craghoppers Kiwi shirt. Much better than their trousers, but I'm still not wild on synthetics. Also available in deep blue I think, so you don't have to look like Ray Meares.

I've recently got an Izod easy-care shirt which works quite well in hot weather despite being 100% cotton. I'd advise going one size up so that the tail is long enough for cycling because mine is slightly shorter than ideal.

Another common alternative is going and having a poke around M&S for pure cotton lightweight weave shirts and trousers, but they've often only one or two ranges available at any time and they seem to be among the first things to get cleared from the shop floors to make space for more plastic-blend special offers, as sometimes I've had to ask for them to be brought out, even in the full-range biggest stores.

[pjclinch]

The sunlight is more powerful at altitude - it has travelled through less air before hitting you. Part of the reason why skiers need to wear suncream, coupled with the snow reflecting the light back at them from all angles.

Similarly for those on the water.

And the "don't ask me how I know this" tip for on the water is if you're not in a shirt then your armpits may need some too, especially paddling canoes/kayaks...

Pete.

[Vorpal]

Similarly for those on the water.

And the "don't ask me how I know this" tip for on the water is if you're not in a shirt then your armpits may need some too, especially paddling canoes/kayaks...

Pete.

I burned my armpits once. I put sun cream on in my normal manner, and went canoing with my brother. I've been sunburnt worse than that a couple of times when I was a child, but armpits are a horrible place to be sunburnt. It's almost impossible to avoid painful movements or chafing clothes.

[Mick F]

Chap I knew on my first ship, fell asleep sunbathing with his hand on his chest.
Couple of hours later he was rather tanned, but had a white handprint on his chest.

As the trip progressed over the months out in the tropics, his handprint was always two or three shades behind the rest of his body!

[roberts8]

I so agree about spf clothing.
Earlier this year I had a large Basal Cell Carinoma removed from my back which was not fun. I now wear a rash vest under my club top and it is fine. Being thin on top I wear a cap under my helmet.

[mjr]

I hope your helmet is designed to have your cap worn under it. Many helmet manuals warn against such acts.

[Mick F]

I hope your helmet is designed to have your cap worn under it. Many helmet manuals warn against such acts.

Wearing something under a helmet is something I have experience of though I've not worn a helmet since mid 2015.

In the winter, wearing a helmet makes your head cold. The helmets are designed to cool the head with their vents of course, so when it's cold, you don't need the vents!

I wore a scull cap under my helmet, but it made the helmet fit badly - it sort of "lifted" it up higher. Therefore, I can see why some manufacturers would state that.

[simonhill]

In Australia I've seen people wearing straw hats under their helmets.

The law says you must wear a helmet. Common sense says you should wear a broad brimmed hat.

Sorted.

[Mick F]

Excellent!