Knitted items made from acrylic attract with their low price and variety of colors. But will a hat marked “100% Acrylic” be warm? At what temperature can such a thing be worn?
Does an acrylic hat keep you warm?
The most important thing is that acrylic is different from acrylic. It also varies in price. You can even tell the difference by touch. Cheap - it will squeak under your fingers, it is rough, stuffy, you can immediately see that it is synthetic. Higher quality - very soft, skin-friendly, lightweight and not so easy to distinguish by appearance from imported cotton or blended yarn.
Features of acrylic, hygroscopicity
Acrylic is a synthetic fiber obtained from petroleum, a product of organic origin. It is considered a fairly high-quality replacement for wool. Properties:
- Maintains shape.
- It stains well, so the range of colors is very wide.
- Excellent heat insulation.
- High wear resistance. An acrylic hat withstands repeated washings well and can serve for years without losing its appearance. If the material is of high quality, it does not peel.
- Low hygroscopicity, as a result of which things breathe poorly.
More about hygroscopicity
This indicator affects the hygienic properties of matter and the regulation of heat between human skin and the environment. Heat transfer in this case is a diverse phenomenon, consisting of many physical and biological processes. This can be thermal conductivity, convection, conduction of moisture vapor, radiation.
Things made from natural materials, especially wool, have a structure that takes into account various methods of heat loss, therefore they perfectly protect against the cold. Nature took care of this. Wool absorbs excess moisture, warms in the cold and breathes in the heat.
INTERESTING. The hygroscopicity of wool under normal conditions is 15-17%; in conditions of high humidity, the same wool can absorb up to 40%, in both cases it will remain dry to the touch.
Acrylic has low and constant hygroscopicity, which is why things made from it become very heavy when wet, but dry very quickly. And that is why acrylic is cooler than wool. It blocks the escape of heat, but does not create an air gap between the human body and the environment. It does not adjust to air humidity and does not absorb excess moisture. Evaporating moisture from the skin has a cooling effect. If there is no excess moisture in the air or on the skin, the item will indeed seem very warm and soft, because it reliably retains the human body’s own dry heat.
Is this hat warm?
Whether an acrylic hat will heat depends on a lot of parameters. The quality of the material itself, the density of the knitting, the folding of the threads, the personal “frost resistance” of the owner of the hat, the quality of the cold (wet cold or dry, is there any wind). Reviews from real customers contain different information: from “it’s hot in the heat, cold in the cold” to “it was warm even at -30°C.”You should definitely not recommend acrylic hats to people prone to excessive sweating. Everyone else can easily pick up a very warm hat in the segment of things made from this material.
If in doubt, it is better to choose a hat made from blended yarn. High-quality versions of such yarn successfully combine the best properties of acrylic and natural fibers. They are warm, light, wear-resistant, affordable and come in fashionable colors.
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