Coat weather. Before you wash it, look closer.
Full LoftCheck a flat or tired puffer jacket, sign by sign
Mark what you can see or feel. Each sign gets the lightest likely fix - and a wash only if it is really needed.
1 Your jacket free
1 row per sign. Say where it is and what you see; a short note helps.
2 The jacket and its care route free
3 Ask for a reading
One run names the likely cause of each sign, gives a first move and says how to check it worked before anything heavier. The page re-checks the reply.
The reading - none yet
-Sign by sign
The page's check
4 Saved checks
How the route is decided
A fixed rule, in order, first match wins: still damp after a soaking - dry it through; fill escaping from a hole or seam - patch it; a single feather poking through - tuck it back; lumps or clumps - dry it through; grubby or shiny patches - spot-clean; a cold spot - shake and fluff; flat or thin with synthetic fill, or flat after a wash within the last year - shake and fluff; any other flat sign, or a stale smell - a gentle wash, or take it to a cleaner if the label says dry clean only. Try first: a still-damp jacket always dries first; otherwise the lightest fix, the earlier row winning a tie.
Low heat only, never a radiator, iron, bleach or softener, and never put it away damp. If tumbling, only when the label allows washing at home. Follow your jacket's care label - this is everyday care, not professional advice.