Self-Care: Expert Advice on Keeping Your Watch Clean
Want to keep your watch shiny and new for as long as possible? Watchmakers Jose Vega and Ricardo Báez Díaz share their tips on everyday watch maintenance.
By Rhonda Riche
Editor-At-Large
Fourteen years ago, Jezebel editor Dodai Stewart wrote an article that I think about almost every day. It was about what happens when you sleep and shower in your jewelry. I’m including the link, but BE WARNED! It is extremely gross.
I was once again reminded of this cautionary tale recently when a friend asked me to help resize the bracelet of a Seiko that he had inherited from his father. The Seiko itself was running like a champ, but (trigger warning) the bracelet was being held together with… hmm, how do I put this delicately… the old man’s earthly remains (ick).
As you can imagine, it was a super gross experience, but here’s the thing: a regular watch care routine will help prevent all kinds of issues down the road because, as much as manufacturers go out of their way to create sealed timepieces that resist dirt, dust, moisture, and shocks, even the finest horological wonders won’t work if they are neglected.
And don’t get all macho about how rugged your watch is supposed to be – tender love and care for your watch is a small price to pay to avoid expensive repairs down the road.
Cool Runnings
Watches are like Tamagotchis (you heard me, tweens of the 1990s). That is to say, timepieces (like Tamagotchi pets) need our help to thrive.
With that in mind, I reached out to two accomplished watchmakers – Jose Vega of Shreve, Crump & Low in Greenwich, Connecticut, and Ricardo Báez Díaz of RBD Time Solutions in Manhattan – to get their take on the quotidian task of cleaning and caring for your timepiece.
“I see very filthy bracelets every day,” Vega, who is a graduate of the Rolex Watchmaking school in Lititz, Switzerland, told me. “My clients aren’t typically watch nerds, just normal people who have one watch they never take off.”
As a vintage fan, I often come across watches that are pretty gross. So, my first question for Vega was: How do you get rid of the gunk?
“It takes years for a watch to get that dirty, and it’s probably a combination of lotion, old soap, dirt, skin, sunscreen,” he said. “When I clean these, I have the luxury of a watch pressure tester to make sure the watch is still water resistant.”
Vega then paused to note that you should have your watch’s water resistance tested once a year to ensure the gaskets are still doing their job.
“If it is still water resistant,” Vega continued, “I use a toothbrush and normal hand soap and scrub until it’s not dirty anymore. Then, after rinsing it off, I dry the watch with a paper towel. Never ultrasonically clean a cased-up watch because it can vibrate a crystal off or push water inside.”
Now that the watch is clean, the next step is preventing it from getting dirty again.
Prevention is the Best Medicine
Díaz told me that “light dust build up on your watch is normal and, quite frankly, inevitable. We love to live life with our watches on. So, the best way to keep your watch as clean as possible is by removing it whenever you’re going into any water (be it a shower, pool, or a challenging workout that will make you sweat a lot).”
“As an alternative,” Díaz added, “Remove your watch at the end of the day and wipe it down with a damp cloth, getting as many of the corners and tight spaces on the case and bracelet as possible.”
Popular Mechanics
Interestingly, both Vega and Díaz made a point to emphasize to me that taking care of the outside of your watch is good for the innards as well. The same goo that’s gumming up the links on your bracelet can also get in the case.
Cleaning is key, but the way you set and store your timepiece can also affect its longevity. For instance, mechanical watches should be wound regularly – once a week to once a month (for longer power reserves) should do the trick.
How does winding help? Because lubricants can dry or congeal over time, literally gumming up the works. Winding will help keep the fluids moving smoothly.
Díaz recommends winding your watch from zero (no power reserve left), with 25 to 35 turns of the crown sufficient to do the trick. However, don’t force it! If you do, you could accidentally break the mainspring.
One thing to note: Never wind your watch while it’s still on your wrist. If you do, you will almost certainly tilt the timepiece stem side up, putting a lot of pressure on the stem, which can cause it to bend or break.
Also, please don’t walk and wind, especially if you take it off because you could drop your watch and do major damage. I learned this the hard way with a Pop Swatch that not only hit the ground but rolled out into traffic and got run over by a taxi.
Automatic mechanisms are much more low maintenance. But if you don’t wear your self-winder every day (or your regular activities don’t use a lot of arm movement), you might want to consider investing in a watch winder.
Interestingly, despite being designed to free us from the daily chore of winding, quartz watches can be the most problematic. That is because when the battery of a quartz watch dies, you must quickly remove it, even if you have no immediate plans to replace it.
A spent battery will leak acid and corrode the movement. And in extreme cases, this corrosion can spread to the dial and hands.
Storage Wars
Just as a good night’s sleep is essential to human health, how you store your watch can also add years to its life.
The best bed for your watch is its original case (if you have it). A leather pouch (or sleeping bag, as I call it) also works if you don’t have the original box, are traveling, or if space is limited.
If you own several watches, store them in a padded watch box or carry them in a watch roll with individual pockets. These will protect your timepieces from bumping up against each other, which can cause dings and scratches.
Also, keep your babies out of direct sunlight, as UV rays can mess up the colors of your dial, leather strap, and or luminous markers. Díaz warns that this rule is especially crucial for skeletonized watches because these harmful rays can also affect the movement, causing lubricants to dry up and crust.
However, dry is not always the enemy. A trick I learned a long time ago on a vintage watch forum is to pack a little desiccant (those little sachets you get free with every bottle of gel-capped medicine) alongside vintage watches that were never designed to be water resistant. The desiccant will keep moisture from getting in and rusting up the movement.
Happy Anniversaries
Our elders deserve extra attention in other areas as well. For instance, Díaz advises winding the watch by turning the crown and letting go of the crown after each turn because the back and forward can add unnecessary friction.
Avoiding unnecessary wear and tear is important because repair/restoration for your vintage piece could be costly, depending on the watch brand, the age of the watch, and the availability of spare parts or if the parts in question need to be manufactured (if that is even possible).
All watches will be vintage one day. So, along with the above daily, weekly, and monthly maintenance rituals, remember to schedule a yearly water resistance checkup. A watch might have a rating that will take you to the bottom of the Mariana Trench, but the material used in gaskets and seals can dry out.
Any watchmaker worth their salt has an instrument that checks water resistance via pressure settings, and it is not an expensive nor time-consuming test.
Final Thoughts
Bringing it back to the lesson I learned from Dodai Stewart’s Jezebel essay many years ago, taking care of the things you love doesn’t need to be an onerous task.
If anything, properly taking care of your watch will help you connect with it even more.
(Photography by Pierre Vogel)