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Ice Cube Test?

OmegaOwner2019
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So I came across some posts on another forum about the "Ice Cube Test" to check for the amount of moisture in a watch, or to check for potential water ingress.
Some people say it's normal to have some light misting of the crystal, while others say there should absolutely be no misting at all.

I did some testing on my watch collection (none of them have been opened or serviced), and it seems that I could induce some condensation on all my watches. Ironically, my newly purchased Seamaster actually had the most misting.
However, with all the watches, there were no water droplets and the misting faded within 1-2 minutes.

How do I interpret the result of this test? Is there some sort of cut off for "too much moisture"?
 
Donn Chambers
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Are you sure the fog was on the inside? Because a cold crystal exposed to warm moist air will fog on the Outside, which isn’t a problem.
 
NGO1
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I have yet to to test my airbags.
I’ll just have to take Toyota word in this.
 
OmegaOwner2019
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Donn Chambers Donn Chambers
Are you sure the fog was on the inside? Because a cold crystal exposed to warm moist air will fog on the Outside, which isn’t a problem.
Yes, the fogging is most certainly inside for all of them. I made sure to wipe the external condensation off with tissue.

I can actually see the internal fine misting slowly recede.
 
perks713
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NGO1 ngo516
I have yet to to test my airbags.
I’ll just have to take Toyota word in this.
Mmm, and Toyota had the same thought and took Takata‘s word for it too…
 
wagudc
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I asked him to test my watches, and I just got this look:

Ice-Cube-2015.jpg
Edited:
 
BlackTalon
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I don't know how there could be no moisture at all with this test unless all the air was somehow vacuumed out of the case. Warmer air holds more moisture than cooler air. The air in the case contains a certain amount of moisture. If the temperature drops enough -- which it will at the interior face of the crystal -- condensation will form. You cannot get around that without somehow changing the laws of physics.
 
D
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OmegaOwner2019 OmegaOwner2019
So I came across some posts on another forum about the "Ice Cube Test" to check for the amount of moisture in a watch, or to check for potential water ingress.
Some people say it's normal to have some light misting of the crystal, while others say there should absolutely be no misting at all.

I did some testing on my watch collection (none of them have been opened or serviced), and it seems that I could induce some condensation on all my watches. Ironically, my newly purchased Seamaster actually had the most misting.
However, with all the watches, there were no water droplets and the misting faded within 1-2 minutes.

How do I interpret the result of this test? Is there some sort of cut off for "too much moisture"?

Results will vary as you have already noted.
Some will have condesation whilst others will barely have anything at all.
The key consideration is whether the moisture lingers for an extended period of time or dissipates within a short period of time.
The longer it lingers the more moisture there is.
When the misting is at the point where larger droplets are forming, I consider this to be something which needs further investigation.

With the amount of misting you have and the speed at which it disipates, I would say you are fine👍
 
Foo2rama
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BlackTalon BlackTalon
I don't know how there could be no moisture at all with this test unless all the air was somehow vacuumed out of the case. Warmer air holds more moisture than cooler air. The air in the case contains a certain amount of moisture. If the temperature drops enough -- which it will at the interior face of the crystal -- condensation will form. You cannot get around that without somehow changing the laws of physics.

hence why I never get my watch serviced in Florida.
 
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