Hi all,
I did not find it, so I would be thankful to get some feedbacks on this:
How often do you control waterproofness / sealing of your modern watch?

-I’ve read that it should be every 2 years, is that correct?
- if the watch is still under warranty, do you bring it to your AD do get it checked?

My moderns watch for which I’m considering having this checked are an Hamilton Khaki Scuba (5 years old / waterproofness 100 meters) and a Tudor BlackBay (2 years old / 200 meters)

I’m not diving with those watch, just living with them and every now and then going to the swimming pool.

thanks for your feedbacks
Guillaume

 

Your watches are most likely fine, unless you've tinkered with them. The Hamilton could use a check-up.
If I were you, for peace of mind, I'd have the Black Bay checked by the AD, because it's still under warranty.(I have no experience with AD's, I have only used independent watchmakers)
Regarding having the seals checked every two years, that's pretty much up to you. To my knowledge, only professional divers need to do it that often(every year or so). I own a couple of divers and I have never used them for their intended purpose but I make sure to have their seals checked every 4-5 years, when the service interval is due.( I don't always service a watch when it hits this mark, good practice or not, that's how I do it).
Keep in mind that everybody has a different opinion on how long this interval should be. I wouldn't worry too much (but leaving a watch unserviced for 20 years would not be a good ideea) since gaskets and lubricants have come a long way. Moebius, for example, guarantees a shelf life of 6 years for its lubricants, unless opened. Also, always have the seals checked if you're buying a used watch.
You should worry about a watch not being waterproof only if it's vintage, due to possible damage to sealing surfaces. Again, a watch becoming "vintage" is highly subjective and I just use common sense here. I wouldn't dive with something that is 50 years old.

Any competent watchmaker can do a vacuum test. Hope this helps.

 

Hi @ZIELSZIEK,

thanks for your feedback.

Indeed, I’m not talking about vintage, that I keep as far as possible from water

The Tudor is no more under warranty, it was a 2 years warranty ending this month (it is the ETA version).
But, just to know, do you mean that the test would have been free if the watch is under warranty? I guess it would not, but maybe I’m wrong.

Well, about the Hamilton, I guess it will soon be time to get it serviced, but after 3 years wearing it almost daily, I now wear it less than 20 times a year, and the ETA mouvement is running perfectly the same than when it was brand new (roughly + 5 seconds a day), so I’ll probably wait a bit more, especially since it is an ETA, which I guess is easily fixable. But I know it is another subject, with différents point of view

 

I doubt the test would have been done for free, but I cannot say for sure as I have no experience with AD's. If the Tudor is out of warranty then feel free to have a competent watchmaker check them both at the same time, it's something straightforward to do. When I had two divers checked I just left them at the watchmaker's and went for a coffee with a friend and came back a couple of hours later, provided I had an appointment made beforehand. I didn't pay that much either.
As for servicing the Hamilton, I'd do exactly as you said, it can definitely wait.

 

Pressure tests are not a warranty item.

Do mine every 2-3 years. Swim most days and dive so make sure they are good.

A difference between just a pressure test and seals changed. ( pressure test is good for checking at that present time, but not as good a guarantee as seals changed and pressure tested in my book )
Pressure test is usually $55 and seals changed is $135 ( these are for my watches by my guy in Australia )

 

Most manufacturers (Omega for example) suggest that you have your watch pressure tested at least one per year. Most people don't do this frankly, and many would consider it overkill. It comes down to your personal tolerance for risk, and willingness to pay for whatever damage may occur if the watch is flooded.

Here is the latest watch with water ingress to hit my bench about a week and a half ago...Panerai 118, last serviced by Richemont in August of 2016 (less than 4 years ago) and the owner doesn't swim with the watch at all. Only water exposure is from hand washing. Not flooded, but fogs pretty heavily when worn:





It had leaked through the crown - there are two seals in this area - one goes on the crown itself, and is compressed when the crown lock in engaged (note the rust on the stem):



The other goes into a groove inside the case tube, and is in constant contact with the post of the crown, even with the crown lock disengaged and with the crown pulled out to the time setting position:



No real damage done to the movement, and only some water marks on the hands from condensation on them. Overall he was lucky that he doesn't swim with the watch, as that would have been much worse than this small amount of water from hand washing.

I show this example to illustrate that the depth rating of the watch really means little in daily wear situations. Here we have a 300m watch that leaked from washing hands, less than 4 years after having all the seals replaced at the brand service center. There is a belief with people that having a watch with a high depth rating somehow means it gives them some extra protection from water ingress, but really it doesn't.

So a pressure test on a regular basis is always a good idea, but it only gives you a snapshot of the condition - it won't tell you how close the seals are to failing, so regular replacement of seals is required to ensure water resistance going forward.

Water resistance is not a permanent feature - it must be maintained.

Cheers, Al

 

Thanks @Archer, as always it is clear!

I wouldn’t have thought a watch would have got condensation just by waching hands (assuming Crown was closed)

In such case as with the Panerai:
- What is the first thing to do while waiting to go to the watchmaker? (Opening crown and putting the watch into rice?)
- what is your work? Changing gasket and drying the watch? Will the dial get some discoloration or so?

thanks

 

Most people don't - that's why I posted this to make people aware that this can happen.

The absolute best thing is to get the watch open and dried somehow. But if you are not able to do it yourself, or don't have access to a watchmaker right away, then you could certainly try the rice trick. I have no idea if it would actually work in a substantial way, but that may depend on how much water is in the watch. if it's flooded and has liquid water inside, the only thing that will help is getting it dried.

There are very few watchmaking "emergencies" but water in a watch is one. My procedure is to basically drop everything as soon as I get the watch, get the movement out, get the movement disassembled and into the cleaning machine as soon as possible. This is particularly important if there is a lot of water inside - water in significant liquid form rather than just a fogged crystal so more like this:



This Panerai was fully serviced, all seals were replaced (2 in the crown and one case back seal), and it is in final testing right now. These are simple movements so I quickly moved on from salvage mode to finish the job. As I said there are some water marks on the black parts of the hand that can be seen under magnification, but my attempts to remove them didn't work, so they will be left as is. The dial didn't have any marks on it.

Cheers, Al

 

Thanks @Archer, I thought any condensation or water would have almost destroy the inside of the watch!
Good to know that if you react quickly it could be repaired!