Help: Water in my watch

Gollnick

Gollnick

Musical Director
Joined
Mar 22, 1999
Messages
29,258
I have a Seiko LCD digital watch circa 1985.

Stop laughing! It's a perfectly adequate watch. It keeps good time and it's in very good shape for its age.

This watch was originally water-proof to something like 100 feet. But, over the course of 20 or so years, the battery has been changed five or six times and I suspect that they don't necessarily get the same seal that the factory does.

A week or so ago, I was washing my hands in a restroom and the water was rather cold. So, I bumped the handle in a way that I thought would bring warmer water. Instead, it brought more water and my watch got wet.

The other day, I noticed that when I was out in the morning cold, there was a fog, moisture, condensed on the inside of my watch's display. Clearly, some water got inside the watch.

I fear that, left unchecked, this will prove the downfall of this 20-year-old timepiece which is otherwise in perfectly servicable condition and has servered faithfully for two decades.

What can I do to get the water out?
 
The last time that happened to me, the repair guy simply unscrewed the back of the watch and then applied a blow dryer to it. Worked great.
 
open the back up and leave it out to dry... heat the entire thing with a hairdryer if you want to speed up the process... don't get it too hot... keep it within a comfortable to touch temp and you will be fine... You might also have to change the battery as submerson might get some batteries to short or discharge.
 
The immediate solution is to pop open (unscrew maybe?) the back of the case, inspect the seal and the case back, and try and remove the movement.

Either way, attack the watch with a hair dryer to get the moisture out.
 
DO NOT remove the movement... it's not necessary to dry it out, and you run the risk not being able to put it back together...
 
Ditto the hairdryer comment - worked for me on an old TI (yep they made watches...) from way, way back.

Your watch definitely needs new seals - where to find them for a 20 year old digital Seiko, I have no idea. If you can't get new seals and have the watch water-tested I would stay away from all water with the watch. I have a few vintage watches that stay high-and-dry because I can't get new seals for them.
 
This might sound outrageous, or even stupid but it happened to my watch also. Stick it in a freezer! That's right, a freezer. :eek:
 
I have the same problem now, but it's with a $25 "Decade" watch... It happened a few days ago, but now it seems to have dissapeared.
 
Find a reputable Seiko dealer, or e-mail Seiko, and see how their recommendation(s) line up with your budget.

Can't hurt, esp if you like the watch.
 
I had a mid-80s Seiko dive watch. I'm not sure if this is true but I was told that it was pressurized on the inside and having a regular watch repair shop change the battery would lose this gas. I would call Seiko.

SEIKO Corporation of America
1111 MacArthur Boulevard, Mahwah, NJ 07430
U.S.A.
Coserv Mahwah
1111 MacArthur Boulevard, Mahwah, NJ 07430
U.S.A. Tel : +1-201-529-5730
Fax : +1-201-529-1548
Tel Service : +1-201-529-3316
Fax Service : +1-201-529-4525
E-mail : custserv@scamahwah.com
URL : http://www.seikousa.com
URL : http://www.pulsarwatches.com

Coserv Los Angeles
840 Apollo Street, El Segundo, CA 90245-4701
U.S.A. Tel : +1-310-640-3333
 
Don't panic. If you can take the back off do so and let it dry out. When you get a chance bring it to a watch repairman who has a pressure tester -- ask him about that; most of the dorks who change batteries at the mall don't have it. He'll replace the seals and test it to make sure it's really watertight (a little speck of dirt can keep it from sealing properly; the only way to be sure is to test it).

Getting wet once won't hurt it, but if you let it keep getting wet every time you wash your hands it would cause corrosion. All you need is some new seals and to make sure they're installed properly and it'll be sealed up again the way it's supposed to be, without even fresh air to cause oxidation. That watch could last a long time.... :cool:
 
Gollnick said:
I have a Seiko LCD digital watch circa 1985.
Click to expand...

Bwahahahaha :D

Actually Seiko are an excellent company that makes all of it's own components in house, right down to the oils used in lubrication. I have an old Seiko sports 150 digital from the same era that is still going. I betcha they do have the right seals for it and can have it working like new if you send it to them.
 
I had a somewhat similar problem with a Luminox that I had beat up pretty good over the years. A local watch guy didn't have the seals, but took the old one out (the watch was maybe 5 years old, so it wasn't shot) and silicone lubed it and it's been water resistant to the extent I need it since. Total cost with new battery, $12.

I'm sure Seiko will have a solution for you, Gollnick. ;)
 
Frank said:
I had a mid-80s Seiko dive watch. I'm not sure if this is true but I was told that it was pressurized on the inside and having a regular watch repair shop change the battery would lose this gas. I would call Seiko.

SEIKO Corporation of America
1111 MacArthur Boulevard, Mahwah, NJ 07430
U.S.A.
Coserv Mahwah
1111 MacArthur Boulevard, Mahwah, NJ 07430
U.S.A. Tel : +1-201-529-5730
Fax : +1-201-529-1548
Tel Service : +1-201-529-3316
Fax Service : +1-201-529-4525
E-mail : custserv@scamahwah.com
URL : http://www.seikousa.com
URL : http://www.pulsarwatches.com

Coserv Los Angeles
840 Apollo Street, El Segundo, CA 90245-4701
U.S.A. Tel : +1-310-640-3333
Click to expand...

FYI, Coserv LA is closing very soon, if they haven't already.
 
Just as a heads up. I used to repair watches and the best way I have found to get rid of moisture is to remove the back and lay it under a lamp. We used a 75 watt bulb 5" from the watch back. We found that hairdryers sometimes blew the moisture away from the crystal and into more sensitive areas of the watch. Or even, (on cheaper watches), messed up the watches movement. However, in your case, the watch needs to have the seal replaced. So sending it back was probably a good idea.
 
I had expected them to balk at handling such an old piece, but the folks I talked to at Seiko said, "No problem. Send it in. We'll clean it out, seal it up, and yes, we can even replace the bulb for the light for you."

This will be the first service (other than battery replacment) that this watch has needed in the about 25 years I've had it. You can't beat that.
 
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