How to take care of your watches

Posted by Arash Shahbakhshi on

How to Take Care of Your Automatic And Quartz Watches

High-quality watches aren’t cheap. But luckily for all of us, they do then to last a long time especially if you take good care of them. This is where things get a little tricky since not everyone understands how to maintain a high-quality watch.

 

When most people buy their first watch or get it as a present, they tend to pick a cheaper option. Because of that, we don’t put much thought into caring for the watch. Why would you go into trouble for something you can easily replace for less than $100?

 This habit often sticks, and we tend to do the same thing once we buy our first high-quality watch. The difference is that this time, it will cost you a few hundred or even thousands of dollars to replace the watch if it gets broken.

 The bottom line is this - the more you take care of your watch, the longer it will last. That’s why it’s important you learn the basic rules for watch maintenance. Your watch and your wallet will thank you.

 We’ll focus on automatic and quartz watches in this article. We’ll mention when one of the tips only applies to either automatic or quartz watches. There are subtle differences in how you take care of each type. To start, we’ll first remind ourselves what the difference between automatic and quartz watches is.

The Difference Between Automatic And Quartz Watches

Let’s first quickly recap the difference between automatic and quartz watches is. Quartz watches are powered by the battery that’s stored inside the watch. The battery sends a charge through a small quartz crystal inside the circuit. The crystal oscillates at a constant frequency which forms the basis for the movement to keep time.

 

Automatic movements use the energy created by the person wearing the watch. Every time someone moves the writs, the rotor inside the caliber spins and winds the mainspring. The mainspring releases and powers the timepiece.

 

We often use the term self-winding movement for automatic watches. That’s because as long as someone regularly wears the watch, it will continue to operate.

6 Essential Tips to Help You Maintain Your Watch

It’s now time we move on to simple and actionable tips you can use to take care of your watch. The six tips we share are enough to keep your watch running smoothly for a long time. You’ll see they are very easy and won’t take much of your time. The important thing is you actually do them. Let’s dive straight into the tips. We’ll start with keeping your watch clean.

Keep It Clean

No one likes a dirty watch. We tend to care for the things we like, and the watch is no different. The cleaner your watch, the longer it will work. Small particles of debris can get clogged inside the watch, which can negatively impact how your watch performs.

We recommend you use a soft cloth for cleaning. Wipe down all the dust and debris to keep the crystal and the band clean. If your watch is water-resistant, you can use a damp cloth to loosen the finest particles stuck in the cracks. 

How often should you clean the watch? As often as possible. There’s no harm to using a soft cloth daily. We recommend a more detailed cleaning on a regular basis. It depends on how often you wear the watch.

Keep It Away from Magnets

Magnetization is a big problem for mechanical watches. It can cause the interior running parts to stick together and affect the accuracy of the watch. But quartz watches can also be affected. They often have steel hands that are sensitive to magnets.

 

A magnetic force from the outside can impact the way the hands of a quartz watch move. This can cause the watch to fail. It can either stop completely or show the wrong time. If this happens, we recommend you get your watch demagnetized. This will usually fix the problem. 

You can easily check if your watch was magnetized. All you have to id place your watch near a compass. If the compass needle moves, you have a magnetized watch.

Get It Serviced

What do we do with our valuable belongings if we want them to last? We get them serviced. But people sometimes forget to get their watches checked periodically. How often should you get your watch professionally serviced? 

We recommend you service mechanical watches every two years and quartz watches every three years. You should also replace dead batteries as soon as they die to avoid the risk of leakage. A leaking battery can cause lasting damage to your watch.

 

The number one tip we have for you is to never open the watch by yourself. Watches are made of small particles, and you can easily lose or misplace them when you open the watch.

Getting your watch serviced in a professional shop is one of the best and simplest ways to keep your watch running smoothly.

Avoid Chemicals

Your watch is a delicate piece of engineering. It’s made of tiny pieces that have to work in perfect balance to show the correct time. Because of that, we have to ensure we limit the exposure to things that could damage the watch movement.

Soap, detergents, cosmetics, perfumes, and other chemicals can damage the watch case and the strap. These chemicals are harsh and can negatively affect the outer layer of the watch. It’s even worse if they find their way inside the watch. This can damage the watch movement and result in complete failure.

You should be extremely careful if your watch has a leather strap. Soap and perfume can weaken the strap and even cause it to tear. We recommend you let the perfume or cologne dry completely before you put your watch on your wrist.

 

Be aware that even something as mild as prolonged sun exposure can cause fading on the watch. Make sure you don’t leave your watch under direct sunlight for too long.

Store It Correctly

What you do with your watches when you’re not wearing them also matters. We always recommend you keep the original box the watch came in and use it as a storage box. You can buy special storage boxes if you own more than one watch. These will ensure your watches are stored correctly, and they will prevent friction between different watches.

 

The two things you want to avoid are humidity and dust. This can easily be achieved with a simple box. It’s the easiest way to protect your watch.

Another thing to keep in mind is to never store your watch face down. You can cause unwanted scratches this way, especially if your watch doesn’t have sapphire glass.

Conclusion

There you have it. You know everything you need to know to take care of your high-quality watch. We recommend you use these tips when maintaining Ferro Watches. We only use premium materials for our watches. If you plan regular maintenance for your timepiece, your watch will last a lifetime.

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  • Curious what you think about the watch winders for when you’re not wearing it?

    Kevin Whelan on

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