One drop of water inside your watch can cause major damage

Though your watch may say its water resistant, that means it will resist humidity and maybe a few rain drops. No watch is waterproof, meaning that unless it’s a specialized timepiece like a diver’s watch, you cannot swim or shower with a water resistant watch. Water will get in. The only thing protecting the delicate and intricate watch movement is a small O-ring gasket that sits around the stem to form a seal. These O-rings are made from rubber and over time can dry out and lose their flexibility. When that happens the seal is compromised and your $25,000 timepiece will be in danger of thousands of dollars of damage.

So if you like spending time around the pool with your watch on your wrist or wear it playing sweaty sports, you should have it tested for water-resistance two or three times a year.

“OK, but one drop of water? C’mon.”

Seriously. One drop of water pushing its way past the seal and into the movement is a watch’s greatest fear—and should be a watch owner’s! Of course, accidents can happen, often when you’re nowhere near one of our stores, like on vacation. As a delaying tactic, place the watch face-up on a radiator or heating pad. The heat actually pushes the moisture up away from the seal. And wear the watch all the time, even sleep with it on. Your body heat will keep the backside warm and the moisture from penetrating.

But then, come in as soon as possible after you return home. We’ll clean it, dry it out, and do a water-resistance test, which is the only way to determine whether any damage has been done.