In order to clean your diving watch that has been exposed to saltwater, make sure you rinse it immediately with cool freshwater, keeping the crown tightly secured. You should rotate the one-way bezel a few times when rinsing it in order to clear any salt crystals from the watch mechanism, then dry the case, crystal, and strap with a microfiber cloth.

Although contemporary diving watches are built to resist very high pressures and the harsh marine environment, salt water poses a distinct chemical threat. Marine water is composed of approximately 3.5% dissolved salts, mainly sodium chloride, mixed with organic waste and sand particles. When sea water dries up on your watch, it leaves behind corrosive salt crystals.

As a result of repeated salt accumulation, the lubrication in bezel mechanisms wears out, synthetic rubber seals deteriorate, straps corrode, and there is crevice corrosion due to salt action at joints made of metal. It only takes two minutes to conduct a proper cleanup process, which will ensure that your watch functions accurately for years to come.

What Should You Do to Your Dive Watch After Saltwater?

Correct post-dive care for your watch involves getting rid of salt residues, eliminating sand from inside, and drying the outside without damaging the water seals. Watch parts can endure tremendous hydrostatic pressure from outside, but they need the right surface interface to achieve water resistance.

Salt residue creates three main issues on an unrinsed watch:

• Mechanical Binding: Salt crystallizes within the microscopic teeth of the bezel mechanism, thereby binding the ratchet click spring.

• Seal Degradation: Salt acts like sandpaper to the crown O-rings and the caseback seals during their operation.

• Crevice Corrosion: Saltwater trapped in end-links or spring bars deprives the metal of oxygen, corroding the chromium oxide layer, which protects the metal.

These risks can be addressed through a fast five-step process after the dive: checking seals, washing with freshwater, flushing the working parts, cleaning the band, and properly drying the watch.

Step 1: Ensure the Crown and Pushers Are Fully Secured

Before you take the watch even close to any kind of water, you should check all physical entry points in the casing of the watch. The crown is the first protection that the watch has from water infiltration.

• Check the Crown: Ensure that the crown is screwed down completely onto the case tube. Avoid forcing or over-tightening the crown, but do make sure that the O-ring gasket inside is compressed.

• Chronograph Pusher Check: For those of you who have a chronograph on your dive watch, ensure that the pushers are screwed down completely.

• Never Make Adjustments Underwater: Do not undo the crown, operate the pushers, or set the time/date while the watch is under water. This is because you will give water direct access to the movement via the stem seals inside the movement.

Step 2: Rinse Thoroughly with Clean, Lukewarm Fresh Water

Once you verify that all seals are secured, rinse the watch thoroughly to dissolve sodium chloride crystals before they solidify.

• Water Pressure: Employ a low-pressure flow of water from your tap. High-pressure streams of water, like the ones produced by nozzles on your garden hoses or industrial pressure washers, can overcome dynamic rubber seals.

• Water Temperature: Use cool or lukewarm water. Do not use hot water. Heat causes the metal parts of the watch case to expand faster than the rubber seals.

• Rinsing Process: Submerge the watch in running water for 30 to 45 seconds, tilting the watch so that new water flows over the crystal, case back, lugs, and band connection points.

Step 3: Flush the Bezel Mechanism, Lugs, and Recessed Crevices

It is an essential device that helps to track your time underwater, yet the downside of it is that it can collect water and fine sand.

• Turn the Bezel: With the watch being held under the running water (or while dipping the watch in a bucket of water), turn the bezel for a number of full rotations of 360 degrees. With the help of water, you would be able to get rid of the grit accumulated in the 120-click ratchet system.

• Flush the Lugs and Spring Bars: Send water into the tiny space between the strap/bracelet and the watch case. There are spring bars containing internal steel coils, which become rusted if any saltwater remains in the tube.

• Flush the Caseback and Helium Escape Valve: Flush water through the threads of the caseback and the recessed edges of the helium escape valve (provided your watch has one).

Step 4: Clean the Strap or Bracelet Based on Material

Various materials that watch straps are made of need different methods of cleaning to avoid deterioration or discoloration after contact with the sea.

Stainless Steel and Titanium Bracelets

Metal bracelets contain dozens of tiny pivot pins, screws, and folded links that collect salt crust.

1. Dip your bracelet into slightly warm water containing one drop of dish soap that does not contain any additives.

2. Brush off the bracelet with a soft bristle brush, focusing on the joints and the openings for the spring bar.

3. Flush it under clean water to rinse off the soap.

FKM and Vulcanized Rubber Straps

High-grade synthetic rubber straps (such as FKM) resist saltwater and UV radiation well, but residual salt and sweat shorten their lifespan if left uncleaned.

1. Wash your strap with freshwater and mild soap to remove any oils from the ocean and the sunscreen.

2. Check your keeper loop and buckle holes to ensure there is no sand caught in them, which could damage your rubber.

3. Rinse it using a soft cloth. You should avoid any chemical cleaners or silicone sprays, since they erode rubber compounds.

Nylon, Canvas, and NATO Straps

Fabric straps absorb saltwater directly into their fibers. As the water evaporates, salt crystals stiffen the weave, irritate skin, and cause foul odors.

1. First, you need to remove the fabric strap from the watch.

2. After that, wash the strap with a gentle laundry detergent in warm water.

3. Then dry it with a towel and let it lie flat to dry before attaching it back to your watch.

Step 5: Dry the Watch Correctly

The drying process may ruin the external covering as well as the gaskets. Always dry your diving watches in ambient air only.

• Wipe Dry: Use a lint-free microfiber cloth to gently rub the case, crystal and strap dry. Do not use coarse paper towels, as they might scratch the anti-reflective AR crystal coating or polished steel.

• Dry Air: Place the watch on a dry surface to dry for an hour. This will give the time necessary for all moisture to evaporate from recessed areas, screw heads and teeth on the bezel.

• Do Not Use Heat: A hair dryer must never be used to dry your watch. Do not place your watch near any radiators or on a hot deck of the boat under the direct sunlight. Heat will result in thermal shock to the watch and degradation of the lubrication of its movement.

What Should You Never Do When Cleaning a Dive Watch?

In addition to the importance of proper rinsing, avoiding cleaning mistakes is crucial as well. Cleaning mistakes can affect the resistance to water or may even damage the mechanics inside the dive mask.

How Often Should You Check a Dive Watch's Water Resistance?

The depth rating of a watch (e.g. 300 meters or 600 meters) tells us how well it works straight out of the factory. But water resistance is not something that will last forever. The synthetic rubber gaskets (usually made from Viton, silicone, or nitrile) become old, dry, and hard as a result of UV exposure and other environmental factors.

• Pressure Testing Once a Year: If you scuba dive, swim, or frequently immerse your watch in seawater, make sure its water resistance is checked by an expert watchmaker annually.

• Dry Testing or Wet Testing: For checking seal distortion, dry pressure testing is done in a watchmaker’s laboratory. To detect leakage points, wet pressure testing is done by the watchmaker.

• Changing Gaskets: Replace all gaskets of the watch case back, crown, and crystal every 2 or 3 years as part of normal watch service, or at any time when the watch case is opened for movement service.

What If You Notice Condensation Inside the Watch?

When there is moisture inside the watch case, one will notice small water drops or thick fog films forming inside the sapphire crystal. This is an important mechanical emergency that needs to be sorted out immediately.

1. Distinguish Fogging from Thermal Shock

However, if the fog is only a light haze that comes for about 60 seconds while transitioning from warm sunlight to cold water, then this could be caused by relative humidity in the case air space, which is a non-threatening phenomenon. Persistent fog or droplets mean the water has gotten past the seals.

2. Emergency Steps for Case Moisture

1. Stopping the Movement: Remove the crown by unscrewing it until you get to the time setting position (hacking state). It ensures that the balance wheel stops, and no further movement takes place because of the presence of water and minimizes the mechanical damages.

2. Drying: Seal the watch in an airtight Ziploc bag along with some desiccating silica gel.

3. Get it Fixed Immediately: Saltwater corrodes all parts of the watch movement. Gear pivots, balance spring, and mainspring are rusty within hours of being exposed to moisture. Send it to the watchmaker for disassembling and cleaning.

Engineering for the Elements: How Ocean Crawler Builds Watches for Ocean Exploration

As Ocean Crawler, we create mechanical diving watches made with the toughest materials in order to function in tough marine conditions. Water resistance involves precision engineering, tough material and thorough testing before sailing out.

Our cases are made of strong 316L stainless steel and titanium that gives great natural resistance to corrosion by saltwater. Our diving watches, which include the Core Diver, Champion Diver, and Ocean Navigator, have thick sapphire crystals with anti-reflective coatings, heavy-duty screw-down crowns and helium escape valves that can withstand pressure changes underwater.

Every Ocean Crawler watch is tested for performance before it ever leaves our factory. Our watches are tested in extreme shock tests (able to withstand up to 6,000 G’s), while each and every watch is individually pressure tested down to a minimum of 600 meters (2,000 feet). Our Swiss automatic movements are individually regulated for precision timing under extreme temperature changes, impact, and immersion into the ocean.

With a robust case design and just a quick freshwater rinse after every dive, your watch will work great every time you dive under water.

Post-Dive Care Checklist

Keep this quick checklist handy after every ocean dive, swim, or ocean paddle:

• Check: Ensure that the screw-down crown and all pushers are completely tightened before entering freshwater.

• Rinse: Place your timepiece under a moderate flow of warm freshwater for 30-45 seconds.

• Flush: Turn the unidirectional bezel repeatedly during the rinse process to flush out salt and sand particles from the ratchet mechanism.

• Clean: Use a soft-bristle brush to clean metal bracelets and straps by removing sweat, salt, and sunscreen.

• Dry: Wipe the crystal and case down with a lint-free microfiber cloth.

• Air-Dry: Let your timepiece air dry until it is completely dry. Do not use additional heat sources.

• Maintenance: Have an annual pressure test carried out by a professional watchmaker.

Preserving Your Dive Watch for a Lifetime of Exploration

An excellent mechanical dive watch is designed to function in harsh underwater environments. It goes without saying that salt water is the natural environment for a working dive watch, and there won't be any problems with the water tightness of the casing in such cases. Just by spending two minutes on rinsing your watch with fresh water after each dive, you will prolong the life of rubber gaskets inside the watch.

Learn more about Ocean Crawler Dive Watches for our best dive watches or find more information on our warranty coverage on the Ocean Crawler Warranty Page.

FAQ Questions and Answers

Can I rinse my dive watch with tap water after diving?

Yes. Fresh water from the tap with clean pressure is the best method to rinse the dive watch once it has been in contact with sea water. The tap water can dissolve any salt crystals that may be present and also wash off any sand or sweat.

Should I rotate the bezel while rinsing a dive watch?

Yes. It is suggested that the bezel be rotated while the watch is being held underwater under fresh running water. The salt crystals and sand get settled below the bezel ring, and rotating the bezel in at least 360 degrees clears out any debris.

Can saltwater damage a stainless-steel dive watch?

Although 316L stainless steel is very resistant to marine corrosion, dry salt water that is left behind on a watch will create crevice corrosion in the tiny spaces between the spring bars, caseback threads, and lugs. The salt will deprive the metal of oxygen and weaken the oxide film.

Can I wear an automatic dive watch in the ocean?

Yes, but only if the water resistance of the watch is high enough (minimum 100 to 200 meters) and if the crown is screwed down tightly. An automatic diving watch is designed for use underwater. To keep its seals and mechanical outer workings in good shape, you should rinse the case in fresh water after each dive.

How often should a dive watch be pressure tested?

In case you are constantly wearing your watch in salty waters, it is advised that you test your watch for water resistance at a watchmaker once a year. The reason for this is that gaskets made of synthetic rubber wear off because of various reasons.

What should I do if there is condensation under the crystal?

In case of any wetness or drops of water seen under the crystal, you should loosen the crown and remove it from the watch to stop its movement. You should place your watch in an airtight box together with silica gel packets and take it to a watchmaker immediately.

 

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