How to maintain watches of different materials in summer?

　　In summer, people often exercise more and sweat profusely, and sweat has a certain corrosive effect on watches. So how should we maintain watches made of different materials? Let us take a look below.

　　Maintenance methods for watches of different materials in summer

　　Gem-set watch

　　A gem-set watch is not only a timekeeping tool but also a brilliant piece of jewellery; therefore, it requires even more careful maintenance to keep it sparkling like new.

　　During the summer, due to lighter clothing and easier impacts, it is very easy for gemstones to become loose or even fall out.

　　Key maintenance points:

　　1. Gem-set watches are most vulnerable to impacts; you should try to take the watch off when exercising in the summer.

　　2. Gemstones must be protected from corrosion and friction against hard objects. Remove the watch when spraying perfume or doing heavy work to prevent the gemstones from being corroded or worn down.

　　3. Before each wear, you need to check whether the gemstones are loose, and if so, send it to a watch shop for repair immediately.

　　Mechanical watch

　　How to maintain watches of different materials in summer?

　　Mechanical watch movements are susceptible to rusting when exposed to damp air or corrosive gases. If corroded by sweat for a long time or if acid, alkali, and salt residues are left uncleaned, rust spots will gradually appear on the watch, particularly in the recesses of the case back. Especially in the rainy summer months, repair components are most easily rusted and damaged.

　　Key maintenance points:

　　1. Silica gel desiccators: depending on the scale and requirements of the repair facility, one or more desiccators should be kept on hand to store mechanical watch movements and prevent movement parts from rusting due to moisture.

　　2. Use rapid rust removal solution to remove rust. Mix the above solution in a proportion of 775 millilitres, and the mechanical watch movement components can be placed inside to remove rust quickly. The specific immersion time depends on the degree of rusting on the parts.

　　High-hardness material

　　Materials such as tungsten carbide, high-tech ceramic and sapphire crystal are characterised by high hardness and strong wear resistance, allowing watches crafted from these materials to maintain a pristine, like-new appearance even after long-term wear. However, during outdoor sports in summer, accidental knocks can still result in surface scratches.

　　Key maintenance points:

　　1. You should take off your watch before engaging in sports such as ball games during the summer. The bending strength and impact toughness of these high-hardness materials are inferior to those of stainless steel. Therefore, you should avoid knocking, impact or dropping them onto hard ground.

　　2. Ordinarily, you can use a toothbrush with a little dish soap to gently brush the watch and remove stains.

　　Plated and Gold-Plated Materials

　　Plated and gold-plated materials offer good chemical stability and wear resistance; however, white gold and rose gold may experience slight discoloration after prolonged wear, especially during sweaty summer months. This is because human sweat contains trace amounts of chlorides, lactic acid, urea ammonia and other substances, which may react chemically upon contact with gold, producing trace amounts of dark chemical salts.

　　Key maintenance points:

　　1.K Gold materials primarily need to be protected against corrosion from summer sweat, and it is best to wipe them gently with a damp cotton cloth regularly to remove sweat stains and dust.

　　2. After wiping or cleaning, you can dry the watch with a hair dryer.

　　The points discussed above mainly concern the care of the watch case and bracelet. As for internal maintenance, servicing and thorough cleaning, the watch should still be sent regularly to a watch workshop for professional handling.

　　Watch maintenance methods

　　1. Frequently use a relatively soft cloth or silk to gently wipe away dirt and sweat stains on the case.

　　2. Manual-winding mechanical watches should be wound at a fixed time, preferably fully wound at one go. When turning the crown, the speed should be moderate, and do not wind it too tightly. Over-winding can easily cause the mainspring to stick to the oil in the barrel. When the mainspring relaxes, it can easily break due to excessive elasticity.

　　3. Watches are most sensitive to violent vibrations. It is best to take it off when playing ball games or hitting things with your hands, unless you are sponsored by the brand like the person below.

　　4. Watches are also susceptible to water ingress. Therefore, it is best to take off your watch when doing laundry, washing your hands, or performing other tasks involving water. If mist or water droplets appear on the watch glass, it should be serviced promptly to wipe away the moisture and dry the movement. If you find mist or condensation on the crystal, pull the crown outwards, place the glass face down for a day, and then push the crown back to its original position to resolve the issue (this occurrence does not mean the watch's water resistance has deteriorated; the crown may have been inadvertently pulled out from its original position during use).

　　5. Please keep the watch away from magnetic objects such as radios and televisions to avoid affecting its accuracy.