Changing a watch battery

[OttsD]

I have a Timex watch (not really a diving watch) that I dive with and really like. The battery recently died and needs replaced. What is the best way to go about changing out the battery as I don't want to chance the seal not being good enough when I go on a dive?

THANKS!

 

[spectrum]

Lightly lubing the seal with silicone grease is a good practice. You want just enough on there to make it shiny. Sink it in a barrel of freshwater overnight for a test. It won't have the pressure of an actual dive but it's worth a try.

I had a Timex Helix flood after a battery change. Fortunately it was a freshwater dive. I cleaned it with WD-40, let it dry and reset the gasket. It's been good since.

Pete

 

[bleeb]

In addition to lightly greasing the seal, I also tried filling much of the empty space (except for buttons and around the battery) with some expired silicone vacuum grease. (The stuff was fine and not all that old. It just couldn't be used on anything that might be used with hardware going into space.) The watch has held up pretty well (>50 dives and several years), although it's been having a few issues with buttons lately, possibly because of the repeated pressure-induced flexing of the plastic case distorting the circuit board.