Most Common Reasons Why Your Wristwatch Stopped Working | Ken Ross Jewellers Melbourne (2024)

12 May 2021

If you own a fine quality wristwatch, it can be quite disconcerting if it suddenly slows down or stops working altogether. If your timepiece is older, it may need some maintenance or repairs due to its age. The mechanism lubricants inside your watch may be too dry or certain parts may be worn from use.

However, the reason that your watch is keeping poor time or has stopped functioning may be one of several very common issues.

Typical Reasons Why Wristwatches Stop Functioning Properly

Your watch may be operating slowly or may have stopped working for one of the following common reasons:

1. Dead Battery. Often, the reason that a quartz watch malfunctions or stops working is that the battery is dead. Not all watches run on batteries, yet if yours does, the battery generally has a life of no less than two years. However, certain occurrences or factors may affect the lifetime of your watch battery.

The size of the battery and the type of watch that you have can influence battery life. Digital watches with many varied features and functions may need battery replacement more frequently than older style watches with fewer features.

If you use the chronograph feature often or let it run for long periods, the battery usually loses power quickly. Also, if your watch has been exposed to extreme temperatures for long periods, the battery power may decrease rapidly.

2. Water Damage. If just a small amount of moisture reaches the interior of your watch, it can strongly affect the timepiece’s operation. The small gears can rust and stop working, and they often cannot be repaired. Instead, these parts must be replaced for your watch to function properly once again.

3. Impact Damage. During normal daily activities, your watch may receive knocks and bumps that can loosen or break a part of the watch mechanism. You may also drop your watch on the floor or another hard surface while removing it. If this occurs, you should take your watch to a jeweller for repairs.

4. Electrical Current. Although this is not a common occurrence, some people naturally have rather high levels of electrical current in their bodies. If these people wear watches, the batteries of their timepieces often stop working due to this amount of electricity.

5. Faulty Manufacturing. If any errors occurred during the manufacturing of your watch, some of its small internal parts may become displaced or detached. If this happens, your watch will stop functioning. Your jeweller can determine whether your timepiece can be repaired locally or if it must be returned to the manufacturer for repairing or replacing parts.

By consulting our specialists at Ken Ross Jewellers located in Ashburton, Victoria, you can obtain excellent advice concerning any repairs needed for your wristwatch. Our experts repair a wide variety of fine watches, and they will examine your timepiece to determine whether it only needs a new battery or if repairs are needed for the gears and other parts of its mechanism.

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Most Common Reasons Why Your Wristwatch Stopped Working | Ken Ross Jewellers Melbourne (2024)

FAQs

Why did my wrist watch stop working? ›

The most common reason why quartz watches stop working is that the battery is dead. Not all fine watches use batteries, but when they do, they should last for at least 2 years. However, just like cars or any other piece of machinery, there are a few factors that affect your watch battery life.

Why do watches always stop working when I wear them? ›

Dead Battery.

The size of the battery and the type of watch that you have can influence battery life. Digital watches with many varied features and functions may need battery replacement more frequently than older style watches with fewer features.

Why is my watch not working even with new batteries? ›

a) The obvious one is to check that the winder (crown) is pushed fully home. b) If so, then has the watch been left standing with an old battery inside it for a long period of time? Sometimes it can be difficult to get the movement working again if it has been stopped for a while.

How do I get my watch to work again? ›

If it is not an expensive watch then just wind it up by the crown and it should run. If it is a valuable watch that has been sitting for years then it should be cleaned and lubricated by a watchmaker as the lubricant inside may have turned to gum. Starting such a watch could do a lot of damage to the moving parts.

Why is my watch not working when not worn? ›

It is likely because you're not wearing or winding the watch enough. Automatic watches gain power from manually winding it, or from the automatic winding that occurs from your motion while you are active while wearing it. So simply put, if you're not wearing it, your power reserve will run out.

How much should a watch battery cost? ›

The price of watch battery replacement ranges from as low as $10 to upwards of $45-$60 to reseal and pressure test a water resistant timepiece.

What causes a quartz watch to stop? ›

90% of the time, when a quartz watch stops working, it's generally down to the timepiece requiring a simple watch battery replacement. Some of the other more common reasons why a quartz watch will stop working include the following: Dirt has become embedded within the movement.

How do I know if my watch needs a new battery? ›

It's essential to keep an eye out for any signs of a dead battery, such as dimming or flickering backlight, second-hand moving in two-second intervals or inaccurate timekeeping.

What could be draining my watch battery? ›

The battery of your watch may be draining fast due to:

1. This may occur if the number of screen wake-up times increases when you raise your wrist in special scenarios. 2. The power consumption of your watch may increase when you enable Auto heart rate monitoring.

How to fix a wrist watch that stopped working? ›

You can gently swing it off and see if it will function again. Also, you can try winding the watch for a few times to check if it works again. In other words, assess the watch and try basic troubleshooting steps. On the other hand, if it is a quartz watch, then the problem may be the battery.

What does it mean when a watch stops working? ›

A dead battery is properly the most common reason for a watch stopping. If you have a digital watch, the battery life will be a lot shorter. Other factors that influence this include the amount your watch is used and whether it's been exposed to extreme temperatures for a prolonged time. It's Suffered Physical Damage.

Why does every watch I wear stop working? ›

Quartz watches stop working when the battery dies. Self-winding watches stop if you forget to wind them, and automatic movements will stop ticking if you stop wearing them on your wrist.

How do you fix a watch that stopped moving? ›

If you have a manual watch, it needs regular winding by turning the crown. Automatic watches, on the other hand, wind themselves as you move. However, if they aren't worn for an extended period, they can stop. Try winding your watch or wearing it for a day to see if it starts ticking again.

What causes automatic wrist watch to totally stop running? ›

It is likely because you're not wearing or winding the watch enough. Automatic watches gain power from manually winding it, or from the automatic winding that occurs from your motion while you are active while wearing it. So simply put, if you're not wearing it, your power reserve will run out.

What happens if my automatic watch stops working? ›

When your automatic watch stops, it means that the mainspring becomes fully unwound. Therefore, if you let it stop, you simply leave the watch unwound, and the mainspring cannot constantly power its movement.

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