One of the benefits of owning a solar watch is accuracy. Solar watches are becoming a trend and seem to overshadow Quartz watches’ use. Nowadays, it’s common to find luxury and economical solar watches on the wrist of men and women seeking to shape their personalities. Solar watches come in different models, shapes, and sizes. You will always find one that suits your style and personality. However, many people seem to be unsure if solar watches are accurate. We aim to give fair-minded information about the accuracy of solar watches. So, keep reading.
Are solar watches accurate?
Solar watches have improved dramatically since their inception in 1970. From its accuracy to durability, all prospects have experienced a tremendous change that gives users a high level of peace. The early solar watches were made to accommodate the solar panel and were unreliable due to inaccuracy. However, that has changed over the years with every charging and power reserve feature of solar watches. And thanks to artificial light, solar watches can draw energy virtually everywhere. Solar watches do not use only energy from the sun. They make use of artificial lighting too. So that’s a win-win situation for solar watch users.
Here’s an example to tell how accurate solar watches are. Imagine you want to go out to a function and wear a watch you’ve stored in your box for some time. Then, you discover that the batteries have run down or are worn out. Sadly, you can use that immediately until you fix the battery issues, and sure, that would take time, money, and effort. Sounds familiar? Fortunately, this doesn’t have to be you if it were a solar watch. Solar watches are good to go for years as long as they are stored intact: no battery draining or worn-out problems. And yes, solar watches are accurate because a watch with a smooth battery running operation means an accurate watch all year long.
How to check my solar watch accuracy?
The Citizen Eco-Drive and the Seiko solar watch are the most commonly used Solar watches. But here’s the thing. The same procedure to check a Solar watch’s accuracy applies to both brands. So you can leverage this article to learn how to check your solar watch accuracy. But before we dive in, you should know what can make a solar watch stop suddenly. Regardless of the model, size, or use age, solar watches can stop working without any reason. When this happens, the best is to find out why the solar watch has stopped working.
However, the two common reasons a solar watch can stop working are a lack of light or workout batteries. All you have to do to put the solar watch in check is to put the solar watch under sunlight or replace the battery. Sometimes a solar watch can battle battery leakage. So here’s how to check your solar watch accuracy.
Start by going outside under direct sunlight with your solar watch. Confirm if the Solar watch is charging. Allow it to charge for a couple of hours when you can be sure it has saved up excess in the battery reserve. Then, go indoors and check if the solar watch is working. Otherwise, there’s a battery leakage, and such a watch can not be accurate.
How often does a solar watch need a time setting?
Solar watch time settings usually vary between weeks and months depending on the model and the charging time. Still, it all depends on whether your solar watch constantly gets solar energy or the batteries are in excellent working condition. Additionally, you should set your solar watch when you discover certain conditions like battery leakages, low battery reserve, and worn-out batteries. Because there is no standard rule for setting solar watches, you must study and understand the features of your solar watch.
How accurate are Seiko solar watches?
Seiko solar watches are one of the popular solar watches in this age. It is not surprising to see that people trust and cherish Seiko solar watches. Seiko solar watches’ accuracy, reliability, and durability add to their superiority over modern-day watches and even smartphones. The best part about Seiko solar watches is that inaccuracy can be easily discovered in Seiko solar watches. Think I’m exaggerating?
A Seiko solar watch second-hand stopping at 15 or 25 seconds indicates inadequate exposure to sunlight, while a full stop at 15 or 45 seconds indicates a total lack of lightning for 72 hours. It’s pretty easy to detect an inaccuracy in Seiko solar watch using this underlaid down strategy.
Without wasting your time, let’s check out some factors that affect a solar watch’s accuracy. Hopefully, it helps you to maintain the accuracy of your solar watch.
Factors that the accuracy of a solar watch
Here are some factors that affect a Solar watch’s accuracy. Be assured that these factors apply to the different models of solar watch. So you can always leverage them to ensure that your Solar watches are always accurate.
Type of light: Fair enough, artificial lights can also charge solar watches. No doubt about it. But here’s the rub. Solar watches charged by artificial lights are 90% less effective than solar watches charged by sunlight. Charging solar watches with natural light is highly recommended to ensure accuracy and durability. The general rule of thumb is to charge a solar watch for 11-40 hours for a full charge. Although, the time frame also depends on the weather for the day and the geographical location.
Maintenance: A well-maintained solar watch tends to be more accurate than a solar watch that is not correctly cared for. So the trick is to carry out proper solar watch maintenance to ensure accuracy. Some solar watch maintenance you can incorporate is lubricating the engine, relubricating and changing the gaskets, etc. Also, avoid exposing the solar watch to water and make sure to avoid cracks that can house all kinds of dirt.
Servicing: Sounds funny, but it’s the bitter truth. Regular servicing can help with the accuracy of a solar watch. You will be wrong to think that solar watches do not need mechanical servicing as quartz watches do. In a solar watch, the mechanical parts in the engine should be serviced occasionally to keep up with the time accuracy. If the mechanical parts of a solar watch are not serviced, it could cause the watch to slow down, thus causing the time to be inaccurate.
Conclusion
The charging method is not the only thing differentiating a solar watch from a quartz watch. The accuracy of a solar watch also puts it on edge over a Quartz watch. Because solar watches are always charging, so they tend to stop working and give inaccurate times. Solar watches can work round the clock for a more extended period than Quartz watches. In a nutshell, solar watches are accurate and reliable. They are worth considering for our everyday lives.
Eng. Matthew Joseph Nandirio is the Founder of walkingsolar.
After graduating from the University of Houston in 2002, matt started working as a Solar Electrical Engineer for several multi-national solar energy companies.
He has a wide range of experiences including solar system requirement analysis, planning, maintaining, debugging and even solar device development through research.
He now shares his 20 years of expertise through his articles on the walkingsolar website.
Further, he is also the author of two books on Solar Technology, “Solar Power for Villages” and “DIY Solar System for Dummies”.