Lifespan of quartz watches

There has been the perception that quartz watches have a short lifespan, less than 10-15 years, and that mechanical watches with proper maintenance and repair can last virtually forever. technical watches have been around for a long time, and there is basis for estimates on their lifespan. Quartz watches have only been around since 1969, or less than 40 years. There really isn't all that much basis for determining their lifespan. Today, we have plenty of examples of 20-25 year old quartz watches running still running without any maintenance other than replacement of batteries.

The theory of the short lifespan of quartz watches is premised on the percieve short lifespan of electronic components and the belief that electronics develops so quickly that in a decade or so the components needed to repair a quartz watch or even replacement batteries will no longer be available.

Circa 1980. An old Citizen quartz watch I purchased 21 years ago. It has spent the last 13 years in a desk drawer. Changed the battery, and it keeps on running.

Some equate the lifespan of a quartz watch to be similar to a television set or personal computer. The lifespan of an electronic component depends on how hot the component runs when operating. The hotter they run, the shorter their expected lifespan. Quartz watches do not run particulalry hot so we can expect them to have a much longer lifespan than a TV set or computer. Others remember the relatively short lifespan of their digital watches or the early quartz watches. Back in the 1980's, I had a Alba digital watch which died in less than 4 years. The problem with this digital watches was not the quartz timekeeping components, but the LCD displays which are relatively fragile.

The thoery that the parts need to maintain a quartz watch would dissappear quickly. This would only hold true if quartz watches became obsolete so that their manufacture ceased or quartz technology progressed so quickly that components change quickly. Neither is true. Quartz watches will not be going anywhere anytime soon. Nor has there been any need to improve the technology subtantially, quartz watch development is pretty much stagnant. The result is that the components have not change much.

With the advent of batteries which last 7-10 year, and lower manufacturing costs, quartz watches are sold as something which should give you a maintenance free life. Because of this, you will not find watch repair shops skilled in cleaning and repairing quartz mechanism. Unlike mechanical watches which require maintenance every 2-4 years, and hence creates a army of mechanical watch repair specialist. Quartz watches are designed to last longer than anyone would want to keep them, so the only maintenance watch repair specialist learn to do on them is to change the battery. Quartz movements being inexpensive, it is also more cost efficient to replace a defective movement than repairing one.

Ulimately, unless, the old watch in your desk drawer is a rare piece with a high market value, you will stop maintaining and repairing it simply because eventually the cost of repairing it will be higher than the cost of replacing it.

How long should a quartz watch last? I do no have an answer. But it is safe to say that a well made quartz watch should last 20-30 years or more, with the only maintenance being battery replacement. The reality is that most quartz watches are manufactured cheaply and sold at low prices, thus they are encased in poor quality cases lower cost components with poor resistance to environmental factors. Because they are not brought in for regular maintenance, their gaskets will not be replaced which further compromises their water resistance. Corrosion, shock and leaking batteries are more likely to kill your quartz watch than then the electronic components reaching end of life.