# Battery Question - Electric and LED 1960/70



## Garp (Aug 18, 2019)

I have a collection of 1960's 1970's electric watches (mainly Bulova) as well as early Omega TC and Bulova Drivers wedges - currently all are running with fresh batteries.

Would it be a better idea to store then without batteries and only power them up if I plan to wear them ? All of these watches are fickle to say the least.

Thanks

Garp

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## niveketak (Jun 11, 2016)

I'm no expert but the number of times a battery is removed and then refitted will affect the water proofing and in any case running won't do any harm so just monitor them and if one stops change the battery.


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## Davey P (Sep 9, 2010)

I'm no expert either (understatement! :laughing2dw: ) but I agree with niveketak and reckon it's best to leave them running all the time. Probably best to replace the batteries as soon as you can after they run out though, to avoid any danger of leakage. Having said that, I've never had any batteries leak, and sometimes it takes me ages to get round to changing 'em :yes: As mentioned in a previous post, I've currently got 14 that need a new battery, and I've no idea when they ran out.


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## Roger the Dodger (Oct 5, 2009)

I agree with the above. Some watches like my Seiko G575 can refuse to boot up again if the battery is allowed to die completely. Best to keep them going and keep a look out for any flashing displays once a week, which usually means the cell is on its way out.


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## Always"watching" (Sep 21, 2013)

May I just give my opinion on this subject as I do have many watches that I would describe as being "in storage" and have looked into this matter of batteries being kept in watches.

In the case of LED watches, I presume that the active display element of the watch automatically switches off after a short interval, leaving the internal timekeeping element alive. In this case, I would not worry about leaving a battery in the watch for reasonable periods of time between wearings. In the case of LCD watches, the display elements are less prone to failure and use very little power. Once again, I would not be overly concerned about leaving the battery in for some time with the watch running - note that LCD displays weaken with both the heat and the UV rays from direct sunlight over time.

When it comes to analogue electric watches, I bow to my more knowledgable Forum members because I am not sure if pulling out the crown saves battery life as it generally does with analogue quartz watches. If it were me, I would be careful about leaving an analogue electric watch running for any length of time unless I was wearing it. Long periods of storage should be done with the battery removed and kept separate from the watch.

In all the cases I have covered here, one needs to be aware of the huge damage that a leaking battery can do, but with common sense and a rotational policy of checking every now and then on watches that have been in storage for a long time, the awful experience of finding a bad battery leak in a treasured watch can be avoided.


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## Garp (Aug 18, 2019)

Thanks to all who answered. I guess just keeping an eye and having spare batteries to hand is the answer.

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