Cleaning Rolex—soft toothbrush?

[Yugga]

Just picked up an immaculate Hulk but noticed a tiny bit of grime. Since it’s in such good shape I wanted to confirm a soft toothbrush won’t leave any micro scratches?

Also what type of soap do you use?
Thx

[Marcjvr]

Unless it’s been bad. Then I use a hard one

[ducatiti]

From my experience, soft toothbrush and mild bath soap like Nuetrogena works for me, even facial soap at times. I always rotate the bezel while running water over it to make sure there won't be soap gunk build up.

For those of have gold or their Rolex, will the above work as well without scratching the delicate PM?

[chieftd]

I always let my watches soak in water for 30 minutes or so. I think it helps loosen grime in the bracelet. I then use soft toothbrush and liquid hand soap and it works great. Enjoy!

[Travis29]

Tooth brush and hand soap once week to keep my daily clean.

[harvey]

…Johnson’s baby shampoo works good.

[horseco]

Windex, or similar glass cleaner, agitate lightly with your fingertips under hot water Dry with a microfiber cloth. A toothbrush will cause terrible swirl marks on polished parts (x10 om PM) & soap will leave a film..

[WatchGuy1966]

Originally Posted by ducatiti

From my experience, soft toothbrush and mild bath soap like Nuetrogena works for me, even facial soap at times. I always rotate the bezel while running water over it to make sure there won't be soap gunk build up.

For those of have gold or their Rolex, will the above work as well without scratching the delicate PM?

Not sure as my gold is scratched as naturally happens.

But I agree, mild soap and rotating the bezel are key

[ducatiti]

Originally Posted by horseco

Windex, or similar glass cleaner, agitate lightly with your fingertips under hot water Dry with a microfiber cloth. A toothbrush will cause terrible swirl marks on polished parts (x10 om PM) & soap will leave a film..

Thanks for the heads up in regards to PM or polished parts.

Windex, I haven't tried yet. I use Meguiar's concentrate wind cleaner for home and car use as it smells great and with no ammonia :)

Would love to hear from others in regards to Window Cleaner..

[ducatiti]

Originally Posted by WatchGuy1966

Not sure as my gold is scratched as naturally happens.

But I agree, mild soap and rotating the bezel are key

Got it.. I'm still on the honeymoon phase but I'm sure I will not care given a week or two :)

[NachoNeal]

Originally Posted by horseco

Windex, or similar glass cleaner, agitate lightly with your fingertips under hot water Dry with a microfiber cloth. A toothbrush will cause terrible swirl marks on polished parts (x10 om PM) & soap will leave a film..

Personally have not noticed any swirl marks, with use of soft tooth brush, to clean any of my watches.

[ducatiti]

Originally Posted by NachoNeal

Personally have not noticed any swirl marks, with use of soft tooth brush, to clean any of my watches.

Even on polished or PM?

[Palakiko]

Any and all brushes could potentially cause micro-marring. Heck, touching the watch with fingers can cause scratches. Even at the macro level. Not visible to the eye. Enough marring and you’ll eventually see them down the path weeks, months or years from now.

For me, I like to use the least aggressive method to get the job done. And there’s different methods for the amount of dirt or debris I think or see is on there.

Least abrasive, I found that not touching the watch with any manual abrasives like hands or brushesLol. Spray with wristclean or cleaning agent. And let it soak. And rinse. That’s it.

If wanting a deeper clean, soak the watch in warm/hot water, to get as much dirt off as possible. Then rinse well. Same for my brushing tool, soak and rinse those off before using. Then, brush with whatever tool you’re comfortable with.

For deeper cleaning, could use an ultrasonic cleaner with cleaning agent - for the bracelet only. With hot water. As for the case, same as previous steps. But, never try to put the case in the ultrasonic cleaner.

At the end of the day, use what you’re comfortable with. Try the soap and toothbrush on your “lesser” watches. Do some comparisons with before and after. Use whatever method or cleaning agent to get the results you want.


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[Robf52]

Shampoo, warm water and hand washing.

[rob]

https://www.wristclean.com/

Been using this for years.

[JSolution]

I ruined a two tone submariner with a baby toothbrush. It had a few little scratches on the gold centre links, I gave it a really careful light scrub all over and it was completely covered in swirl marks. I say fingers only.


Edit —- but I do use a toothbrush for the inside of the bracelet, and especially necessary in the glidelock grooves.

[krounchou]

Would you say a pressure tested 3ATM Rolex by RSC after changing dial is water resistant enough to wash it and brush it to remove dirt ?

[RogerOP]

Just jump in the shower with it.

[DJ2020]

I use a very soft tooth brush and facial soap with luke warm water. I scrub it well to get in every nook and cranny I can. Then rinse really well. Pat dry and throw it back on my wrist. This is done at least once a week.

[krounchou]

Originally Posted by RogerOP

Just jump in the shower with it.

Good one 🤣

[thenewguy2023]

On a recent visit, my SA offered to steam clean my Ss Sub. She took it to the backroom so I don’t know what’s involved but it came out nice. She also recommended warm water, mild soap and soft toothbrush for cleaning. I haven’t tried it. I just use my Costco eyeglass spray and a microfiber cloth to clean the watch in the mornings.

[noshame]

I pre-rinse my watch, add a tiny drop of mild dish detergent on my fingers and rub away, then rinse thoroughly again with warm water. I know this won't get into every nook and cranny, like a toothbrush might, but I am almost certain even the softest toothbrush will leave light micro scratches on the polished surfaces. Good luck!

[Palakiko]

Originally Posted by rob

https://www.wristclean.com/

Been using this for years.

Second this -wristclean- FTW


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[burnthesehills]

Dawn soap diluted with water and a soft watch brush from Wrist Clean. Has worked like a charm on my watches.

I keep the Dawn and water solution in a pump dispenser. I think even soft toothbrushes are a bit too rough but likely fine.

[Old Geezer]

I use a soft toothbrush and either Dawn or Palmolive dishwashing liquid on all my watches, including my white gold Sub. No issue with scratches. Note, I don't go to town scrubbing the heck out of the polished surfaces. There is no need to do so to get the watch clean.

My wife dunk's her diamond jewelry in Dawn or Palmolive mixed with Windex and lets them soak for an hour or two then rinses them under tap water and they look brilliant.

[yorkzilla]

I use very dilute dish soap solution with an artist’s paint brush.

[Gab27]

Dish soap and a soft nylon brush is fine. Then just dry it with a clean towel. I wash my watch with dish soap daily. Mind you, it's pretty scratched up, but that's from life and not from the brush or soap. (A watch with scratches doesn't bother me, but a dirty watch does.)

[Kevin of Larchmont]

Dawn, fingers and warm running water. No brushes. That’s it.

[Krash]

I use Dawn dish soap, a soft toothbrush and water. Works great. I don’t have PCLs or a solid gold watch. I suppose that could be a factor based on what some are saying.


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[OG1982]

Don’t overthink it. It’s metal and it’s dirty, so a simple wash is all that’s required.

I regularly wash my sub and Explorer with hand soap, in the sink when I wash my hands. Pat dry with a towel and then remove any excess with a micro fibre cloth. Repeat this weekly or even fortnightly and you’re good to go.

For proper dirty brackets, an ultrasonic bath will clean in all those hard to reach spots, but this is possibly overkill for all but the dirtiest brackets.


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