A Citizen Eco-Drive lack of info gripe...

[mtngunr]

Thanks for posting this. I inherited a Citizen Eco Driver from our daughter. Nice watch but to small for my wrist, and to fancy for my taste. After reading this thread I did take it out of my desk drawer. I will be selling it once I find a value on it.

My sincere condolences on the loss. Leaving it out in artificial light will basically get it a small net gain in current charge level compared to what it is using, but will be essentially a stalemate, hours of exposure (if feet from light source) just to not lose charge, 4hrs office lighting yields a day of power.....to fully charge when dead under artificial light of incandescent bulb at 20" or fluorescent at 6", looking at 48hrs, while overhead light not much over break-even...
From dead to full charge for outdoors/sunny day 7hrs, outdoors/overcast is 14hrs, and manual claims due to filtering/coatings on window glass to make it 28hrs in a sunny window....the only losses in MY cheap windows are from reflection and dust...none of those numbers fully reached unless facing light source entire time.

 

[Rez Exelon]

I'm over here with half a fleet of them and I just take them out and set them in the sun till their charge dials show full. The ones that don't have a dial --- well, I set them next to the half a fleet that have them.

 

[RickN]

My sincere condolences on the loss. Leaving it out in artificial light will basically get it a small net gain in current charge level compared to what it is using, but will be essentially a stalemate, hours of exposure (if feet from light source) just to not lose charge, 4hrs office lighting yields a day of power.....to fully charge when dead under artificial light of incandescent bulb at 20" or fluorescent at 6", looking at 48hrs, while overhead light not much over break-even...
From dead to full charge for outdoors/sunny day 7hrs, outdoors/overcast is 14hrs, and manual claims due to filtering/coatings on window glass to make it 28hrs in a sunny window....the only losses in MY cheap windows are from reflection and dust...none of those numbers fully reached unless facing light source entire time.

Thank you. That is very helpful.

 

[mtngunr]

I'm over here with half a fleet of them and I just take them out and set them in the sun till their charge dials show full. The ones that don't have a dial --- well, I set them next to the half a fleet that have them.

Yep, you have something to go by as for fleet charge, if same movements, while those of us single vehicle owners can only guess. And I bet your sunflower field time varies according to charge levels, and you are talking setting a fleet outside?

 

[Shadowrider]

I've had this one for a couple of years. It doesn't have a charge indicator but it does have a low charge warning. I've sat it in the sun maybe twice (just as a precaution) since I've had it and it's never given me the low charge warning. It almost never gets direct sun, at least for extended periods anyway. Instead it gets ambient light from my normal activities which are mostly inside. I tend to wear this one and a couple of Seiko's in multi-week periods and when I'm not wearing it, it sits in a relatively dark bedroom. Never had a problem.

 

[Rez Exelon]

Yep, you have something to go by as for fleet charge, if same movements, while those of us single vehicle owners can only guess. And I bet your sunflower field time varies according to charge levels, and you are talking setting a fleet outside?

Not really, I usually just take the box that has all my solar watching out and put it on the balcony maybe 2-3 times a year and they pretty well all stay good. I think I have some non-solar in the box but the sunshine and fresh air doesn't hurt them. Figured that was the easiest way to handle charging.

 

[CutBaitNBlowSh*tUp4ALivin]

I'm pretty sure the manual for my eco drive said "if the second hand only moves every two seconds, you have less than 7 days of battery life, and charging is recommended"

 

[mtngunr]

I've had this one for a couple of years. It doesn't have a charge indicator but it does have a low charge warning. I've sat it in the sun maybe twice (just as a precaution) since I've had it and it's never given me the low charge warning. It almost never gets direct sun, at least for extended periods anyway. Instead it gets ambient light from my normal activities which are mostly inside. I tend to wear this one and a couple of Seiko's in multi-week periods and when I'm not wearing it, it sits in a relatively dark bedroom. Never had a problem.

Yep, no argument from me that they work for most folk. Mine gets indirect light outside most of day (if I had on short sleeves), nearly zero direct light outside, and very little indoor light after inside past sundown...things will improve come warmer weather and short sleeves, but that will be a while...so, mainly just wanting it to be for sure fully charged for until that happy time. Wouldn't have worried a lick had I not gotten it just as switching to long sleeves. The most direct light it gets in bedroom window is maybe 5-6hrs, and according to manual, rather than wear my new watch, am looking at trying to get in 5-6 such days in between rain fronts and clouds for a known full charge.

 

[mtngunr]

I'm pretty sure the manual for my eco drive said "if the second hand only moves every two seconds, you have less than 7 days of battery life, and charging is recommended"

Mine says up to seven somewhere, but then says multiple times that it gives at least 4 days once the 2-sec warning kicks in....I just want to get it fully charged now so that it never gets to that point, as that is close to complete discharge which is bad on battery life, something NOT mentioned in the manual.

 

[mtngunr]

Not really, I usually just take the box that has all my solar watching out and put it on the balcony maybe 2-3 times a year and they pretty well all stay good. I think I have some non-solar in the box but the sunshine and fresh air doesn't hurt them. Figured that was the easiest way to handle charging.

Absolutely...a full day outdoors in direct light will fully charge the watch, and a full charge good for up to 6mths, and you give them several treatments a year.

I cannot leave mine outside in the back yard just laying there or a crow or raccoon would likely run off with it, and if hung suspended a bird would likely crap on it...I don't have a fleet, but only a couple of Seiko divers and this solar, which I would rather be wearing rather than parking in my bedroom window every sunny day for the 5-6hrs direct sun it can get, where the manual says circa 28hrs total under such conditions for a certain full charge, and the sun has not shone every day in a row.