# What does 10 ATM waterproof mean?



## SeikoAutomatic_01

I've seen Russian watches, including the Poljot I prdered today list ATM instead of feet or meters. Can someone explain this?


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## ecalzo

*Water resistance:* 
First general remark - although Vostok watches are marked as water resistant to 20, 50, 100 or 200 meters - it is wrong indication. It would be correct to state water resistance in *atm* and not in *meters*. We all know that any movement produces air or water pressure. Water coming from a tap in your bathroom when you wash hands produces more pressure on your watch than still water (e.g. in a lake) at the depth of 2 meters. So when we buy a watch we want to know if we can take a shower, wash hands, swim or dive keeping it on the wrist. Water resistance indication in meters means: you stand (lie) still, absolutely moveless in water at the indicated depth and do nothing.
Very roughly one might say that 20 meters indication corresponds to 2 atm, 50 meters - to 5 atm, etc - but it would be absolutely unreasonable to go swimming with any Vostok watch but Amphibian and Neptune. 200 meters water resistance does not mean that one should jump from a diving tower - the produced pressure will be much higher than 200 meters depth in still water and 20 atm waterpressure.At the back of all Komandirskie watches the Russian word Водонепроницаемые can be seen, without any indication of water depth. That means "woterproof" to 2 atm. Breeze has indication of 100 meters and Neptune and Amphibian - 200 meters.
- «Waterproof» or «Водонепроницаемые » - it is better to avoid unnecessary contact with water because the water resistance reaches the maximum of 2 ATM;
- «Water resistant 3 ATM» or «Водонепроницаемые 3 ATM» - you can wear the watch in rain and wash yourself under a faucet, when water is splashed up under small pressure;
- «Water resistant 5 ATM» or «Водонепроницаемые 5 ATM» - you can water your garden and wash your car with water coming out of a hose;
- «Water resistant 10 ATM» or «Водонепроницаемые 10 ATM» - you can swim and dive (but not from a tower) and to swim under water without a scuba.
- «Water resistant 20 ATM» or «Водонепроницаемые 20 ATM» - you can swim under water with scuba equipment.

here other things:

http://www.vostok-uhren.de/vostok-watches-watchuseek.html


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## SeikoAutomatic_01

Thanks ecalzo. That makes more sense to me now. So if a watch is waterproof to 50 meters, it means sitting in still or calm water at 50 meters, but not diving from a tower or squirting it with a pressure washer. The meters is not a good way to measure it. I never thought about it like that.


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