Covid19 from a Rolex?

[spursf]

Serious question, albeit, maybe a silly one to some, but slightly concerned, or maybe I've just been locked up for too long.

Anyway, I've finally managed to find a 16610 that meets my requirements, and am happy with the price.

It's a late model no holes case with the engraved rehaut, NOS and fully stickered.
However, it's from a seller based in Milan, Italy.

Now, Northern Italy was very hard hit with Covid-19, should I be concerned about possible risks of Covid-19 from the watch as I read somewhere that it sticks to stainless steel for up to 7 days.
Will a good clean with warm water and hand soap help?

I know there are plenty 16610, but this is the exact specs that I want and at the right price.

[Onikage]

Get some hazmat gear from ebay. ..You'll have to disinfect it before you use it. Great discount angle btw.

[minute_man]

Originally Posted by spursf

Serious question, albeit, maybe a silly one to some, but slightly concerned, or maybe I've just been locked up for too long.

Anyway, I've finally managed to find a 16610 that meets my requirements, and am happy with the price.

It's a late model no holes case with the engraved rehaut, NOS and fully stickered.
However, it's from a seller based in Milan, Italy.

Now, Northern Italy was very hard hit with Covid-19, should I be concerned about possible risks of Covid-19 from the watch as I read somewhere that it sticks to stainless steel for up to 7 days.
Will a good clean with warm water and hand soap help?

I know there are plenty 16610, but this is the exact specs that I want and at the right price.

You should not worry.

Soap and warm water will do just fine

Since you appear very concerned, leave the box, papers etc in an open, well ventilated place under the sun for a couple hours.

All this, albeit an overkill, should put your mind at ease.

[Jfullm42]

Great question, while I’m no expert here’s what I do when I get a watch in. Bring Clorox wipes and wipe down the outside of the packaging I’m receiving.

I then open and wipe down the outside of the watch box, booklets, hang tags and all that stuff, and no I’m not joking. Don’t soak the booklets, or tags, but just enough and then let them air dry. I then wipe down the watch, bring it home and remove the bracelet and bezel if it’s a sport model and throw them in the ultrasonic for a few hours. I’ll scrub the head down, reassemble and good to go.

Regardless of covid, you’d be shocked the stuff that comes out of the older hollow link bracelets. It’s really gross and I don’t want it touching my arm.

Hope this helps, just take precautions, be safe and you’ll be fine :)

[Sandpit]

Give it a wash once you've received it with warm soapy water (maybe dish soap) and you'll be fine. I've had a few packages from all over the world recently (inlcuding northern italy) and I just wipe everything down.

The advice on the ultrasonic is good (even without covid issues). I bought a cheap one from Amazon and its amazing the amount of gunk that comes off bracelets and jewellery.

[Nav01L]

Why don’t you just let the box sit in a safe place for a week before opening it?

[mfserge]

Do you plan on licking it upon receipt? I would NEVER buy a luxury item from Italy, not because of Covid but Italy is ripe with online fraud. Be very careful to confirm who you are buying from.

[Gwai]

Originally Posted by Sandpit

Give it a wash once you've received it with warm soapy water (maybe dish soap) and you'll be fine. I've had a few packages from all over the world recently (inlcuding northern italy) and I just wipe everything down.

The advice on the ultrasonic is good (even without covid issues). I bought a cheap one from Amazon and its amazing the amount of gunk that comes off bracelets and jewellery.

This is sound advice. Quoting it because I don't just want to say (a thread like) this was a long time coming and personally I can't take it seriously.

Take care and stay safe!

[Pongster]

A 5-digit NOS. Nice. Congrats.

[Speedbird-1]

Originally Posted by mfserge

Do you plan on licking it upon receipt? I would NEVER buy a luxury item from Italy, not because of Covid but Italy is ripe with online fraud. Be very careful to confirm who you are buying from.

Well, who doesn't lick their watch, daily?
MMMMMMMM.....Rolex......SLRRPP....lovely, lovely Rolex, sooo tasty.

[madmax21]

Originally Posted by Jfullm42

Great question, while I’m no expert here’s what I do when I get a watch in. Bring Clorox wipes and wipe down the outside of the packaging I’m receiving.

I then open and wipe down the outside of the watch box, booklets, hang tags and all that stuff, and no I’m not joking. Don’t soak the booklets, or tags, but just enough and then let them air dry. I then wipe down the watch, bring it home and remove the bracelet and bezel if it’s a sport model and throw them in the ultrasonic for a few hours. I’ll scrub the head down, reassemble and good to go.

Regardless of covid, you’d be shocked the stuff that comes out of the older hollow link bracelets. It’s really gross and I don’t want it touching my arm.

Hope this helps, just take precautions, be safe and you’ll be fine :)

Wow, I think this is very excessive. I mean soap and water is all you need

[Pim]

Originally Posted by minute_man

You should not worry.

Soap and warm water will do just fine

Since you appear very concerned, leave the box, papers etc in an open, well ventilated place under the sun for a couple hours.

All this, albeit an overkill, should put your mind at ease.

I agree, you should be fine. The virus can only survive in open air for a short period of time. UV (B) light kills it so this is a sensible action

[RLXFRM]

soap and water will do, you can also disinfect it and wear with no worries.

[vint0]

Originally Posted by minute_man

You should not worry.



Soap and warm water will do just fine



Since you appear very concerned, leave the box, papers etc in an open, well ventilated place under the sun for a couple hours.



All this, albeit an overkill, should put your mind at ease.

This should do the trick. Heat kills the virus, so I heard.
So exposure to sunlight first then clean with warm water and soap should do it.

Congratulations on the incoming.

[Parapraxis]

As a physician, I can provide the following advice:

When you receive the package, use gloves. Put the package by the window and away from anyone touching it. Dispose of the gloves. Wash your hands from the forearms down with soap and water. Let the package sit for 24-48 hours. Don't touch your face during this process. Two days later you can enjoy without any concerns.

This is the most you'll have to do. It's overkill but will provide you psychological security, and will be a great story you'll always associate with the watch when discussing it with people in the years to come.

[faimag]

Are you going to wear it or lick it and sniff it???

[outdoors_guy]

have a look at this New England journal study on survival of the virus, and I think it will set your mind at ease.

https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2004973

[77T]

I don’t think the source of the watch matters - in the OP’s case, Italy. Any watch could come from a home/shop with Covid-19 in it. A package and/or its contents could contain a viral load that survives the shipping interval.

How one deals with that can vary from a highly structured laboratory-level of sanitation, down to a simple washing of hands after handling the package and contents.

I’ll offer this method that simply isolates the risks.

1. Before opening a package put down a simple barrier on the countertop. This could be a couple sheets of newspaper or plastic wrap or aluminum foil.

2. Start your nearest water faucet set to a nice warm temperature.

3. Open your packaging, pull out the watch and wipe it down with a sanitizing wet wipe and set it aside. Put the boxes you’ll keep somewhere safe for a week. Wash your hands with soap and water.

If you fear a viral load may still be lurking in the bracelet’s nooks and crannies, or don’t have sanitizing wipes in step 3, do a thorough soap and water cleaning with a soft brush.

Just my 2¢


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[AlexFrank]

Originally Posted by mfserge

do you plan on licking it upon receipt? I would never buy a luxury item from italy, not because of covid but italy is ripe with online fraud. Be very careful to confirm who you are buying from.

truth!

[Ihatecheese]

To note the UK has the second highest death rate now after the USA, so I dont think Italy is going to add any additional risk.

[somthingnew]

If you are being really careful, I would say extract the watch with gloves and wash it with soap. Luckily Rolex has nice water resistant watches. This way you can enjoy and confirm the watch is working. Take all the other stuff and put it out of the way for the next several days to let the virus risk go away. Then you can look at those later as they are probably of a much lower interest.

[Matt129]

Send it to me, I'll open and wear it for a few weeks to confirm no germs, then repackage and forward to you.

[Roddypeepa]

No. Corona viruses for after 3 or so days on SS and less on cardboard. Wash it thoroughly with soap and water on arrival, bin the packaging and then wash hands too.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[doramas]

This is getting out of hand. It seems that confinement is wreaking havoc.

[AJMarcus]

Originally Posted by Parapraxis

As a physician, I can provide the following advice:

When you receive the package, use gloves. Put the package by the window and away from anyone touching it. Dispose of the gloves. Wash your hands from the forearms down with soap and water. Let the package sit for 24-48 hours. Don't touch your face during this process. Two days later you can enjoy without any concerns.

This is the most you'll have to do. It's overkill but will provide you psychological security, and will be a great story you'll always associate with the watch when discussing it with people in the years to come.

The Good Doctor has spoken. Congrats on a superb acquisition

[djyolky]

We've hit an all time low.

Sent from my SM-G925V using Tapatalk

[Tools]

UV light; toss it into the back yard for the afternoon. You're welcome.

[dchernikoff]

Fortunately COVID-19 has a fatty component to its protein sheath, which will dissolve in soapy water, destroying the virus. So I'd just fill the sink with warm water and dish soap, and let it soak for 20 minutes or so. Then rinse it off and all should be well. For the boxes and papers, handle them with gloves and set them aside for a week and any COVID-19 virus should have expired by then.

From what I've read and what the WHO is saying, the virus is transmitted by entering your respiratory system. Licking it won't infect you -- your stomach acid will dispatch that nasty virus. Which is why it is safe to get takeout food from restaurants, provided they follow most countries' regular sanitation requirements for public food preparation.

-Dan

[piratfisk]

Originally Posted by Pongster

A 5-digit NOS. Nice. Congrats.

This, I think, is the most interesting part of this thread.

[Explorer2Guy]

God bless the people affected in Italy