Recent Comments

Waterproof or water-resistant?

Waterproof bag

Q. Hey Gear Guy, I have a question for you. What’s the difference between waterproof and water-resistant? I see it on lots of outdoor gear but I’m not sure which is which.
— Soggy Seth, Portland, Ore.

A: Great question, Soggy Sir. And you’re right, the terms waterproof and water-resistant are plastered all over the hangtags of tents, rain jackets, watches, GPS, and so on.

To help answer this one, I pinged Andrew MacAuley, the product development director at Aquapac (www.aquapac.net), the folks who make those handy waterproof pouches for cameras, electronics and such. When I asked him what’s the difference between waterproof and water-resistant, here’s what he had to say:

“Well, actually, not a lot. It means different things on different products. Most items like electronics, Aquapac cases, etc. use a system called the IP (Ingress Protection) scale; which goes from 1 to 8. IPX1 means that an item is not really protected against water. IPX8 means that you can safely take the item underwater — although the depth and time that it is safe underwater can vary. A lot of ‘waterproof’ electronics are IPX7, which means that they will be OK if you accidentally drop them in a stream and get them out immediately. When you talk about tents or clothes, waterproofing is measured on a scale called the Hydrostatic Head. If you take a piece of the material, and put a tube on top of it, the hydrostatic head rating is how much water you can fill in this tube before the pressure and weight of the water pushes through the material. Proper ‘waterproof’ levels are considered to be 1000mm (25.4 inches) of water, but most decent tents have an HH rating of over 2000mm, and a good waterproof jacket will be around 3000mm+. You need a higher number because the force that rain hits a tent or jacket, especially when it’s windy, can be quite considerable. Meanwhile, watches have an entirely different grading than most other electronics.”

I did a little research and found that only true scuba diving watches can be advertised as waterproof. All other watches must be listed as water-resistant to a specific depth, but you shouldn’t press any function buttons while it’s submerged. As a rule of thumb, watches with water-resistance ratings of 30 to 50 meters are okay for fishing but not suitable for swimming and diving. Watches with water-resistant ratings of 100 meters are fine for swimming and most watersports like paddling, surfing, and snorkeling but NOT scuba diving. You’ll need a true diving watch for that.

So bottom line: before you buy something that’s waterproof or water-resistant, find out exactly what it means for that particular product by checking the fine print in the user’s manual or on the hangtag.


Ask the Gear Guy

Not sure which gear to buy? Need tips for maintaining your equipment? Click here to send in your questions for the Gear Guy. Selected questions will be answered here and in the printed magazine.

28 Comments on Waterproof or water-resistant?

  1. My $28 Walmart watch says it is water-resistant, up to 100m, Will i wreck it swimming in a pool.

  2. whats the meaning 100m resistant????

  3. That really cleared things up for me. Thank you!

  4. Waterproof means absolutely zero water will get inside your watch but water resistant is overall better because if you buy a g shock watch you will most likely be able to go down to 150m which is probably further than you will go anyway.

  5. how much should I expect to pay for a true dive watch

  6. My dad said that nothing is water proof is that true

  7. Off-Trail Monkey // January 11, 2015 at 12:42 pm // Reply

    Our unit leaves the watches and cell phone behind. We follow the simple idea of suns up, scouts up … sons down, scouts down. In between … enjoy the day. You’ll get there when you’re there. relax and enjoy the moment(s).

  8. I don’t understand what that mean waterproof or water -resistant you can let me know please thanks

  9. I have a a $15 watch at Walmart that says WR 100m, and I have taken it down to 30m (100 ft) SCUBA diving without problems. My SCUBA instructor has 30 years of experience, and he says that there is a 30-50% chance the cheap watch will be able to withstand diving. If it doesn’t, you’ve only lost $15.

  10. My watch is 100 m resistant. CASIO 400H 🙂

  11. my watch sayss 100 meters but also says water resistant. help.

    • redheadsrule // January 5, 2013 at 8:41 am // Reply

      A watch that is water resistant to 100m should be fine for submersion, albeit there is a chance of some water getting inside, it’s a very small chance. So your watch should be fine for swimming and such to with, just dont do any diving (including scuba diving).

  12. As far as watches are concerned only dive watches can safely
    Be submerged.
    Any other watch ( water resistant) will admit water when submerged
    Eventually
    Take my word for it. I have been a jeweler and watchmaker for over
    30 years

  13. Waterproof: Can be sumerged under water
    WaterResistant: Can resist water droped on it, but not completely submerge under water.

  14. I really don’t understand what is the different between waterproof and water resistant camera

  15. my game camera says watere resistent does that mean i can leave it in the rain?

  16. water proof follows more strict ISO standards

  17. Most of the time, they mean the same thing, smart one!

  18. You have to put ContourHD in a special box to make under water videos (waterproof). Without the box it is only water-resistant.

  19. good to know, contourHD (camera from Twenty20) is water resistant!

  20. magezines dont tell you if a coat or jacket is 3000mm or not it just say either waterproof or water-resistant so i guess i should assume that waterproof is more protective than water-resistant

  21. To me, water resistant = Becomes wet with
    prolonged watering.

    waterproof = do not absorb water
    at all.

  22. homework hater // September 3, 2009 at 12:55 pm // Reply

    Glad to know My watch is 100M

  23. good to know, wise to read labels

  24. wow i never knew about that that is pretty awesome

Leave a Comment

Please don't use your real name.