Hello, and welcome to the La Crosse Technology family.
Today we're going to walk you through the setup and basic functions of your analog wall clock.
So, let's jump right in.
Now, we have quite a variety of clocks on the market.
But from simple to advanced, each analog clock will come equipped with what's call a "movement."
This is the heart of any clock, and controls how the hands operate.
The vast majority of our wall clocks will fall into one of the following four movement categories:
Non-Atomic,
Type A,
Type B,
or UltrAtomic.
We'll go through each of these individually, starting at the times listed.
But just a few notes before we begin:
The last three on this list are all equipped with an antenna, and have the ability to receive
the WWVB radio signal transmitted by the NIST.
This signal is used to synchronize your device to the exact time
via the official atomic clock located in Fort Collins, Colorado.
This is what is meant by our "Atomic Time" or "Radio Controlled" branding.
We'll include a link below for more specific information on the NIST and the WWVB radio signal.
Another thing to note is that any of these movements may also come equipped with extra
battery compartments, typically placed around the sides.
In most cases, each extra battery will provide about a year of additional use.
And finally, if you notice your clock hands randomly spinning,
this can mean a couple of things.
First, if your hands spin around the hours once or twice and then stop at the correct time,
this is the clock simply auto correcting itself to the exact time after receiving the WWVB radio signal.
This is a normal function.
But, if your hands are continuously spinning, or not moving at all,
this is typically a sign to change the batteries, as they are likely under or over powered.
Now that we got all that out of the way, let's begin.
Starting with our simplest Non-Atomic movement, the process is pretty straight forward.
Install 1 new AA alkaline battery into the back of the movement,
there may be spots for more depending on your model.
After this, use the Time Set Wheel to manually move the hands to the correct time.
The movement will then keep the clock running accurately until it is in need of a battery change.
This type of movement is most commonly found on our decorative La Crosse Clock or Equity designs.
Moving on to our Type A movement.
First, if your clock has a battery cover,
make sure to remove this to gain access to the movement itself.
Next, install a new alkaline battery into the center battery compartment.
If you have additional battery slots, like we do here,
feel free to install batteries there as well for extended battery life.
Once powered on, you'll notice the clock's hands will start to spin.
These will stop at either 4 o'clock, 8 o'clock, or 12 o'clock and remain in that position
until the WWVB radio time signal is received.
For some locations, this can take up to five nights.
For the best reception, place the clock on an exterior wall or near a window with the
front or back of it facing Fort Collins, Colorado.
Moving it away from other electronics can help as well.
But once the signal is received, the clock will set to its default, Pacific Time.
Since this movement was designed for use within the US,
the available options are PT for Pacific Time,
MT for Mountain Time,
CT for Central Time,
and ET for Eastern Time.
Adjust this to your time zone by firmly pressing and holding the appropriate Time Zone Button
until the hands begin to spin.
Once they do, let go of the button.
If you live in an area that does not follow Daylight Saving Time,
once your hands begin to spin, you'll also want to press the small button located here, one time.
This will turn off the DST function.
After all this, your clock should be up and running properly and set to the correct time.
This, of course, is assuming your clock was able to receive the WWVB radio transmission.
But if its been over five days and your clock still has yet to show signs of life,
you may unfortunately be in a tough location for this radio signal to reach.
In this situation, it may be best to simply manually set the time.
Here's how to do this:
First, remove the batteries from the clock,
press the Set Tab 20 times,
and then wait at least 15 minutes before powering back up the movement.
After this time, reinstall the batteries.
Allow the hands to spin again and wait until they are stopped at the 4, 8, or 12 o'clock position.
Once they stop, you'll want to move quickly here as you'll have about a two minute window
to set your time manually.
To do this, simply press and hold the Set Tab to spin the hands into your current time position.
Once there, release the tab.
The clock will then begin to run accurately from this time.
We should note that setting your time manually on this movement
will not stop it from searching for the WWVB signal.
This will continue to happen automatically in the background,
and if it does pick up the signal in the future, it will override your manual time settings.
So, if you notice your time is off by a few hours in the future, this is likely what happened.
Simply press and hold the correct Time Zone Button until the hands begin to spin,
and it should set to your correct time.
Next up, is our Type B Movement.
The first step here will be to select your Time Zone and Daylight Saving Time options
using the switches on the bottom.
Since this movement was designed for use within the US, the available time zones are
P for Pacific Time,
M for Mountain Time,
C for Central Time,
and E for Eastern Time.
Adjust to your time zone by simply sliding the switch to the correct letter.
And if you live in an area that does not follow Daylight Saving Time,
you'll want to make sure you have the DST switch set to OFF.
But for most places, you'll likely want this left ON.
Once you have these set correctly, install a new alkaline battery into the center compartment.
If you have a movement with additional battery slots, like we do here,
feel free to install batteries there as well for extended battery life.
Once powered on, the second hand will begin to spin,
it will rotate all the way around and stop at the 12.
At this point, the hands will then start to rotate, and do the same thing
until they are all the way back around in the 12 o'clock position.
They will then stop and continue to search for the WWVB signal for the next 8 minutes.
If the signal is received,
the time will set correctly according to the time zone and DST settings you had set via the switches.
However, if the signal was not picked up within these 8 minutes,
the clock will then start to run from the 12 o'clock position.
It can sometimes take up to 5 nights for the clock to receive this radio transmission.
For the best reception, place the clock on an exterior wall or near a window with the
front or back of it facing Fort Collins, Colorado.
Moving it away from other electronics can help as well.
Once the signal is received, the clock will set itself accurately according to your settings.
Now, for most people this is how the clock will function,
picking up the signal and setting itself accurately within the first few nights.
But, if its been 5 or more days and your clock is still not set correctly,
you may want to consider adjusting it manually.
To do this, simply press and hold the SET button.
The hands will start to spin, and you can then keep holding the SET button until in the correct position,
or press and release the SET button to move the hands slowly one step at a time.
Once the correct time is reached, you should be good to go.
It will then keep the time accurately from that point on.
Or at least until the batteries need to be changed.
We should note that setting your time manually on this movement
will not stop it from searching for the WWVB signal.
This will continue to happen automatically in the background,
and if it does pick up this signal in the future, it will override your manual time setting.
So, just to be safe, you'll want to make sure those switches are set correctly.
Now for those of you who may be wondering, the final two buttons we haven't touched on,
really shouldn't come into play in most situations.
The WAVE button will simply put your clock back into the initial intense search mode,
however, since the movement will continue to search for the WWVB signal on its own,
this shouldn't need to be pressed.
The RESET button on the other hand, is useful in situations where your clock
is not running properly and/or it is not responding to your other button presses.
After you press the RESET button,
the clock should function just as it did when you first installed the batteries.
And finally, onto our UltrAtomic movement.
This model was made to receive an enhanced phase-modulated WWVB signal from the NIST.
Allowing the clock to digitally process the received signal
even in the most challenging locations and in the harshest of conditions,
always keeping your time accurate.
With this design, you also get access to additional custom time zones,
and have the ability to save battery life by running it in Eco Mode.
Here's a rundown of how to set this clock up and use these different functions.
First, slide the Time Zone Switch to your correct time zone.
PT stands for Pacific Time, MT Mountain Time, CT Central Time, and ET for Eastern Time.
If you live outside of these US time zones, make sure to select the ET, or "Custom," option here.
This will allow you to adjust the clock to your correct your time zone after the reception is picked up.
Next, slide the Daylight Saving Time, or DST Switch, to the ON or OFF position,
depending on whether you live in an area that follows DST or not.
After you have these two switches set correctly, install at least 2 C alkaline batteries
into the middle compartments.
For continued use for up to 6 years, you can fill the additional side compartments as well.
Once powered on, the clock will begin searching for the WWVB radio signal,
and its hands will begin to spin.
If the signal is not picked up right away,
the hands will eventually stop in either the 4:00, 8:00, or 12:00 o'clock position.
They will remain there until the signal is received.
However, in most situations, this clock will pick up the signal and set to the correct time pretty quickly.
With this model, you have the ability to set the clock to any time zone from GMT 0 to -11.
Once the clock has received the WWVB signal and has set to Eastern Time,
you can then use the SET button on the back to move the time forward until your correct hour is reached.
Each press of the SET button will move the clock forward 1 hour.
Once at the correct time, you're free to leave the clock be.
It will continue running accurately from the time selected here.
Now, inevitably, there are always situations where having the ability to set the clock's
time manually is the best, or only option.
Here's how to set this up:
Starting with no batteries in the clock,
you'll want to make sure and have the DST Switch in the OFF or Q-Set position.
Next, adjust the Time Zone Switch to the Q-Mode position.
Then, install your batteries into the clock.
These will work the same way, requiring at least 2 new C batteries in the center compartments.
But once powered on, the clock's hands will again begin to spin
until reaching either the 4:00, 8:00, or 12:00 o'clock position.
Once stopped, you can then press the SET button to adjust the hands gradually step by step,
or hold the SET button to adjust the them quickly.
When you reach the correct time, slide the DST Switch to the ON or Q-Run position.
The Second Hand will start moving from the 12
and the clock will accurately keep time from this manually set position.
It will not use or be affected by the WWVB signal in this mode.
Some other functions to note include: Sleep Mode, Eco Mode, and low battery indication.
Sleep Mode is a function that will keep the clock's connection to the WWVB signal saved
without running the clock's hands.
This may be useful if you're moving, or have a second home that you're not in all of the time.
Once the clock initially sets to the correct time,
you can move the switch to this Sleep Mode.
The hands will move to the 12 o'clock position
and stay there until the Time Zone Switch is adjusted again.
Keeping the batteries installed, the hands will then rotate and set to your time again almost instantly.
This can greatly extend the life of your batteries.
Speaking of saving batteries, if you have the Eco Mode Switch set to the ON position,
the clock will not run the second hand between the hours of 11:00pm and 5:00am.
This will help conserve battery power power and keep you clock running longer.
If you happen to notice the second hand stopping outside of these times,
the clock may be set to a custom time zone or running on a manually set time.
Of course if you'd like the second hand to remain running all of the time,
simply move this Eco Mode Switch to the OFF position.
And finally, the last thing to note about this second hand
is if you notice it stopped in the 6:00 o'clock position,
this is an indication that the clock's batteries are running low and should be changed soon.
Whoa! We made it!
We apologize for the long video, but we wanted to make sure we covered all the features
these different types of movements have to offer.
And we sure hope this helped you to get your La Crosse Technology, La Crosse Clock, or
Equity analog clock set up and working correctly.
But if you should have further questions or would like more information,
please just let us know in the YouTube comments section below
or visit our website at LaCrosseTechnology.com.
Thanks again for joining the family, we're glad you're here.