While out of service, the ship underwent a thorough overhaul and had her gun armament replaced. On 6 October 1891, she was recommissioned for sea trials that lasted until the end of February 1892; during this period, her commander was "KK" Hermann da Fonseca-Wollheim. She was assigned to II Division of the Maneuver Squadron on 8 March and "KK" Ludwig Borckenhagen relieved Fonseca-Wollheim, "Wacht" thereafter taking part in exercises in the North Sea off the coast of Norway. She was detached from the unit to escort "Hohenzollern" from 4 to 8 June while Wilhelm II visited Tsar Nicholas II of Russia. Later in the year, the ship had a minor collision with the artillery training ship . Borckenhagen left the ship in September and "Wacht" was decommissioned on 12 October. "Wacht" was recommissioned on 13 January 1893, initially serving as a training ship for engine and boiler room crews for torpedo boats. "Kapitänleutnant" (Captain Lieutenant) Alfred Ehrlich commanded the ship during the year. In early March, she was reassigned to serve as a flotilla leader for torpedo boats, and in mid-April, she was once again detached to escort "Hohenzollern", though this was the new yacht of that name, while it was being taken from Swinemünde to Kiel. While on the way, the vessels encountered the Flensburg-flagged merchant ship that had run aground and "Wacht" pulled her free and towed er to Kiel. Ten days later, the navy established I Torpedo-boat Flotilla, based in Kiel; "Wacht" served as the flotilla leader and flagship of "KK" Gustav Schmidt. The unit consisted of two divisions and included twelve torpedo boats in total. The vessels conducted training maneuvers over the next two months and in early July, "Wacht" cruised with the Maneuver Squadron in the North Sea. The annual fleet maneuvers were held from 20 August to 23 September in the North and Baltic Seas, and upon their conclusion, I Torpedo-boat Flotilla was dissolved for the year. On 27 September, "Wacht" accompanied "Hohenzollern" on her sea trials that included visits to Gothenburg, Karlskrona, and Christiansand in Sweden–Norway.