Five Most Common Missed Reminders when Operating your Biological Safety Cabinet

FIVE MOST COMMON MISSED REMINDERS WHEN OPERATING YOUR BIOLOGICAL SAFETY CABINET ONE: MINIMIZE YOUR MOVEMENT WITHIN THE CABINET A. Remember to use proper technique when working in a biological safety cabinet. Any rapid movement at the air curtain (front of the cabinet) will allow contaminated air from either the work zone to enter the laboratory environment or vice versa where the laboratory air will enter the work zone. Rapid arm movements within the cabinet will create turbulent air that could cause product cross contamination. B. Make sure to make slow, calculated, deliberate arm movements when working in your biological safety cabinet to avoid creating turbulence that can lead to cross contamination. TWO: WATCH WHERE YOU ARE WALKING A. You don't have to be working in the biological safety cabinet to cause airflow disruptions and the potential for contamination. By walking too quickly pass a biological safety cabinet you disturb the protective air curtain at the front of the cabinet. This disruption can lead to contaminated work zone air to enter the laboratory environment or even contaminated laboratory air to enter sterile work zone. B. Remember to slow down and avoid walking too close. A good idea might be to create a working / no walking zone in front of the cabinet with either tape or paint. THREE: POSITIONING YOURSELF WHEN WORKING IN YOUR BIOLOGICAL SAFETY CABINET Working in a biological safety cabinet requires repetitive work. Ergonomics plays a huge role during your time in front of a biological safety cabinet. A good laboratory chair helps a ton. Remember 90 degree angles can help prevent work place injuries. A straight upright back can save you from pain in the long run. Over extending your arms can cause stress on your shoulders and back. 90° 90° Remeber to keep straight wrists and think about becoming ambidextrous with your pipette to give your tendons a reset once in a while or even try different types of pipettes in one sitting to work different muscles and tendons. Remember the way you sit and operate in a Biological Safety Cabinet not only can have an effect on your wellbeing but could cause work mishaps when your concentrating more on a sharp pain than where you might be sticking a needle. 3 90° Seating Angle 90° knee Angle Foot Rest Straight Rists FOUR: CONTROL PANEL CHECK (OPTIMAL AIRFLOW/DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE AND ALARM RESPONSE) ON e INCHES W.C e OFF BLOWER LIGHT OULET WINDOW AIRFLOW ALARM CONTROL A. Personnel, product B. A majority of Biological C. A good idea would be to and enviromental protection are what a Biological Safty Cabinet provides. This is down through airflows, a motor and Safety Cabinets will feature some type of pressure or airflow monitor. Half of those Biological Safety Cabinets will have some type of alarm to notify you airflow is NOT optimal. Others will feature a mini or magehelic place this at the top of your standard operating procedure or even place a sticker (if allowed) around the monitor saying "CHECK ME PLEASE". HEPA filters. Ifa motor is not running properly or a HEPA filter has reached its maximum life a Biological Safety Cabinet can comprimise your thee protection areas and destroy your work or even worse if gauge to monitor pressure. These models do not feature an alarm so a daily safety check will have to be made before you CHECK ME PLEASE someone becomes sick. begin work. FIVE: CLEAR GRILLS (ESPECIALLY THE FRONT GRILL) A. DO NOT BLOCK THE FRONT GRILL.I repeat DO NOT BLOCK THE FRONT GRILL. The front grill creates an air barrier between the laboratory environment and the sterile work zone. Blocking the front grill with laboratory consumables or even your elbows/arms will cause a deficiency in the air curtain allowing the laboratory air to enter the work zone contaminating all your hard work or let containment work zone air to enter the laboratory environment that could lead to some very bad things. So again I repeat DO NOT BLOCK THE FRONT GRILL. NUARE wwW.NUAIRE.COM