Smart Notes—Work Smarter Now

Welcome to Smart Notes, a series that highlights applications and advancements of Thermo Scientific laboratory consumables and equipment.  From in-depth descriptions of our innovative design features to details about specific models and labware, Smart Notes provides you with a valuable ongoing resource for your lab.

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• I want to keep my samples at a temperature of 37°C. Which type of water bath is ideal for this requirement: general purpose, circulating or shaking?
• How do I select an energy efficient refrigerated bath circulator?
• How will the cost of purchasing and running a recirculating chiller or bath circulator affect my bottom line?
• I plan on using my bath circulator for external circulation only. Should I get a large reservoir that can absorb the heat for more stability? EN | ES | DE
• Does a larger fluid reservoir give me more cooling capacity and improved temperature stability? EN | ES | DE
• I want to use a bath circulator to immerse my vessels. How do I select the right size bath for my application? EN | ES | DE
• How do I ensure that my heated bath circulator will be able to control to that temperature rate?
• What steps can I take to ensure that my heated bath circulator can actually bring my application to setpoint temperature?

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• Which incubation parameters are most important for proper cell growth and expression?
• Why does the location of sensors in my CO₂ incubator affect responses from my cultured cells?
• Why is a circulating fan essential to superior growth conditions in a CO₂ cell culture incubator? EN | DE | FR
  
• Why is automated heat decontamination a better solution for sterilizing my CO₂ incubator than an automated chemical disinfection, such as in situ hydrogen peroxide vapor?
• How can using the wrong type of water to provide in-chamber humidity cause corrosion in my CO₂ incubator?

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• Why is a dual blower system better than a single blower system? EN | DE | FR
• Why are airflow alarms an important consideration for Biological Safety Cabinets? EN | DE | FR
• Why should you select a Class II Biological Safety Cabinet (BSC) with a DC motor over one with an AC motor? EN | DE | FR
• How can you extend the filter life of your BSC? EN | DE | FR

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• How does a low-binding culture surface compare to a non-treated surface in supporting cancer spheroid cultures?

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• How can I help improve safety in my laboratory when spinning pathogens or patient samples in swing-out rotors?
• How does Auto-Lock rotor exchange facilitate rotor placement and improve safety, compared with traditional rotor tie-down systems? EN | DE
• How can instant rotor identification enhance productivity and safety during your centrifuge set-up and run?
• How do carbon fiber rotors ensure greater sample integrity than metal rotors during the sample preparation process?
• How can blood banks eliminate potential variables to ensure consistent product yield and reproducibility in centrifugation?
• How can blood banking and bioprocessing production facilities enhance ergonomics, while simplifying operation for greater productivity during their separations?
• How is it possible to reduce energy consumption and environmental impact with production-level centrifuges?
• What technologies make it possible to reduce energy consumption and environmental impact with high performance floor model centrifuges?
• How does an engineered polymer rotor impact the operation and maintenance of a microcentrifuge?

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• Is my -80°C freezer designed to prepare samples for long-term storage?
• What do I need to consider when preparing samples in bags using a controlled-rate freezer?
• Is there a safer way to store potentially flammable, pharmaceutical-grade materials that require refrigerated or frozen temperatures?
• How can a water-cooled condenser option significantly reduce energy consumption and heat output without compromising sample protection?
• What kind of storage tube should I use to prevent the breakdown of RNA in tissue during cold storage?
• I need an ultra-low freezer to store my samples. Does the initial pull down time of a freezer indicate how well the unit can protect my samples after a door opening?
• I’ve heard that switching to −70°C for ultra-low freezers can reduce energy, but is that safe for my sample?
• Is the use of hydrocarbon refrigerants in laboratory refrigerators and freezers safe?
• I’m hearing a lot about SNAP in my lab. What is SNAP?

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• Does laboratory filtration of culture media affect cell growth?

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• How can plastic labware improve your lab safety program?

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• Should the pH level of dispensed ultrapure water be a neutral 7.0?
• When I check the purity of ultrapure water in a beaker, it does not match the purity on the water system display. Is there a problem with  my water system?
• How do I comply with the updated USP 791 requirements for pH measurements?
• How do you account for temperature differences when measuring water conductivity?
• What are the top mistakes when measuring conductivity in liquids?
• Can dissolved oxygen levels be measured at high altitudes?

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• How can I prevent potential material contamination during fluid transfer operations?
• Is there an easier and more efficient way to transfer liquids between various labware formats, than using traditional handheld pipettes?
• Do the tip attachment and ejection force vary significantly among different adjustable tip spacing pipette brands?

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• How does dual convection airflow technology help maximize application flexibility in a microbiological incubator?
  

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• How can built-in smart safety controls help avoid errors in microplate assay experiments?
• Why should my microplate reader include gas control?
• How will automatic dynamic range selection ease workflow and improve the outcome of my microplate assays?

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• Is there an easy and efficient way to purify high-quality DNA from fish tissue?
• How can barcode readers help increase reliability in sample purification?

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• What is an inexpensive way to maximize capacity in an orbital shaker when minimal bench space is available?
• How does a CO₂ resistant shaker provide greater reliability, flexibility and ease of use for varied cell culture applications, compared to a dedicated incubated CO₂ shaker?

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• Why is a low metal content within the plastic walls of High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) storage bottles important?
  

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• Why is Teflon an excellent material for bottles storing high-value contents such as active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), bulk intermediates and critical reagents?
• Why should I store my active pharmaceutical intermediate (API), bulk drug product and other critical reagents in a polycarbonate container versus a glass container?
• Why do carboys and jerricans turn yellow over time after repeated use?
• How can I prevent potential material contamination during fluid transfer operations?

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• Should the pH level of dispensed ultrapure water be a neutral 7.0?
• When I check the purity of ultrapure water in a beaker, it does not match the purity on the water system display. Is there a problem with  my water system?
• Why is UV intensity monitoring important for ultrapure water?
• Why should secondary schools and colleges choose stills over traditional water purification systems?

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