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Lab Armor Support |
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1. Is Bath Armor packaged as ready-for-use? Yes, Bath Armor arrives in a sealed container ready to add to your thermal instrument.
2. How much Bath Armor do I need? Can try the 200 ml Test Drive in my water bath? Unlike water, Bath Armor™ doesn't evaporate and therefore helps protect against instrument overheating and burnout. But, like water, it is important to add a sufficient volume to your bath to ensure safe operation. An insufficient volume can cause inaccurate thermostat readings, which can result in continuous heating of the bath. Most water baths operate properly when filled to 1/2 to 3/4 full. Use the Bath Armor™ calculator to help you determine the optimal volume for your water bath.
3. How long can I use Bath Armor under normal conditions? Under normal conditions, Bath Armor should last the life of the water bath. If used incorrectly, the surfaces of Bath Armor beads can become damaged, resulting in a loss of fluidity of the bath, but not in thermal performance. We recommend that you avoid strong detergents, acids and bases. Bleach, for instance, may oxidize the surface of the Bath Armor reducing its fluidity and overall performance.
4. Can I autoclave Bath Armor? We recommend that you avoid autoclaving Bath Armor, unless you autoclave in a sealed, moisture-proof container. The high temperature steam can oxidize the surface of the Bath Armor reducing its fluidity and overall performance. Should you need to autoclave, please check back with us. We will soon provide compatible autoclave containers.
5. Does the Spray Armor contain any flamables such as alcohol? No, Armor products are made of noncombustable, nonvolatile components.
6. Can the Bath Armor be used in a standard heat block? Yes, Bath Armor is compatible with all standard heat blocks. You will no longer need to buy a new aluminum block when a vessel doesn't fit.
7. What if something is spilled into the Bath Armor? Bath Armor may be washed with dish detergent and water, then sprayed with either Quick Silver Spray Armor or another non-oxidizing disinfectant if necessary. Most importantly, be sure to completely dry the Bath Armor before adding back to the water bath, because a combination of heat and water can tarnish the beads. You can use a mesh strainer to wash and dry. A nylon <1/4" mesh bag works well, such as a camping stuff sack that you can find at a camping supply store. See question 11 for more details.
8. Do I need to use the water bath instument cover with Bath Armor ? Yes, it is best practice to use the cover whenever possible. The cover allows maximum temperature range and helps maintain better temperature uniformity. In general, without the cover in place, the surface of the Bath Armor beads will be slightly cooler due to the movement of cooler air over the bath.
9. Do temperature gradients exist in a water bath? Yes, all water baths have hot spots and temperature gradients. The extent of the gradient depends on the design of the water bath. In some baths, for instance, the heating element is small or is not centrally located. In others, the heating element expands the entire surface of the bath providing a more uniform heating capacity. Bath Armor performs like water and the temperature gradient is very similar as well, usually +/- 2.5ºC. One advantage of Bath Armor is that a sample vessel can be completely submerged in the beads, eliminating exposure to surrounding air temperature.
10. Is my water bath compatible with Bath Armor? Bath Armor can be used with just about any water bath. But, as mentioned in question 9, like water, the performance of the thermal media depends on the design of the bath and the location of the heating element. With water, for example, "hot spots" occur in areas of proximity to the heating element. Some elements are exposed on the bottom of the bath and others are recessed. Some baths are deep and others are shallow. In a bath with the element located in the center, water and Bath Armor generally produce a temperature gradient of +/- 0.25 -0.75 ºC per inch in all directions from the middle of the bath. So, depending on the size and location of the element, as well as the dimensions of your bath you can gauge the performance of Bath Armor in your bath.
11. How do I keep Bath Armor shiny and fluid? Normal amounts of precipitation on refrigerated bottles and vials are NOT harmful. However, avoid exposure to a combination of heat and water or reactive chemicals that oxidized the surface of the Bath Armor beads. Chemically accelerated oxidation reduces Bath Armor's shine and more importantly, it's fluidity. In general, Bath Armor can last for many years if kept relatively dry and clean. It can even out-live your water bath.
12. Is Bath Armor compatible with every bath despite different heating and cooling systems? Water baths from several major US manufacturers, including the Thermo Fisher & VWR baths have been tested with Bath Armor beads. Data shows that most baths are compatible, no matter their age. An exposed or recessed thermocouple does not seem to affect the performance of the Bath Armor. However, the location and configuration of the heating element can make a difference in heating uniformity. Most of the water bath design problems affecting Bath Armor performance, also affect the thermal performance of water. Circulating water baths are incompatible Bath Armor.
13. How does Bath Armor perform under high or low temperatures? Bath Armor has been tested using various water bath models at a range of temperatures. In most baths, the further the set temperature is from ambient temperature, there is an increase in the thermal gradient of the Bath Armor farthest away from the thermal source. This means that at an operating temperature of 37ºC to 42ºC, the thermal gradient in a water bath is typically +/-1-3ºC, whereas at 55-65ºC it is closer to +/-3-8ºC depending on the design of the bath and the amount of Bath Armor used. Reduce the temperature gradient by reducing the depth of the Bath Armor. To help reduce this gradient when using Bath Armor at higher temperatures, a reduced volume of Bath Armor can be used. For example, in a bath set at 65 ºC, the temperature gradient can be reduced by 2-3 fold by using only a 3-inch depth of Bath Armor instead of 6-inch depth. For the most part, high temperature applications use microfuge tubes and other small vessels, so reducing the overall volume of Bath Armor is very practical.
14. Are there ways to speed up the heating process with Bath Armor? Bath Armor warms 1.25-2.5X slower than water, depending on the volume of the vessel. But, there are ways to compensate for this:
For example, to raise the temperature of a typical 500 ml bottle of cell culture media from 4ºC to approximately 37ºC in 30 minutes, traditionally, a 37ºC water bath is used. To accomplish the same results using Bath Armor, the bottle can be submerged in 50ºC Bath Armor for the same 30 minutes, then pulled out and placed onto the surface of Bath Armor. The Bottle of media will remain at 37ºC +/- 2ºC for up to 6 hours until use. A dual tank bath can facilitate quick warming and thawing using Bath Armor. One tank can be set to 37ºC while the other is set to 50-65ºC. This way large frozen bottles can be thawed quickly while not interrupting 37 degree incubations. Visit the LabStore to check out the dual tank Thaw Bath.
15. Besides keeping the bath cleaner, how does Bath Armor protect samples better than water?
16. Is an air-jacketed water bath compatible with Bath Armor Beads? In general, air-jacketed baths provide better overall heat distribution and temperature gradients. The air jacket that surrounds the tub portion of the bath allows the heated air generated by the heat element at the base of the tub to also warm the walls of the tub. Since bead baths primarily rely on heat conduction (heat transfer by contact), baths with heated walls transfer heat to the beads from 4 directions. Baths without air jackets less efficiently heat the beads from the bottom only. There is another potential design problem with some non-air-jacketed baths. If the bath's heating element is not recessed below the tub, but it is instead fixed to the tub by metal-to-metal contact, the base of the bath can become very hot in areas where contact is made. This produces hot spots on the bottom, which results in uneven gradients in the bath. Small sized heating elements that only cover a small portion of the base of the tub makes this problem worse. Such baths produce hot spots even when water is used. If you are experiencing problems with your non-air-jacketed bath, as an alternative to buying a new bath, simply add a container of beads to your laboratory oven or incubator. A container such as a stainless steel pan with 3-4" walls can be filled with beads and placed into the heating unit. The container of beads will work great with a minimal gradient. Such a container can be added to a standard incubation oven, a cell culture incubator, or a refrigerator for cold incubations.
17. Can Bath Armor beads be used for an ice bath without the Chill Bucket or other parts? There are a number of different ways to use Bath Armor Beads. Many customers place containers of beads in their refrigerators, incubators and ovens. When creating an ice bath, one goal is to keep the beads dry. So its a good idea to separate the beads from the ice packs, which accumulate condensation. We recommend using some kind of mesh wire or fabric. Also, any condensation that builds on the surface of the beads will be able to drip through the mesh. Its important to keep the beads from soaking in water for extended periods of time. Besides attracting contamination, excessive water contact will tarnish the surface of the beads and reduce the fluidity of the bath. Also, as an alternative to ice packs, dry ice can be used to make a colder bath (<0 ºC).
Do you have a question not found in this website? |
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