A plain-English guide to steam sterilization in the lab: cycles, loading, verification and sizing, with a pre-run safety checklist and a chamber size estimator.
Tick each item before you start a cycle. Nothing leaves your browser.
A rough guide for matching a chamber to your load. Spacing matters because steam must reach every item. Nothing leaves your browser.
A common cycle is about 121 degrees Celsius at roughly 15 psi for at least 15 to 30 minutes, depending on the load. Follow your manufacturer and your validated procedure.
Flammable or volatile solvents, bleach, plastics that melt, sealed containers and radioactive or hazardous chemicals unless a protocol allows it.
Use chemical indicators on every load and biological indicators where your rules require them, and keep cycle records.
Pressure drops quickly at the end of a normal cycle, which can make hot liquids boil over. A liquid cycle exhausts slowly.
Estimate your typical load in litres, add room for steam flow, and consider how many loads you run each day.
Steam, pressure and time: how autoclaves sterilize and what happens in a cycle.
Safe materials, forbidden materials and how to prepare liquids, bags and glassware.
Chamber size, type, utilities and upkeep: what to weigh before you buy.
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