At some point, all instruments used in a laboratory or veterinary setting will need to be sterilized. These instruments can include tongs, racks, scalpels, safety equipment, etc. Our custom autoclaves can sterilize all of these instruments to whatever specifications are required by your application, including scenarios in which instruments are wrapped prior to sterilization, which is common for veterinary lab use.
The purpose of wrapping or packaging instruments prior to sterilization is to maintain sterility after the autoclave process is complete. However, sterilizing wrapped instruments can be difficult depending on the packaging material. For example, some packaging may block sterilization from reaching the instruments. Some materials may melt or burn. Thicker cloths can also absorb too much steam, preventing the instrument from being fully sterilized. To prevent these issues from disrupting the sterilization, it is important to have the appropriate material wrapping for the specific type of laboratory instrument. Proper wrapping materials include, perforated cassettes, cloth, autoclavable paper or plastic peel packages, container systems, and other surgical instrument wrappings found in veterinary labs.
In some instances, laboratory instruments would be sterilized unwrapped. These items are usually ones that are too large to wrap such as apparatus or metal cages used in laboratory experiments. The time and process of sterilization will fluctuate depending on whether these instruments are wrapped or unwrapped.
Many autoclaves feature a two-step process for instruments sterilization and drying. Our laboratory grade sterilizers combine the two, helping to prevent recontamination through the handling of wet instruments post-sterilization. Instead of the traditional steam jacket method, we utilize a post-cycle vacuum drying cycle which removes all of the residual moisture from the load.
Our sterilizers are all laboratory-grade and can be created to any desired specification with many customizable features to fit all instrument needs. These features can include load sensed process timing, pulsed free-steaming, combined pre-cycle vacuum, and vacuum cooling. Finding which one is right for you will depend on volume, capacity, speed, and space. Here are a few we recommend:
- Benchtop autoclaves are the perfect solution for sterilizing instruments such as safety equipment, funnels, droppers, etc. They are easy to use and offer fully featured programmable control systems.
- Our pass-through autoclaves are a bit more advanced with added safety features such as door interlocks, which prevent potential for laboratory standards to be compromised. Every double-ended autoclave provides a sterile path in and out of sealed laboratories. They are used in universities, mobile military facilities, BSL-3 containment suites, and research labs.
- Our front-loading autoclaves are the top sellers for good reason. In a modern laboratory setting, these autoclaves are ideal for lab ware like tall flasks. Like all of our autoclaves, they feature our proprietary Tactrol Programmable Control System that allows for automatic steam sterilization with precision custom cycles and one-touch simplicity.
Priorclave has a team of seasoned experts ready to guide your autoclave decision if you are unsure about your specific needs. For example, if you are uncertain about whether your lab would benefit from an autoclave which loads from the top or one that loads from the front, or selecting the appropriate size for your load of laboratory instruments, we are here to help.