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CHAPTER 7 – Maintenance
7.1 Cleaning and Disinfecting
Biological Agents and Hazardous Chemicals
For most biological agents, use a 10% bleach solution (dilute with water) followed immediately
by a 70% ethanol solution (dilute with water) to disinfect the surface or the wells. Complete with
a water cleanse.
Bleach is corrosive to the Open qPCR body. It is important that you follow the
10% bleach solution immediately (no longer than 30 seconds) with a 70%
ethanol solution.
Always power down the instrument and disconnect the power cord before
performing cleaning or maintenance procedures.
Important Cleaning Procedure Notes:
o
Do not flood the instrument with the cleansing solution
o
Do not spray the cleaning agent directly onto the instrument as this could damage
internal components
o
Spray the cleaning agent on low-lint cloth or paper towel and gently wipe down all
surfaces
o
To clean the wells of the PCR instrument, use a low-lint cotton swab dipped in 70%
ethanol
Avoid using bleach if possible. This is corrosive and may damage the
instrument. If bleach is necessary, dilute the stock 1:10 for a 10% working bleach
solution. Follow the bleach cleanse immediately with a post-water wipe down. Do not let
the bleach solution dry or sit on the instrument for more than 30 seconds.
Do not allow ethanol, bleach, or water to seep into any openings on the
machine as this will damage the optics and may contribute to adverse run
performance.
