Cautions and Maintenance of Biological Safety Cabinet

The biological safety cabinet is the most important first-level protective barrier. Its main function is to protect the experimental samples from external contamination, protect the operators from pathogenic microorganisms, and protect the atmospheric environment. It is vital to ensure the cleanliness and hygiene of the biological safety cabinet, so it should be used with caution and careful maintenance.

Vigilance is important when using a biological safety cabinet, caution must be taken seriously by the end user. What care and attention should be followed by end users?

⚠️ Caution when turning on cabinet

1. Put the materials, small instruments and equipment used in the experiment in the biological safety cabinet in advance, confirm that the UV lamp is turned off. Start the fan system and open the front window, and keep the fan working for 3 minutes.

2. Do not use biological safety cabinets to store samples or small experimental equipment in case of affecting the airflow or the emission of contaminated gases; do not allow objects to block the front and rear air inlets.

3. Do not use toxic, volatile or flammable samples in the biological safety cabinet, and permission of professional management personnel must be obtained if it is necessary to use such samples.

4. When opening lids in the biological safety cabinet, such as the lid of test tubes, glass bottles, etc., the bottle body should be appropriately tilted to avoid vertical airflow, which can cause turbulence in the bottle and lead to aerosol hazards. After the operation is completed, cover the lid as soon as possible.

5. When loading or placing experimental materials, try to avoid operating back and forth between the contaminated area and the uncontaminated area. Cross-contamination can be avoided by dividing the operating table into different sections.

⚠️ Cautions for operation

1. The operator should be as close as possible to the back of the operating area and keep at least 150mm distance from the rear air inlet. Put unused empty test tubes or reagent bottles into the medical collection bag immediately.

2. The operation movement in the biological safety cabinet should be slow and controlled. The rapid and wide-range arm movement may interfere with the airflow barrier and lead to the leakage of contaminated gas.

3. Once liquid leakage occurs, cover the leaked liquid with an absorbent sponge or towel, and then soak it with 10% bleach or other industry approved disinfectants. Thoroughly clean the contaminated area (including small instruments) with an appropriate industry approved disinfectant. After waiting for 10-15 minutes, disinfect with formaldehyde or hydrogen peroxide if there is a contaminated hard-to-reach areas.

4. When the front window is closed, the fan should be turned off to prevent overheating.

5. Operate a biosafety cabinet carefully and be alert to any alarm condition on the biosafety cabinets. Manually close the operating shield and consult with local service provider for technical support if any alarm is triggered.

6. Do not place too many objects in the working area. When too many objects are placed in the working area, the work platform can be deformed, and the negative air pressure and airflow direction can be affected.

7. To ensure the safety of test samples, laboratory environment, and laboratory operators, operators must be professionally trained before using a biosafety cabinet to understand the cabinet features, functions and maintenance requirements. Operators should wear an approved lab coat before conducting an experiment. When conducting a high-risk test in a biosafety cabinet, one should wear an isolating laboratory coat with long sleeves and two pairs of gloves. The sleeves should be tucked inside the gloves to prevent any skin from exposure to the test environment inside the cabinet.

⚠️ Cautions for shutdown

To ensure safety and cleanliness, it is recommended to keep the biological safety cabinet working continuously. If the operator needs to close the safety cabinet after finishing the work, it is recommended to comply the following operations:

1. Keep the fan running for 3 minutes to remove the contaminated gas that may remain in the working area of the safety cabinet. Contaminated waste should be collected in medical waste bags or containers (if double-layer gloves are worn, the outer layer should be removed for collection), and the waste bags or containers should be sealed and treated with appropriate post-treatment methods (general waste requires high-pressure sterilization treatment).

2. After the experiment, the surface of the experimental materials or small instruments should be disinfected and then removed from the safety cabinet, and 75% ethanol (or other industry approved applicable disinfectants) should be used on the work surface, sidewalls, rear wall and inner glass surface of the safety cabinet to perform thorough surface disinfection.

3. Take off the lab coat and gloves, and thoroughly wash your hands with sterilizing soap or hand sanitizer. Turn off the fan, close the front window, and turn on the UV lamp for disinfection (usually 30 minutes).

How should the biological safety cabinet be maintained?

🦠 Routine disinfection

Routine disinfection means that the operator promptly disinfects the inner surface of the working area of the safety cabinet after completing the experiment. The primary technical means is UV light irradiation. In a few cases, chemical reagent residues that cannot be removed by UV light disinfection should be wiped, and purified water can be used to remove residues if necessary.

🧽 Regular cleaning

Regular cleaning refers to the periodical cleaning of the key parts of the biological safety cabinet to maintain a clean environment and surfaces. It mainly includes the cleaning of the UV lamp and the cleaning of the negative pressure areas.

In addition, the sump should be cleaned and disinfected weekly, the outer surface of the safety cabinet should be wiped monthly, all stainless-steel surfaces should be cleaned quarterly, and the safety cabinet should be maintained and inspected annually.

🔖 Periodical confirmation

The YY0569 standard is the industry standard for biological safety cabinets and the only testing standard  for these type of units. Therefore, users should periodically check the biological safety cabinet following this industry set standard to ensure that the status is safe and reliable.

In accordance with international biosafety standards for a biological laboratory, a biosafety cabinet must be re-certified once it is relocated or repaired. It also needs to be re-certified after its filter is replaced. Under normal circumstances, a unit must be certified annually.