Don't be left out in the cold

We are giving a Laboratory News salute to all those things in the life of a scientist that are taken for granted - this month, the lab fridge freezer. Many a sample would be ruined without them, but do you give them the attention they need?

As tempting as it is to pop down to your local electrical goods store - Matt Newsome looks at the importance of using fridges and freezers built especially for laboratory use

FRIDGES and freezers are an essential piece of laboratory equipment, yet little thought is given to the devices often found in the corner of the room or under the bench. They work for 24 hours a day, seven days a week, storing samples, volatile liquids, reagents, chemicals and poisons in the optimum cold environmental conditions. But how can scientists be confident the fridge or freezer is storing its contents at the right temperatures and what happens if it fails?

With pressure to reduce operational costs scientists would be mistaken in thinking they can achieve this through purchasing a simple domestic appliance. Fridges and freezers built to store food aren’t designed with scientists’ requirements in mind and the performance will, more often than not, be inadequate. If the temperature at which you store your samples is important then the performance of a domestic appliance may not be good enough and you risk jeopardising the quality of your samples and chemicals. The value of the samples being stored in a laboratory is high, often exceeding the cost of the fridge or freezer itself, and if contents are spoilt, wastage will be extremely costly.

Scientists can make further cost savings which are associated with the running of the fridge and freezer through taking a number of steps to ensure it is working efficiently, therefore using less energy and also helping to reduce their carbon footprint.

Using the correct equipment especially designed for laboratory cold storage is key to maintaining integrity of samples and using equipment for proper storage enables scientists to achieve the best cold environments for their samples which are so vital to research and testing.

Fridges built especially for scientific markets are designed to maintain an internal temperature between +2°C and +10°C and freezers will maintain an internal temperature as low as -25°C. Scientific fridges and freezers are purpose built with many important features that are not found in general domestic fridges and freezers to ensure they stay at a constant temperature. These key features include:

Temperature alarms

Occasionally a fridge or freezer’s temperature may stray outside its set parameters. Scientists need to be alerted when this happens and many scientific fridges and freezers feature an audio/visual alarm system which activates in these circumstances. For example, if the temperature rises above or below the specified temperature then the user will be alerted and they can then take the appropriate action to make sure the fridge or freezer is working correctly and the temperature is correct.

Temperature displays

Scientific fridges and freezers feature external LED digital temperature displays and control panels, which make it easy for the user to monitor the internal temperature, without having to open the door. By not opening the door users are further maintaining the internal temperature.

Spark free

Fridges and freezers built for use in a laboratory are spark-free to reduce the risk of an internal explosion. This is essential when you are storing volatile liquids.

Security

In addition to temperature, protecting stock from unauthorised access is essential in ensuring safety of products. Scientific fridges and freezers should be fully lockable to ensure the content remains secure and that only authorised individuals are able to access the contents.  

Having chosen a fridge or freezer fit for laboratory use there are various elements to consider when installing and maintaining it to make sure it runs as efficiently as possible.

Environment

Fridges and freezers generate heat in operation and also eject heat from the main chamber to the surrounding atmosphere. Therefore, they should be properly ventilated and not be placed near radiators or other heat sources which could affect their working and thus use more energy.

There should be adequate space around the fridge or freezer for air to circulate and it should not be installed right up against a wall, heating pipes, ducts or in direct sunlight, all of which will adversely affect their performance. A good ambient temperature is vital to ensure the fridge or freezer isn’t over working to maintain the internal temperature.

Airflow and shelving

Don’t pack the fridge or freezer too tightly as good internal airflow is essential for maintaining a constant temperature throughout. Overstocking fridges can lead to poor airflow in the fridge and potential freezing.

Housekeeping

Keeping a fridge free from any frost and a freezer free from a build up of excessive ice is essential to maintaining their efficiencies. Any extra ice build up reduces the effectiveness of the fridge and freezer and the system has to work harder to maintain the set temperature, using more energy in doing so. While many fridges built for laboratory use feature an automatic defrost, regular checks should be carried out and freezers should be defrosted every six to eight weeks for optimum performance.

Another important factor when purchasing a fridge or freezer is the length of warranty and quality of after service. Are you getting the best value for money?

Scientists should purchase fridges and freezers with a warranty, which gives peace of mind and reassurance that they are effective for long periods of time. Some fridges and freezers in the market, such as those from Lec Medical have a two year parts and labour warranty. Customers have access to the company’s large network of service engineers from and an award-winning customer care centre, so that in the unlikely event of a problem, they are assured of a high level of support, giving fast and knowledgeable backup.

It is clear to see that fridges and freezers are an important piece of equipment in the laboratory and if they should fail by not storing contents at the correct temperature, the resulting waste can be costly. The losses can be far higher than the cost of initial investment in a fridge or freezer which is designed especially for use in a laboratory.

The requirements of laboratory fridges and freezers are more stringent than for domestic use and they have many key features such as temperature alarms and lockable doors. These are important for helping scientists maintain the best cold environments for their samples which are so vital to research and testing.

Lec Medical, one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of laboratory refrigeration has an extensive range of energy efficient laboratory products. There are 12 models in the range of refrigerators, freezers and fridge freezers which all provide safe and reliable storage of volatile liquids, reagents, chemicals, poisons and samples.  

Customers can choose from a wide selection of product to best suit their needs, from the small countertop LR207 and ISU27 models to the larger freestanding LR907 and ISU97 fridges and freezers. Each freezer is also available with a matching fridge for aesthetic benefits. All Lec Medical models use energy efficient refrigerants and high specification insulation so customers can make cost savings from reduced energy bills.