Also known as microbiological safety cabinet or biological safety cabinet, a biosafety cabinet is a critical, enclosed lab workspace that lets researchers do microbiological work or safely handle biohazardous and infectious agents. These cabinets don’t just protect the workers or researchers, they also keep the lab space protected from pathogens. Since biosafety cabinets are such an integral part of labs, it is essential we take into account certain key factors when purchasing them. What are those factors? Let’s find out.
Biosafety Cabinet Type
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines, biosafety cabinets have been categorized into three classes. In most biomedical and microbiological labs, you will find class II safety cabinets. Class I biosafety cabinets are popular too as they offer amazing protection to the user and the lab environment. However, these cabinets are not so effective when it comes to protecting the samples. Class III cabinets are best for dealing with high risk bio materials. If you’re working with samples that present low to moderate risk, you can consider using class II cabinets. Keep in mind that each biosafety cabinet has its own pros and cons. So, it’s best to properly consider your requirements before buying a biosafety cabinet.
Cabinet’s Size
As we all know, most labs do not have a lot of space. That is why it is important you seriously consider the size of the biosafety cabinet before buying it. We’ll advise you to get one that is big enough to help you do your work effectively and at the same time, does not occupy too much space of the lab. If space isn’t an issue in your lab, then by all means go for bigger biosafety cabinets.
Lab’s Modification Needs
We now know how essential biosafety cabinets are for labs. That is why it is important to assemble them properly and test them thoroughly. Once positioned in a lab, it is best not to modify them as modifications are known for affecting their normal functioning. If you ever need to modify a biosafety cabinet in order to meet your lab’s requirements, we will advise to you get a new cabinet instead of making changes to the existing cabinet.
Apart from these, do not forget to check a biosafety cabinet’s energy consumption, maintenance requirements, and customer reviews. Since these cabinets cost a considerable amount of money, it is advisable you take into account every key factor. Once you have considered the above-mentioned factors, you can visit Government Lab Enterprises online and check out our different types of biosafety cabinets from trusted brands. Although there are many used biosafety cabinets for sale available online, we will recommend you to only purchase new cabinets from reliable brands as they do not pose any type of risk to the user and the lab setting.