How to Choose the Right Serological Pipette - Our Guide to Serological Pipettes
If you search online looking for serological pipettes, you will find a wide range of both products and suppliers. This can make it difficult to determine which serological pipettes best meet your needs, and many laboratories then simply look at the pricing model instead. But is the cheapest option always the best option?
How to work out which serological pipette you need then. There are a few pointers for you to consider. We recommend that you first determine your usage, then look at the volumes and type of liquids you will be transferring, and always determine the pipette with the smallest volume that can handle your requirements.
Most laboratories are working to clear guidelines – whether Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) or Good Clinical Practice (GCP) – and this means that clear identifiers are required.
WHY USE SEROLOGICAL PIPETTES?
When you are transferring small volumes of liquids between different containers, you need to ensure a high level of accuracy while reducing the risk of spillage. Serological pipettes are best used is when you are working with millilitres (ml) as opposed to microlitres (ul) of liquids. They are useful for simple, transferring of solutions or working with reagents of varying concentrations to ensure a higher level of accuracy. When accuracy below 1ml (1000ul) is required, a micro-pipettor with filter tips is generally preferred.
TYPE
There are a number of options for pipettes that depend on your preferences. The most common format is plastic, sterile and individually wrapped or in bulk packs of 25 or 50. They are also available in glass which provides a reusable option. Glass can be clean and resterilised multiple times by autoclaving and even rendered endotoxin/pyrogen free in a dry heat oven if required. Most can be used with ease with all commercially available manual or motorised pipette controllers and pipetting aids.
VOLUME ACCURACY
Serological pipettes are as accurate as the smallest increment which varies depending on the size of the pipette – this can be from 0,01ml on smaller volume options to 1ml on the bigger sizes. If you need a more accurate tool, then you should consider a micro-pipette with filter tips.
ASCENDING OR DESCENDING GRADUATION
Serological pipettes are optically optimized to increase accuracy with a clear ascending and descending graduation. This makes many activities easier e.g. aliquoting similar volumes into multiple tubes as you can read measurements ascending and descending.
AEROSOL BARRIER AND FITTED PLUG
If you want to prevent overfill, protect your pipetting system, or avoid sample cross contamination, select your pipette equipped with a plug. This will ensure that you don’t contaminate your sample.
ERGONOMIC DESIGN
The design of your serological pipette can reduce the impact on the wrists, shoulders and elbows and reduce injuries such as RSI. Paying attention to the procedure itself using a lightweight pipette that fits well within the hand is also a key consideration. There are also short versions available in some sizes for areas with space restrictions and wider orifice versions for more viscous fluids.
COLOUR-CODED
Pipettes should be colour-coded to ensure the correct pipette is easily identified. Remember that serological pipettes should meet ASTM E1380 standards!
HYGIENE
Pipettes should be individually packaged for sterility. They should be RNase-free, DNase-free and non-pyrogenic for PCR applications and non-cytotoxic for cell-biology or medical preparation applications.
UNIVERSAL FIT
All serological pipettes are designed to fit both manual and motorized pipette controllers and Pipet-Aids. This universal fit ensures that you will always be able to work with precision and speed.
WHY CHOOSE STERILAB FOR YOUR SEROLOGICAL PIPETTES?
There are many suppliers of Laboratory products and serological pipettes, but can you guarantee a good service and products that are available when you need them? Our ambitious customer service targets include giving our customers the information and products they need as soon as they are needed.
Our extensive range of serological pipettes are an essential addition to any lab and available in 7 different volumes. They are also manufactured to meet international standards, including the requirement for colour-coded tips.
We pride ourselves on that fact that our supply chain is as consistently reliable as our team and we have spent considerable time looking at our products and suppliers to ensure that they meet and exceed requirements and expectations.
Sterilab serological pipettes include features such as:
· Lot number printed on packaging for tracking.
· RNase-free, DNase-free and non-pyrogenic — sterilised by gamma irradiation/electron beam
· For use with all regular pipette controllers.
· Volumes from 1ml -100ml.
· Uses: cell-culture, molecular biology and microbiology applications.