How to Spot Early Signs of Equipment Failure in BSCs and Fume Hoods
You use your biosafety cabinets (BSCs) and fume hoods every day for countless tasks and important research. In order to keep work moving, you need to be assured that your lab equipment will be available when you need it. Here’s how to tell when you may need to seek the help of experts for biosafety cabinet certification or fume hood repair.
Why Routine Monitoring Matters
Your biosafety cabinets and fume hoods are essential lab equipment. They help to protect lab personnel, products, and research from contaminants and hazardous substances–it is absolutely vital that they are able to maintain proper airflow and containment. That said, like any other type of mechanical system, these pieces of lab equipment will experience wear and tear and so will require routine maintenance, biosafety cabinet certification, and fume hood repair to continue operating safely. The earlier you can spot an issue, the sooner it can be addressed, avoiding extensive repairs, unexpected downtime, and safety risks.
Regular monitoring of your lab equipment allows for early detection of key problems, which can help to improve equipment reliability. And when your facility is on top of equipment maintenance and inspections, this practice supports compliance with applicable standards and protocols.
Small performance issues can become major problems if left unaddressed. It’s best to keep on top of the state of your lab equipment and contact DigeLab Solutions for certification.
Signs It's Time for Preventive Maintenance
There are some key signs to keep an eye out for when operating your lab equipment that could point to a need for inspection and maintenance. Even if there are no obvious problems that stand out, preventive maintenance helps to identify problematic wear before it leads to equipment failure and lab equipment downtime.
These are some important general signs to look for when routinely inspecting your lab equipment:
- Reduced airflow
- Increased operating noise
- Repeated alarms
- Aging HEPA filters
- Visible wear
- Declining performance
- Delayed response to controls
Biological safety cabinets can give low pressure readings or you may notice sensor alarms going off. Listen for loud grinding or clicking sounds from the motor indicating that something is malfunctioning in the fan. The glass window of the sash may stick or fail to seal tight, and the UV or fluorescent lights could begin to flicker or burn out faster than normal. Laboratory fume hoods could start to manifest problems in the form of air velocity changes–watch for low flow monitors or a fluttering sash indicator. There may also be noticeable chemical odors escaping, loud vibrations or hums, or physical decay on various parts of the fume hood.
Grinding noises, rattling, squealing and excessive vibration could be signs of worn bearings, motor issues, a fan imbalance, or loose components. And if you’re dealing with frequent alarm activation, your lab equipment could be trying to alert you to problems like low or high airflow, improper filter loading, motor issues, sensor malfunctions or problems with sash positioning. Lab equipment won’t sound an alarm unless there is a problem–repeated alarms should never be ignored. Even if the equipment appears to be working, recurring alarms can indicate an issue that may not be obvious from a cursory inspection. Professional evaluation is always warranted if you find yourself with a biosafety cabinet or fume hood that is incessantly sounding alarms.
HEPA filters are essential to maintaining clean airflow, but if they are nearing the end of their usable life, they can begin to prompt lab equipment to give you potential warning signs. These could include failed integrity testing, increased airflow resistance, visible damage, or difficulty maintaining airflow specifications. Remember that as tempting as it may be to try DIY filter replacement, HEPA filters should only be replaced and tested by qualified professionals.
Beyond the digital alerts or measurable changes to air flow, there may simply be visible damage to the cabinet or fume hood that prompts a need for repair. Regular inspections will help you to ensure that rust or corrosion, a cracked viewing glass, or damaged work surfaces do not compromise your work and your workers. Loose hardware, bent panels and damaged seals or gaskets will negatively affect equipment performance and containment over time. Ignoring these signs of wear can also put technicians at risk. Whether you’re dealing with any of the above issues or electrical problems like flickering lights, intermittent shutdowns, faulty switches, display malfunctions or frequent breaker trips, your lab equipment should be evaluated promptly by qualified service personnel to diagnose and address the underlying issues at play.
Proper airflow is critical for both biosafety cabinets and fume hoods and necessary to ensure the safety of your staff and their work. So if you’re noticing weak airflow or if airflow alarms are regularly activating, you may be dealing with dirty or damaged filters, blower problems, blockages, or just simple mechanical wear from use.
Regardless of the cause of the problem, if lab equipment is not operating smoothly under normal conditions, it’s likely time to have lab equipment certification handled by professionals, like the team at DigeLab Solutions. Prompt inspection can help prevent further damage and get your lab back up and running as quickly as possible.
Lab Equipment Certification Issues
If a unit repeatedly fails certification or requires abnormally frequent adjustments to pass testing, this is a clear sign that there is likely an underlying mechanical issue. From aging components and blower wear to HEPA filter degradation, electrical problems or calibration issues, recurring certification failures should not just be treated as isolated events. Instead, they need to be investigated as signs of widespread problems that could lead to unit failure and so require corrective action.
In both biosafety cabinets and fume hoods, airflow disruptions pose a risk to both personnel and product protection. When air is not properly moved away from the subject and the technician, hazardous fumes and vapors cannot properly be captured. Changes in containment performance are therefore serious, and require immediate attention. Beyond concern of the safety of workers and their projects, your lab’s research and reputation are also at risk–needed inspections, repairs and lab equipment certifications should never be ignored.
How Often Should You Schedule Lab Equipment Certification?
To put it simply, annual certification isn't enough. While yearly lab equipment certification is essential, it may not be adequate for lab equipment that sees heavy use. Routine daily and weekly checks are a must to ensure that lab equipment is working properly and running smoothly. These routine visual inspections encourage staff to report unusual equipment behavior and enable you to schedule service promptly, as soon as warning signs appear. Getting to know the signs to look for and keeping up with continuous monitoring help to reduce unexpected failures, unplanned downtime, and extensive, costly repairs.
Lab Equipment Certification In New York and New Jersey
At DigeLab Solutions, our qualified technicians can inspect, clean, decontaminate, maintain and repair biosafety cabinets and fume hoods. They routinely diagnose mechanical and electrical issues, test airflow performance, replace HEPA filters and both calibrate and repair key systems. Once technicians perform certification testing, they provide documented proof of certification and can also offer preventive maintenance steps to take going forward. And while we urge every lab manager to insist on routine checks, nothing replaces professional service to ensure that equipment continues to perform safely and as intended, for as long as possible.
Biosafety cabinets and laboratory fume hoods are critical pieces of safety equipment, and even minor performance issues should never be overlooked. Routine inspections and prompt service can help to extend the life of your equipment while supporting safety and regulatory compliance. Every way you look at it, you win. And at DigeLab solutions, we know that you work on a tight schedule, so we’re always available to help. Contact us today to learn more about our services and schedule lab equipment certification.