When I am cleaning in a lab before I do a sterile procedure, can you tell me the intricasies of the different cleaners...chlorine, hydrogen peroxide, alcohol, and an antibacterial such as Micro -Bac? and the best application for each?
2006-09-18 05:01:40 · 5 answers · asked by ? 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
Nothing seems to be better than bleach. Full strength will kill just about anything. A 10% solution is high effective for surfaces including lab bench tops, walls and floors.
Hydrogen peroxide has some problems due to reactivity. Alcohol solutions (isopropyl and ethanol) do not always kill viruses and fungal spores. Antibacterial agents are usually only effective against bacteria.
Depending upon the type of "sterile procedure" you want to perform, a plastic "gas bag" with built in gloves may be a suitable environment. Generally speaking, a general lab work bench is not a good place due to airborne contaminants. A closed hood comes in handy.
2006-09-18 05:06:52 · answer #1 · answered by Richard 7 · 70⤊ 0⤋
Alcohol is naturally a highly volatile (evaporates quickly) compound; this creates the problem of little contact time between the alcohol and the bacteria. Therefore, 100% alcohol will evaporate way too quickly for it to have sufficient contact time with the bacteria. Furthermore, 100% alcohol will coagulate all the proteins; preventing the alcohol from penetrating into the cell. To resolve this, alcohol is diluted to 70%, which slows down the rate of evaporation and dilutes its coagulating properties, which then allows more contact time for it to denature the proteins and dissolve the lipid membrane of the bacteria.
2016-03-27 07:39:28 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it all depends on the surfaces you're cleaning you don't want to clean metals with bleach, there are some very good antibacterials out there but 10%bleach is good for anything non corrosive and 70%ethanol is good for metal. This is for quick cleaning...autoclaving is absolutely a must for anything you want sterile.
2006-09-18 05:06:01 · answer #3 · answered by thetoly 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
10% bleach solution. It's what is recommended by OSHA, CDC and most state lab licensing agencies.
FYI: alcohol and peroxide do not kill germs, they simple clean.
2006-09-18 05:11:34 · answer #4 · answered by zbelle 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
70% ethanol works well for most applications.
2006-09-18 05:06:47 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋