Choosing the right type of refurbished laboratory freezer is a crucial decision and should be well thought through. If you’re looking to purchase a new or refurbished lab freezer here are some criteria you should consider.
Types of lab freezers:
- General purpose freezers. Laboratory freezers often resemble the freezers that many people have in their homes, but with upgraded features like auto-defrost and programmable alarms for research applications. Lab freezer interiors have customized shelves and storage compartments for samples.
- Undercounter freezers. These freezers are small and fit into the space allocated to them. They are suitable for labs with limited floor space.
- Ultralow temperature freezers. These specialized laboratory freezers can reach extremely low temperatures ranging from -40 °C to -86 °C. They are used for the long-term preservation of temperature-sensitive items such as biological specimens, enzymes, and other materials.
- Chest freezers. Chest freezers have a top opening instead of a front door. These are conventionally large pieces of storage equipment that offer ample storage space for animal research facilities. Chest freezers can be designed for -20°C, -86°C, and -180°C.
- Cryogenic freezers. Cryogenic freezers use liquid nitrogen or other cryogenic gases to achieve ultra-low temperatures, often below -150°C. They are essential for storing cells, tissues, and certain biological materials.
- Flammable material storage freezers and explosion proof freezers. Many people do not consider a freezer to be a safety hazard, but sparks from a fan, compressor, or internal light can ignite in the presence of oxygen or volatile chemicals. Freezers that are located in rooms with those substances should be spark-free or explosion-proof. Flammable storage freezers help protect your laboratory from unexpected fire hazards. These units are designed to house flammable materials, or to keep flammable materials away from something that might be quick to ignite.
Refurbished Laboratory freezers: Features to consider:
Lob Freezer Configuration and Function.
There are numerous sizes and configurations of laboratory freezers available, including undercounter, freestanding, double-wide, and chest freezer models. An initial consideration in choosing a freezer model is the amount of space available in the laboratory. Upright freezers occupy a smaller footprint, and it is easier to locate samples inside, but chest freezers retain cold air better and recover more quickly when opened. Freezers can also be configured for general purpose or specialized as for specimen freezers, vaccine freezers, enzyme freezers, blast-proof freezers, and so forth. Although a specialty freezer may be a very attractive option, a general-purpose freezer paired with custom containers may well be adequate for your laboratory’s needs.
Temperature Range.
Different applications and storage needs call for different temperature requirements. The nature of the work in the lab and the cooling needs of the samples/specimen involved determines this range. Having the correct temperature range for a laboratory or pharmacy freezer is very important. A biological lab will have a different need as compared to a pharmaceutical lab.
Ventilation requirements.
The lab area you’ll be placing the freezer in needs to have proper ventilation so the freezers can keep working efficiently. The ventilation requirement of freezers varies depending on their model type. You should always ask the manufacturer for more information regarding such conditions. When you’re placing the freezer, make sure the air inlet and outlet aren’t blocked by other items. In some instances, custom ventilation options are available for lab freezers to suit the conditions of your lab area.
Capacity.
The capacity of the lab freezer will dictate the number of samples you can safely store in it. Overfilling a freezer may cause damage to the samples and cause the risk of spillage and breakdowns. The freezer will also lose its cooling capability if it’s overloaded.
Footprint and exterior dimensions.
Before you finalize a freezer model, make sure that its dimensions can correctly fit in the lab as well as through the door. You’ll also have to consider the size dimensions when you’ll be transporting it to the lab. Check if the freezer is sufficient to fit in through the elevator and other entry points.
Auto vs. manual defrost.
Temperature stability is one of the most important features of a laboratory freezer. The choice of a manual or auto-defrost freezer will depend on the stability needs of the samples stored inside. In an autodefrost freezer, the coils are heated on a regular cycle, causing periodic temperature spikes. Keeping the freezer completely full can minimize the size of the spikes. An empty auto-defrost freezer can vary up and down by as much as 15 °C. If it is completely filled with samples, or even bottles of water, that variance can be reduced to as little as 3°. In a manual defrost freezer, refrigerant circulates inside the walls of the unit. This creates a stable temperature gradient with the coldest temperature close to the walls and less cold temperatures in the middle. A manual defrost freezer must be turned off for defrosting on a regular schedule. Laboratories that use them must therefore have a backup freezer for storage of contents during defrosting.
Energy consumption.
A single ultra-low temperature (ULT) lab freezer can use as much as 14,000 kWh of energy per year—that’s as much as an average family home. And that’s just one piece of equipment. An efficient product is cost-effective when the lifetime energy savings (from avoided energy costs over the life of the product, discounted to present value) exceed the additional up-front cost (if any) compared to a less efficient option.
Used and refurbished laboratory freezers
American Instrument Exchange consistently stocks various refurbished laboratory freezers from numerous manufacturers including Thermo Scientific, VWR, General Electric, Fisher Isotemp, and more. With savings of up to 60% off the cost of comparable new models, we can put a reliable used freezer in your lab at a competitive price.
And lower cost doesn’t mean lower quality: our technicians test freezers using calibrated digital chart recorders to verify the accuracy of temperature controls and readouts. We replace any hardware or parts as is necessary and clean all units thoroughly prior to shipment. We make sure that the compressors are working correctly and consistently and that the freezers can hold temperature even with an empty chamber. We also test and examine any additional features each model may have, such ashigh temp alarms, remote monitoring,chart recorders, and touchscreen displays, among others. We can provide customers with copies of the test records for each unit.