Cleaning laboratory supplies is a science in its own right. Every lab is outfitted with accessories in shapes and sizes of every kind and almost every material type. So, when it comes to cleaning these lab supplies, it can be hard to find a cleaning device that will accommodate most of your supplies. This is where having an ultrasonic cleaner in the lab can be helpful. Find out why your laboratory needs an ultrasonic cleaner, as well as some of the device’s benefits that might just convince you to add one to the team.
What Is an Ultrasonic Cleaner?
To understand why you need this product, you must first understand what an ultrasonic cleaner is. An ultrasonic cleaner is a device that utilizes high-frequency sound waves to agitate a cleaning liquid and scrub laboratory equipment. These high-frequency waves transmit through the solution and cause cavitation. Wondering what cavitation is? Think of cavitation as tiny bubbles that form on the surface of the tool and then implode. The force of the cavitation process causes contaminants on the surface of the lab tool to dislodge, cleaning the tool through these microscopic bubble implosions. Most ultrasonic cleaners work at a frequency of 40 kHz and can clean a variety of materials and tools.
What Can You Clean With an Ultrasonic Cleaner?
The ultrasonic cleaning process is compatible with various tools and materials. You can utilize ultrasonic cleaning on materials such as metal, glass, ceramics, hard plastics, and even rubber. These materials are used commonly in laboratories, but other industries with intricate parts made from these materials can also benefit, such as the medical, dental, automotive, aerospace, and electronics industries, among others. As for what contaminants ultrasonic cleaners target, many of these industries use these devices to remove dust, dirt, oils, fingerprints, and more from wear and tear along with more industrial materials like lubricants, grease, polishing materials, and more.
Laboratory Benefits of Ultrasonic Cleaning
Now that you understand the basics of how the ultrasonic cleaner operates and its uses, it’s time to dive into what makes them so useful. You may be wondering why a laboratory or other field would choose an ultrasonic cleaner over another type of cleaning device. Keep reading to discover some of the major benefits of using an ultrasonic cleaner and why so many laboratories and other spaces choose them over other options.
Effective Contaminate Removal
Ultrasonic cavitation methods are extremely thorough at removing contaminants. First, the bubbles that this process produces are on the microscopic level, which means that they can cover the surface area of a part that needs cleaning very tightly. This allows ultrasonic cleaning methods to handle some of the most intricate automotive and medical parts. If your laboratory works with small parts that have small holes or nooks and crannies that the average washer can’t reach, an ultrasonic cleaner may be the solution.
Gentle on Delicate Tools
While the process of high frequency waves imploding through solution may sound intense, the cleaning process is very gentle on the parts themselves. You can trust an ultrasonic cleaner with your fragile tools and parts, such as glass and other delicate items. In fact, ultrasonic cleaning is even employed on small electrical pieces such as microchips and circuit boards due to its gentle yet accurate touch.
Saves Time
If your laboratory runs countless experiments each day and is constantly cycling through equipment and accessories like test tubes, funnels, and beakers for your short path distillation systems and more, an ultrasonic cleaner would be a great resource. This cleaning method is more efficient and faster than many other traditional cleaning systems. Because it relies on high-frequency waves that can be emitted every second, your cleaning times will be shorter than ever. This means you can get back to your experiments faster and you won’t need to waste your budget on backup equipment.
Environmentally Responsible
If you strive to have as “green” and eco-friendly a laboratory as possible, the ultrasonic cleaner is a great investment. This method of cleaning has a low power consumption compared to some of its counterparts that use a variety of motors. An ultrasonic cleaner uses one small motor to filter its cleaning solution and that’s it—no extra motors for pumping, spraying, capturing, steaming, and more like many other cleaning machines. Additionally, the detergents and solutions that many ultrasonic cleaners use are environmentally friendly. Because these units spend less time cleaning, this also leads to less electricity use. Overall, ultrasonic cleaners are an environmentally responsible choice for your lab.
Flexibility for Various Jobs
As mentioned, the ultrasonic cleaner fits into a variety of applications across many different fields. This is due to its flexibility to handle and thoroughly clean all sorts of parts that you throw its way. As noted, it covers a variety of materials as well, from tough surfaces like metal to more delicate materials such as glass. It excels at removing tiny dust buildup or tougher stains like grease and polish. This makes ultrasonic cleaning flexible and adaptable to whatever field you need it for.
Where To Find Your Own Ultrasonic Cleaner
After learning of all these benefits of the ultrasonic cleaner, you may be itching to bring one into your laboratory space already. The good news is that you can browse a selection of ultrasonic cleaners right here at USA Lab Equipment. You can even find additional cleaning supplies for all your laboratory cleanup needs. Visit the USA Lab Equipment shop today, especially if you’re in need of cleaning solutions for your laboratory.
After learning what an ultrasonic cleaner is and how it works, along with so many of the device’s benefits, we hope this deep dive answers why your laboratory needs an ultrasonic cleaner. This cleaning device is so useful for a variety of fields, but it’s especially useful in the laboratory space where your experiments are constantly contaminating your accessories and materials. This tool will help you expedite your cleaning process and can help you ensure more accurate experiments, knowing that your tools are cleaned to the fullest.
