TechNotes

Adding bleach to Alconox and Liquinox detergents can be done to enhance the disinfecting and oxidizing properties of these cleaners. Adding oxidizing does bring one more cleaning mechanism to the cleaning process which can be helpful if you are trying to clean dyes, pigments, heavy burned on organic residues and other residues that are labile to oxidation. You can get some disinfection, but as we will explain, you need to clean a surface first before you disinfect.

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Q: We are working with cannabis resin in our lab and the residue is very tough to remove.  We are currently using isopropyl alcohol and it is just not good enough.  Any advice?

A: It is no secret that waxy, sticky cannabis and other botanical resins are some of the most difficult residues to clean.  But of course, keeping your labware, glassware and other laboratory equipment clean is vital. 

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Q. I’m looking for a cleaning solution to use in our industrial ultrasonic cleaner that is similar to the old style competitor detergent. We use it occasionally for general cleaning, removal of machining oils, cleaning for high vacuum use, and to lightly etch the oxides off of copper.   Would you recommend Alconox or Liquinox detergent?  How long would a pre-mix of the formulations last before degrading?  Could we also use this for washing microfiber towels and foam sponges that have various waxes, polymer sealants and oils on them?

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Q: What can I use to replace hazardous acids below pH 1 cleaning?
A: Depending on exactly what you are using your acid cleaning to do, we may be able to help you.

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Q: Is a 1% Alconox solution stable in tap water? How long can 1% Alconox be stored as solution? Is pH measurement the best estimate of stability?. A: lconox® Powdered Precision Cleaner,  is stable in tap water (or any purity water- within reason) for….

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Q. We use grocery store detergents to clean our labware and it recently came to my attention that we may need to switch to a laboratory grade detergent such as Alconox or Liquinox. Why is that necessary?

A. Here are some insights as to why a grocery store detergent is not suitable for use in a lab…

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Q:I was wondering if you have a product that I can use in an ultrasonic cleaner to clean tungsten carbide that would not leach out cobalt? That also can be disposed of down a drain?

A: Tungsten carbide (WC) cleaning comes with some inherent issues, and the cleaning cycle that accompanies it will depend entirely on the feed stock (components to be cleaned) that the process comes from. This is where Alconox, Inc., as the critical cleaning experts, excel from our experience and vast pool of applications to draw upon.

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Q. What are some best practices for lab cleaning of pipettes. We’re having trouble in our lab removing dried on residues.
A. The principal concern for any scientist or technician working in the laboratory is that glassware, like pipettes, be free of interfering residues after they are cleaned. Unseen residues can wreak havoc on analytical results by inhibiting culture growth, causing cross contamination, non-reproducible results and more.   

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Q. How can I clean proteins, RNA, and DNA from laboratory equipment?

A. Thank you for your question concerning cleaning proteins, RNA and DNA from laboratory equipment.

We will address each separately . . .

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Q. Our lab just has a regular household dishwasher that we use to clean labware. I heard this is not ideal, but it’s what we have. We’re using Alcojet detergent, but the instructions say to turn it into a liquid by diluting….

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