OWML: QA/QC

Quality Assurance/Quality Control Manual: Ohio Water Microbiology Laboratory

General Sterility and Cleanliness
The sterility and cleanliness of the laboratory is necessary to ensure the integrity of samples and analytical procedures.

• Traffic through the laboratory is restricted to those doing work in the laboratory, especially when analytical work is being done.
   
• The countertops are wiped down with surface disinfectants, such as Conflikt (Decon Labs, Inc., King of Prussia, PA) or 70 percent ethanol, before and after use.
   
• Antimicrobial soap is available at various laboratory sinks to facilitate hand washing before and after laboratory work.

Clean and sterile glassware that is free of detergent residue is crucial to ensure valid results in microbiology.

• Dirty dishes are placed on a moveable laboratory cart after use and are not to be stored on countertops. Dishes are washed in a dishwasher or by hand with hot water and laboratory-grade phosphate-free detergent, such as Liqui-Nox (Alconox, Inc., White Plains, NY). Dishes are rinsed with tap water and then 3 rinses with deionized water.