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Lab Trends

Refrigerators/Freezers Survey 2013 Results

Freezers and refrigerators are an integral part of any laboratory that requires temperature controlled storage.

by Lab Manager

Maintaining samples at an optimal temperature while in storage is vital for many lab professionals and this makes choosing the right freezer or refrigerator a crucial task. While the average kitchen freezer operates at about -20°C, laboratory variants have a much wider range of options depending on the storage conditions needed.

Types of refrigerators or freezers survey respondents are currently using:

Upright general purpose lab freezers 63%
Upright ultra-low temperature freezers 36%
Low temperature upright lab freezers 33%
Under-counter general purpose lab freezers 25%
Low temperature chest lab freezers 16%
Flammable materials storage 15%
Blood bank and plasma 14%
Chest ultra-low temperature freezers 14%
Explosion-proof 12%
Other 10%

Type(s) of service used by respondents for repair/service of their refrigerators/freezers:

In-house service department 41%
Third-party time/material 30%
Third-party contract 21%
Instrument manufacturer time/material 12%
Instrument manufacturer service contract 12%
Multi-vendor service provider 8%
Don’t know 6%
Our department 3%
Other 2%

Types of balances respondents are using or planning to purchase for their facilities include:

0° to -20°C
-20° to -30°C
-30° to -45°C
-45° to -80°C
Other

Top 10 features/benefits our readers look for when purchasing refrigerators or freezers:

For more information on Refrigerators & Freezers, including useful articles and a list of manufacturers, click here.

See the latest cold storage survey results