What do I need to be aware of when autoclaving?

Precautions for use of autoclave:

1. The water in the pot must use distilled or purified water.

2. The items to be sterilized should not be placed too closely.

3. The lid nut must be symmetrically tightened.

4. Cold air must be fully excluded, otherwise the temperature inside the pot will not be able to reach the prescribed level, affecting the sterilization effect.

Autoclave sterilization adopts high temperature and high pressure, which can not only effectively kill general bacteria, 

fungi and other microorganisms, but also eliminate germ cells and spores, thus it is a reliable and widely used physical sterilization method.

This method is mainly used for the sterilization of high temperature resistant items such as culture media, metal instruments, glassware, enamel, dressings, rubber and certain drugs. 

There are various types of autoclave steam sterilizers, common ones include:

1. Lower exhaust pressure steam sterilizer: commonly used, the pressure reaches 103.4 kPa (1.05 kg/cm²), 

the temperature rises to 121.3°C and maintains for 15~30 minutes, which can effectively sterilize.

2. Pulsating Vacuum Pressure Steam Steriliser: advanced sterilisation equipment, requiring a vapour pressure of 205.8 kPa (2.1 kg/cm²), 

a temperature of more than 132°C and a maintenance period of 10 minutes, capable of killing all microorganisms including tough germs and spores.