Freezers

How to optimize cold storage in my lab and how to select a -80 °C freezer?

Sample storage is not limited to the ULT freezer. Storage goes beyond a freezer and vessels.
Did you ever calculate the value within your freezer? All the hours, days, weeks, and months spent on your samples? More than 50,000 samples fit into large, standard ULTs. The value of every single sample differs – from simple buffers to high-value cell extracts, expensive enzymes, or very rare sample material. Assuming an average value of 10 € per vial, the total value already reaches 500,000 euro or dollars.
Storage is not limited to being a storage room for samples. The freezer and related equipment is your assurance for long-term scientific success, it guards the results of your work.

The process of sample storage includes the right selection of vessels, a reliable labeling/ identification of your samples, robust freezer boxes and racks, a convenient sample management tool, the freezer itself, and freezer performance monitoring systems.
Still, the freezer is the core of your sample storage system:

Eppendorf offers different lines of -80 °C lab ULT freezers to meet a variety of needs. Depending on the approach, there are different questions to answer before you select your Ultra-Low-Temperature freezer, also known as ULT freezer to store your freezer boxes and your valuable samples:

Which type of vessels are used in our lab?
How many samples need to be stored?
› How can I improve our paper-based sample documentation system?
› Do I need to replace an old/ broken freezer, enlarge my storage capacities or is this my first freezer?
› Do I need an upright freezer or a chest freezer to store my freezer boxes?
› Which freezer footprint in the lab is sufficient and/or acceptable?
Where can I install the freezer – in the lab, hallway, basement,…?
› Can I re-use existing freezer racks?
› Do I need green cooling liquids such as R290/R170?
› What is a back-up system?
› How can I receive notifications if something happens to my freezer?
Eppendorf offers different lines of lab freezers to meet a variety of needs. Depending on the approach, there are different questions for a ULT freezer selection:

Do you need an upright freezer or a chest freezer?

Do you want a foam- insulated freezer wall enforced by vacuum insulation panels or is foam sufficient?

Which footprint in the lab is sufficient and/ or acceptable?

When choosing an upright freezer, do you need a 3- or 5-compartment instrument?

On which instrument do you rely the most regarding all your valuable samples, the work of years, even decades?


Many researchers spend much time thinking about the right sequencer, cycler, spectrophotometer but ignoring the instrument where they store their scientific treasure – to which they entrust their highly valuable samples.
The large boxes in the hallways: The ULT freezers.

Reliability, sustainability, economics, safety – these are the corner stones for selecting the next ULT freezer.

Reliability


Long-lasting instruments require high-quality parts and reliable working conditions. The two-cascade cooling system of Eppendorf freezers provides high sample safety.

Sustainability and economics


ULT freezers run 24/7. They have to. Many equipment manufacturers and customers alike have recently put an emphasis on energy efficiency. For Eppendorf freezers, this has been a prime concern for years. ULT freezers are virtually never turned off and compared to other lab systems can draw a high amount of energy to maintain the very low temperatures required for sample preservation. Optimized insulation, highly efficient compressor systems, and smart control technology within our last generational update resulted in:

The old Premium U570 versus the CryoCube F570:
11.8 kWh/day versus 10.5 kWh/day = 15 % less energy consumption

The old HEF U570 versus the CryoCube F570h:
8.9 kWh/day versus 7.6 kWh/day = 14 % less energy consumption

The old Premium C660 versus the CryoCube FC660:
14.3 kWh/day versus 10.6 kWh/day = 25 % less energy consumption

The old HEF C660 versus the CryoCube FC660h:
11.4 kWh/day versus 8.1 kWh/day = 29 % less energy consumption
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Eppendorf offers three lines of freezers to meet a variety of needs:


The Eppendorf High-Efficiency ULT Freezers are one of the best energy-efficient freezers in the market. The vacuum insulation panel technology is the core: an advanced thermal insulation technology that significantly outperforms traditional materials such as closed-cell foams (urethane), foam beads, and fiber blankets. Vacuum insulation removes gasses within the insulating space to reduce heat transfer; as a result, thermal insulation performance far exceeds traditional materials. Other freezers use vacuum insulation panel technology, but none use Vacupor NT®. Vacupor panels not only provide exceptional thermal insulation, they have a metal-coated polymer film barrier seal to maintain vacuum and they are composed of biodegradable, CFC-free, and HCFC-free materials.

The Eppendorf Innova® ULT Freezers combine ultra-efficient insulation panels with foam insulation, generating a maximized storage capacity.

The Eppendorf ULT Freezers have established a reputation for preserving outstanding sample quality while minimizing energy consumption.
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