Properly maintained, the Chemyx laboratory syringe pump provides years of reliable service. To ensure reliability and precision of your syringe pump, a few simple tasks like cleaning & lubrication will greatly prolong the service life and condition of your system.
Table of Contents:
- Pump Cleaning
- Pump Lubrication
- Recommended Lubricants
- Pump Storage
Pump Cleaning
Lab environments can vary from chemical labs to biological facilities that specialize in infectious diseases. Cleaning and maintenance vary for each type of environment.
- General Lab Environment – office or benchtop type environment for general-purpose analytical equipment
- Chemical Lab Environment – “fume hood” environment with corrosive fumes from reactors or distillation equipment
- GMP / Biological Lab Environment –an environment with sensitivity to dust or microbial activity in drug manufacturing, cell transfection, or animal surgical environment.
Pump Lubrication
Proper syringe pump lubrication ensures long service life and smooth flow performance while also providing protection against corrosive lab fumes and rust. Note: If you are using the pump in a high-pressure application, then daily pump lubrication is recommended.
- Clean contact surfaces with a clean cloth. Remove any debris on the lead screw and the guide rods.
- Apply the lubricant along the length of the lead screw and the guide rods.
- Run the syringe pump so that the pusher block moves across the entire length of the lead screw. This should work the lubricant into the grooves/components.
You should clean and lubricate the lead screw and guide rods based on your usage. Your pump may not be adequately lubricated if the following occur:
- Grinding sounds are coming from the lead screw.
- The block release button decouples under the load before the pump stalls.
- The pump stalls with increased frequency.
Recommended Lubricants(Based on Environment)
- General Lab: Any lubricant from the below recommended lists can be used.
- Engine/motor oil
- Silicone oil
- Machine oil
- Lithium-based grease
- Carbon graphite
- Chemical Lab– due to fume environments we recommend lithium grease or engine oil to protect against corrosive fumes from reactors or distillation equipment
- Engine/motor oil
- Lithium-based grease
- GMP / Biological Labs – require clean environments. Carbon graphite is a solid and both mineral oil/silicone oil have low viscosities allowing for the lowest levels of dust accumulation that potentially contain contaminants.
- Carbon graphite
- Silicone oil
- Machine oil
Pump Storage
Chemyx Syringe pumps can be stored in an indoor environment when not in use. Recommended temperature ranges are from 0-25C to best preserve the electronics. Do not store with chemical reagents.
Please contact Chemyx to confirm the safe use of any other lubricants.