Installation and Certification 

Biological safety cabinets (BSC) installation, certification, decontamination, and maintenance must be done by certified professionals. Biological safety cabinets must be inspected and certified: 

• When newly installed 
• After repairs 
• After being moved 
• Annually 

To comply with the hazard communication requirements, the universal biohazard symbol must be affixed to the exterior surface of the BSC so that it is visible to anyone within the vicinity of the BSC. 

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) 

Appropriate PPE must be worn before working in BSCs. Lab coats must be buttoned, and gloves should be pulled over the wrists of a lab coat. Risk assessment should be performed for additional PPE. 

Training 

Department Safety Officers (DSO)/Laboratory Safety Officers (LSO) must provide training to research personnel on the correct operation of BSCs. Research personnel should complete the CITI training course, BSCs, before using a BSC. 

Preparing BSC for Work 

• Turn off the UV sterilizer (if so equipped) as soon as you enter the room. 
• Turn on all blower and cabinet lights. 
• Operate the BSC blowers for at least three to five minutes before beginning work to allow the BSC to “purge” particulates.  
• Disinfect all interior surfaces of the BSC work area with an appropriate surface disinfectant (e.g., 10 percent bleach followed by 70 percent ethanol). 

Liquid Waste Disposal 

A vacuum flask system is required to protect the central building vacuum system or vacuum pump and the personnel who service the equipment. Vacuum lines and/or vacuum traps connected to BSCs must be protected by an inline filtration device with a hydrophobic polytetrafluoroethylene membrane. Some important things to remember, 

• The vacuum flasks may be set up within the BSC; however, to save room, the system can be placed on the floor beneath or next to the BSC, using a secondary container to contain the flasks and a longer hose connection to the vacuum system. 

• All the flasks/traps shall contain an appropriate disinfectant for the material used. 

• Once inactivation occurs, liquid materials can be disposed of as noninfectious waste in the sink. Empty the waste from the flask when one of the following scenarios occurs: 
• Daily 
• Completion of process or experiment 
• When it is three-fourths full 

• Follow the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Biological Safety Manual for any spills or work-related injuries. 

Working With Open Flames in BSC 

The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai prohibits using gas burners or alcohol flames in BSC. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that “open flames” are not required in the near microbe-free environment of a biological safety cabinet” and create “turbulence which disrupts the pattern of air supplied to the work surface," jeopardizing the sterility of the work area. This is also the recommendation of the World Health Organization (WHO) as well as the major BSC manufacturers. 

Alternate safer sterilization methods are encouraged, such as touch-plate micro-burners equipped with a pilot light, small electric "furnaces," or pre-sterilized loops.  

UV Light 

National Institutes of Health (NIH), CDC, National Science Foundation/American National Standards Institute (ANSI), and the American Biological Safety Association agree that ultraviolet (UV) lamps are not recommended or necessary for decontamination in BSC’s. 

Follow the procedures below if a UV lamp is used in your BSC. 

Required: 

• Post a warning sign on the front of the BSC indicating the presence of UV light hazards. 
• The sign must say CAUTION: Turn off UV light before working. 

Be aware of the hazards. Exposure to UV light can cause: 

• Painful eye and skin burns 
• Damaging exposure levels exist well after the output of the lamp bulb has dropped below the biocidal level 
• Deterioration of some tubing 

 Be aware of the limitations: 

• Never rely on UV irradiation alone to disinfect a contaminated work area. UV is: 
• Not effective on porous materials that are opaque to the light such as wood or foam 
• Ineffective if a microbe is protected by dust, dirt, or organic matter 
• Affected by the accumulation of dust and dirt on the bulb surface 
• Effective only in direct line of site 

Take precautions during work: 

• Turn off UV lamps while the lab is occupied. The BSC's stainless-steel interior can reflect potentially hazardous illumination out of the cabinet's opening 
• Never have the UV lamp ON while an operator works in the cabinet 

After work is complete: 

• Turn the fan off and close the sash when the UV lamp is on