Operating Guide

17
Sterile Water Sample Procedures
SUGGESTED PROCEDURE FOR OBTAINING
STERILE WATER SAMPLES:
Prior to taking the water sample, be sure to have on hand an
adequate supply of sterile bottles These sterile bottles should
be obtained from a reputable laboratory and should have
been autoclaved and contained within a plastic outer wrapping.
1. Prior to taking the sample, it is imperative that the
sample valve, faucets, etc. be opened at full force for a
complete three and a half minutes.
2. After the valve has been left wide open for three and
one half minutes, reduce the flow to a reasonable stream of
water. Flow to drain an additional three minutes.
3. Open the sterile bottle or sterile container being
used. Holding the cap in a down position, the operator
should then hold his breath while taking the sample so as to
avoid oral contamination of the sample. The operator must
not allow his finger to touch the inside of the cap or the neck
of the bottle.
4. After the sample has been taken, the cap should
immediately be tightly placed on the sample container.
5. The sample container should be placed in a plastic
wrapping, kept cool, and should be taken to the laboratory for
plating as soon as possible following the above procedure.
We recommend duplicate samples be taken at each test station
during each specific test so as to avoid loss of sample through
laboratory error and to insure reasonable validity through
comparison.
Check with your local laboratory to assure proper sampling
and submittal procedure.
Contact PurTest for any water sampling questions or
requirements.