A green way to clean your glassware

By Jenny Sprung, Senior Application Specialist

On April 25, 2011 in Articles

According to the EPA¹, each person creates 1,600 pounds of garbage per year, which means 3.5 billion pounds of garbage goes into our landfills each year. This does not include industrial or commercial garbage. 2.5 million plastic bottles are thrown into landfills and 90% of the garbage in our oceans is plastic. Americans throw away enough aluminum to rebuild the entire commercial airline fleet every three months¹.

So, what do Labconco Laboratory Glassware Washers have to do with all of this? Let’s first look at the types of labware laboratory glassware washers can clean.

If you are using disposable labware, consider changing to non-disposable. Disposable beakers cost up to $120 for a pack of 100. If you use 10 beakers per day, this is only a two week supply. Over the course of a year, you will spend $3,120 on beakers. The same size glass beaker costs $110 for 12 and can be reused over and over as long as the glassware is clean and free of residues.

Using a Labconco FlaskScrubber® with your non-disposable glassware gives you this clean glassware. A third party study shows that glassware comes out analytically clean each and every time. Want proof? Email Product Manager Jenny Sprung for a complete copy of the EPA report.

“Recycling Revolution”² states that the energy saved from recycling one glass bottle can run a 100-watt light bulb for four hours or a compact fluorescent bulb for 20 hours. It also causes 20% less air pollution and 50% less water pollution than when a new bottle is made from raw materials. By reusing your lab glassware, you’re not only saving money, but the environment.

Not only do Labconco glassware washers clean your glassware, but Labconco as a company recycles approximately 3,000 - 5,000 pounds of glass each year from our manufacturing locations in the U.S.A.

Second, how are you washing your labware? By hand? Using a residential dishwasher? Think about this:

On average, hand washing uses 20³ gallons to wash 30 pieces. Labconco glassware washers use as little as 10 gallons of water to wash twice the amount of glassware when both the top and lower racks are used. Plus, Labconco glassware washers have a delay start which allows running the washer during off peak hours saving up to 50% of energy costs.

Labconco washers are made up of 90% stainless steel, which is 100% recyclable. Nearly the entire unit may be recycled after its lifetime—on average 10 to 15 years, longer in many cases. We all need to lessen our carbon footprint by taking responsibility for our environment.

Consider buying a Labconco glassware washer and help make a difference in your laboratory.

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These recycling facts have been compiled from various sources including the National Recycling Coalition, the Environmental Protection Agency, and http://Earth911.org 1) http://www.epa.gov 2) http://www.recycling-revolution.com/recycling-facts.html 3) http://media.mgbg.com/wkrg/photos/weather/downloads/Water_Facts.pdf