Precautions Before Autoclaving
Clean the glass culture dishes. Remove any dirt or foreign objects from within the containers and wash them thoroughly.
Disinfect the glass culture dishes. After thorough cleaning, immerse the dishes in a high-efficacy disinfectant solution for at least 60 minutes.
Dry the glass culture dishes. Following disinfection, allow the dishes to air-dry completely, and store them in a dry, dust-free environment.
Autoclaving Procedure
Arrange the dried glass culture dishes inside the autoclave chamber, and operate the unit in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions. Generally, ensure that the water level inside the autoclave reaches the designated safety line; furthermore, the stacked height of the vessels placed inside should not exceed two-thirds of the chamber's total height.
Pressurize the autoclave: raise the internal pressure to between 120 and 130 kPa (1.2–1.3 atm). The sterilization cycle should be maintained for a duration of at least 30 minutes.
Close the autoclave valve to release the pressure, and wait until the internal pressure drops to approximately 0 kPa (0 atm).
Post-Autoclaving Precautions
Turn off the heat and allow the autoclave to cool down. The culture dishes may be safely removed only after the internal temperature of the autoclave has dropped below 60°C.
Removing Glass Culture Dishes: Glass culture dishes must not be removed immediately after sterilization. You should wait until the temperature has reached a safe level, then put on gloves and carefully remove the dishes.
Place the dishes in a clean, well-ventilated area to prevent contamination by extraneous microorganisms.