Hi Brandy, I have recently had the opportunity to build a Path lab from scratch. In the design we decided to completely separate the grossing area from the microtomy and IHC area of the lab. We built a "room within a room", made it negative pressure, installed 2 Thermo elevating grossing stations that are vented to the outside. Since we are using the hospital ventilation system in addition to the blowers built in to the back draft, downdraft capabilities of the grossing stations, we were able to set these to pull at 500 cfm each. We also put 2 Peloris processors, with their own charcoal filters, within this room. The result is that we are well under the limits for all fumes and, in the event we get fresh tissue, we can segregate the area from the rest of the lab. Many labs that have to do autopsy on babies or near full term fetus' use their grossing stations to do so. Since we are in a separate area, we can block these procedures from view.
We also put in a Labconco Fume hood (vented to the outside) in the IHC area of the lab and a Thermo Bio Hood in the cytoprep area. This has all worked out very well for us and it affords us the opportunities to have these items in place for future growth. A renovation done correctly, with an eye towards strategic planning for the future, will go a long way towards saving the hospital money in the long run. Steve Feher Pathology Supervisor Catholic Medical Center Manchester, NH -----Original Message----- From: histonet-boun...@lists.utsouthwestern.edu [mailto:histonet-boun...@lists.utsouthwestern.edu] On Behalf Of Brandi Higgins Sent: Tuesday, June 15, 2010 9:51 AM To: histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu Subject: [Histonet] fume hood Hello, Our hospital is doing some renovation and we need to look into new fume hoods for our new location. Currently we have one fume hood over our grossing area, and one fume hood in our coverslipping area (two different rooms). The hospital wants to put our grossing room and histo/cyto rooms together. I am still going to need two separate hoods. Does anyone have any experience/knowledge/input about fume hoods? I'm trying to look into the ductless ones, although I imagine changing the filters will end up being more expensive over time (I have no idea what would be involved in running a duct/vent). Also I have seen a benchtop downdraft type that sucks the air down, and does not have a top. It is advertised as being good for xylene. Does anyone use this in their coverslipping area? Any input would be greatly appreciated. I'm pretty clueless on the whole issue. I want to make sure that what I get will be safe for me and my coworker as we will be spending most of our day in this room. Any input is appreciated! Thank You! Brandi Higgins, BS, HT(ASCP) _______________________________________________ Histonet mailing list Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet _______________________________________________ Histonet mailing list Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet