[Histonet] Paraffin on off a good thing and rotation of paraffins

[Madary, Joseph]

Personally the fact that the timers are even on the embedders points to
the notion of embedders on a timer being a good thing. We melt down
blocks and re-embed them with no damage.  (Well maybe Nocito doesn't
have to.)  I do drive domestive cars but have to give it to the Japanese
and Germans when it comes to our histo equipment.  They put those timers
on there to save electricity and overheating of paraffin.  I think at
least putting the embedder on a weekend timer is a start.  I have been
doing that for years and I never have paraffin issues. We should have a
healthy respect for paraffin overheating and mixing of old and new. I
think there is plenty of evidence that if you placed paraffin in a
dispenser on heat indefinitely that eventually it would lose some of the
properties we want in  a paraffin.  So I think the green aspect is great
but I have also been a firm believer in not overheating paraffin.  That
segways into adding new paraffin to old paraffin.  Folks who keep adding
paraffin to paraffin in the embedder not allowing it to truly get empty
conceivably are mxing paraffins months or even years old because it
never gets truly empty.  Paraffins in the embedder at least the part
that makes the actual blocks really should be one lot heated and cooled
at the same time.  Once it is empty then add new paraffin. Actually I am
so weird that when I rotate the processor paraffins I drain everything
from the embedder and use the embedder paraffin in the rotation process.
This allows for the freshest paraffin in the embedder.

Nick Madary, HT/HTL(ASCP)QIHC
Medimmune Histology Laboratory
One Medimmune Way
Gaithersburg, MD 20878

ph 301.398.4745/6360
fx  301.398.9745

To the extent this electronic communication or any of its attachments
contain information that is not in the public domain, such information
is considered by MedImmune to be confidential and proprietary, and
expected to be used only by the individual(s) for whom it is intended.
If you have received this electronic communication in error, please
reply to the sender advising of the error in transmission and delete the
original message and any accompanying documents from your system
immediately, without copying, reviewing or otherwise using them for any
purpose. Thank you for your cooperation.





To the extent this electronic communication or any of its attachments contain information that is not in the public domain, such information is considered by MedImmune to be confidential and proprietary.  This communication is expected to be read and/or used only by the individual(s) for whom it is intended.  If you have received this electronic communication in error, please reply to the sender advising of the error in transmission and delete the original message and any accompanying documents from your system immediately, without copying, reviewing or otherwise using them for any purpose.  Thank you for your cooperation.