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Preserving specimen: about jars.


Ganoderma

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I am looking for jars and at one of teh stores here i noticed some used different seals. this got me thinking ( i am no chem whiz) bout the various sovents used in the jars and what they may do to the seals.

 

I am curious about mainly the formalin and plastic. what about the common red rubber type seals, are they ok? i assume most stuff is safe with alcohol seen as they are stored in plastic.

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oh sorry. i was wonderin if any of teh more common fixatives/preservatives will degrade teh rubber/plastic seals in jars. i have not doen much preserving so i dont know if there are sepcial materials made for this purpose. will formalin or alcohol (ethyl or iso) harm the seals?

 

thanks :)

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ok thanks. i am not 100% certain what these are but i think they are likely Polyurethane or Neoprene.

 

here is a website. are any of these products unsafe? if there is one that you think would stand teh test of time i will order them. Or perhaps replacing is needed? i was planning on preserving with ethyl and replacing that very 5 years or so anyway.

 

Nitrile, EPDM, Natural, SBR, Viton, Butyl, Neoprene, Silicone, Polyurethane.

 

http://www.honeycrown.co.uk/rubber-canning-jar-rings.htm

 

i am aslo considering expeimenting with propylene glycol. the very few things i have read seem promising. any comments on that?

 

*here is a link if you are interested at all. although i am not keeping my sepcimens cold at all....

http://www.bio.sdsu.edu/pub/spiders/HedFiles/vinketal2005.pdf

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Okay. Here's what I've determined!

Good luck, and tell me if you need any more information.

 

EPDM: Ethyl Alcohol = okay, Formalin = okay

Neoprene: Ethyl Alcohol = okay, Formalin = not okay

Silicone: Ethyl Alcohol = not okay, Formalin = not okay

Nitrile: Ethyl Alcohol = not okay, Formalin = not okay

Viton: Ethyl Alcohol = okay, Formalin = not okay

 

These are the only seal materials (from their website) that I could find data for.

It looks like EPDM is your best choice, unless you can get more information. I will continue to look for you!

Check the packaging, or ask the manufacturer the exact composition of the seals before you buy the jars.

Good Luck!

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