Operating Instructions

agents include EN3HANCE™ and sodium salicylate. For these, use 1% glycerol in the final cold water soak to minimize gel cracking.

3. Load the gel onto the drying frame as described below.

Assembling the Gel Drying Stack

Gel frames that are delivered in the same package as the Easy Breeze are preassembled. When you order additional SE 1210 Series gel frames, you must install the eight knobs that lock the inner frame in place before they can be used.

Working with Gel Frames That are Not Preassembled

•Screw the eight black knobs into the outer gel frame until they fit just short of snug. (See Figure 2.) Continue with step 1 of the assembly instructions.

Working with Preassembled Gel Frames

•Turn each black knob a one-quarter turn to release the inner frame. (See Figure 3.) Gently pop the inner frame out of the outer frame and continue with step 1 of the assembly instructions.

1.Place the inner frame on the loading platform with the side labeled UP facing up.

2.Immerse a sheet of porous cellophane in distilled water and soak for several minutes. Place the fully hydrated sheet over the inner frame on the loading platform. Pour 5–10 ml of distilled water onto the sheet.

3.Place the gel(s) on the cellophane. Remove all bubbles by carefully pushing them toward the edge of the gel with your gloved finger.

4.Pour 5–10 ml of distilled water around the edges of and onto the gel. Cover the gel with a fully hydrated sheet of either cellophane or mylar:

Cellophane. Use for fluorography, thick gels, or to preserve a gel. Fully hydrate a sheet of porous cellophane in distilled water and place it over the gel. (Cellophane does not quench the signal of fluor-treated gels.)

Mylar. Use for contact autoradiography for gels ≤1 mm. Fully hydrate a sheet of Mylar in distilled water and place it over the gel. Once the gel is dried, the Mylar peels off. Place the uncovered side against the X-ray film.

IMPORTANT Remove all bubbles trapped under the top sheet by displacing them with distilled water and pushing them to the edge of the gel with your gloved finger. Work from the center of a single gel or, if several gels are on the platform, work from the center of the frame toward the edge.

5.Position the outer frame—with the Hoefer label facing up and the locking knobs facing down—over the cellophane sheets and around the inner frame. Press down to engage the two frames. Applying pressure to opposite corners of the frame usually causes the frames to slip easily into place.

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Hoefer SE 1200 Easy Breeze Air Gel Dryer