Autoclave/Pressure Cooker?

[InfiniteInkTattoo]

I’ve seen a lot of ideas floating around the net. As most know, An autoclave is an expensive piece of equipment. I need a pro artists opinion on this one. Would a pressure cooker work for the sterilization process?

[imported_canvasyou]

Avoid this by using disposable tubes..
if you use a pressure cooker you should spore test it –
just google: autoclave spore testing kits
Do you own the book Basic Fundamentals of Modern Tattoo?
Do you work in a professional studio?

[Per5ent]

Ive recently purchased a stove-top autoclave from balkowitsch enterprises ( link my still work – http://www.balkowitsch.com/ProductID-57-ProductDetails.aspx ) and i was curious.. you say here you need to spore test them? how often? and what should i use to clean it in the mean time? if i haven’t for the past/first three cycles? i know you want people to read the book, but im honestly waiting for 2:00pm pt right now for my pay check to come in from subway so i can order it. i’m not a professional but i am working on a portfolio as we speak for apprenticeship. i’m just trying to intake as much knowledge as efficiently as possible. thank you

[jtdaltonsr]

I have another question to this subject…if a pressure cooker is used, should the cycles be longer? just not sure if a pressure cooker has the same setup or not.

[jtdaltonsr]

well since i last posted on this thread, I actually purchased a pressure cooker for about $20. i made a spacer so that my metals dont touch the actual water, I put it at 15lbs for about 20 minutes, i have autoclave bags, and this works fine. I have had my cooker spore tested every month, and without a negative test. The autoclave bags have an indicator on them that turn black when done properly and it hasnt failed me yet. Just to let you know. If u are gonna tat, and u CANT get an autoclave and u have already purchased a crap load of metal, do urself a favor and get a pressure cooker. Then save ur money for the real deal, that way the crooks cant say ur doing it the wrong way, even though the results come out the same. :idea:

[KitchenWizard]

I had a tattoo done a few days back, and the artist and I were talking about sterilization and whatnots. He had a medical autoclave, but said that he knew people who did use pressure cookers as a substitute. He said to run the cycle for an hour, but either way, it’s interesting to see that others have found pressure cookers to be an acceptable alternative to an autoclave. Personally speaking, I’ll just stick to my disposable tubes, rather than buy one, but it’s interesting to know that there are options :)

[imported_canvasyou]

If you test w/ spore tests and send to lab and they come back clean – then i would guess it would be okay to use pressure cooker type. But I would just use disposables – be safe!

[KitchenWizard]

@canvasyou wrote:

If you test w/ spore tests and send to lab and they come back clean – then i would guess it would be okay to use pressure cooker type. But I would just use disposables – be safe!

It’s certainly the easiest, and most efficient option :lol:

[leena]

An autoclave operates at a higher pressure than a pressure cooker (about 15 p.s.i. for pressure cooker 25 p.s.i. plus for autoclave) That fact alone dictates that it would take much longer cycle times to achieve the same level of sterilization with a cooker. It has been proven that an autoclave kills microorganisms better then conventional pressure cooker.

[Author]

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