Liquidator 96 From Rainin

The Liquidator 96 is a bench-top manual pipettor that allows for quick pipetting of an entire 96- or 384-well plate. It can be used for medium to high-throughput purposes and is small enough to fit on a bench or inside a laminar flow hood. It also has a small footprint that will fit well in small or crowded spaces, and it is portable.

The Liquidator 96 is user-friendly and requires minimal time to learn to use. It has no software and functions similarly to a traditional pipette; therefore, eliminating the need for a lengthy orientation. It is currently available in a 5-200ƒÝL format. It provides added reproducibility and accuracy for assays and eliminates the chance of error due to missing wells during pipetting. Another benefit is that since all 96 wells are added simultaneously, this reduces error due to time-differences in adding substrates or stop solutions. The Liquidator 96 can fill an entire 96-well plate in just a few seconds.

To use the Liquidator 96, simply set machine for the correct volume, pick up tips from the pipette tip box, move lever and pick up solution, and finally move lever and dispense. After dispensing, eject tips. Repeat if necessary and/or do multiple plates.

The Liquidator 96 can also quickly pipette 384-well plates. These plates follow the same protocol as mentioned above, but each plate requires four dispenses to cover the entire plate. To use the Liquidator with 364-well plates, simply align the plate with the upper left corner and dispense once. Repeat after aligning the plate with the upper right corner and again with the lower left and right corners.

A negative aspect of the Liquidator 96 is that unique pipette tips must be purchased for the apparatus. This can be very costly if the pipettor is used frequently. There are also unique 8-well deep reservoirs that can be purchased to use with the Liquidator. A 384-well adapter must also be purchased in order to pipette 384-well plates. Compared to traditional pipettes, the Liquidator 96 is expensive to purchase; however, it can reduce error and save pipetting time.

I have used the Liquidator 96 in several assays. It is very convenient for 96-well plate ELISA washes and for the addition of substrate. I have also used the Liquidator in the washing of immunoflourescent assays. It can also be used to replicate 96-well plates or for mother/daughter replication. Overall, I feel the Liquidator saves time, reduces error, and is a great addition to any lab.