Microscope Service Techniques

Microscope Service Techniques

Microscope services are depend on kinds of microscopes and kinds of damages. We already known if microscope is consist of mechanical and optical parts like I was told in my previous post “What is Microscope?”. Which parts of microscope that often damage? So that can disturb the microscope parts functions optimally. Here we will learn how to service and repair microscope mechanical parts and optical parts too. The procedures below will effect to service time will going to do.

1. Take apart all optical components like lenses, condenser or/and diaphragm, mirror.  ( see picture below).
2. Reset and readjust the troubled mechanical parts such as loosed ocular tube (for light microscope), troubled coarse or fine adjustment knob.
3. Cleansing optical parts such as lenses, condenser or mirror (light reflector).
4. Cleansing body parts with glosser or other cleanser
5. Setting optical parts to mechanical parts
6. Checking with preparation slide
7. Labeling with after service label
8. Covering with plastic cover to prevent dust from the air.

How often the microscope needs to service?
When we have to service our microscope?
How long period of microscope service?

We agreed if microscope is useful for biological learning (in school from elementary to college) as well as in many institutions like health laboratory, hospital, etc. Microscope will optimally useful when each function works well. To keep optimal performance of microscope, we should know the lacking of our microscope. That’s why we must service microscope? , and which components of microscope that often troubled, and what we need to attention if our microscope has been serviced on that articles I already told. 

Several things that we need to pay attention, related to how often microscope needs to service :

1. Using intensity. In my workplace, department of biology education  Faculty of math and natural science education laboratories in Indonesia University of Education (laboratorium Jurdik Biologi FPMIPA UPI), we usually use microscopes in laboratory practice 32 hours per week (5 workdays) or 128 hours per month. Based on that situation, we have to check and recheck microscopes condition maximally once a month and once in every six months for comprehensive check up/service. Generally, in institutions such as middle school, microscope using is only several hours per week. For that condition we just need to check up/ service microscopes minimal once a year. Check up/ service cost will far cheaper than if we just buy the microscope and use it until broken and cannot be repair (technician restrictiveness) then buy the new one.
2. User behavior. Even we provide best service, we can’t  prevent the microscope become troubled again if user use the microscope without responsibility or doesn’t know about microscope using well. User has to know and understand about service guarantee.
3. Institution care and fund allocation for tools routine maintenance.

Now I will show to you about our activities on August 27th 2010, view after we service/ tune up microscopes before college season started on September 1st 2010.

Picture below are microscopes which had been serviced and ready to put in storage box equipped with “Microscope Using Monitoring paper”.