(Examples of both horizontal and vertical windows are shown) Pipetting Basics How to read a pipet (Examples of both horizontal and vertical windows are shown) p10 (pipets 0.5-10 ml) tenth’s place one’s place ten’s place Example: 1.5 ml 5 1 p20 (pipets 2-20 ml) 5 5 ten’s place one’s place tenth’s place Example: 5.5 ml p50 (pipets 5-50 ml) tenth’s place one’s place ten’s place Example: 21.5 ml p100 (pipets 10-100 ml) 2 1 5 7 5 2 hundred’s place 1 7 ten’s place 5 5 one’s place Example: 75 ml p200 (pipets 20-200 ml) p1000 (pipets 100-1000 ml) 9 5 1 5 5 9 thousand’s place 1 hundred’s place hundred’s place 5 ten’s place ten’s place one’s place one’s place Example: 150 ml Example: 950 ml

Things to remember when using a variable volume pipet! Make sure you have the right pipet for the volume being pipetted. When adjusting, do not force the pipet beyond the range of its volume. Often, this ruins the pipet. There are two stops to the pipet. The first is for aspirating the liquid. The second is for pipetting the last bit of liquid back out. Do not puncture the bottom of the well. To pipet: 1. Place the tip firmly on the pipet. 2. Push the top button down to the first stop. 3. Gently place the tip into the liquid you are pipetting. 4. Allow the button to slowly come back up. 5. The fluid should come up into the pipet tip as the button rises. 6. To pipet out, place the tip into the well and slowly press the button down to the second stop. 7. Keep holding the button down as you raise the pipet tip out of the fluid you have just pipetted out. 8. Practice by pipetting 20 ml, 10 ml, 5 ml, and then 2 ml into the wells of your pipetting stations.