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Dental Equipment Maintenance - Protecting Your Investment

Published on 2/11/20

 

In case you haven’t heard, February is Pet Dental Health Month and we’ve been celebrating here at Penn Vet with all things dental! During this month we tend to focus on home dental care and communicating the importance of brushing teeth and using dental chews. However, we want to turn it around and focus on your clinic and how you can offer the best dental services to your customers. We partnered with MAI Animal Health, the manufacturer that brings you Inovadent, to create a guide on dental equipment maintenance. Here are some dos and don’ts to keep your dental unit running in tip-top shape!*

 

*Always refer to your dental unit and handpiece manufacturer recommendations for specific care and maintenance instructions.

 

Low and High-Speed Handpieces

Maintenance and Cleaning

DO:

 

  • Lubricate daily before use
  • Only use handpiece lubrication (Inovadent recommends Bio Lube for their handpieces)
  • Lubricate the turbine directly (Can be done daily, but should be done weekly at a minimum)
  • Always lubricate after autoclaving
  • Use a handpiece cleaner to clean handpiece internals
  • Lubricate after cleaning
  • Use an autoclave at the manufacturer’s recommended settings
  • Clean the LED / Fiber-optics with alcohol
  • Use a brush to clean handpieces

DON’T:

 

  • Don’t forget to lubricate - this is the most important measure to maintain performance and prolong turbine life
  • Don’t use a handpiece cleaner without using a lubricant after cleaning
  • Don’t wipe down high/low-speed handpieces with alcohol
  • Don’t submerge any handpieces in liquid
  • Don’t use an ultrasonic cleaner
  • Don’t use iodine to clean the handpieces
  • Don’t use a handpiece cleaner on the LED / Fiber optics
  • Don’t autoclave with a bur or blank in the handpiece
  • Don’t use before handpiece has been allowed to cool completely

Operation - High-Speed Handpiece

DO:

 

  • Use sharp burs - dull burs can cause your turbines to wear out sooner
  • Replace burs with bur blank after use
  • Run high-speed handpieces at manufacturers recommended PSI
  • If handpiece is sluggish: check operating pressure daily, make sure bur is not dull, clean handpiece and lubricate

DON’T:

 

  • Don’t use excessive pressure when operating high-speed handpieces
  • Never operate your high-speed handpiece without a bur

Operation - Low-Speed Handpiece

DO:

 

  • Replace prophy angle with blank after use
  • Make sure you run at the PSI recommended by the manufacturer

DON’T:

 

  • Operate without a prophy angle

 

Piezoelectric Handpieces
(For units with integrated scalers)

Cleaning & Maintenance

DO:

 

  • Wipe the handpiece clean using alcohol
  • Use an autoclave at recommended settings
  • Clean the piezo cord with water or alcohol
  • Drain residual moisture from line per manufacturer’s recommendations
  • Store all cords so they do not drag on the floor when the unit is mobile - this is unsanitary and can damage cords

DON’T:

 

  • NEVER lubricate a piezoelectric handpiece - it will cause failure and may void warranties!
  • Don’t submerge in any liquid
  • Never clean a piezoelectric handpiece using an ultrasonic cleaner
  • Don’t use iodine to clean the cord
  • Don’t submerge in any liquid
  • Don’t put added strain on the cord
  • Don’t pull on the cord to move your unit
  • Don’t pull on the cord when removing the handpiece

Operation

DO:

 

  • Adjust power settings according to the manual
  • Check your scaler tips for wear - all scaler tips wear out which causes them to lose efficiency
  • Familiarize yourself with different tips and settings for subgingival versus crown scaling

DON’T:

 

  • Don’t push harder if piezoelectric handpiece seems to have lost power - check the scaler tip for wear and check your power settings
  • Don’t over-tighten tips - this will cause handpiece breakage

Water/Solution System

Cleaning

DO:

 

  • Purge system at the end of every day
  • Use water to flush water additives (Ultra Scale, CLS, etc.) from the system
  • Peroxide based cleaners have been shown to significantly reduce the number of bacteria and biofilm in dental water lines

DON’T:

 

  • Don’t leave water or additives in the system

Operation

DO:

 

  • Use distilled water
  • Operate at the PSI recommended by the manufacturer

DON’T:

 

  • Don’t use tap water - this can cause calcium to build up in the system and cause valve failure

Compressor Maintenance

Daily:

 

  • For oil compressors, check the oil level before startup
  • Drain tank using a paper towel to catch any moisture in the tank

 

Annually:

 

  • Change filters per manufacturer recommendations

 

 

Keep these tips handy to ensure that you are maintaining your dental unit properly, increasing the lifespan of your investment and guaranteeing first-class dental services to your patients. Using an Inovadent Dental system? Check out MAI’s instructional videos on how to best care for and operate your equipment.

Time to look into investing in a new dental system? MAI has you covered! Ask your rep about which system fits your needs best or contact our Equipment Team at [email protected] or 800-233-0210.

 

 

View our previous blog about Solving the Inventory Management Nightmare: 9 Best Practices!

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