Laboratory Incubator Guide: Choose by Chamber, Temperature Range and Shaking for Canadian Labs

Choose a laboratory incubator by what has to move and how cold or hot it has to stay, not by chamber size alone. A static incubator holds samples at one temperature; a shaking incubator adds an orbit so flasks stay suspended; a multi-function incubator adds rocking, rotating, stirring and, on one model, cooling to 4 °C. ERE's OHAUS and Labnet range runs from a 9.2 L bench unit to a 24 L multi-function chamber and a 1.7 cu ft shaking incubator, and this guide sorts them by job so you can match the temperature range, uniformity and agitation to your protocol before you ask for a quote.

In this guide

• Which laboratory incubator do you need: static, shaking or multi-function?
• What do temperature range, uniformity and accuracy mean?
• Do you need shaking, and how much load can it carry?
• How big a chamber do you need?
• When is a laboratory incubator the wrong tool?
• What safety and setup checks apply?
• How do you choose a laboratory incubator, step by step?
• Frequently Asked Questions

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Which Laboratory Incubator Do You Need: Static, Shaking or Multi-Function?

Start from the sample and whether it must move. ERE lists the Labnet static and shaking incubators in the incubators collection, and the OHAUS incubating shakers and the Genie in the shakers collection. The figures below come from the product records; voltage, shelves and accessories are confirmed on a quote.

Class	Model (record)	Chamber	Temperature	Agitation
Static	Labnet Mini Incubator (LAB-I5110A)	9.2 L (0.375 cu ft); one shelf, three levels	Analog; ±0.6 °C stability at 37 °C; low limit +5 °C	None; fits a Mini LabRoller
Shaking	Labnet 211DS Shaking Incubator (LAB-I-5211-DS)	1.7 cu ft; two full shelves and one half	+5 to 80 °C in 0.1 °C steps; ±0.25 °C uniformity; 0.1 °C accuracy	20-400 rpm; 19 mm orbit
Incubating shaker	OHAUS Incubating Heavy Duty Orbital (ISHD16HDG / ISHD23HDG)	Benchtop; 11-18 in. tray	Ambient +5 to 65 °C	15-500 rpm; 19 mm or 25 mm orbit
	OHAUS Incubating Rocking and Waving (ISRK04HDG / ISWV02HDG)	Benchtop; 7.25-10 in. tray	Ambient +5 to 65 °C	1-50 rpm; rocking 0-15° or waving 0-20°
Multi-function	OHAUS Multi-Function Incubator Genie (Incubator Genie e-MI3 / Enviro-Genie e-MI3C)	24 L	Up to 75 °C; Enviro-Genie from 4 °C; Peltier cooling	Rotate, rock, shake with accessories; Enviro-Genie also stirs

The Mini Incubator record describes an all-metal housing and door frame, a plexiglass window, heating elements built into the bottom and sides of the housing, and a grommet hole in the top for a thermometer. It also notes a rear port for an electrical cord, which lets a Mini LabRoller run inside the chamber. The record lists +5 to 60 °C in the long description and +5 to 70 °C in the short spec line, so the high limit is confirmed on the quote.

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What Do Temperature Range, Uniformity and Accuracy Mean?

Range is where the incubator can be set, uniformity is how much the temperature differs from place to place inside the chamber, and accuracy is how close the displayed value is to the true value. They are three separate specifications, and a protocol that fails at 37 °C usually fails on uniformity or accuracy, not on range. The Mini Incubator record gives a stability of ±0.6 °C at 37 °C, measured with a N.I.S.T.-traceable thermometer; the 211DS gives ±0.25 °C uniformity and 0.1 °C accuracy; the Genie models give 1.0 °C uniformity and 1.0 °C accuracy (Incubator Genie e-MI3) and 0.5 °C uniformity and 0.2 °C accuracy (Enviro-Genie e-MI3C).

Read the lower limit as carefully as the upper. The 211DS and the Mini Incubator list a low limit of +5 °C, and the OHAUS incubating shakers list ambient +5 °C, which means a warm room raises the lowest temperature the chamber can hold; we confirm how each Labnet limit is referenced on the quote. If your method needs 4 °C or an incubation below room temperature, the Enviro-Genie is the only model in ERE's records that lists active cooling, with Peltier (coolant-free) cooling down to 4 °C. Verify the chamber against an independent thermometer, traceable to a national standard such as those described by NIST's calibration services, before you rely on it for a regulated method.

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Do You Need Shaking, and How Much Load Can It Carry?

Shake only if the culture needs oxygen transfer or suspension; otherwise a static incubator is simpler and quieter. The 211DS has an integral orbital shaker at 20-400 rpm on a 19 mm orbit, with a flask-clamp platform for 125, 250, 500 and 1,000 ml flasks sold as accessories. The OHAUS Incubating Heavy Duty record gives two models, and the figures show why load and speed must be quoted together:

• ISHD16HDG (19 mm orbit): 16 kg at 75 rpm, 2.3 kg at 500 rpm.
• ISHD23HDG (25 mm orbit): 22.7 kg at 125 rpm, 4.53 kg at 500 rpm.

For gentle motion the OHAUS Incubating Rocking and Waving record offers a see-saw rocking tray (0-15°, 4.5 kg) and a three-dimensional waving tray (0-20°, 2.3 kg) at 1-50 rpm, which the record describes as low-foaming. The orbit-versus-speed trade-off is the same one covered in the orbital shaker guide; the difference here is that the chamber also holds temperature. The Genie lists 4.5 kg centered on the axis for rotating or rocking, with shaking available through accessories.

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How Big a Chamber Do You Need?

Size it for the largest vessel and the number of shelves, then leave room for air movement. The records give three very different volumes: 9.2 L for the Mini Incubator (interior about 9 × 7.9 × 7.9 in.), 1.7 cu ft for the 211DS (a chamber of 13.5 × 14.75 × 15 in., about 48 L by our conversion) and 24 L for the Genie, whose tray is 8 × 12 in. The incubating shakers are benchtop units sized by tray, 7.25-10 in. for rocking and waving and 11-18 in. for the heavy-duty orbital models.

The 211DS record states that the units are stackable and that a stacking adapter (LAB-I-5211-SA) is required when stacking, which adds a second chamber on the same bench footprint. Check the bench: the 211DS weighs 73 lb (32.2 kg) in the base model and has an exterior of 16.75 × 21.75 × 23 in., and the Mini Incubator is 11.2 × 11 × 13.2 in. at 18.4 lb (8.3 kg). A balance on the same bench needs a stable surface of its own; see the laboratory balance buyer's guide.

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When Is a Laboratory Incubator the Wrong Tool?

When the method needs something these records do not list. Match the tool to the task:

• CO₂ control for mammalian cell culture: none of the incubators above lists CO₂ regulation or humidity control in its record, so ask us before assuming one fits. The Genie record lists suspension cell culture agitation among its applications, not CO₂ control.
• Mixing a tube or plate: use a vortex mixer, which has no chamber.
• Heated stirring of a beaker: use a magnetic stirrer with a hot plate.
• Separating the sample after incubation: that is a job for a laboratory centrifuge.

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What Safety and Setup Checks Apply?

Keep the incubator on a level bench with free air space around it, and treat what you grow in it according to its risk group. For microbiological and biological materials, the Canadian Biosafety Standard, Third Edition sets the containment requirements a Canadian facility must meet, and the CDC's Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories (BMBL) is the widely used reference for laboratory biosafety practice. Your biosafety officer decides what applies; ERE supplies the equipment, not the risk assessment.

Setup is practical. Fit the shelf height or platform before you load the chamber, put a calibrated thermometer where the samples will sit (the Mini Incubator record describes a grommet hole for one, and a 110 °C thermometer is listed as an accessory), and allow the chamber to stabilise before you load it. The 211DS record notes a safety thermostat at the back and an internal electrical outlet for small equipment such as a GyroMini or Mini LabRoller.

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How Do You Choose a Laboratory Incubator, Step by Step?

1. Write down the temperature and the tolerance. A setpoint (for example 37 °C) and the uniformity your method allows.
2. Check the low limit. If the setpoint is near or below room temperature, you need the cooling model.
3. Decide whether the sample moves. Static for plates and tubes at rest; shaking, rocking or rotating for flasks and suspensions.
4. List the vessels and the load. Flask sizes, tray size and the weight at your rpm.
5. Size the chamber. Volume, shelves and whether you will stack units.
6. Choose accessories. Shelves, flask clamps, stacking adapter, platforms and a thermometer.
7. Confirm power and bench space. The Genie lists 100, 120 and 230 VAC; the 211DS lists 120 V, 60 Hz.

Send us your setpoint, vessels, load and rpm, and we will match the model and the accessories. If your method needs CO₂ control, tell us in the first line so we can say plainly whether we can supply it.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is a laboratory incubator used for?

It holds samples at a controlled temperature for growth or reaction. Typical uses in the OHAUS Genie record include nucleic acid incubation, protein expression studies, suspension cell culture agitation, enzyme reactions, immunostaining and sample thawing.

What is the difference between a static and a shaking incubator?

A static incubator holds temperature only. A shaking incubator adds motion, such as the 211DS integral orbital shaker at 20-400 rpm, so flasks stay suspended and gas exchange improves.

Can a laboratory incubator cool below room temperature?

Only a model with active cooling can. In ERE's records the OHAUS Enviro-Genie lists Peltier cooling down to 4 °C. The other models list a low limit of +5 °C or ambient +5 °C.

How accurate is the temperature?

It depends on the model. The 211DS record lists 0.1 °C accuracy and ±0.25 °C uniformity, the Mini Incubator ±0.6 °C stability at 37 °C, and the Genie models 0.2-1.0 °C accuracy. We confirm the figure for your model on the quote.

Do you sell CO₂ incubators?

None of the incubators in this guide lists CO₂ control in its record. If your method needs it, tell us through the quote form and we will confirm what we can supply.

Do you quote laboratory incubators for delivery across Canada?

We quote Labnet and OHAUS incubators for delivery across Canada. Send the setpoint, vessels and load through the quote form and we confirm the model, accessories and availability.

Related articles

• Orbital Shaker Guide: Choose by Orbit, Speed and Load
• Vortex Mixer Guide: Choose by Duty, Orbit and Tube Format
• Magnetic Stirrer Guide: Choose by Volume, Speed and Heat
• Laboratory Centrifuge Guide: Choose by Tube, g-Force and Rotor

Lire en français : Incubateur de laboratoire : guide de choix par chambre, plage de température et agitation au Canada