How do I monitor freezer temperature remotely?

Have you opened up a freezer to find that all your ice cream is melted? Or maybe you open a fridge to find that your orange juice is frozen? Obviously, neither of these scenarios is ideal, but in the grand scheme of things they are relatively minor inconveniences. Now imagine instead of melted ice cream, it’s actually degraded laboratory biomaterial. Suddenly the minor inconvenience turns into a far more costly incident than just buying a five dollar pint of Chunky Monkey. 

Tasty analogies aside, when biomaterial is left at the incorrect temperature for too long, it can have some serious repercussions. For example, it can set research progress back by years, skew results, and lead to monetary losses. Fortunately, for laboratory settings where temperature control is mission-critical, there are services like cold storage monitoring. Basically, cold storage monitoring consists of freezer temperature monitoring systems and services that enable you to continuously check and understand the temperature of a given freezer or refrigeration area within a laboratory. Of course, having to check the temperature manually and in-person any time you want a reading can be inconvenient and, frankly, impractical. That’s why we wrote this article, to break down laboratory freezer temperature monitoring offerings that allow you to check-in on biomaterial remotely. 

How do I monitor the temperature of my freezer?

There are a handful of ways you can monitor the temperature of a laboratory freezer or refrigerator. The seemingly simplest way is to just check the freezer itself to see what the temperature is set at or to use a thermometer, right? Wrong. See, while that sounds easy and straightforward, it’s actually far more complicated to rely on such an analog system. 

Most biomaterials need to be monitored 24/7. Otherwise, samples might be subject to condition changes without anyone realizing—leading to destroyed or useless materials. The issue is, measuring their temperature manually at a constant cadence would be pretty challenging. Plus, can you imagine how mad all the parents in America would be if they knew you were constantly opening and closing the freezer door around the clock? That’s almost as bad as adjusting the thermostat without asking. 

One method that can provide continuous monitoring is chart recorders. Chart recorders are electromechanical devices that hook up to freezers (or other cold storage devices) and record temperature records on paper. Unfortunately, chart recorders tend to take up a lot of space, and are still a rather analog approach in the current digital world. 

Another continuous monitoring option is data loggers. Data loggers measure and record temperatures electronically. This means data can be shared over networks or via USBs. However, one major drawback to data loggers is that in order to access the data you want, you need to physically be on the same site as the data. In other words, there is no remote monitoring capability with data loggers.   

Since manually monitoring temperatures isn’t a great solution, and chart recorders and data loggers have notable downsides, companies like Elemental Machines came up with remote monitoring systems. These solutions harness the power of technology bringing together wireless IoT monitoring, using devices like our Element T, and alarm technology. Internet of things (IoT) sensors and lab monitoring systems allow you to check the freezer temperatures from mobile devices like phones or tablets via the cloud. What’s more, it even provides freezer alarms that connect to your phone, meaning you get notifications via SMS text, email, or phone calls to a predefined set of people if there are any changes in freezer conditions. All you have to do is set a freezer alarm temperature alert with some simple rules, and the monitoring system will automatically do the rest. 

What is a remote temperature sensor?

A remote temperature sensor, like the ones used with Element T, is a small portable device that continuously measures conditions within a specific area. This sensor picks up on temperature, humidity, and pressure around the device. You just set it inside your laboratory freezer, and the sensor does the heavy lifting. Then, you can check in on its readings from any compatible device—like a phone, tablet, or laptop––to monitor the temperature of your biomaterial from anywhere at any time.     

How does a freezer temperature sensor work?

Different temperature sensors rely on varying mechanisms to actually gauge the temperature and record the data. There are several types of freezer temperature sensors, but at Elemental Machines, we primarily use thermocouples. A thermocouple consists of two different types of metals joining together at one end. When the junction (where the two metals meet) is heated or cooled, a small electrical voltage is produced which can be measured and subsequently corresponds to temperature.  To ensure accurate temperature readings, each temperature sensor is calibrated before it is shipped and periodically additional calibrations can be done by third party companies or lab personnel to verify accurate temperature data.  

Why is it so important to monitor freezer temperature?

Simply put: because you can’t take chances. Consider one study conducted in 2021. It aimed to highlight the issues surrounding test result reproducibility. The same samples were tested in different laboratories to determine which factors would hinder reproducible outcomes. Among the findings of the study was the importance of appropriate storage of reagents. When reagents are stored in refrigerators or freezers at the wrong temperature, they deteriorate to the point that reproducible tests—also known as assays—fail quality assessments. Cold storage monitoring allows lab workers to ensure that reagents and other samples stay at the correct temperature and don’t deteriorate.

Cold storage monitoring is also important because the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has provided guidance stating that labs should document:

• The conditions in which reagents were stored
• The source of the materials
• The procedures used for testing

Recording these factors help to guarantee the stability of reagents and to ensure method validation consistency over time. Labs that use cold storage monitoring can prove that their samples were kept at the appropriate temperatures, thus helping to maintain the stability of the samples and consistency of testing.

Elemental Machines offers a remote alerting and monitoring system so that lab employees can track refrigerator and freezer temperatures even when offsite. Should temperatures change unexpectedly, workers can more quickly make the appropriate adjustments to get samples back to the appropriate temperatures, thus maintaining their stability.

Elemental Machines: remote temperature monitoring and more!

At Elemental Machines, we understand how important it is to keep biomaterial in desirable conditions. We believe that a fundamental part of the entire LabOps and cold chain landscape is not only the ability to monitor conditions remotely, but the ability to send and receive alerts when something goes awry. It’s one thing to passively monitor temperature and humidity, but the breakthrough happens when your platform can actively send you alerts if conditions change. To learn more about our suite of offerings, contact us today, or schedule a free demo.