10 Maintaining the VI
To Install a Capillary Column with the Volatiles Interface
Maintaining Your GC 167
To Install a Capillary Column with the Volatiles
Interface
1 Gather the following:
• Long (65 mm) column nut
• Column
• Ferrule
• Column cutter
• Isopropanol
• Septum
• Two 1/4-inch wrenches
• Lab tissue
• Metric ruler
• Lint-free gloves
2 Place GC in maintenance mode: Maintenance > Instrument > Perform Maintenance >
Maintenance Mode > Start Maintenance. Wait for the GC to become ready.
Be careful! The oven and/or inlet may be hot enough to cause burns. If either is hot, wear
heat-resistant gloves to protect your hands.
Wear safety glasses to protect your eyes from flying particles while handling, cutting, or
installing glass or fused silica capillary columns. Use care in handling these columns to
prevent puncture wounds.
Wear clean, lint-free gloves to prevent contamination of parts with dirt and skin oils.
3 Place the column on the hanger with the ends pointing up and the label to the front.
4 Place a septum, long capillary column nut, and ferrule on the column.
Use a long column nut. See “Consumables and Parts for the Volatiles Interface” on
page 164.
If you are using a standard column nut, you must remove the interface. For this reason it
is recommended that you use the long column nut. See “To Remove the VI Interface” on
page 171.