Frequently Asked Questions - FAQ
General Questions
Q. When my product arrived, the ice packs were melted. Can I still use my kit? |
A. Yes. We ship our kits to you packed with blue ice using FedEx's Priority Service or DHL's Worldwide Express to minimize variations in environmental exposure and shipping times so our products arrive to you under the most ideal circumstances. However, Crystal Chem's kits are stable at room temperature for the duration of our shipments. |
Q. Will my package arrive on the weekend? |
A. We understand that your lab or work is not typically open on the weekend. We try to ship products so that they do not arrive over the weekend. For US customers, we typically don't ship products on Fridays unless you specifically request it. |
Q. Can you ship to my country? |
A. Yes. We generally offer our products worldwide and ship our kits globally. For options in your country, please contact us. |
Q. Is the assay summary on the product page the actual protocol? |
A. No. The summary protocols found online are designed to give an overview of the assay procedure. Please contact us if you are interested in reviewing a complete protocol. We'd be happy to email you a copy. |
Q. My well plate is not large enough to hold the reagents needed for this assay, do you have one you suggest? |
A. Yes. A couple of our enzymatic assays use >350µL of total volume. For those kits, we suggest using larger volume plates such as Nunc item 469078 (strips) or 260836 (solid plate). |
Technical Questions
Q. How many samples can I run with the kit? |
A. The number of samples you can run varies by kit, and you should check the product page and protocol for each specific kit. In general, the ELISA kits come with a 96-well plate, and many of our assay kits contain enough material to run 96 tests. The number of tests per kit also includes any standards or controls that should be included, and we generally suggest that all samples should be run in duplicate to obtain the most reliable results. For example, a typical 96-well ELISA kit may come with 7 calibrators. The calibrators and controls use 14 wells to run in duplicate leaving 82 wells for samples. For duplicate determination, that means the kit can run 41 different samples. |
Q. What type of samples can I use with the kit? |
A. Each kit has been validated for specific sample types (ie, serum, plasma, urine, cell culture) as indicated on the product page. The kits may work with additional sample types when tested by the end user, but Crystal Chem has not validated sample types other than those listed. If testing other sample types, we recommend the use of additional controls to validate the results. |
Q. I'm having problems with my ELISA, what did I do wrong? |
A. Depending on the type of problem, there are a few typical causes. Please consult the chart below for the most common problems that apply to all the ELISA kits. If you are still having problems, please don't hesitate to contact us for technical support. |
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