Hello All! I’m looking for someone who can point me in the direction of a source for glassware for a rotary evaporator. I came across a Heidolph Laborota 4011 benchtop system at a lab liquidation auction, and after initially listing it for sale in classified section and receiving little interest, I am looking to get it up and running for use in my small lab. The evaporating/receiving flasks and condenser that came with the unit are unfit for use, so I am looking to replace them with new glass. I reached out to Heidolph, the parts were discontinued and they do not have any in stock. I also reached out to Across International, they did not have any way to source it either. I ran a few searches on the site and came across some older posts mentioning custom glass makers, mainly for spd. Anyone have any ideas on how to source this glass and/or a glass maker who could do the job? Thanks in advance for all input!
I would start by searching ebay, craigslist, etc. If you can find any used parts it will save you a lot of $$$
Any parts that are impossible to find/obsolete and need to be custom made will need good drawings. If you have the drawings then send them to a glassblower and they will quote it for you. We make custom glass so if you need some help just shoot me a pm
In the past when I got older used glassware if it wasn’t fit for use I would send it for glassware repair. That was always much cheaper than getting brand new. This was the case when I was working in pharma natural product synthesis and is the same since branching out of pharma.
I don’t know where you are - but even where I am in the middle of the desert there is a machine shop that does glassware repair about an hour away. I’d start there (if you haven’t pitched the condenser and flask). I bet some of the guys on here probably do this as well and you’d just have to figure out transportation.
You could also just make measurements - and get yourself some flasks that fit (they come from many places) and a condenser that fits as well. Doesn’t have to be by Heidolph. Back in the day I used flasks from Fisher which almost always were labeled Corning/Pyrex.
You can look on that table - your rotovap is from Europe so it might not be standard US sizing. Then you can measure the size of your basin radius and that will give you the upper limit on the volume of your evaporation flask.
For your condenser - amazingly enough I don’t know why Heidolph would have told you that these are no longer available. You can order Glassware Set G1, G3, G5, or G6 (if you want to use dry ice) from them directly. But you wouldn’t have to use theirs. You could use any vertical distillation condenser that is appropriately sized for the size of your evaporation flask and for the type of solvent collection you are doing. Again you’d just need to check the size of the connection and go from there.
Link to the Manual for this in German and English
A link to the G3 set (which should have most of the parts you need)
Link for Vertical Condensor 29/32 connection
So now that we know that you need a condenser with a 29/32 connection - you just have to pick the one you like. Or you can go to swap shops, etc. and since you know what you are looking for and the size of the connection you should be good to go. The manual says its a 1L flask setup - so anything smaller than that should work for you. I used to have lots of sizes, because I didn’t always need a 1L flask, sometimes I only needed 100mL.
Good luck!
Thanks for the suggestions on used stuff, I’ve had my eyes peeled and will continue to keep them that way. I do not have good drawings as of now, if we go that direction I will reach out via PM about your custom glass services. Thanks again for the feedback
Thanks for the detailed response, you sharing your time and knowledge on this topic is much appreciated.
It does look like their are several outlets for glassware repair near me, I’m going to explore sprucing up existing condenser and receiving flask. The system did not come with a evaporation flask.
It is good to know that flasks don’t need to be same make as the rotovap as long as measurements match up. I will use the linked table and measure to find the upper limit of the volume of evaporation flask.
Not sure why Heidolph told me the condenser wasn’t available, they were very helpful initially but about a week after speaking to their tech sales rep over the phone I received an email that the parts were discontinued and they would be unable to help. I should have looked to their site to match the manual’s specification with available parts myself as you did, I appreciate you taking that step. Also, good to know anything with a 29/32 connection will be sufficient.
Again, thank you for all the help. I’m going to continue exploring my options over the weekend and keep working to get this thing up and running as soon as I can. I feel much more confident in the feasibility of making the system work and I have a much better grip on how to go about getting glassware thanks to your post. Again, your help is much appreciated!