Free Online Course
Laboratory Fundamentals
Follow a wastewater sample from collection to a result an operator can use: sampling, handling, the common lab tests, quality control and the record.
Start the Course- Time
- About 70 minutes
- Certificate
- 1.0 hour of completion
- Credit
- Not yet approved for continuing education credit
- Price
- Free
- Format
- 58 narrated pages, checks and a final
- Built by
- A working wastewater operator (Washington Group III)
Who It's For
Wastewater operators at any level, people studying to become operators, and experienced operators reviewing the basics. No lab background needed.
What You'll Learn
- Explain why a lab result needs sample and process context before you act on it.
- Describe representative, grab and composite samples, preservation and holding time.
- Recognize common lab equipment, PPE, labels and safety data sheets.
- Follow the main steps of the dissolved oxygen, BOD and TSS tests.
- Describe what pH, temperature, chlorine residual, settleable solids, turbidity, bacteria and COD results tell you.
- Read a QC control chart, correct lab records the right way and report a non-detect.
This course explains the workflow. Your lab procedure gives the exact steps for each test.
What's Inside
Why Lab Results Matter 4 pages
- Course Orientation
- Why Lab Results Matter
- Results Need Context
- Trustworthy Result Chain
Sampling and Holding Time 9 pages
- Receive And Check The Sample
- Representative Sampling
- Location Matters
- Why Sampling Time Matters
- Grab Samples
- Composite Samples
- Preservation And Storage
- Holding Time
- Managing Holding Time
Using Lab Results 2 pages
- How Operators Use Lab Results
- Use Results With Trends And Process Context
Lab Safety 3 pages
- Choosing PPE
- Labels And SDS
- Chemical Handling And Emergency Readiness
Equipment and Measurement 8 pages
- Reagents And Standards
- Labware Cleanliness And Cross-Contamination
- Equipment Roles
- Measure And Transfer
- Reading Measurements
- Choosing A Balance
- Equipment Readiness Beyond Calibration
- Accuracy And Precision
Dissolved Oxygen 4 pages
- Dissolved Oxygen
- Using A DO Probe
- Temperature And DO
- DO And Aeration
BOD 6 pages
- What BOD Tells Us
- The Five-Day Path
- Bottle And Initial DO
- Dilution Water And Seed
- BOD Blanks And GGA
- Final DO And Meaning
TSS 6 pages
- What TSS Represents
- Mix And Measure
- Filter And Wash
- Dry And Cool
- Weigh The Filter
- TSS: Putting It All Together
Other Common Tests 9 pages
- What pH Indicates
- Measuring pH
- Temperature
- Chlorine Residual
- Settleable Solids
- Turbidity And Clarity
- Common Bacteria Tests
- High Bacteria Results
- COD Introduction
Quality Control and Records 5 pages
- Blanks, Duplicates, And Standards
- When QC Fails
- Reading A QC Control Chart
- Correcting And Reviewing Laboratory Records
- Reporting A Non-Detect
Putting It All Together 2 pages
- Connect Lab Results To The Process
- Laboratory Fundamentals: Putting It All Together
Sample Page
Why Lab Results Matter
Measured Evidence
Wastewater conditions change with flow, loading, weather, treatment activity, and process location. Laboratory measurements give operators a consistent way to describe some of those conditions. Lab results can show things like oxygen levels, Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD), and suspended solids that you can't reliably judge just by looking at the wastewater.
How Results Are Used
Some results support process control; others support permit monitoring and required records. In either use, the operator considers the number with field observations, operating records, other measurements, and the monitoring purpose. A laboratory value is evidence about the process, not an automatic operating command. Clear communication matters because the collector, analyst, reviewer, and operator using the result may be different people.
What to remember: Use laboratory results with process observations and records to understand treatment conditions.
Questions
Does This Course Count Toward My Renewal?
Not yet. A course counts toward your continuing education credit only after your state approves it, and this one is not approved yet. This page will say which states approve it once they do.
Do I Need an Account?
Yes, to take the course. Signing in lets us record your time and issue your certificate. This page, the topic pages and the practice questions need no account.
Can I Skip Ahead?
No. Each page has a minimum time before the next one opens, and your time is recorded.
What Do I Get When I Finish?
A certificate of completion from Operator Master for 1.0 hour, once you pass the final with 80% or better. Your operator certificate or license always comes from your state, not from Operator Master.