COVID-19 Surface Testing

The kits that we send you are stable at room temperature (up to 23 degrees C, or 73 degrees F) for 6 months.

Once you have collected your samples, you should keep them at room temperature and ship them back to us within 24 hours.

Each COVID-19 surface check kit contains:

One (1) Quick Reference Card
One(1) Zone Information Card
One (1) Full Instruction Sheet
One (1) Large Disinfecting Wipe
One (1) Return Bag for Returning Samples
One (1) Set of Disposable Nitrile Gloves
Four (4) Collection Tubes
Four (4) Surface Sampling Swabs

We strongly suggest testing non-porous surfaces about the size of a credit card for best sampling quality. We recommend that you test surfaces in high traffic areas, such as door knobs, TV remote, elevator buttons, faucet handles, bedside tables, front desk, light switches, ventilation exits, soap/sanitizer dispensers, handrails, armrests, phones, or toilets.

• Select a zone to test. It could be a set of areas used only by the group that you want to monitor (staff, residents, students etc...). The test zone will consist of 4 or 8 surfaces. For example, if the zone is a staff breakroom, you can select to swab
  1. the breakroom's door handles,
  2. the fridge door handle,
  3. the main table,
  4. the bathroom door handle

Make sure to note on the card what surface you tested.

• Collect your surface samples by wiping each test surface with a new swab (pre-wetted swabs are included in the kit). Use only one swab to swab the entire surface. For larger surfaces, such as meeting a room table, swab up to 5 inches from the edge or until the swab is dry.
• Place each individual swabs into their respective collection tubes. The tubes contain a lysis buffer that inactivates the virus.
• Place your securely closed tubes in the original kit box and use the included pre-paid and pre-printed shipper to return the box to our lab overnight.

That's it! We will send you your results within 24-hours of your samples' arrival to our lab

Overnight return postage for one package is included in the price of the kit and a return label will be provided to you. Please use the enclosed box to return your sample

Results will be returned to you by email and we are working on a web portal where you can view your results.

Positive test results indicate the presence of viral particles and may indicate that the surface was contaminated by contact or proximity with an infected person. The presence of viral genetic material on a surface does not indicate that the most recent cleaning was improper, and can be due to other factors, including that the surface was re-contaminated by contact or proximity with an infected person.

Contamination management decisions should be made in accordance with the current CDC
guidelines. For additional information, please see https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019- nCoV/index.html.

Based on repeated measurements done on over 1,000 surface tests in more than 50 facilities, we know that the Surface Check has a higher and more reliable sensitivity than human testing (as of July 2020).

False-positive rate: We would incorrectly report that virus is present less in less than 5 out of 1000 tests.

False-negative rate: We would mistakenly report that there is no virus present less than 15 percent of the time. 

This compares favorably with the human testing statistics, in which 20-30% of infected people receive a negative test result.

We found that approximately 25% of surfaces in "hot" facilities will show the virus. therefore testing 4 surfaces that are independent of each other allows you to catch ~70% of outbreaks. Testing  8 surfaces allows you to catch ~90% of outbreaks.