Breath Test Instrument Supplies: What You Can Replace Yourself

What's happening

A handful of breath test instrument parts are designed to be replaced by whoever's running the program day to day — no case number, no return shipping. Everything else, mainly anything internal to the instrument, needs to come in to us. This guide covers both so you know which bucket a given problem falls into before you call.

What you can order and install yourself

1. Thermal printer paper. The I-900 uses its own paper roll; the I-240 and I-240D use the standard roll. Either way, it's a customer-installable swap — open the printer, drop in the new roll with the coated side facing the print head, and close it. Note that our paper supplier has a minimum order quantity on rolls, so a single-roll order may need to be bumped up to meet that minimum.
2. Disposable mouthpieces. Ordered by the case, and used one per subject test, never reused.
3. Dry gas standard. The 105L ethanol gas standard used for accuracy checks. Most customers order the smaller .040 value. If your purchase order references a CMI part number, let us know so we can cross-reference it to the correct item — we can usually match either numbering.
4. Pluggable keyboard (I-240 / I-240D, pluggable-keyboard revision). If the external keyboard stops responding, first confirm your unit is the pluggable-keyboard revision rather than an earlier fixed-keyboard model — a photo of the keyboard connector, taken with the case open, is usually enough for us to identify the correct replacement part. Once confirmed, we'll source the correct replacement and send pairing and installation instructions with it.
5. Printer battery. Covered in more detail in our printer troubleshooting guide — a battery that won't hold a charge is a customer-installable swap, or we can take the unit in if you'd rather not do it yourself.

What requires the unit to come in

Anything internal to the instrument's electronics is not a field swap. The most common example: if a unit won't hold its date and time after a power cycle — you re-enter it in setup and it's gone again the next time the unit is powered on — that's a dead internal clock battery on the board, not an external accessory. It isn't customer-accessible, so the unit has to come in. We replace the internal battery, then run our standard post-repair calibration checks before shipping it back.

The same applies to anything affecting the sampling path — fuel cell, sampling board, sampling motor — or a printer that won't produce output after you've ruled out paper and battery. Those go through our normal repair intake rather than a parts order.

Ordering supplies

For any of the customer-replaceable items above, contact us with your instrument model and the quantity you need. We'll confirm the correct part for your revision, make sure the order goes to the right place, and flag anything (like a minimum order quantity on paper rolls) that affects your order size or timing.

Depending on the item, an order may be placed with the manufacturer directly rather than through us. Either way, start with us — identifying the correct part for your specific unit is where these orders usually go wrong, and a mismatched part number costs more time than the order itself.

When to call us

• You're not sure whether a symptom is a supply issue or something that needs the unit in for service.
• Your unit won't hold date and time, or shows any sampling-path fault.
• You need help matching a purchase order part number to the correct item.

Call (513) 891-0868 or email service@fosterinstruments.com.