What is BS EN 13697 - Quantitative non-porous surface test about?
BS EN 13697 specifies a test method (phase 2/step 2) and the minimum requirements for bactericidal and/or fungicidal or yeasticidal activity of chemical disinfectants that form a homogeneous physically stable preparation in hard water or in the case of ready-to-use products with water in food, industrial, domestic and institutional areas, excluding areas and situations where disinfection is medically indicated and excluding products used on living tissues.
BS EN 13697 discusses the relationship of the various tests to one another. It helps users to determine the bactericidal or fungicidal or yeasticidal activity of the undiluted product. 
Note-
This method cannot be used to evaluate the activity of products against mycobacteria.
Who is BS EN 13697- Quantitative non-porous surface test for?
BS EN 13697 on Quantitative non-porous surface test is useful for:
- Processing, distribution and retailing of food of animal and vegetable origin
- Institutional and domestic areas like catering establishments, public areas, public transports, schools, nurseries, shops, sports rooms, clinically non-sensitive areas of hospitals
- Other industrial areas such as packaging material, biotechnology (yeast, proteins, enzymes...), pharmaceutical, cosmetics and toiletries, textiles, space industry, computer industry
- Testing laboratories
Why should you use BS EN 13697+A1 - Quantitative non-porous surface test?
BS EN 13697 describes a surface test method for establishing whether a product proposed as a disinfectant in the fields has bactericidal and/or fungicidal or yeasticidal activity on non-porous surfaces.
BS EN 13697 guides you for testing closely simulates practical conditions of application. Chosen conditions (contact time, temperature, organisms on surfaces ...) reflect parameters that are found in practical situations including conditions that may influence the action of disinfectants. The concentration found from this test corresponds helps you to define experimental conditions.
What’s changed since the last update?
BS EN 13697:2015+A1:2019 supersedes BS EN 13697:2015, which is withdrawn.
The changes between EN 13697:2015+A1:2019 and EN 13697:2001 are the following:
- Interfering substance has been changed from 0,03 % bovine albumin to 0,85 % skimmed milk (see Clause 4, Table 1) for Pseudomonas aeruginosa under clean conditions only
- A. Brasiliensis (ex A. Niger) spore preparation has been updated in order to harmonize this step with the QST fungicidal test method amendment issued in 2012 (see 5.4.1.3 b))
- Calculations of the weighed means and of the results have been modified in order to be harmonized with new CEN TC 216 standards (see 5.4.1.5, 5.5.2, 5.5.3 and 5.6)
- Other paragraphs have been harmonized to new CEN TC 216 standards (e.g. Preparation of hard water, 5.2.2.7)
- Deletion of obligatory and additional conditions (see Table 1 and 5.5.1)
- Update of Bovine albumin and skimmed solutions preparations (see 5.2.2.8.2)
- Add of instruction for using vacuum desiccator
- Update on bacteria working culture preparation (see 5.4.1.2) and counting of bacterial and fungal test suspensions (see 5.4.1.4)
- Clarification to the determination of microbicidal concentrations by updating 5.5.2.1 b) and adding pictures of carriers
- Updates on dilution preparation for fungal and bacterial strains (see 5.5.2.2, 5.5.2.3, 5.5.2.4) and counting of test mixtures (5.5.3)
- Data from EN 13697:2015 are still valid with the exception of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Candida albicans under clean conditions
