Help for Filter Based Data Operations

Table of Contents (click on a topic below to jump to that section):

  • Getting Started
  • PreField Placement Activities
  • Enter QC and Maintenance Check Data
  • Enter COC Data, First Tab: Part I – Tared Filter Receipt
  • PostField Placement Activities
  • Enter COCData, Second Tab: Part II – Field Info
  • Post Sample Collection Activities
  • Enter COC Data, Third Tab: Part III – Shipping to Lab
  • Enter Field Data Sheet Information
  • Import RawData From Sampler

A. NewImport.txt File Creation

B. Import Raw Data Text Fileinto tblDataImport Table

C. Inspect DataImport Table

D. Set up Transfer to Data Verification Table

D(1). Transfer SetUp (Move Headers OntoField Names)

D(2). Transfer SetUp (Mapping Fields)

D(3). Transfer SetUp (Possible Blank Fields andRequired Fields)

D(4). TransferSetUp (Check Fields)

  1. TransferFrom DataImportto DataVerification Table
  2. Check Filter IDsin Chain of Custody (COC)

G. Inspect DataVerification Table

H. Update Pollutant and Units

I. CheckFieldData

J. Check COCData

K. QualifyData

K(1). Qualifying Based On Data Quality

K(2). Qualifying DataBased On External Information

L. Transfer Data toDataArchive table

  • Import Data From Weighing Lab

A. NewImport.txt FileCreation

B. Import LabDataText File into tblDataImport Table

C. InspectDataImport Table

D. Set up Transfer to Data Verification Table

D(1). Transfer SetUp (Move Headers Onto Field Names)

D(2). Transfer SetUp (Mapping Fields)

D(3). Transfer SetUp (Possible Blank Fields and Required Fields)

D(4). Transfer SetUp (Check Fields)

E. Transfer From DataImport toDataVerification Table

F. Check Filter IDs in Chain of Custody (COC)

G. Inspect DataVerification Table

H. Update Pollutant and Units

I. Check FilterTypes and Tare Weight Dates in COC

J. Checkfor Missing Filter Run Data

  1. Calculate and Update Air Concentrations
  2. Qualify Data

L(1). Qualify Data BasedOn Concentration Ranges

L(2). Qualifying Based On DataQuality

L(3). Qualifying Data Based On External Information

M. Transfer Data to DataArchive table

Getting Started

From the Main Switchboard, click on the “Filter Method Monitoring” button under the Routine Data Operations category.

The following window will open. All of the filter data operations can be accessed from this window.

Filter Method Buttons and Color Scheme:

  • The buttons on these forms must be completed in the order they appear on the Filter Methods Data Operations form (for example, you cannot import data from the sampler without first having entered Chain of Custody data). The order is from top to bottom, and follows the time sequence of steps from getting the tared filter, placing it into the field, retrieving and shipping it, and importing sampler and lab data. If you skip a step for any one filter, the toolbox forms will be more difficult to use.
  • There are two types of forms associated with filter method operations.
  • The buttons that are titled “Enter…” will open forms that require you to hand enter data.
  • White fields are optional, however if you have applicable data for these fields, you should enter the data.
  • The yellow fields are required and you must enter data into these fields before going on to the next record.
  • The yellow fields with red outlines are required fields as well as primary keys of the associated table in the database-the data in these fields must be unique to that record (usually it is the Filter ID).
  • The buttons that are titled “Import…” open forms that require that you import data from a separate file, such as a text file or Excel file.
  • The gray buttons on the forms are multi-use buttons. They allow you to navigate the forms, inspect data, open this help file, etc., and can be used as many times as necessary during a data import.
  • The light brown buttons are single use buttons. They should only be used once during the course of a routine data import.
  • The “radio buttons” next to the light brown buttons will be checked off once the button has been pressed to indicate that the step has been completed.
  • The buttons with letters (A., B., C., etc.) have corresponding lettered sections in the relevant chapters of this help file (either the Import Raw Data From Sampler or Import Data From Weighing Lab chapter).
  • The dark brown boxes with yellow font on the forms are simply labels.

Pre Field Placement

The following outlines the steps you should take before placing the filters in the field samplers.

Enter QC and Maintenance Check Data

  • If you have done any QC or maintenance checks on the samplers since you last entered data, click on the “EnterQC and Maintenance Check Data” button to open the following window.
  • Depending on what kind of data you have to enter, choose one of the buttons to open a data entry form. You may have data to enter on multiple forms.
  • Flow RateQC Check Data
  • Use this form to enter flow rates, regardless of how frequently you collect flow rate data.
  • Every 5 Sampling Events Maintenance Check
  • Monthly QC Check
  • Six Month Maintenance Check
  • Annual Maintenance Check
  • All of the forms have the following required fields for data entry:
  • Sampler ID
  • Pollutant
  • Check Date
  • Check Time
  • Initials
  • Passed Check.
  • The Flow Rate QC Check Data form has some additional required fields if you plan on submitting precision and bias data to AQS. These are the “Primary QA Org (PQAO) Role”, “Standard Source”, and “External Standard?” fields, highlighted in green on the form. What value you choose in the “External Standard?” field determines if the toolbox will treat this as precision or bias data for AQS submittals. A precision data file only includes one set of known and measured values, while a bias data file includes up to five sets of known and measured values. A precision AQS file only allows one data set to be reported. See the Help forAQS Reporting Using the Toolbox file for more information.
  • If you choose a value of “No” in the “External Standard?” field, the check will be reported as precision (because the standard you used was your own, and therefore EPA defines that check as a precision check). If you enter multiple flow checks, the toolbox will choose the precision value to report in the AQS file based on the following order: FR1, FR2, FR3.
  • If you choose a value of “Yes” in the “External Standard?” field, the check will be reported as bias (because your field equipment is compared against other equipment, calibrated by another organization, therefore EPA defines that check as bias check). All of the flow checks that you enter will be reported in the AQS file.
  • All forms can be printed as blank, so that a paper copy of the form, identical to that shown on-screen, can be taken into the field. This can make data entry easier.

Enter COC Data, First Tab: Part I– Tared Filter Receipt

Every time you receive a group of unexposed, tared filters from the weighing lab, the data from the Chain of Custody (COC) sheet supplied with the filters should be entered. Clicking on the “Enter COC Data for Unexposed Tared Filters” button opensthe following window:

  1. Enter the data from the COC sheet for each filter that you receive from the weighing laboratory, even if you are not going to immediately place the filters in the field. (Note: you must enter data for each filter in a separate record, even if they have the same COC data. The filter ID is the unique ID.)

a)Filter ID – DONOT enter any text characters that may be on the Chain of Custody sheet supplied with the filters or on the filter packaging. For example, if the Filter ID on the Chain of Custody sheet is “T456789” enter “456789” into the database. It is also very important that you enter the Filter ID correctly. One simple error such as transposing numbers will cause major problems when you try to import data from the sampler and lab. Use the notes field for additional information.

b)Tared Filter Receipt Date – this field will default to today’s date. Replace this date with the date the tared filters were actually received, if different.

c)Received By – select the initials of the person the shipment was received by

d)Weighing Lab – type in or select the appropriate weighing lab from the drop-down box (Note: The first time you enter a weighing lab, you must type the name of the lab into this field. Then, once you close and reopen the form, the weighing lab will be included in the drop-down box.)

e)Tracking Number – enter the tracking number from the package label

f)Shipped from Lab via – select the method/carrier for the shipment

g)Tare Weighing Date – enter the weighing date in MM/DD/YYYY format

h)Date Filter Must Be Used By – enter the expiration date for the filter in MM/DD/YYYY format

  1. Use the right arrow button (►) near the bottom of the window to enter a new Filter ID in a new record. Every Filter ID must have its own record. When you click on the right arrow button, you will notice that the following fields are already populated with the values that you entered for the previous filter. These values can be changed, as they may not be correct for this new filter.
  • COC Form ID,
  • Tared Filter Receipt Date,
  • Received By,
  • Weighing Lab,
  • Tracking Number, and
  • Shipped from Lab via

The following fields are not pre-populated and you must enter values into these fields. Since the data that you are entering in some of the fields of the new filter may be the same as the data that you entered for the previous filter, you can use the Access keyboard shortcut to copy data from the previous filter by holding down the <ctrl> key and pressing the apostrophe key (<’>) while the cursor is in the relevant field.

  • Filter ID,
  • Shipment Integrity OK,
  • Tare Weighing Date, and
  • Date Filter Must Be Used By
  1. Once you are done entering data for all the filters in the shipment, close the form. Note:If you reopen the form, it will open to a new blank record. If you need to view and edit data that you have previously entered, go to the Records drop-down menu of Access and click on the Remove Filter/Sort option to view all of the records that you have entered.

Post Field Placement

The following outlines the steps you should take after placing the filters in the field samplers.

Enter COC Data, Second Tab: Part II – Field Info

Once you have placed your filters in the field, the data from the Chain of Custody sheet should be entered by clicking on the “Enter Field Placement Data from COC” button to open the Part II – Field Info tab.

Note:all filters entered in the previous steps (“PreField Placement”) will show up when you click on the right arrow button (►) near the bottom of the window to move to the next filter. You will notice that the FilterID field is already populated based on previous data entry—make sure to enter the correct filter Field Placement data in the COC form for the correct filter, noting that the order of the filters in the toolbox might be different than the order of your hard copy COC sheets!

  1. Enter information for each filter that has been placed in the field. You should not be entering data for new Filter IDs in this step (all new filters should be entered using the first COC tab, Part I - Tared Filter Receipt), therefore, the Filter ID field should not be modified on this tab.

a)Filter Type – select the appropriate filter type from the drop-down box

b)Date Filter Placed at Site – enter the date filter run was started in MM/DD/YYYY format

c)Site – select the Site Name from the drop-down list

d)Sampler ID – select the Sampler ID from the drop-down list

  1. It is very important that you enter the correct Filter Type, Site ID, and Sampler ID for each filter because this is the only place these data are stored. Concentration data will be linked to the sites and samplers using the information that you enter on this form.
  2. Use the right arrow button (►) near the bottom of the window to move to the next record. Each unique Filter ID has its own separate record that you must move to in order to enter data for that filter. Since some of the data that you are entering for the current recordmight be the same as the data that you entered for the previous record, you can use the Access keyboard shortcut to copy data from the previous record. For example, perhaps you placed the filter that you are currently entering data for at the same site that you placed the filter you previously entered data for because this is a collocated site. By holding down the <ctrl> key and pressing the apostrophe key (<’>)while the cursor is in the relevant field, you can copy the data from the previous recordinto the current record.
  3. Once you are done entering field placement data for all of the filters that have been placed, close the form.

Note:If you reopen the form, it will only show records for filters that have not yet been placed in the field. If you need to view and edit data that you have previously entered, go to the Records drop-down menu of Access and click on the Remove Filter/Sort option to view all of the records that you have entered.

Post Sample Collection

The following outlines the steps you should take once you have retrieved the filters from the field and shipped them to the lab for weighing.

Enter COC Data, Third Tab: Part III – Shipping to Lab

Once you have retrieved the filters from the field and shipped them to the weighing lab, the shipping data from your Chain of Custody sheet should be entered by clicking on the “Enter Shipping Data from COC” button. This will open the Part III – Shipping to Lab tab.

Note: all filters entered in the previous steps (“PreField Placement” & “PostField Placement”) will show up when you click on the right arrow button (►) near the bottom of the window to move to the next filter. You will notice that the FilterID field is already populated based on the previous data entry—make sure to verify that you are entering the correctShipping data for the correct filter,noting that the order of the filters in the toolbox might be different than the order of your hard copy COC sheets !

  1. Enter information for each filter that has been shipped to the weighing lab. You should not be entering data for new Filter IDs in this step (all new filters should be entered using the first COC tab, Part I - Tared Filter Receipt), therefore, the Filter ID field should not be modified on this tab.

a)Shipped By – enter the initials of the person responsible for the shipment

b)Ship Date – enter the Ship Date in MM/DD/YYYY format

c)Shipped Via – this field will default to “Not Yet;” Replace the default value with the method used to ship your samples.

d)Tracking Number – enter the tracking number from the shipping label

e)Destination – select the name of the weighing lab

  1. Use the right arrow button (►) near the bottom of the window to move to the next record. Each unique Filter ID has its own separate record that you must move to in order to enter data for that filter. Since some of the data that you are entering in the current record might be the same as the data that you entered for the previous record, you can use the Access keyboard shortcut to copy data from the previous record. For example, perhaps you are sending several filters to the weighing lab in the same shipment. Then the tracking number would be the same for each of the filters in that shipment. By holding down the <ctrl> key and pressing the apostrophe key (<’>) while the cursor is in the relevant field, you can copy the data from the previous record into the current record.
  2. Once you are done entering shipping data for all of the filters that have been shipped, close the form.

Note:If you reopen the form, it will only show records for filters that have not yet been shipped to the weighing lab. If you need to view and edit data that you have previously entered, go to the Records drop-down menu of Access and click on the Remove Filter/Sort option to view all of the records that you have entered.