Advantages:
- Quick preparation: specimen fixation, dehydration and staining are not necessary (but possible, if required). For this reason, wet mounts are the first kind of mounts that students learn to make.
- Few artifacts: If there is no chemical and physical processing of the specimens before observation (no fixation), there are little artifacts and the specimens appear in their natural condition.
- Living and moving: It is possible to observe living and moving organisms. It is also possible to observe certain processes of life, such as feeding, cell division etc. (for water-based mounts)
- Natural colors: The colors are natural and not faded. The colors of permanently mounted specimens may fade over time.
Disadvantages of wet mounts include:
- Movement: The advantage of observing movement can also be a disadvantage. Due to the movement of the organisms it may be more difficult to take pictures or to make drawings. There is a solution to this problem: one can slow down ciliates and other protozoa by adding a solution, which increases the viscosity of the water.
- Evaporation: The heat of the lamp causes the water to evaporate more quickly. More water must be added under the cover glass from time to time.
- Focus: Some organisms may swim vertically in the water and therefore move in and out of focus. Here it is important not to use too much or too little water. Too little water may squeeze the specimen between cover glass and slide.
- Storage: Wet mounts can not be stored over a longer time.
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