Homeowners, Renters and Home Buyers 

The two main ways that a building/property becomes contaminated is through smoking and the manufacturing of methamphetamine.

When an individual smokes meth, the drug is heated, causing vapours to be released. The excess vapour that is not inhaled by the smoker is then released on the floors, furnishings, walls, and duct system, leaving a toxic residue of meth. 

Surfaces that are contaminated by the manufacturing process of methamphetamine usually show a lot higher reading than surfaces with smoking residue. Manufacturing contamination arises from aerosol production, spillage & waste disposal.

Chemicals such as Lithium metal, Liquid Ammonia, LPG, Acetone, Hydrochloric Acid and Caustic Soda that are commonly used in the cooking process can become air born and land on surfaces and inside porous materials.

Contamination can also arise from solid forms of methamphetamine that have been spilled and worked into carpets, furniture and upholstery. 

The effect of living in a contaminated building can be wide-ranging. The symptoms can be similar to the seasonal impacts associated with allergies or colds and flu or more problematic. 

The main point of difference you need to note is that symptoms will persist far longer than you would typically expect. Some people may experience none of these symptoms, while others may suffer from a large number of them. 

Symptoms include:

• Headaches
• Watery or burning eyes
• Nausea
• Burning skin
• Coughing or choking
• Pain in diaphragm
• Feeling cold or weak
• Shortness of breath or dizziness
• A decrease in cognitive function
• Confusion
• Vertigo
• Convulsions
• Sleep disorders
• Stinging Eyes

The chemical residue, leftover from the manufacturing process, can seep into soft furnishings, carpets, timber floors and door frames, and even walls and ceilings. While you often can’t see the toxins, you may be made painfully aware of their presence through the above symptoms. Children, adults and pets living in contaminated dwellings have been known to suffer ill-effects of exposure. 

Sadly children are most at risk due to their inquisitive nature naturally wanting to touch and taste and texture of different objects.

For more information, head to our blog page! 

• Australian Guidelines for Meth Residue within a Residential Property is 0.5μg/100cm2
• Australian Guidelines for Meth Residue within a Commercial/Industrial Property is 10μg/100cm2. 

The Australian Government (in its Clandestine Drug Laboratory Remediation Guidelines – 2011) has set the Health Investigation Level at 0.5μm (micrograms) per 100cm2 for meth on residential surfaces. 

Exceedance of this Investigation Level (IL) does not necessarily mean a risk exists but indicates the need for further investigation or action such as a NIOSH 9111 test. This guideline is set as a goal to receive a reading of below this national health investigation level (HIL) of 0.5ug/100cm2, the exceedance of this level is considered unacceptable. 

Property managers and owners leasing out property have a legal responsibility to make sure the tenant is living in a safe and healthy environment. 

On top of this, a tenant is considered to be causing malicious damage when smoking or manufacturing Meth, causing contamination to the building. 

This is why we recommend a 0.2ug rapid test when a tenant is vacating a property. This ensures that the property remains contamination free. 

YES! Installments can be made quickly and efficiently with the assistance of our accounts manager.

Depending on your situation, we will start with a rapid test at either 0.2μg or 0.5μg. This test will identify if meth is present within the property. 

We will mostly start testing at  0.5μg as this is the Australian guideline level. This Rapid test will give a positive or negative result to methamphetamine residue over 0.5μg or over 0.2μg. We will complete this test to the number of rooms you request. 

If a single room (or multiple rooms) show positive to methamphetamine residue over 0.5μg, we then suggest that you test those rooms with the NIOSH 9111 test. This test is a laboratory test that will show the exact contamination level. 

At each step of the testing process, we will explain the results and what the next step is.