VIDEO: How easy is it to make Meth from batteries, alcohol and cold medicine
Watch as meth is made in this demonstration video.
What is meth? Methamphetamine is a powerful central nervous system stimulant, which is typically manufactured in home-based clandestine labs, using over-the-counter drugs and readily available products.
Methamphetamines -also known as meth, crystal, crystal meth, speed, crank, ice, glass, shards, or chaulk
Meth can be snorted, swallowed, smoked, injected, or ingested.
Meth is typically cooked in a kitchen area or some type of sink area because the process requires lots of water and somewhere to dump waste.
The danger of fire and explosions is always present in meth lab operations. Even after they’re dismantled, meth labs leave toxic chemical dust that can seep into adjacent rooms and neighboring homes. Walls, floors, toys, furniture, ventilation systems, plumbing fixtures and septic systems may require professional decontamination.
Among those at risk of exposure are real estate agents, landlords, property managers, prospective renters and homebuyers, garbage collectors, utility workers, plumbers, social service agents and first responders. About one third of meth lab houses have children living in them. Visitors or neighbors can be put at risk by the poisonous fumes that vent from meth labs, or from the toxic cooking debris that is sometimes buried outside or flushed into the septic system. Each pound of meth produced generates approximately six pounds of toxic residue.
Meth Remediation – A Dangerous Business
Meth cleanup projects have unique health and safety challenges which are not typical of mold, asbestos or lead abatement. Worker training, personal protective gear, and safe work practices are critical at a meth cleanup site. Some states have established their own standards and guidelines that prescribe how to properly clean a meth lab. The Ohio Department of Health, Bureau of Environmental Health is supporting the Minnesota Process-Based Clean-up Guidance as the best-practice standard for cleaning up former meth lab sites in Ohio.
The remediation technicians at Paul Davis Restoration of Cleveland Metro West are trained in accordance with OHSA 1910.120 HAZWOPER. All work is performed in accordance with local county cleanup regulations and a scope of work prepared in conjunction with an independent Certified Industrial Hygienist.
Because no two meth labs are alike, cleanup plans can run the gamut from removing carpet, drapes and furniture and other contents, to replacing drywall, ceilings, electrical and plumbing fixtures—even surrounding soil. Our technicians go in with full-body suits, tightly sealed at the wrists, ankles, neck and all seams.
Once the work is completed, the hygienist returns to take clearance samples. When those samples come back below the state-approved minimum standards, the applicable city or county can issue a Certificate of Occupancy, allowing the property to be inhabited again.
Methamphetamine Laboratory Recognition
The following items are commonly used in the production of methamphetamine.
If you see a combination of these items, or if you suspect that you smell these items being used to produce methamphetamine, please contact the meth Hotline at 1-888-823-METH (6384).
In recent years, the state has seen an increase in the number of clandestine methamphetamine labs, or “meth labs.” Clandestine meth labs have been discovered both in rural areas and in the state’s cities and towns. Discovery and investigation of clandestine meth labs and the individuals operating them are handled by the state’s Attorney General’s Office, Division of Criminal Investigation, in conjunction with the federal Drug Enforcement Agency. Upon completion of a meth lab investigation, trained hazardous waste contractors then carefully identify, package and remove all of the meth lab-related chemicals and equipment. This material is then transported off-site for proper disposal.
Identifying a meth lab – what to look out for.
Here’s a checklist of common signs of meth manufacturing inside and outside a house:
- Strong smell of urine, or unusual chemical odors like ether, ammonia or acetone.
- Windows blacked-out, traffic at odd hours, people going outside to smoke.
- Signs of chemical burns and spills – dark red phosphorous stains in the sinks, toilets or bathtubs, or red staining on the interior walls, countertops and flooring.
- Visible areas in the yard where chemicals have been dumped, or burn pits with chemical container remains, dead or dying vegetation.
- Packaging or containers from large quantities of cold medicines.
- Jars containing clear liquid with a white or red-colored solid on the bottom, jars with shiny metallic purple crystals inside, bottles or jars with rubber tubing attached.
- Glass cookware or frying pans containing a powdery residue.
- Coffee filters unused and used with red stains, white paste or small amounts of shiny white crystals in them.
- Soft silver or gray metallic ribbon (in chunk form) stored in oil or Kerosene.
- Propane tanks with fittings that have turned blue or green.
- Excessive trash with large amounts of the following: alcohol, benzene, toluene/paint thinner, Freon, acetone, chloroform, camp stove fuel, starter fluid, anti-freeze, anhydrous ammonia, Heet, white gasoline, phenyl-2-propane, phenyl acetone, phenyl propanolamine, iodine crystals, red phosphorous, black iodine, lye, Drano, muriatic or hydrochloric acid, battery acid or sulphuric acid, Epsom salts, batteries/lithium, sodium metal, wooden matches, propane cylinders, hot plates, ephedrine, pseudo-ephedrine, cold tablets, bronchodilators, energy boosters, rock salt, diet aids
QUESTION: Why is Meth called Crank?
ANSWER: It used to be hid behind the crank case of motorcycles
