Should you test for meth contamination?

The latest caveat for homebuyers or renters is the possibility of methamphetamine contamination. Stigma aside, living in a home that’s been contaminated by someone manufacturing or smoking the drug inside can cause respiratory and cardiovascular problems.

Even when meth is smoked, fumes crystallise as they fall and settle on surfaces such as walls, windows, curtains and carpets.

Those affected are often younger children as they tend to have more regular, direct contact with the floor.

Nobody wants to unwittingly buy a contaminated home. However, the problem is perhaps not as widespread as we think.

‘‘It’s a common misconception that New Zealand is flooded with meth contaminated houses,’’ says Graham Rogers of Success HR, which conducts drug testing for residential, business and employment sectors across the central North Island.

‘‘Only around 10 per cent of the houses we test actually fail.’’

Buyers and landlords might be worried about cities like Auckland, but Rogers has found that rural houses ‘‘outside the eye of passersby’’ have been the ones to have higher readings.

‘‘These are often the places that manufacture can take place unobserved,’’ he says.

So how can you tell if a home needs to be meth tested? In short, you probably can’t.

For landlords, obvious signs to look for in your property are missing lightbulbs, windows that have been consistently covered with drapes or newspaper and never opened, burns on the walls, the ceiling or around the stove, or odd stains on tiles.

Those sensitive to the contamination may enter a home where meth has been smoked or cooked and get an itchy or scratchy throat and a stinging nose.

The Ministry of Health deems a safe level of meth contamination to be 1.5 micrograms per 100 centimetres, or 3 micrograms for crawl spaces such as under the house.

A standard meth test will involve taking swabs of a 10cm by 10cm area, which is then sent to a lab for testing.

Results can vary widely depending on the surface chosen for the test sample.

In order to err on the safe side, Rogers recommends that landlords test their rental properties every three months and potential buyers have properties independently meth tested while undergoing due diligence.

However, the standard of the test consumers receive will depend on which company they choose. There are no NZQA certifications required to set up a business that caters to solely meth testing and decontamination.

In short, it’s still important to do your homework.

For further information on this topic, Graham Rogers will be speaking at The Waikato Home & Garden Show in Hamilton from October 5-8 .