FILTERING
All drugs should be filtered with a new, sterile filter. If you fail to filter your drugs before injecting, particles and impurities will enter you bloodstream. This can lead to serious health problems, including dirty hits, bacterial infections and vein damage.
It is very important to filter pills before injecting as they contain fillers (such as chalk, talc and wax) that can block the veins and get lodged in the lungs, heart, liver and kidneys. Over time this can lead to serious health problems. Blocks and collapsed vein can eventually lead to gangrene and amputation of affected areas. Other health problems, such as endocarditis (an infection in the heart) can be fatal.
Filtering will not remove the drug from the mix but will remove most of the impurities. This will help you to maintain your veins and provide you with a cleaner and safer taste.
Cotton wool and roll-your-own cigarette filters (such as ventii) are often used as filters when injecting powders such as speed. These filters only provide a coarse level of filtration and still allow dangerously large particles into your blood stream. It is better to use cotton wool or roll-your-own cigarette filters than no filter at all but they are still not sterile and they do not filter out bacteria. Even if your mix looks clean it still contains particles and impurities that you can't see. To be really safe you should follow up using a wheel filter.
Tailor-made cigarette filters and swabs should never be used as filters. Cigarette filters may contain tiny glass fibres which can damage your veins and heart if they enter you bloodstream. Swabs contain alcohol which will contaminate the mix.
WHEEL FILTERS
There are two main types of wheel filters: pill and bacteria. They are made specifically to filter impurities and fillers from a drug mix to reduce harm. They look like a spinning top and come in a variety of colours.
Wheel filters are also called syringe driven filters because you use the syringe to push the liquid through the filter into your injecting barrel. Wheel filters are designed for single use only and will be more efficient if they are primed for use before filtering. This involves wetting the internal membrane with a small amount of water.
Wheel filters can be used for any drug that dissolves in water but cannot be used with oil based solutions, such as steroids, as they will damage the filter membrane. They are not suitable for 1ml syringes, which have the needle attached.
Wheel filters should not be used for hot liquids (over 45 degrees) as heat will weaken the filter membrane and cause it to break. Cooking your mix before using a wheel filter is not recommended. It allows the wax to pass through the filter which will solidify (harden) in your veins when injected. This will occur even if you allow the mix to cool to a slightly warm temperature. This means that while you have used a wheel filter it has not worked, so essentially you have not filter the impurities out of your mix at all.
If you crush your pills well and use cold water the filter will work more effectively and you will avoid wax and other fillers entering your veins. It will not take any longer to prepare you mux using the cold water method and the health outcomes far outweigh the hot water method.
To be really safe you should filter through a ventii filter (rollie cigarette) first and then through the wheel filter. Double filtering is the safest and most efficient way to remove the non-dissolved particles that can block blood vessels.
Pill and bacteria filters are available from your local outlet.
Bacteria filters (0.22 micron):
Many illicit drugs are made in unsterilized conditions and may contain bacteria that can cause dirty hits, abscesses, infections and vein damage. Bacteria are also found on the surface of the skin and other surfaces such as spoons.
Bacteria filters are designed to filter out bacteria and fungal spores producing a sterile drug mix and can filter up to 200ml's of liquid. Bacteria filters are ideal for filtering liquid methadone, finer powder drugs such as heroin or speed and mixes that contain unsterilized water. They are essential for any drugs that have been diverted from the mouth and will reduce the risk of infections such as fungal eye infection, which can result in serious damage to the eye or permanent loss of vision.
Bacteria filters fo not filter blood borne viruses such as HIV, hepatitis B or hepatitis C.
Pill Filters (0.45 micron):
Pills are designed to be swallowed and contain fillers such as talc, chalk, starch and wax. If these substances are not filter from your mix they can block veins, lodge in vital organs and reduce oxygen supply to body tissue, resulting in loss of limbs.
If you are going to inject pills the best way to filter the particles and impurities is with a pill filter. They are ideal for filtering pills such as MS Contin, Oxycontin, Physeptone, Dexies and a wide range of Benzodiazepines (such as Xanax) or any pill designed for oral consumption. Nb. pill filters also come in 0.8 microns; however they are not available through Tasmanian NSP outlets.
Pill filters do not filter out bacteria.
Pill filters do not filter out blood borne viruses such as HIV, hep B or hep C.
For more information contact NSP staff at TasCAHRD.