Meth Clandestine Drug Residue and Meth Kit Sampling Instructions

1. To test for methamphetamine and clandestine drug residues, place a 10cm x 10 cm template on the surface to be sampled and secure the template. With freshly gloved hands, take one pretreated wipe from the package. Do not return gloves or templates to EMSL. Dispose of by putting in plastic bag and then placing in trash.
2. Fold the wipes in half and then fold in half again. Using firm pressure, wipe the area within the template with at least five overlapping side-to-side horizontal passes. If blotting, be sure to blot at least five times on each horizontal pass.
3. Then, without allowing the wipe to touch any other surface, reverse the last fold so that the exposed side is now facing inward. Using the fresh surface on the wipe, again wipe or blot the same area at a 90-degree angle to the previous wipe pattern. Fold the wipe again and insert it into a clean 50 ml vial. Be sure to cap the vial securely and label it with a unique sample identification number or name.
   • If composites are involved, you must composite in the field. You can add up to 3 wipes per centrifuge tube for EMSL wipes and only 2 if you provided your own wipes. You will be charged a composite fee if EMSL composites the samples. Please make sure that the COC is clear and only one line item is filled out per composite grouping. If more than one is used and separarte samples are submitted, you will be charged for each line item as a separate sample.
4. Be sure to change gloves between each sample taken and a field blank should be taken for every ten samples.
5. Record the sample information on the Chain of Custody Form. All of the information requested on the form should filled out. This form must accompany any samples sent to the laboratory.

While methamphetamine is stable on the wipe media for at least 7 days at room temperature, refrigeration is recommended.