Actichem MethSan PreWash 20 ltr

Product Overview

Actichem’s MethSan range is formulated to target the residues left by the manufacture and use of methamphetamine and other clandestine drugs.

Contamination is never uniform. Depending on the ingredients used, the cooking process, how far a room sits from the activity area, and how long that activity went on, a single property can carry a wide range of contamination levels from room to room. The MethSan system is built around that variability rather than assuming one strength suits everything.

What makes the system different is that it does not rely on oxidisers alone. Alongside the oxidising chemistry that breaks down chemical and biological residues, it uses a blend of two ingredients with a strong affinity for the micro-carbon soils produced when hydrocarbons and other chemicals are heated and cooked. That pairing releases and suspends soils that have embedded themselves into paintwork and porous surfaces — which is where meth residue characteristically hides, and why surface wiping alone does not resolve it.

Which pack size do you need?

This is the 20 litre bulk pack. The prewash is the product you will go through fastest on a remediation, because a thorough prewash is the difference between passing and failing validation — so this is usually the right size for contractors. The 5 litre suits a single property.

The MethSan system

MethSan is a multi-part decontamination system, not a single product. The parts are designed to be used together in sequence, and ordering one without the others will leave you unable to complete the method.

Fog Boost or Foam Boost? The choice is about how you are getting the chemistry onto the surface, not about how strong it is. Fog Boost is for fogging or ULV application, where you are treating whole rooms, wall and ceiling surfaces and cavities. Foam Boost is for foam application, where dwell time on vertical surfaces is what you need. Many jobs use both at different stages.

MethSan PreWash

The success of a high-reading drug lab remediation depends on the prewash. Not a nominal wipe-down, and not sugar soap — a purpose-built chemistry applied thoroughly.

MethSan PreWash is designed for maximum removal of stubbornly embedded carbonaceous and oily residues from a range of substrates. A prewash done well means there is less residue left for the main wash to deal with, and that is what lifts the success rate of the whole job. Skimping here is the most common reason a remediation fails validation and has to be done twice.

• Chases micro-carbon compounds typical of drug lab residues.
• High-quality emulsification system removes the associated soiling and oils.
• Super wetting agents for rapid penetration and action on porous surfaces.
• Free rinsing — it comes back off, which matters because residue from your own prewash will interfere with the main wash.

Working to a remediation standard

Methamphetamine decontamination is not a cleaning job with a stronger chemical. It is a remediation process that has to be documented and validated. Chemistry is one input.

• Assess before you treat. Contamination varies enormously between properties, and within a single property, depending on what was cooked or smoked, for how long, where, and how the air moved. Pre-remediation sampling tells you where you actually stand.
• Work to the applicable guideline. Australian remediation work is conducted with reference to the Commonwealth Clandestine Drug Laboratory Remediation Guidelines and the relevant state or territory health department requirements. Confirm the current clearance criteria applying to your job before you quote it.
• Validate afterwards. Post-remediation sampling is what closes the job out. No chemical, including this one, can be claimed to have achieved clearance without it.
• Document everything. Products used, dilutions, methods, dwell times, areas treated, and the sampling results. This is a job that gets reviewed after the fact.

We supply the chemistry. We are not in a position to certify a property, and neither is any product. If you are new to meth remediation, get trained and get an independent sampler involved before you take the work on.

Safety

This listing previously carried no safety information at all. That was an omission on our part and it has been corrected. The PreWash is the most strongly alkaline product in the MethSan kit, so this is the one to read.

Actichem’s safety data sheet for DR634, version 1.1 issued 4 August 2023, classifies MethSan PreWash as a hazardous chemical with the signal word DANGER.

• H318 — causes serious eye damage (Serious Eye Damage Category 1)
• H315 — causes skin irritation (Skin Corrosion/Irritation Category 2)
• Not a dangerous good. No poisons schedule.

⚠ H318 — serious eye damage

This is the highest eye classification in the GHS system. It is damage, not irritation — a splash can cause permanent injury.

The concentrate is pH 11.5 to 12.5, driven by monoethanolamine and potassium pyrophosphate. At that pH the danger is not the immediate sting; alkaline burns to the eye are characteristically painless at first and progressive, which is exactly why people under-react to them. Chemical goggles, not safety glasses, whenever the concentrate is being decanted, diluted, sprayed or applied overhead.

If PreWash gets in an eye, flush with running water immediately and keep flushing, holding the eyelids apart, and seek medical attention without delay — do not wait to see whether it settles down.

⚠ H315 and prolonged contact

Remediation work is not a five-minute job. You are in a contaminated property for hours, repeatedly wetting surfaces overhead and having solution run back down your arms. That cumulative contact is what causes the skin problems on these jobs, not a single splash. Wear proper protective clothing and change out of anything that gets soaked.

⚠ Part A and Part B — storage and mixing

This deserves a moment because the safety data sheets read confusingly if you take them in isolation.

• Part A is an oxidiser. Its sheet says to keep it away from reducing agents, acids, alkalis and combustible organic matter.
• Both Part B products are alkaline (pH 10.1 – 10.7) and their sheets say they are incompatible with oxidising agents.

Read literally, each says to keep away from the other. In practice these statements are about bulk storage and uncontrolled mixing, not about the working solution the system is designed around. What that means on the job:

• Store the parts separately. Not on the same pallet, not in the same bund, not stacked on each other in the van.
• Combine only at the point of use, at the dilution and in the order Actichem specifies for the method you are using.
• Use mixed solution promptly and do not keep it. Do not mix a batch today for tomorrow.
• Never seal mixed solution in a closed container. Peroxide solutions decompose slowly and release oxygen. A sealed drum or a capped pump-up left overnight builds pressure. Vent it, or better, do not store it at all.
• Never add anything else — no acids, no chlorine products, no other cleaners. This system is chemistry, and adding a third thing to it is how people get hurt.

Ventilation and personal protective equipment

Work with ventilation appropriate to the application method. Chemical goggles, protective clothing, and respiratory protection suited to how you are applying it. An eyewash unit should be on site — not in the van, on site.

First aid

Eyes. Wash out immediately with fresh running water, holding the eyelids apart. Seek medical attention without delay.

Skin. Immediately remove all contaminated clothing. Flush skin and hair with running water.

Swallowed. Rinse the mouth with water. Seek medical advice without delay.

Specifications

Related Products

• MethSan PreWash 5 litre — the same product in the smaller pack.
• MethSan Part A (DR610) — the oxidising half of the main wash.
• MethSan Part B Fog Boost (DR636) — Part B partner for fogging.
• MethSan Part B Foam Boost (DR638) — Part B partner for foam application.

Safety Data Sheet

Actichem MethSan PreWash safety data sheet (DR634, version 1.1, 4 August 2023)

SKU: DR634.20

Setting up for meth remediation for the first time, or unsure which parts of the system your job needs? Call us before you order. The prewash on its own will not complete a remediation.