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Filter your Future
Filtering your drugs will reduce the damage injecting drugs does to your body. Filtering removes impurities and means you’ll have a cleaner, safer taste.
Most pharmaceutically prepared drugs are made in tablet form do they can be swallowed. Manufacturers add chalk, wax and other additives to make the tablets easy to swallow. If you’re going to inject pills you need to remove as many of these as possible.
Homebake and speed are generally made to be injected, but because they’re homemade they also contain a lot of impurities and by-products of the manufacturing process. Opium too, contains lots of unwanted plant matter.
By effectively filtering your drugs you can reduce the amount of harmful contaminants in them, this will help you avoid some of the secondary health problems associated with injecting drugs such as collapsed veins, injection site infections and dirty tastes.
Dirty Tastes and Infections
Unfiltered drugs may produce quite dramatic and dangerous reactions from your body. These show themselves in different ways. A “dirty taste” can be quite frightening, for example you may get one or more of the following reactions:
Trembling...Vomiting...Headaches
Migraine...Fever...Sweating...Swelling or infection around the injection site.
Chills or an inability to warm-up
These are all symptoms of a “dirty taste” which is caused by contaminants in your drugs. If you are familiar with “dirty tastes” you will know just how unpleasant they can be. Localised infection, abscesses and vein collapse are also problems related to not filtering your gear. Traditional filter methods can add more harmful impurities to your gear such as cigarette filters (glass fibres) and cotton products (bleaches & fungi). The safest and most effective way to filter your drugs is to use a wheel filter from a Needle Exchange / Level 2 pharmacy. To find your local needle exchange or level 2 outlet CLICK HERE
What is a Wheel Filter?
Wheel filters are small filter units commonly used in medical and industrial laboratories which prepare solutions. These filters are designed to fit between the needle and syringe using the leur-lock common connection method.
The Needle Exchange Programme sell a variety of wheel filters predominantly from two manufacturers; Sartorius (German) who manufacture "Minisart" wheel filters and Millipore (US) who make "Millex" wheel filters.
Both products use the same type of filtering membranes which are housed in a small circular plastic moulding. The plastic mouldings include screw on connections for a needle and syringe on either side. The key advantages to this method of filtration are:
Low retention of filtrate
No additional contamination from the filter material
Cheap disposable solution
Learn More...
Sartorius Corp:
http://www.sartorius.com/en/separation/laboratory/products/Lprod13.htm
Millipore Corp:
http://www.millipore.com/lifescience/products.nsf/docs/millex2000
Which Filter do I Need?
MST’s or Morphine Sulphate tablets: Use a 0.8 micron (green) filter, unless you’ve got more than one pill in which case you’ll need to put it through a 1.2 micron (red) filter.
Bake or Homebake: Use a 0.2 micron (blue) filter to remove impurities and bacteria.
Opium from poppies: Try a 1.2 micron (red) filter to remove plant residue.
Chalky pills (pethedine, methadone and Ritalin): Use a 1.2 micron (red) filter.
Methadone liquid: Use a 0.2 micron (blue) filter to remove any bacteria.
Amphetamine Sulphate (brown or discoloured speed): You’ll need a 0.8 micron (green) filter.
Crystal Amphetamine (white) or Cocaine: You’ll need a 0.2 micron (blue) filter.
These are the recommended minimum filter sizes. If you wish, you can use a smaller filter after the recommended size to reduce contaminants further.
How do I use a Wheel Filter?
Get all the stuff you need from a needle exchange or Level 2 pharmacy. You’ll need a fit for each person, a 5 or 10 ml mixing fit, sterile water, your wheel filter and some alcohol swabs. Grab some condoms while you’re at it, they’re free..
Then, wash your hands, swab your spoon(s) with the alcohol swabs and prepare a clean work surface. Take your MIXING FIT and screw the water ampoule onto it and draw up some sterile water. Then remove the ampoule and replace it with your wheel filter.

Holding the MIXING FIT vertically push the sterile water up through the filter to remove any air bubbles and wet the filter thoroughly.
Then squirt the water out into the sink.
Prepare your drugs as you normally would and the cool your gear right down.

Then place a clean cigarette filter, piece of cotton wool or cotton bud on the surface of the liquid in the spoon.
Draw up the liquid through the cigarette filter or cotton into a MIXING FIT.

Next, screw the wheel filter tightly onto the mixing barrel, then screw a needle onto the filter.
Push gently with even pressure straight into your NEW SYRINGE.
Screw a NEW NEEDLE onto the syringe and you’re ready to go.
Some tips on using Wheel Filters
Wetting the filter with sterile water before you put your drugs through it will make it less likely to block or retain any of your drugs.
Filters are designed for single use only
Don’t put warm or hot liquids through wheel filters since some waxes pass through them when warm.
Wheel filters clog up if you put too much shit through them.
More drugs = More filters
Pushing liquids through filters is easier than pulling it through.
Wheels filters work best with larger size syringes, a 5ml or 10ml is ideal.
When filtering apply pressure gently and steadily or the filter may rupture and your drugs will end up on the floor.
You can get any dregs out by pushing a little sterile water through the filter. Remember to go the same way as you did before.
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