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Harm Reduction Micron Filtering Mega Thread and FAQ

Captain.Heroin

Bluelight Crew
Joined
Nov 3, 2008
Messages
94,868

Micron Filtering Mega Thread and FAQ
by Captain.Heroin

What is micron filtering?
The micron filter is utilized to ensure sterility and safety of intravenous drug use. For many pharmaceutical tablets which are desirable for injection depending on the individual (Ritalin, OxyContin, Roxicodone, Dilaudid, Morphine Sulfate, Suboxone, Subutex, Dormicum, etc), the use of a micron filter is necessary to remove unwanted inactive ingredients. Some inactive ingredients like talc (for example, which is present in Ritalin and OxyContin, among many other pills) are best kept out of IV solutions, due to the fact that it ends up in your lung eventually.

Over time, if you continue to inject pills, it is better to micron filter, so as to avoid the build up of tablets' inactive ingredients into your body.

Why micron filter?
There are several case studies of such individuals, and you can view the Case Studies thread for reasons why you should micron filter. One specific example involves a successful lung transplant due to talcosis of the lung. The patient acquired talcosis of the lung because they injected enough talc within Ritalin tablets.

What will I need?
1) Whatman Sterile 0.2 µm PVDF Micron Filter

NSFW:
whatmanmicronfilter.jpg

50microns022um.jpg


2) Luer Lock Needle Tip
(Any gauge will do, pictured below are 18G needle tips)

NSFW:
monojectneedle.jpg


3) Luer Lock Syringe
(Size varies on how much solution you are preparing at once, pictured below are 25CC luer lock syringes)

NSFW:
terumosyringe.jpg

terumosyringe2.jpg


4) Bacteriostatic Water; 0.9% benzyl alcohol
(Solutions that are going to be used within a day or so don't necessarily need a preservative, but for the most part, any solution that you're planning on using for a week or two should have a preservative such as benzyl alcohol).

NSFW:
bacteriostaticwater.jpg
bacteriostaticwatertray-1.jpg

WARNING : Do NOT inject bacteriostatic water by itself. Intravenous injection of Bacteriostatic Water for Injection without a solute may result in hemolysis. You can read up on hemolysis here.​

5) Rubbing alcohol pads.
(You will need to sterilize the surface of pre-sealed vials)

NSFW:
alcoholprepswabs.jpg


6) Vial for storing your newly created solution. For this tutorial, we're going to use a pre-sealed vial, such as the one that the bacteriostatic water is being stored in (pictured below; so you can see the rubber stopper). You can also use a media bottle for this purpose (also pictured below), though using a vial is a lot more convenient. If you do not want to use a bacteriostatic water bottle, or cannot (you don't need to use all 30mL to open one up), then you will also need an extra pre-sealed glass vial (clear or amber).
NSFW:
storagevial.jpg
mediabottle-1.jpg


7) Pills/Drugs. Obviously, last but not least, you will need your own pills/drugs to micron filter. Bacteriostatic water is not safe to inject by itself. Feel free to choose any pills/drugs you like to micron filter, however pictured below are what I am choosing to micron filter for this example for you all (three 8mg Suboxone tablets).
NSFW:
suboxone.jpg


How Do I Micron Filter? - The Procedure
1) Remove luer lock syringe from packaging. Pull the plunger back. Insert pills. Replace the plunger.

NSFW:
step1.jpg

2) Sterilize the stopper of the bacteriostatic water. Attach needle tip to the syringe, insert needle into bacteriostatic water vial. Draw back desired volume of bacteriostatic water. Remove the needle from the vial.
NSFW:
step2.jpg

3) Replace the needle tip with a micron filter. Shake the syringe until the pills have dissolved. *
NSFW:
step3.jpg

4) Slip on a new luer lock needle tip to the end of the micron filter. Sterilize the stopper of the vial you wish to store your solution in. **
NSFW:
step4.jpg

5) Push the needle through the stopper of the vial and push down the plunger, slowly but surely. Be careful not to exert too much pressure.
NSFW:
step5.jpg

6) When complete, carefully remove the needle from the vial. Store the needle and syringe safely for exchange, and discard the used micron filter.
NSFW:
step6.jpg


* Depending on what pills you are using, you might want to pre-crush/split/filter them before this step. I must note, unless you are micron filtering Subutex or Suboxone, it is strongly recommended you pre-crush your pills. This method with backloading un-crushed pills will take some time for other, much smaller, harder to dissolve in water whole pills. It may take up to 15-20 minutes, or even longer. Some pills are designed this way, so to save you the frustration, just crush them up if you're not absolutely sure shaking them in water will help them dissolve in a few minutes. You can also wait to replace the needle with the micron filter until after the pills have dissolved, but I would be careful shaking about a large gauge needle in the air. Or, you can re-cap the needle with the plastic guard so as to protect the sterility of everything. These are all great ideas.

** If you are using a media bottle, you don't need to waste another needle tip - just secure the micron filter over the mouth of the media bottle.

Now that you've read all of this, it's likely you'll want to repeat what I've done here. So it naturally begs the question,

Where can I acquire all of these supplies?
<LINKS REMOVED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE>
 
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FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions​
Q) Do I need bacteriostatic water?

A) If you plan on creating a solution for more than one shot, then yes. If you're just preparing a single shot with a micron filter, there's no need for it. Sterile water (bacteriostatic water is sterile as well, it just has 0.9% benzyl alcohol to maintain sterility over time, as a preservative) by itself is just fine for a single shot. Keep in mind I have used tap water for IVing for over a whole year and I also used a lot of the 5mL tubes of "sterile water" they hand out at the needle exchange I go to. They expired in October of 2005. The liquid would be stored for up to two days outside of its original container before I injected it. So overall, it's hard to say whether one "needs" bacteriostatic water. But why risk it, and end up having an infection because bacteria grew in your non-bacteriostatic solution?

Q) What do you mean 0.2? What's PVDF? What does 25mm mean?
A) Whatman is the manufacturer of the micron filters I use. People use other, different brands of micron filters, but the positive reviews I have read about Whatman brand micron filters led me to acquiring these. 0.2 µm refers to the pore size of the filter. It's one of the smallest sizes of micron filters that are out there (the smallest I've seen is 0.1 µm). 0.2 µm micron filters are necessary to remove harmful inactive ingredients in pills, like talc (for example) or microcrystalline cellulose. PVDF is a type of filter media, which is good for oil based and water based solutions. Nylon filters are ideal for oil based solutions only, and PES filters are ideal for water based solutions only. I determined that PVDF filters are ideal for intravenous drug use. You can read more about filter types here. 25mm refers to the size of the filter (how much surface area the solution has to pass through). Ideally, the larger the surface area, the quicker filtration. However, Whatman brand filters have pre-filters built into them, so that 25mm is large enough for most purposes. Other filters which are larger may not be as high quality or filter the solution as effectively due to a lack of a built in pre-filter.

Q) How many times can I use a single micron filter?
A) Once, ideally. They are guaranteed sterile, but once you've used them, they are no longer sterile. As time goes on, bacteria can build up inside micron filters. So, you should create a bulk quantity of solution with a single micron filter. This is the safest way to utilize micron filters. The liquid inside of the filter can be building bacteria as time goes on, and you wouldn't know this. There's liquid that's already passed through the filter. So yes, a micron filter would filter out bacteria, but you can't ensure there isn't bacteria that's growing on the other side of the filter. This is the problem with letting a micron filter sit around for another use - this is an inherently bad idea. Only use your microns once. Prepare more solution if you're going through them quicker than you expected.

Q) What can get through a micron filter? What does a micron filter out?
A) You'll need to do your research. Micron Filter Question: What can get through? might be of help.

What we know is that talc, microcrystalline cellulose, fungal spores, most bacteria, and many inactive ingredients in pills are filtered out with a micron filter. Viruses are too small to be filtered out with a micron filter, unfortunately. This means you cannot use micron filters to remove viruses from an IV solution (let's say someone made a huge dope shot, only need 1/2 of it. If you know they have Hepatitis or HIV, you cannot use a micron filter to make that other half of the dope shot safe for you to use, unless you are going to risk exposing yourself to the virus). I wanted to make this perfectly clear for anyone who might inquire about this in the future.
 
Nice job CH.. i dont think too many people will be asking Q's cuz you pretty much summed it up for anybody with a brain.


Meaning everything everyone needs to know is pretty much covered by CH.
 
awesome job man, this has been a long time coming.
14.gif

very nice.

Nice job CH.. i dont think too many people will be asking Q's cuz you pretty much summed it up for anybody with a brain.


Meaning everything everyone needs to know is pretty much covered by CH.

I give this two syringes up!

Awesome! Glad to hear you all like it. :D I took a lot of pictures just to make this as user friendly as possible. This way, I hope more people will actively use micron filters.

Also, if there are any other frequently asked questions about micron filters you can think of, let me know so I can expand the FAQ section of this thread.
 
Way to go Captain H!

This is a marvelous and much needed addition to the board.
 
Thanks!

Way to go Captain H!

This is a marvelous and much needed addition to the board.

You're welcome! I'm glad I could be of service. I'm glad I decided to make this thread around the same time I made my new batch of 1.25mg/mL buprenorphine solution, so you all could see how it's done if anyone had any questions.

I didn't know that a needle could slip onto the end of a micron filter once on a syringe when I made my first solution in a media bottle. It was pretty cool to find that out.
 
Are those filters $5 each or am I misunderstanding? (that's expensive)

Thanks for the post and the pictures! I have not really understood how this worked until now, although I've been trying to figure it out for a year or so - maybe not hard enough. I've been sticking to cotton, but trying to find a "better" way..
Do you know of any way to filter well without specifically a wheel filter, or using a regular disposable syringe with a filter?
 
Very nice Cap'n, been waiting with anticipation for this mega when I first heard you mention it. Definitely a great resource and a nice contribution to HR. Almost makes me wish I had the time to use right now, I'll have to put some time aside to "exercise" my new knowledge.
 
Are those filters $5 each or am I misunderstanding? (that's expensive)

Thanks for the post and the pictures! I have not really understood how this worked until now, although I've been trying to figure it out for a year or so - maybe not hard enough. I've been sticking to cotton, but trying to find a "better" way..
Do you know of any way to filter well without specifically a wheel filter, or using a regular disposable syringe with a filter?

Yes, they are $5 each from gpzservices. They don't cost as much from other sources, but other sources ran out of them, and gpzservices had everything else I needed. To minimize on how many shipping fees I was paying, I got the microns and everything else I needed from gpzservices.

It's actually not expensive, when you consider one $5 filter creates about 2 weeks to a months' worth of IV solution (for two people).

Nothing is as good as a micron filter for removing inactive ingredients like talc or microcrystalline cellulose. I would get these, and get vials so you can create IV solutions for a period of time, so that the filter isn't that expensive that way.

Very nice Cap'n, been waiting with anticipation for this mega when I first heard you mention it. Definitely a great resource and a nice contribution to HR. Almost makes me wish I had the time to use right now, I'll have to put some time aside to "exercise" my new knowledge.

Thanks, I appreciate the compliment. I was anticipating this too! I was so excited to re-approve the thread so all of you can see this now. I think it's amazing how efficient and quick this process really is. It's kind of fun to do as well.
 
Great job, Cap'n. One thing I'm still not quite clear on though - which end of the filter is it that goes in the vein? ;)
 
Good job on the instructional guide. I have somee comments and suggestions regarding the actual usefulness for 99.9% of users and several alternative for cheap single use microns...
 
Good job on the instructional guide. I have somee comments and suggestions regarding the actual usefulness for 99.9% of users and several alternative for cheap single use microns...

You can micron filter a single shot, it's not unheard of.

If you're not going to be injecting often, then an additional $5 is almost nothing extra.

Since I get 300 shots out of one use of a $5 micron filter, it only costs me < 2 cents per shot to micron filter. I don't see how you can get much cheaper than 2 cents extra per shot.
 
hey CH if you were going to be using this method for benzos you would use propylene glycol instead of bacteriostatic water right? since you need the propylene glycol to break down the benzos into IV able form.. but is propylene glycol a preservative also? it seems like it would be.

Edit: nevermind answered my own Q. this is the ingredients of a diazepam vial: Each milliliter (mL) contains 5 mg diazepam; 40% propylene glycol; 10% alcohol; 5% sodium benzoate and benzoic acid added as buffers; and 1.5% benzyl alcohol added as a preservative.
So it does need a preservative.. but im sure the others can be left out just use propylene glycol and some bacteriostatic water and it should be fine right? what are the "buffers" for?

And i'd make it for 10mg per ml.. so it would be 80% propylene glycol and i guess 20% bacteriostatic water? and then dilute before shooting of course.
 
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hey CH if you were going to be using this method for benzos you would use propylene glycol instead of bacteriostatic water right? since you need the propylene glycol to break down the benzos into IV able form.. but is propylene glycol a preservative also? it seems like it would be.
I would dilute propylene glycol with bacteriostatic water. I'm pretty sure you have to dilute it. But yes propylene glycol would be used. The thing is I don't shoot non-water soluble benzos just because why bother? I would just get flurazepam or midazolam to IV. They only need water and a filter.

If you're going to attempt to IV a non-water soluble benzo (that's nearly all of them) then yes, you'll need propylene glycol. How much/how diluted, I don't know.

So it does need a preservative.. but im sure the others can be left out just use propylene glycol and some bacteriostatic water and it should be fine right? what are the "buffers" for?
I think "buffers" are to correct for salinity and pH.

And i'd make it for 10mg per ml.. so it would be 80% propylene glycol and i guess 20% bacteriostatic water? and then dilute before shooting of course.
I have no idea. I would do some research before trying it but I'll wait for someone else to put in their 2 cents, I'm sure someone has researched this before.
 
I would dilute propylene glycol with bacteriostatic water. I'm pretty sure you have to dilute it. But yes propylene glycol would be used. The thing is I don't shoot non-water soluble benzos just because why bother? I would just get flurazepam or midazolam to IV. They only need water and a filter.

If you're going to attempt to IV a non-water soluble benzo (that's nearly all of them) then yes, you'll need propylene glycol. How much/how diluted, I don't know.


I think "buffers" are to correct for salinity and pH.


I have no idea. I would do some research before trying it but I'll wait for someone else to put in their 2 cents, I'm sure someone has researched this before.


well im not planning on trying it.. it was just another thing to think about for putting in your FAQ because you know people are going to try and shoot valiums and klonopins and shit with your method and it just wont work. So i was just tryin to help out by putting that out there.

Another reason i was thinking about it was i was thinking of getting diazepam ampules sometime soon.
 
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well im not planning on trying it.. it was just another thing to think about for putting in your FAQ because you know people are going to try and shoot valiums and klonopins and shit with your method and it just wont work. So i was just tryin to help out by putting that out there.

Another reason i was thinking about it was i was thinking of getting diazepam ampules sometime soon.

True. From what I hear though, most people say it's not worth shooting most benzos other than midazolam.

But yeah, the idea is using bacteriostatic water is great for water-soluble drugs, but for drugs that aren't water soluble, obviously this procedure won't work at all, that is correct.

If I find out the correct proportion of drug to propylene glycol to water, I'll post it. As far as what you've said thus far, I can only assume that it's correct.
 
This is actually a great mega thread because there are a lot of questions here in OD about micron filters. I think it should be a sticky, if stickies get read.... and I'll say it... Good job CH. As much as I disprove of shooting bupe blah blah blah. This should be very helpful for others.

As for Hdouble, a buffer is an aqueous solution(sterile water) which has a weak base or acid and its conjugate (weak base, conjugate acid. weak acid, conjugate base). Anyways, buffer solutions are used so that the pH doesn't change when combining chemicals. They are also used to maintain a certian pH. I don't know how relevant an exact pH is for home made injectable solutions that only involve one chemical. In CH's case I assume it's not relevant because it is just bupe and sterile water. However, you're initial mention of a buffer in the injectable diazepam solution was because the host of other chemicals added to the solution would change the pH too drastically.

Anyways, don't shoot benzos....unless you have ampules made specifically for injection. If you are, midazolam and one other which escapes my memory is water soluble, but use a micron filter anyway....

Hope that helps someone out....
 
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