Buyer beware: disposable breathalyzers may not be providing you with the service you're paying for.
Officials with the Thunder Bay Police Service warn that blowing into a disposable breathalyzer may not give the same results as the ones used by police. Many retailers in Thunder Bay sell the disposable breathalyzers that measure a person’s blood alcohol level.
While the label on the packaging instructs potential buyers not to use the device within 20 minutes of drinking or smoking, police say the breathalyzer still can’t guarantee you the same results as a roadside test.
Thunder Bay Police Service Det. Const. Rob Miller says the discrepancies happen between the two types of breathalyzers because the over the counter ones aren’t calibrated properly.
“We calibrate these instruments weekly and we make sure everything is working properly,” Miller said.
“The ones you would buy off store shelves are not calibrated and they aren’t certified. What usually happens with those is various things affect these instruments. One of the main things is moisture content. The way our instruments work is that they clear themselves after every test and will burn off any excess alcohol or moisture. The commercial ones don’t have that ability.”
Police put the breathalyzer to use during the RIDE programs, which are more common during the holiday season.
Since the program started this season, police say they have pulled over about the same number of drunk drivers that they did last year.
Meanwhile, Miller said there is a slight increase in the number of drivers pulled over who were under the influence of drugs.
While there isn’t a breathalyzer that can read for drugs, Miller said they have a protocol in place to see if someone is under the influence.
Miller added that people go to great lengths to try to beat the breathalyzer, but those tricks never seem to work.
In fact, the officer said sometimes the strategy to hide the odour of alcohol is itself giving the impaired driver away.
“A lot of people will be smoking,” he says. “The first stage is we try to detect it while they are drinking in the vehicle.
“There will also be a lot of cologne. When some pulls up they open the door and it smells like Sears, That’s one indicator that this person is trying to what we call masking odours.”
Miller added people also try to beat the breathalyzer by also placing a penny on their tongue.
