Breatalysers.

The Lone Ranger · 23-02-2011, 08:56 PM

I have a son who has just recently turned 18 and is on his Ps. As you are all aware P platers must have a zero alcohol level. I must admit that I don't agree with the zero limit that is placed upon young drivers........I think .02-.03 is far more reasonable but I guess that that's an argument for another day and not the focus of this thread. My wife and I decided, after great thought as to the message that it might send, that we would buy him a good quality personal breathalyser so that he doesn't have to guess when he is zero. After reading up a bit we settled on the Andatech AL6000 Pro unit as it meets the Australian Standards and can be recalibrated. We have tried it many times since getting it and are amazed at how long alcohol can stay in your system. I actually ordered two of them so I can keep one in the ute for myself. Very useful and money well spent.

Darren

2011G6E · 23-02-2011, 09:02 PM

I work in an industry (railways) where we have to maintain an absolute zero alcohol limit at all times when on duty, you soon learn how much you can drink and how long before turning up for duty you have to stp drinking.

Random alcohol and drug testing keeps you on your toes as well...

A lot of guys I work with wonder what the road toll would be like if car drivers had to undergo what we are required to comply with...zero blood alcohol limit at all times, and every year you have to virtually re-sit your "licence" and prove you know all the "road rules" and methodologies to perform all the tasks for your job. In effect, to keep your job, we have to do the equivelant of a car driver going back each year to be tested completely to see if they pass the licence test again...
I don't know, but I'm betting the roads would be a lot emptier and there'd be a bigger call for buses...

Ben73 · 23-02-2011, 09:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 2011G6E

I work in an industry (railways) where we have to maintain an absolute zero alcohol limit at all times when on duty, you soon learn how much you can drink and how long before turning up for duty you have to stp drinking.

Random alcohol and drug testing keeps you on your toes as well...

A lot of guys I work with wonder what the road toll would be like if car drivers had to undergo what we are required to comply with...zero blood alcohol limit at all times, and every year you have to virtually re-sit your "licence" and prove you know all the "road rules" and methodologies to perform all the tasks for your job. In effect, to keep your job, we have to do the equivelant of a car driver going back each year to be tested completely to see if they pass the licence test again...
I don't know, but I'm betting the roads would be a lot emptier and there'd be a bigger call for buses...

Except when you go away to barracks and guys use the trip home to recover in case of a rbt when they get back to the depot.

You worked there long enough to be involved in the "good old days" where it was common to drink alcohol at work? Some guys reckon there was less incidents on the job back then then there are now with zero tolerance.

Ford_The_Win · 23-02-2011, 09:55 PM

ENIAL8, I'm curious as to why you don't think that a zero BAC is fair. I'm a P-plater and I think it's spot on. Alcohol is a relaxant, it stunts the brain's ability to react to new stimuli. I don't know anybody in my social circle that drinks and drives and I would never do it myself, we value our licences too much. We can go out and have fun then have a safe (and cheap) journey home in a taxi or designate a driver. P-platers are inexperienced (some frighteningly so...) and more likely to drink, so fostering the notion of drinking then driving is irresponsible in my opinion. If you go out and have a bit too much to drink, then by the next day, the alcohol should be out of your system. If it your son regularly drinks enough that there is still alcohol in his system by lunchtime the next day, there's a bigger problem at hand. Enough people have been cleaned up by drunk ferals on their way home from the pub over the years.

Coyote mk3 · 23-02-2011, 10:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ford_The_Win

ENIAL8, I'm curious as to why you don't think that a zero BAC is fair. I'm a P-plater and I think it's spot on. Alcohol is a relaxant, it stunts the brain's ability to react to new stimuli. I don't know anybody in my social circle that drinks and drives and I would never do it myself, we value our licences too much. We can go out and have fun then have a safe (and cheap) journey home in a taxi or designate a driver. P-platers are inexperienced (some frighteningly so...) and more likely to drink, so fostering the notion of drinking then driving is irresponsible in my opinion. If you go out and have a bit too much to drink, then by the next day, the alcohol should be out of your system. If it your son regularly drinks enough that there is still alcohol in his system by lunchtime the next day, there's a bigger problem at hand. Enough people have been cleaned up by drunk ferals on their way home from the pub over the years.

I always agreed with you that there should be 0 tolerance as well.
Simple, do not have a single drink and drive that night.

But since getting my license I have been thinking how do i know I am 0.000 in the morning?
At what point does it completely disappear and how do I know?
I think a Breathalyser is an excellent idea.

sleek7 · 24-02-2011, 09:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Coyote mk3

I always agreed with you that there should be 0 tolerance as well.
Simple, do not have a single drink and drive that night.

But since getting my license I have been thinking how do i know I am 0.000 in the morning?
At what point does it completely disappear and how do I know?
I think a Breathalyser is an excellent idea.

This is exactly why I bought mine - to get a reading of where I am at in the morning.

If I'm going to hit the drink at night, I wont be driving home no matter where I am. However, I am one to leave in the morning sooner rather than later and this is sometimes where some people get tripped up, they do the right thing by not driving home that night and then drive the next morning only to still have alcohol in their system. This is especially bad for P platers (zero tollerence).

I do remember back on my Ps after a fiends 21st, was about 8am and I felt pretty good and was going to drive a mate home in his dads ute, got on the breatho before we left and it was reading .07!! I was the one who got driven home that day, but if it weren't for that breatho I would have driven home because I honestly felt fresh and sober, but I wasn't.

gcg2503 · 23-02-2011, 09:54 PM

Good on you Darren. Look after young Paddy! Give him the Force 8..

jaydee · 23-02-2011, 10:29 PM

Enial8, the problem with letting someone be 02 or 03 is that they would have a drink and think they're OK and maybe have another one. We all know what it's like trying to stop at one.
So they just made it zero so the younguns know they just cant drink at all, not even a sip.

Yes it is suprising how long alcohol stays in your system.
If you stopped drinking at say 4pm, the alcohol in your blood rises for 2 hours, so at 6pm you peak. Then it starts coming down and at 8pm you will still be the same reading you were at 4pm. It still has to keep coming down until you're below the limit.

But at least you are being a responsible parent and driver.

My daughter was just telling me tonight about a P plater she knows who got his license last Friday, 10 hours later after drinking at a party he put his parents car into a wall and had a whole stack of other younguns in the car. No one hurt but what a dumb rs, you cant legislate against stupidity I guess.

Gaz · 24-02-2011, 02:54 AM

Exactly the reason there should be .01 or .02.

The message should be you can't have a drink and drive but we are giving you a chance should you drive several hours later, or the next day, or eat something with traces of alcohol.

Even now, on my full license for 4 years, I will rarely touch alcohol if I am driving that same night.

dags41v · 24-02-2011, 07:26 AM

I would be reluctant to trust a personal breatho as I dont think it will be anywhere near as accurate as anything the police use and wont stand up as a defence in court.
Much safer not to drink if you are intending to drive, especially as a P plater.
My personal opinion is not to drink and drive at all, I dont agree with trying to work out as a driver if I can have 2 drinks in the first hour and then one an hour after that etc in an attempt to stay at or just under .05, its not a good condition to be driving in.
End sermon ..... only my opinion.

sleek7 · 24-02-2011, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dags41v

I would be reluctant to trust a personal breatho as I dont think it will be anywhere near as accurate as anything the police use and wont stand up as a defence in court.
Much safer not to drink if you are intending to drive, especially as a P plater.
My personal opinion is not to drink and drive at all, I dont agree with trying to work out as a driver if I can have 2 drinks in the first hour and then one an hour after that etc in an attempt to stay at or just under .05, its not a good condition to be driving in.
End sermon ..... only my opinion.

For a P plater, this should be black and white. Can I or Can't I drive home, there is no grey area like on a full license where it might read .04 and you risk it. If the breatho reads any alcohol, for a P platers its straight up, no driving.

I used to do a breatho reading every 30 mins or so when I was younger until the breatho read 0.00 after a night out and even then I would wait another half an hour at least to make sure and compensate for any possible accuracy issues.

The Lone Ranger · 24-02-2011, 09:40 AM

Thanks for the replies guys. I guess the argument for a .02-.03 level stems from the fact that at what point are you zero? We all know when we're speeding......we have a speedo for that, we all know when to give way as we have signs for that and we all know when to stop at a set of lights. At what point are you ZERO. You have know idea unless you don't drink for.......well I don't know myself. Keep in mind that we can be just under .05 but they have to be zero. And what is it these days when the boys don't head out until 9.30 or 10 o'clock to go to a party. They drink until 3 or 4 in the morning. If he lost his licence I'd be very annoyed as he is our electrical apprentice at work. Worse if he was involved in a accident and hurt or killed someone all because he had too much to drink. While I don't believe that he would do this he has, after all, only been drinking while the holder of a licence for a few months and I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him! So we thought that this was a way of making him more responsible before he decides to drive in the morning.

Darren

Pedro · 24-02-2011, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ENIAL8

....................... We have tried it many times since getting it and are amazed at how long alcohol can stay in your system.........

Darren

When you drink THAT much Darren, it's no wonder it stays in your system so long! LOL

Cheers,
Pedro

The Lone Ranger · 24-02-2011, 12:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pedro

When you drink THAT much Darren, it's no wonder it stays in your system so long! LOL

Cheers,
Pedro

That's a fair cop mate

Riksta · 24-02-2011, 07:02 PM

I bought a portable cheap breathalyser, not to see if I can drive but for a laugh at parties.

Its kind of broken now, just blew .40 and haven't had a drink since about 2am Sunday morning! :P

Well, it was fun while it lasted.

Good on you for buying one for the kids though, great idea, in fact I do agree with them but remember they're not usable as any kind of evidence, and can't be used as a "but I blew zero on mine officer, I don't know why yours says .02" type excuse, so if in doubt at all, don't drive!

Coyote mk3 · 24-02-2011, 07:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Riksta

I bought a portable cheap breathalyser, not to see if I can drive but for a laugh at parties.

Its kind of broken now, just blew .40 and haven't had a drink since about 2am Sunday morning! :P

Well, it was fun while it lasted.

Good on you for buying one for the kids though, great idea, in fact I do agree with them but remember they're not usable as any kind of evidence, and can't be used as a "but I blew zero on mine officer, I don't know why yours says .02" type excuse, so if in doubt at all, don't drive!

Must have been a pretty big night/morning

Riksta · 24-02-2011, 08:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Coyote mk3

Must have been a pretty big night/morning

Well lets just say after I managed to get home from the chic's place I crashed at on Saturday night, I pretty much slept all day Sunday!!! Woke up at about 8pm! haha

I have a strong drinking reputation to uphold.

JC807 · 24-02-2011, 07:47 PM

I think its a great idea.

my mate isn't a daily drinker and he blew .05 at 9:30am the next day dropping his wife to the hairdresser. He had drunk 4 beers and half a bottle of wine the previous evening and was in bed by midnight.

they charged him even though he blew the limit, you have to be under the limit.

JC · 24-02-2011, 08:08 PM

On the force (or whatever police show was on tonight), a P plater blew positive after eating Tiramasu!

Good (and responsible) idea to get the personal alcohol thing. By the time my kids turn 18, hopefully they will come standard in cars and the car won't start if you are over the limit (limits would need to be programmed in, of course).

Riksta · 24-02-2011, 09:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JC

On the force (or whatever police show was on tonight), a P plater blew positive after eating Tiramasu!

I love those shows. Think I've got a couple of episodes of RBT sitting on Tivo that I've gotta watch!

FgNewbie · 24-02-2011, 11:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JC

On the force (or whatever police show was on tonight), a P plater blew positive after eating Tiramasu! *snip*

I think it was "RBT". After the 2nd test his reading was only 0.005. The police reportedly used their discretion to let him off.

If I recall correctly, the policeman said others claim to have eaten Tiramisu but this was the first time it recorded a positive result.

Quote:

I guess the argument for a .02-.03 level stems from the fact that at what point are you zero?

Darren, without being argumentative, then some may advocate .05 because at what point are you below .03?

Without researching it, I'm guessing the intent is to stop them drinking at all.

Pedro · 25-02-2011, 05:13 PM

I like the guy in France who carried a bottle of Eau de Cologne around in his glove box waiting for the day he got pulled up. When said day happened, he gargled the Cologne before the cop got to his car then blew in the bag. The f'n machine went way off the scale, so they took him for a blood test which showed negative... still scratching their heads.

irish2 · 25-02-2011, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pedro

I like the guy in France who carried a bottle of Eau de Cologne around in his glove box waiting for the day he got pulled up. When said day happened, he gargled the Cologne before the cop got to his car then blew in the bag. The f'n machine went way off the scale, so they took him for a blood test which showed negative... still scratching their heads.

Jeeze! Cologne would taste horrible. You could do the same thing with mouthwash. The mouthwash in my bathroom has 16.5% alcohol in it and it tastes good!.