He swab-tested most rooms in the house, and when they came back positive for more than 0.5 micrograms per 100 square centimetres, he contacted Josh Marsden from Melbourne Forensic Cleaning who did a $2000 test. It came out with some surprising results. The kitchen was 80 times the normal threshold for methamphetamine. His daughter’s bedroom had one of the highest levels of contamination in the property. The house was uninhabitable. Jonathan's rental property in Warrandyte. Credit:Nicole Precel “I went to get myself tested medically. Do I test positive on a roadside drug test while I’m driving? I went and had a blood and urine test at my local doctor. I haven’t had a cold for eight years and now I have a chest infection,” Jonathan said.

He ended up sleeping in a caravan next to the property. Since then, Jonathan has been issued a notice to vacate, but he's had difficulty finding a removalist willing to take potentially contaminated furniture. The real estate agent, Lauders Real Estate, declined to comment on the contamination. 'Significant risk' Victoria Police found 75 clandestine labs for the production of amphetamine-type substances in the 2017/18 period. Of those, 65 were in residential dwellings. From July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2017 Victorian police located 667 clandestine laboratories. Of these 462 were for the manufacturing of amphetamines. And of the 667 labs found by police, 474 were residential properties.

When laboratories are investigated by Victoria Police, their Clandestine Laboratory Squad removes chemicals and contaminated equipment, contacts local council environmental health officers and notifies them of potentially hazardous chemical contamination as well as places a hazardous chemical warning placard at the site. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video “The corrosive and hazardous nature of chemicals used in clandestine laboratories pose significant risks to the occupants, neighbouring properties and the wider community,” a Victoria Police spokeswoman said. But Mr Marsden, who sells DIY chemical and methamphetamine home testing kits, said there are many properties that have been former meth labs that go unnoticed. Forensic Cleaning Services Josh Marsden cleans properties that were former methamphetamine cook houses. Credit:Nicole Precel

He has been in the crime scene cleaning industry for eight years, runs the operation Australia-wide, and believes residential properties should be tested before they are rented out. "Drug labs are probably one of the biggest parts of the business now. Australia is in a bit of an ice epidemic, so I'm seeing a lot of inquiries coming through," he said. The company often found labs in kitchens or bathrooms, but it had also decontaminated caravans, camper vans, found meth labs in cars or sheds and even in a wardrobe of a children’s bedroom in a rental property. “There are drug labs in strange locations, you can cook meth in the back of a (car) boot.” Initial tests for methamphetamine or precursor chemicals are taken from 100cm2 swab test. Credit:Nicole Precel

"Larger labs tend to be better hidden and they are in more expensive properties, at the same time you see Airbnbs even, they've rented an Airbnb for a week, cooked in the house and then move onto the next house and the owner is none the wiser," he said. "It looks perfectly clean and then we go in and swab a wall and it comes back at 100 times over the safe limit.” Mr Marsden said real estate agents should be testing houses at the end of each lease and notifying new tenants that they would be doing so. “Part of (the real estate agent’s) duty of care should be making sure the properties are tested and that the family that moves in is going to be safe and that their kids can walk around and crawl around on the floor without absorbing meth in their skin.” New laws

The state government last week promised to introduce new rules that would prevent real estate agents from concealing known facts about a property’s past from potential buyers, including if it was used as a clandestine drug laboratory or was the site of a murder. The rules would also strengthen the offence of "concealing material facts" about a property , with agents having to be upfront without being asked by potential buyers. Fines for concealing will increase from $8000 to $19,000, and the offence attracts a 12-month prison term.

Josh Marsden deals with methamphetamine and precursor chemical contamination. Credit:Nicole Precel

Tenants Union of Victoria chief executive Mark O’Brien said the laws were desperately needed. At the moment, there is no clear legislation to ensure landlords or real estate agents had properties chemically cleaned after they had been used in drug production. “I think the main issue is making it clear to landlords that if that occurs, that the property needs to be cleaned by someone with expertise in chemical cleaning or expert cleaning,” he said. “We do believe there needs to be a much clearer requirement for the landlord to disclose material information to the tenant.” 'Test them all'

Flinders University professor Jackie Wright says all properties, suspected or not, should be tested. “Methamphetamine residues hang around for a long time, so even if the last tenant did not use methamphetamine, previous tenants may have – and contamination could remain,” she said. The current guideline for methamphetamine residues in Australia in a residential home is 0.5 micrograms per 100 square centimetres. Having seen the report from Jonathan’s rental property, Ms Wright said that exposure could result in adverse health effects in adults and children, but it does depend on the individual. “The potential for adverse health effects increases the greater the level of contamination above the guideline. Levels in this home are up to 90 times the guideline, which would be considered to be significantly contaminated and unsafe to live in,” she said.

Children are more exposed because they are more likely to come into contact with surfaces, put more things in their mouth or not wash their hands before eating. Effects commonly reported in children living in these homes include respiratory effects, skin problems, eye irritation, difficulty sleeping including vivid and strange dreams, increased susceptibility to colds and behavioural changes, said Ms Wright. “This is a public health issue that is a consequence of drug use. These people never chose to be exposed or to be involved in drugs, yet their families' health is affected and in some cases, they are financially and emotionally destroyed by this." *Jonathan did not want his last name published