I had a couple of beers about 24 hrs before my UA, I am 5'2" and weigh 95 lbs. Will it show in my UA?

No. Alcohol is rapidly metabolized. To be safe consider 2 hours per (standard) drink. If the UA tests for ethanol it will be long gone. This does not apply to EtG testing which checks for metabolites of ethanol.

Then why are they telling me that my UA test that I took on Saturday was dirty when I had only drank one beer 3 days prior? This does not make sense!

Then why are they tellin me that my UA test that I took on Saturday was dirty when I had only drank one beer 3 days prior?? This does not make sense!

There would be no ethanol remaining in your system from one beer three days previous!

If the test was EtG based, as it must have been, then would need to know the reading to make an educated guess. Even then no EtG (from one beer) should have been present.

They just said it showed alcohol in my system! I don't believe it and told them I wanted it tested again (which of course is at my expense). But how can it show anything? I just don't understand it! I would like to find some documentation that backs me up to prove that their test is faulty!

they just said it showed alcohol in my system! I don't believe it and told them I wanted it tested again (which of course is at my expense). But how can it show anything? I just don't understand it! I would like to find some documentation that backs me up to prove that their test is faulty!

First, you have to know the test that was used.

If it was testing for ethanol and was the type administered on-site, there is an abundance of evidence as to error rates. However, first you have to know the type (at very minimum) of test used. From there I can point you in the right direction.

Did they provide you with the information while you were still there, within minutes? Or was it days later?

Well I know that they test them here and they have the results the same day, so not sure if that tells you anything...

And yes, they say it showed positive for EtG,

It does. That means the test is an initial screen. When a presumed positive is obtained then a confirmatory, lab based test, should always follow. Furthermore, these initial screens usually have a relatively high cutoff, about .02 and that is higher than you would have had immediately following the one beer. That indicates, in all probability, a false positive. If that is the case, then a GC/MS test (lab based) should clear it up. There are no IA tests for EtG that are administered by a testing agency (outside the lab). So based on your information, for some reason they were testing for ethanol in your system.


and yes, they say it showed positive for EtG,

Now you are throwing me. EtG is detectable for a longer period but not 72 hours after one beer. All EtG IAs are instrumental and to the best of my knowledge never used by untrained personnel. Leastwise, never should be. The IA most often used is the Microgenics DRI. The error rate ranges from 15-39% (http://www.usdtl.com/articles/Field-Testing-the-Microgenics-DRI%C2%A3-EtG-assay-for-Georgias-Treatment/423.html) for this initial screen. If the results were obtained in one day it is probably due to a F+. Lab confirmation usually takes about 4 days.

It would be helpful to know the EtG reading to determine if it is test error or low level environmental ethanol.

So what do you think then? Do you think that it could possibly be wrong or what? I mean I feel it is, but I am no expert.

I had a couple of beers about 24 hrs before my UA


I had only drank one beer 3 days prior

I'm a bit confused. Which is it, a few beers 24 hours before, or one beer 3 days before?

so what do you think then? Do you think that it could possibly be wrong or what? I mean I feel it is, but I am no expert.

If you drank 2 beers within 24 hours of the test (and it was for EtG) then it is probably right...

If you drank 1 beer 3 days prior to the test (and it was for EtG) then it is in error.

If the test was an assay for urine ethanol (that is alcohol still in urine) it was wrong in either case.

The one in question was two in 24 hours. But there was a time when I had 1 beer 3 days prior and I was just wondering if it too would come up positive.

actually let me back up a bit, the reasons they have me going in for random UA's is because I had one come up showing positive. This one was the one that was 2 beers @ 24 hrs prior. The one they are telling me is positive this time was the 1 beer three days prior. That is why I asked the original question. I couldn't see how one beer could show after three days.