BAC Calculator

[DuffMan]

So, I was out last Saturday, playing some poker at a friends place, and had a few beers, and I do mean a few. Knowing this is a good time of the year for checkstops at 2 am, I wanted to try to figure out my BAC, before deciding on driving or drinking more heavily and ubering.
You'd figure this wouldn't be hard in this day and age, so I checked some websites and also dl'd a few apps.
It seems the results are pretty varied.
The calculation I put in is 200 lb guy drinking 4 x 5% beers over 4 hours.
results were .018 - .039, either way, way under the limit. I'm not even sure if that sounds right. I always figured, 1 beer/hour was OK, but that is almost non drinking OK levels.
Does anyone else know of a good reliable calculator/calculation? I'd rather go through a checkstop with confidence, as opposed to the high speed chase I did last Saturday.....jk.

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by DuffMan

Does anyone else know of a good reliable calculator/calculation?

If you're concerned, buy a breathalyzer. There's so many variables a calculator is never going to be overly accurate.

[MacDaddy77]

They're always going to be unreliable and not worth the risk. If I'm going out anymore I always take Uber. even if I'monly going out for dinner and a few glasses of wine and will most likely be under the limit I enjoy my current lifestyle and it's not near the risk to get a dui

[CaptainCrunch]

http://www.alcoholhelpcenter.net/pro...tandalone.aspx

This is one that was recommended to me, however remember that the device the police use could be mis-calibrated as well.

[DuffMan]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

http://www.alcoholhelpcenter.net/pro...tandalone.aspx

This is one that was recommended to me, however remember that the device the police use could be mis-calibrated as well.

Yes I did this one, and results are

Based on the information you provided, we estimate that your Blood Alcohol Concentration is 0.018 g/100 ml.

seems kind of low?

[Weitz]

Originally Posted by DuffMan

Yes I did this one, and results are



seems kind of low?

It takes a lot more than people think to get to 0.08 BAC.

[DuffMan]

Originally Posted by MacDaddy77

They're always going to be unreliable and not worth the risk. If I'm going out anymore I always take Uber. even if I'monly going out for dinner and a few glasses of wine and will most likely be under the limit I enjoy my current lifestyle and it's not near the risk to get a dui

well, see, this is the same kind of thoughts I had leading up to this. I'd rather have some more accurate calcs, than that.

[iggy_oi]

Take a cab if you’re unsure.

[DuffMan]

Originally Posted by Weitz

It takes a lot more than people think to get to 0.08 BAC.

hot damn. I've been holding back.

[DuffMan]

Originally Posted by iggy_oi

Take a cab if you’re unsure.

then this thread wouldn't exist, I'm looking for somewhat accurate reliable calculations. I'd rather be , yes cab, drink as much as I want from the start, or no cab, but still going to have a couple and be under the limit. zero is not an option.

[CaptainCrunch]

a 5% beer per hour over four hours for a 200 pound dude, that sounds pretty reasonable.

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by DuffMan

I always figured, 1 beer/hour was OK, but that is almost non drinking OK levels.

That's actually not an unreasonable calculation then. Isn't the 1/hour formula essentially how long it should take to completely process, ie, to 0.00?

[Dan02]

Imo if you need to find a online calculator to figure out if you're good to drive you probably just shouldn't.

The only way OPs number are right are if he entered 4 - 5% beers per hour for 4 hours. Not 4 beers over 4 hours.

[ken0042]

Originally Posted by DuffMan

The calculation I put in is 200 lb guy drinking 4 x 5% beers over 4 hours.

Also keep in mind the serving size. You are likely counting on 12 ounce servings, however pubs or Saddledome draft are 18-20 ounce servings. So 3 Saddledome draft is actually the same as 5 cans of beer.

[Kjesse]

In law school a couple decades ago, while being oriented to do trials for all kinds of offences including impaired driving, we had a seminar from a breathalyzer technician.

The law school had us place our alcohol orders, and on a Friday afternoon starting at 4:00, the seminar started and our alcohol orders were provided. We started drinking while listening to the breath tech who taught us on how the machines work. He had a couple roadside screening devices and a full sized machine for us to play with during the lecture.

The technology behind the machines is very precise but the main machine in particular must be calibrated using ampoules of an alcohol solution at a particular temperature. It was clear the roadside devices were somewhat accurate but a properly calibrated full sized machine was very accurate, and also more things could go wrong with the reading given the steps one would have to take to get a valid reading on the full sized machine.

Anyway, my point is, in the class (about 12 of us) we were all surprised at how much you had to drink to hit 0.08. All of us were showing visible and obvious signs of impairment well before hitting that number, and even getting there took some effort. Some in class never hit 0.05 but still would never be in shape to drive. One person was behaving as if they were ####-faced and blew 0.03.

As the night rolled on we wanted to see what it took to get to an even greater level, and a couple of us started having shots of whisky. You wait the required 20 minutes to get rid of the mouth alcohol and blow, and I managed to hit around 0.13 by the end, and I was plastered, as in, I'm not going out tonight, I'm going to bed. EDIT: one guy took a shot and blew right away, something like .4.

In the weeks that follow, we start getting the cases rolling in. People coming in with readings over 0.2 while insisting they only had a "couple beers".

It was an eye-opening experience.

If you're a seasoned drinker I've come to understand you might not show visible signs of impairment even at 0.08, but in general, if you follow the BAC charts, they tend to be loosely reliable even though people eliminate alcohol in their blood at different rates.

You want to err on the side of caution, and make absolutely certain you are not over 0.08 and also not over 0.05.

The handheld breathalyzers you can buy are not that reliable.

In all cases if even in slight doubt, never drive.

[pseudoreality]

How closely does blood alcohol level correlate to impairment? You hear about hardcore alcoholics getting pulled over with levels around 0.24 that would probably make most people unable to walk, yet these people seem to be able to drive. I very rarely have more than two beers in a night these days. If I do my head is swimming, but back in the day I could easily drink a six pack and barely feel a buzz. However, I bet you my blood alcohol level still correlates closer to how much I drink versus how I feel.

In your example of 4 beers in 4 hours, I would probably be legally okay to drive, but I definitely wouldn't feel comfortable doing it.

I knew some cops (RCMP) that tried the drinking and testing fun night with their equipment. They said they got plastered and only one of the four went above the legal limit.

[Dan02]

Originally Posted by ken0042

Also keep in mind the serving size. You are likely counting on 12 ounce servings, however pubs or Saddledome draft are 18-20 ounce servings. So 3 Saddledome draft is actually the same as 5 cans of beer.

My bad I read it wrong, I though op said .18 not. 018

[puckedoff]

When I'm ever in doubt I just check the breathalyzer on my vehicle ignition

[undercoverbrother]

Duffman doesn't know his blood alcohol content?

[DuffMan]

Originally Posted by undercoverbrother

Duffman doesn't know his blood alcohol content?

> 0, that's all I know.