Silk Road forums
Discussion => Drug safety => Topic started by: Kandi on March 07, 2012, 04:52 am
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Ive been reading a lot of conflicting methods on how to store weed to keep fresh.
some say a freezer, some say fridge, some say glass jar, 3 seperate bags, prescription bottle...etc...
Can anyone give experiences? my friend got weed 1/8 I think but he smokes very little (1 or 2 hits before bed) so we need the best way to store & stay fresh as long as possible.
Any good suggesstions?
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A mason jar will work just fine. Too many bags degrades the product since the movement of the plastic will knock off much of the trichome heads, and a prescription pill bottle isn't airtight. If your bud dries out though, it isn't really a bad thing, and I doubt an 8th will last you more than 1-2 months anyway. You'll be fine however you store it.
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I've always used small mason jars.
One particular example, I had an eighth of fairly potent weed that I used with a very efficient vaporizer so it ended up lasting some where around three months. To me the last bit seemed just as good as the first.
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A mason jar will work just fine. Too many bags degrades the product since the movement of the plastic will knock off much of the trichome heads, and a prescription pill bottle isn't airtight. If your bud dries out though, it isn't really a bad thing, and I doubt an 8th will last you more than 1-2 months anyway. You'll be fine however you store it.
Agreed. Glass jars are best for long term storage. Just be careful that the pot isn't still damp or else it'll mold. Check every few days until you're sure it's dry. Plus it's great for curing.
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So glass jars like baby food jar? are best?
and would it help to refrigerate?
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So glass jars like baby food jar? are best?
and would it help to refrigerate?
Any glass jars with a tight seal should suffice. Mason jars are cheap and easy to obtain; most grocery and hardware stores should stock them.
I wouldn't put it in a fridge; if it does have any water content, it might destroy the THC. I'm not certain if that's absolutely correct but I know it doesn't need to be refrigerated.
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I keep mine in a sealed jar stored in a dark location away from sunlight, it works just fine and I usually keep anywhere from an eighth to a half ounce on me at all times.
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agreed that you cant do any better than a mason jar. its def. the best as fas as preserving your buds, not knocking your thc off, and keeping the smell in. ive cured buds for over a year they keep like fine wine.
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So glass jars like baby food jar?
I find a baby food jar is perfect for storing small amounts of weed or hash. They're airtight, and since they're so small, not much air gets closed up in there with your bud. This will help keep it from becoming bone-dry as quickly.
Really though, if you just kept it in a ziploc, I seriously doubt you'd notice the difference after a month or two (except it'd be pretty dry). But little jars are so much cooler!
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Do dried up buds have less THC than fresh ones?
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Do dried up buds have less THC than fresh ones?
Not necessarily. The THC is in the trichomes, which are little hairs sticking off of the flower/leaf matter. The vast majority of water left in cured bud is in the leafy shit, so it probably won't affect the condition of the trichomes. I could easily be wrong here. Also, trichomes might be damaged more easily when bud is dry or some shit, but I'm not informed enough on that topic to comment further.
Of course, THC does degrade to CBN (mostly) over time.
As far as how to treat bud that has become too dry for your liking (as in, smokes way too fast/harsh), leave it in its container with a small amount of water for a few hours/overnight. Some people like to cut a small (1-2 cubic cm) chunk of sponge, dampen it, squeeze every bit of water out that you can, and throw it in the container with the weed. I think sponges are disgusting, so I'm ghetto about it and just put a drop or two of water straight against the glass side of the container.
Either way, water evaporates out into the air inside the container, and it's pretty excited to just go right into the bud, since it's so dry in there. Nature abhors a vacuum.
You might overdo it, in which case you'll be pissed that your weed is too damp and is hard to smoke. You'll scream something like, "Fuck that Appa character for misleading me so!" Relax, dude. Just leave the container open a bit (not too long this time, though, geez!).
Don't leave weed excessively damp, it might mold. Don't smoke mold.
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Sunlight is the main thing to avoid when storing weed, that's what degrades thc the most. Freezing is good and can even improve the smoke.
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Ive been reading a lot of conflicting methods on how to store weed to keep fresh.
some say a freezer, some say fridge, some say glass jar, 3 seperate bags, prescription bottle...etc...
Can anyone give experiences? my friend got weed 1/8 I think but he smokes very little (1 or 2 hits before bed) so we need the best way to store & stay fresh as long as possible.
Any good suggesstions?
I find that it stays freshest in my lungs. ;D
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Sunlight is the main thing to avoid when storing weed, that's what degrades thc the most. Freezing is good and can even improve the smoke.
Light is indeed the greatest factor in degradation of THC, followed by oxidation. Temperatures below "room temperature" (more accurately 20C, a slightly cool room) are mostly fine in the short term, though freezing doesn't hurt potency directly. However, it DOES make the trichome heads more brittle and easier to knock off (freezing is often an important hash-making step because of this), so cannabinoids could be lost in that way as well. For short term storage, your best bet is in a light- and air-tight container, the smaller the better (to limit oxidation), stored at room temperature.
Here's the abstract from "The stability of cannabis and its preparations on storage" (Fairbairn, JW et al., 1976):
"Solutions of pure cannabinoids, nine samples of herbal and two of resin cannabis (one freshly prepared) were stored in varying conditions for up to 2 years. Exposure to light (not direct sunlight) was shown to be the greatest single factos in loss of cannabinoids especially in solutions, which should therefore be protected from light during analytical and phytochemical operations. Previous claims that solutions in ethanol were stable have not been substantiated. The effect of temperature, up to 20 degrees, was insignificant but air oxidation did lead to significant losses. These could be reduced if care was taken to minimize damage to the glands [trichomes] which act as 'well filled, well closed containers.' Loss of tetrahydrocannabinol after exposure to light does not lead to an increase in cannabinol, but air oxidation in the dark does. It is concluded that carefully prepared herbal or resin cannabis or extracts are reasonably stable for 1 to 2 years if stored in the dark at room temperature."
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A mason jar works well, keep it in a cool dark place.
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I had an ounce of some primo bud that lasted me around 5 or 6 months since I only smoke bowls with my girl. (this site is a god send for recluses like me!) I kept it in a mason jar in one of my desks, and it stayed as potent as the first day I got it. Refrain from plastic bags! The thc bonds to the plastic.
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yep, mason jar's the way to go. i keep mine in the fridge.
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I had an ounce of some primo bud that lasted me around 5 or 6 months since I only smoke bowls with my girl. (this site is a god send for recluses like me!) I kept it in a mason jar in one of my desks, and it stayed as potent as the first day I got it. Refrain from plastic bags! The thc bonds to the plastic.
Same here. I dont go out much so this was a godsend finding this place.
As for the weed. its being kept in a small plastic airtight container.
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I learned a trick long ago to keep cookies moist and fresh you put in airtight container with a piece of fresh sliced bread and the cookies absorb moisture from bread and stay soft. it works really well so i put a piece in with weed and after 2 days it felt like the weed was exactly like the day it was recieved. The bread gets hard but it smelled really strong like the weed and i worried it may be taking something from weed but I know its a great cookie tip! Now the weed sits in fridge alone in container lol
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I learned a trick long ago to keep cookies moist and fresh you put in airtight container with a piece of fresh sliced bread and the cookies absorb moisture from bread and stay soft. it works really well so i put a piece in with weed and after 2 days it felt like the weed was exactly like the day it was recieved. The bread gets hard but it smelled really strong like the weed and i worried it may be taking something from weed but I know its a great cookie tip! Now the weed sits in fridge alone in container lol
I've heard that an orange peel works as well.
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I've heard that an orange peel works as well.
Indeed it does.
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I've heard that an orange peel works as well.
Indeed it does.
Orange Peel and Bread both work. But, you need to keep a close eye on it for mold. Don't want to smoke mold.
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Orange Peel and Bread both work. But, you need to keep a close eye on it for mold. Don't want to smoke mold.
Wise words, Oldtoker, wise words.
But I can't help thinking you're being a little hard on yourself. You should consider ChronoslyChallengedToker or perhaps GeriatriclyAdvancedToker as your nom de plume. Cut yourself some slack.
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Orange Peel and Bread both work. But, you need to keep a close eye on it for mold. Don't want to smoke mold.
Wise words, Oldtoker, wise words.
But I can't help thinking you're being a little hard on yourself. You should consider ChronoslyChallengedToker or perhaps GeriatriclyAdvancedToker as your nom de plume. Cut yourself some slack.
Not sure I could remember something that complicated. Gettin' old sux!
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Don't put orange peels or bread in your bud!!!! Just place nugs in glass jar and open 2-3 times a week for a few minutes and it will only get BETTER!!
Look up curing weed!
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Don't put orange peels or bread in your bud!!!! Just place nugs in glass jar and open 2-3 times a week for a few minutes and it will only get BETTER!!
Look up curing weed!
This is untrue under the circumstances, but I'm glad you brought up curing, as it's still pertinent to the discussion at hand.
Curing only makes sense when cannabis has been mostly dried, but not yet cured, i.e. bud that is still technically damp. The curing process does many things, but one big part involves redistributing moisture from the deeper regions of the bud to the surface, where it can be evaporated off. Opening the jar lets out this water vapor so the process can repeat. This may need to be done as often as every few hours at first, to prevent molds or other contaminants, but soon slows to once a day or every few days.
Eventually the moisture content would be sufficiently diminished, as well as evenly distributed through the weed, and "burping" the jars would no longer be necessary. Indeed, it would soon become a detriment, as the evaporation process would continue, which is actually how most people's bud has probably become dry. Bud that has been cured, then allowed to dry further, cannot somehow be "redampened" by curing. Briefly adding the orange peel or other water source basically allows one to do a reverse of the process I outlined above, where water evaporates from the new source and distributes back into the bud. Obviously you could overdo this and end up with wet bud, as I've previously mentioned. In this case, you'd have to go through "curing" to regain optimal moisture content. There's a careful balance somewhere in the middle.
The actual curing process doesn't have to stop with the burping of the jars. There are all kinds of interesting chemical things going on in there; curing allows sugars to break down and improves the taste and smokability of the weed. The whole water thing described above might take a couple weeks, but some people cure for up to six months or longer.
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"Curing only makes sense when cannabis has been mostly dried, but not yet cured, i.e. bud that is still technically damp"
Curing is done after your weed has dried.
A good grower dries bud in a humidity controlled room for 2 weeks or until stem snaps then puts in jars and burps for a few more weeks, and then you can leave them in the jars for as long as you want and let the curing process continue.
A good cure is 60 days.
That is what I have learned from years of experience and reading from the best growers on icmag.
If you want to add moisture back to bud use some WEED trimmings in a tea bag or coffee filter for a day or two in the jar, but not bread or orange peels. I guess it won't hurt the bud, but I am really finicky about my bud when I grow it, and would never add something like that that could change the taste even in the slightest.
You could also leave it out in a room that is humid, but really I don't see the problem of weed being too dry..... It tastes better and burns better in my opinion, but to each his own.
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Curing is done after your weed has dried.
Yes, the bud feels dry on the exterior, and the stem cracks, but the curing process allows remaining water to evenly distribute. So truly, the bud is not completely dry. Of course, neither is properly cured weed, but it is certainly drier than when the curing process started. It can become even drier if left exposed to air, which is what a lot of this thread is about.
If you want to add moisture back to bud use some WEED trimmings in a tea bag or coffee filter for a day or two in the jar, but not bread or orange peels. I guess it won't hurt the bud, but I am really finicky about my bud when I grow it, and would never add something like that that could change the taste even in the slightest.
This is pretty much what it comes down to. The principal of adding water with a slightly moist object is obviously valid. Most average smokers don't have spare weed trimmings lying around, and aren't that "finicky" anyway, so we're suggesting alternatives. If the potential for taste change does bother anyone, they can follow my previous advice of adding a small drop of water alone, or use a sponge.