FWIW, I've been tossing a few branches in the first bucket, and then moving them along the line, after 2-3 minutes of being submerged in each wash. Total of maybe 4-10 minutes submerged, depending on timing. I go at them pretty hard in the wash.
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Well, I'm not sure what works the best, because I haven't done it all.
But what I do is 3 five gallon buckets (4 if using peroxide) of water that is probably 65 degrees, as it's in a large barrel in my warehouse.
I put a bunch of buds in and gently agitate them by moving them slowly around in the water. Often I'll hold large stems and dunk them in and out. I try not to rub them against each other too much, but to move them around in the water.
I repeat this in the 3 buckets and let them drip off before I hang them.
Letting them soak would probably accomplish the same thing.
BTW, I'm looking into using sulfur dioxide ( Potassium Metabisulfite) in a bud wahs for moldy buds. SO2 is used extensively in winemaking when the winemaker wants to use a certain type of yeast. The SO2 kills off all naturally occurring wild yeasts in fresh grapes, leaving a blank slate for the winemaker to use whatever yeast he desires for the fermentation process.
There is a downside to this, namely that some people are allergic to sulfites....but such a technique might save many harvests from the dreaded rot and PM.
>>>Letting them soak would probably accomplish the same thing.
Thanks for clearing that up Doc.
>>>The SO2 kills off all naturally occurring wild yeasts in fresh grapes
This is interesting. Are the spores found in bud going to be affected the same way as the wild yeast?
These were washed very aggressively, without much care if anything fell off, or was lost. I think I still have some trics left.
Keep em green, and wash em clean!
Wow Carestaker, your nugz look great! From my point of view, it looks like you didn't lose any trics, but it looks like you lost most of the amber pistils and your buds do look visibly cleaner than many other people's buds. Thanks for sharing your experience with us!
Yeah...I saw a few triches on those buds. Upper right on the last photo, and a few others.
Here is a picture of my initial setup and all I did was try to get the second rinse bucket a bit warmer (~100f) and the third bucket a bit colder (~50f) as I wanted to also duplicate the blanching process to brighten colors. Knowing the resins are susceptible to more extreme temps I only rinsed in the third bucket for about 10 seconds to shock it back down, and let them drip. After they dripped for a few mins, I put them in the quick cure drying rack.
washing just makes so much sense i couldn't see why anyone would ever do it any other way once u know about it, simply based off this quote im all in 100% i don't like smoking "stuff" in my meds and the wash rids it!!!!!!!!!!!
There is absolutely no way I'll smoke unwashed buds, given the choice.
As you pointed out, they're smoother and far less harsh on the throat.
Thanks, Hiker, great thread, hope posting this here is OK!
Yeah...I saw a few triches on those buds. Upper right on the last photo, and a few others.
There has to be SOME kind of loss in potency.
Can anyone in a legal state do a gas chromatography test on the THC content before and after a wash for me?
Why? The compounds were after are not water soluble. Let's assume the plants are very dirty. If we remove a few richomes, but also get most of the dirt, potency is probably the same. If you lost a few trichomes, you probably lost some mass from the dirt as well, so your THC/g may not be affected. Honestly, There is little, if any, impact on potency. As you allude to below. If you can't tell without lab equipment, then obviously potency is NOT affected much.
You can't test the same sample twice. There are lots of labs around for testing Cannabis, but you don't get the sample back. You COULD test a washed and unwashed part of the same plant. While I didn't use lab testing, I did the same testing "in the field". Washing does not seem to affect potency at all, but greatly increases the quality of the buds/smoke.
Unfortunately, testing is not cheap. I plan to get some of my strains tested eventually, but it probably won't be for another 6 months or a year. Then I will be doing the exact test your asking about, but I'm not testing to find a change in potency. I'm more interested in the other tests for the various contaminants (mold, chemicals, etc). I know my stuff is already pretty clean, but I'm curious how much of a difference this process makes.
Why? The compounds were after are not water soluble. Let's assume the plants are very dirty. If we remove a few richomes, but also get most of the dirt, potency is probably the same. If you lost a few trichomes, you probably lost some mass from the dirt as well, so your THC/g may not be affected. Honestly, There is little, if any, impact on potency. As you allude to below. If you can't tell without lab equipment, then obviously potency is NOT affected much.
Is anyone going to notice the difference in strength, I personally wouldn't think so, but that's why I asked. Not as much for myself, but to make my ease of passing on the "knowledge" to some hard headed old men a little easier. For them, myself and many others "seeing is believing". The pictures are good enough for me, but nothing would ease EVERYONE's minds better than a high dollar bud analysis!! THIS THREAD NEEDS MORE LOVE!! KEEP IT GOING!!!
Peace an Love,
Chaotic
There ya go.
Welcome to 420Mag, complete with it's own hard headed.
DocBud said:Here's what's going to happen in the near future: Now that everyone is growing, baking, smoking, vaping, dabbing.....you're going to hear a story about someone getting very sick from edibles because of pathogens and/or pesticides on the product. This is going to lead to a "crack-down" and open the door to the public health inspector certifying grow ops and laws that allow ONLY produce grown under the aegis of the Public Health Department can be sold in dispensaries, etc.
Hello 420, I am here with my final preliminary test on Doc Bud's Bud Washing method.
To start off, I would like to thank Doc and Hiker, as they are the backbone of this thread and this method.
This time around I wanted to imitate this technique as close as possible, so I added a 3rd bucket and varied the temps. In the 1st bucket, 30F Distilled Water with Baking Soda & Lemon Juice. In the 2nd, 27F Distilled Water. And the 3rd with 20F Distilled Water.
Now for this test my main goals were to observe any substantial differences in loss of final yield and overall appearance of large colas.
I started with 3x 15-25g colas to work with, and 3 more that that have similar weights that will act as a sample group.
The starting weights for all the samples are as follows:
Washed Buds
1. 17.4g
2. 20.9g
3. 20.4g
UnWashed Test Sample
1. 17.7g
2. 20.4g
3. 20.4g
These samples were agitated in each bucket for 30 seconds, while being completely submerged.
Then let each sample drip dry before placing them onto my drying rack. Temps are kept at 65-70F and RH is kept at 40-50%.
Now for the buds themselves. The washed are on the right. I do notice that the washed bud's pistils are more flush with the shape of the bud, but overall, the wash opens up colas that otherwise might be dense nugs after cure.
Secondly, the washed buds dry MUST faster than the others. It literally took 2-3 days before the buds were nearly rock solid on the outer layer of calyxes. The unwashed buds still contained moisture.
Now knowing this fact, you can now assume that weight should be substantially less in proportion to the unwashed counterparts. They developed a much more airy texture, BUT the curing process did start ti kick off faster than the unwahsed buds. Only a couple days after curing, the washed buds are noticeably tastier and less harsh than the buds still curing in the jars.
Here are the final weights for the test samples:
Washed Buds
1. 4.8g
2. 5.7g
3. 5.7g
UnWashed Buds
1. 4.6g
2. 4.9g
3. Accidentally got mixed with the rest of the harvest.
Looking at the numbers, the differences are not that drastic, at least not enough for me not to try and fully implement this method into my future harvests. THE ONLY thing I need to perfect before I start washing all my harvests is the drying process. I need to find that sweet spot in temp and RH in order to prolong the drying process. Ideally , a 1-2 week drying process is what I am looking for to get the best quality in appearance with these washed buds.
Here is a comparison shot of dried washed buds and random dried colas that were not washed. NOTE:The nugs in the pics are broken down from the samples, so weights will be less.
Washed
UnWashed
I will eventually update this thread again once I get that one down
To conclude, I have learned that washing your buds DOES in fact make your smoke smoother, and DOES in fact speed up the drying and possibly the curing process. I have not (personally) noticed any affect in potency, neither has 3 other blind test subjects. But the most important bit of insight that convinced me was when Doc Bud portrayed the future:
This applies to me, and many others. Forget the potential loss of trichomes...THAT^ right there should be reason enough to start more healthier, more sanitary practices when cultivating our herbs...we do it with our produce! So to get a head start on a positive Cannabis Reformation, I will pass down this practice to whomever I meet
excellent review AG. being as though I plan to chop in about 5 days and plan to wash my entire harvest, is there any immediate advice you can give other than what you've already blessed us with? being aware of my grow from subbing, I think this might be a quick second chance to immediately apply your learning and we can both reap the knowledge. I plan to use DOC's 4 bucket method with RO water. I still have to figure out the conversion of H2O2 as I have 29% and he calls for 3% to be used. I will also be dialing in the hot bucket with a fish tank heater so I can land right where I wanna within reason.
I am slightly concerned about the loss of hardness on the outside of the nug, but time spent in the jars should mitigate loss of moisture.
anyways, thanks again. hopefully one day our dreams can merge under the same roof.