Rice Balls to lower RH in jars

[TriangleCheese]

I'm often hanging in the low to mid-60s RH and I find that having a breeze the buds works to keep the mold at bay. I've never had a bud mold in drying even at my humidity levels. And the advantage is that you never need to worry about when to take them down. I left a harvest hanging over a week at 62% and took them down when it was convenient.

I hang mine in a cardboard box with vent holes bottom right and top left. I have a fan pointed at the lower holes so the air flows through the box and out the top, right past all the buds. I only turn the fan off if the Santa Ana's blow in and lower the ambient RH.

20190413_172717.jpg

• InTheShed
• Apr 13, 2019
• chop

AK-47 harvest, flip day 71

I find the rice balls most useful when the humidity is higher and I need to lower it in the jars to make sure nothing molds when they're sealed between burps.

I only had bud mold once. Colas were too big and I didn't pay attention to ventilation. Buds were infected before I harvested them. I had these problems because of stealth problems but I am all good now. I will just try the rice balls to improve the taste. I think buds need to lose some moist right after the harvest. 30-40 minutes in a jar with rice balls sound allright. Then you can hang them in a cabinet with %60ish RH for 2-3 weeks.

Slow drying is great but buds are way too wet when we harvest them. When buds are that wet, they invite moulds to grow on them. Drying them a little bit with rice balls would repel moulds almost completely compared to the conventional methods. I think wet buds already have some mould spores growing on them(because they are everywhere and they might be so tiny that we can't spot) so the faster you take the optimal conditions away for them, the better taste and less dampy flavour you can achieve.

I think that will work just fine. Thank you for this fine method. I will definately give it a go and share the results here. See you folks in 4 weeks

 

[InTheShed]

with the cure TC!

 

[Konks Dirt Empire]

Hey Shed, I found this thread in your signature and hope you can send me in the right direction, I could use some advice, please.

I am slowly starting to read about the curing process and am starting to get overwhelmed. I need to decide if I will buy a loupe or microscope and research what hygrometer sort of device or if one is used during the curing process...and as far as google says "turkey bags" are plastic from the grocery store but some use paper bags and does a hygrometer dodad go from soil to a glass jar? Not sure that is a question as much as a ramble...

Any input, links, curing on the super cheap, tutorials even a spot to pose this question would be appreciated, thanks Shed!

I just started researching this thread and this one, too. I feel like I am chasing my tail.

Edit: I see this is a diy forum whoops and the rice balls seems awesome and adds to my over think

 

[InTheShed]

I need to decide if I will buy a loupe or microscope and research what hygrometer sort of device or if one is used during the curing process...and as far as google says "turkey bags" are plastic from the grocery store but some use paper bags and does a hygrometer dodad go from soil to a glass jar?

I'm not sure if you've gotten answers to all of your questions yet, but the loupe would be used to decide when best to harvest, and then put away until the next grow. The only thing you need to determine when to start the cure would be a hygrometer, which can be found pretty cheaply Amazon. I got a pack of 12 for something like 2 or 3 dollars each.

Hygrometers tell you what the RH is in the jar/bag during the burping process to let you know if the need more time in the air to get the RH down.

If you are going low and slow (good summary post here), then paper bags are the way to go. If you're going with the traditional hang-dry/burp-then-cure, then glass jars would be for the cure part, but if your harvest is sizeable, burping a load of jars every day is a pain. That's where turkey roasting bags come in handy. They each handle about 3 jars-worth and can be rolled around to mix up the buds during the burping process.

However, they aren't airtight so they won't hold the RH steady like a sealed mason jar, so that's where mine go once they've been burped for two weeks and are around 62% RH. I use Boveda 62s for security to maintain the RH for long term curing.

I hope this helps some. Feel free to ask questions here or in my perpetual thread.

 

[Konks Dirt Empire]

The only thing you need to determine when to start the cure would be a hygrometer, which can be found pretty cheaply Amazon. I got a pack of 12 for something like 2 or 3 dollars each.

Okay, that helps a lot. Are those digital, I saw some on amazon?

Hygrometers tell you what the RH is in the jar/bag during the burping process to let you know if the need more time in the air to get the RH down.

If you are going low and slow (good summary post here)

That is what I was after, thanks so much!

I hope this helps some. Feel free to ask questions here or in my perpetual thread.

Sure does! I will, thanks shed!

 

[InTheShed]

Are those digital, I saw some on amazon?

Yes. Something like this (I pasted the description since we can't link to Amazon):
12 Pack Mini Small Digital Electronic Temperature Humidity Meters Gauge Indoor Thermometer Hygrometer LCD Display Fahrenheit (℉) for Humidors, Greenhouse, Garden, Cellar

 

[Konks Dirt Empire]

Yes. Something like this (I pasted the description since we can't link to Amazon):
12 Pack Mini Small Digital Electronic Temperature Humidity Meters Gauge Indoor Thermometer Hygrometer LCD Display Fahrenheit (℉) for Humidors, Greenhouse, Garden, Cellar

Excellent thank you, those are both valuable pieces of info!

 

[little kitten]

I'm often hanging in the low to mid-60s RH and I find that having a breeze the buds works to keep the mold at bay. I've never had a bud mold in drying even at my humidity levels. And the advantage is that you never need to worry about when to take them down. I left a harvest hanging over a week at 62% and took them down when it was convenient.

I hang mine in a cardboard box with vent holes bottom right and top left. I have a fan pointed at the lower holes so the air flows through the box and out the top, right past all the buds. I only turn the fan off if the Santa Ana's blow in and lower the ambient RH.

20190413_172717.jpg

• InTheShed
• Apr 13, 2019
• chop

AK-47 harvest, flip day 71

I find the rice balls most useful when the humidity is higher and I need to lower it in the jars to make sure nothing molds when they're sealed between burps.

Shed, some of ya'll are just SO helpful......and smart...thanks to you, Em, Fudo, and addict..= alot of help!! How long do you leave them hanging in the box, before putting them in jars? (I know you'll have the perfect answer. My RH is 38 inside the greenhouse/ with the heat on!)

 

[InTheShed]

At 38% RH your hanging harvest will dry much too quickly, so I would recommend either raising the RH in the room you will be drying in (humidifier or Vick's Vaporizer), or drying hanging in a cardboard box.

The standard goal for hang dry is 7 days, but if I can get to 5 I'm happy. The hang dry is to allow the chlorophyll to outgas before you put them into jars and burp them down to 62%. My ultimate goal is 1 week hanging, 1 week of twice a day burping, 1 week of once a day burping, and then sealing the jars with Boveda 62s for the cure. Then no one gets to smoke them for another 3 weeks.

I realize that's 6 weeks from harvest, which only works if you have other weed to smoke in the meantime!

 

[little kitten]

At 38% RH your hanging harvest will dry much too quickly, so I would recommend either raising the RH in the room you will be drying in (humidifier or Vick's Vaporizer), or drying hanging in a cardboard box.

The standard goal for hang dry is 7 days, but if I can get to 5 I'm happy. The hang dry is to allow the chlorophyll to outgas before you put them into jars and burp them down to 62%. My ultimate goal is 1 week hanging, 1 week of twice a day burping, 1 week of once a day burping, and then sealing the jars with Boveda 62s for the cure. Then no one gets to smoke them for another 3 weeks.

I realize that's 6 weeks from harvest, which only works if you have other weed to smoke in the meantime!

When it's time.....should I box them and leave in the greenhouse, AND TURN THE HEAT DOWN and watch the RH and go from there....I'm doing this upstairs. and its gets COLD up there! THANKS for info!!!!!

 

[InTheShed]

I try to dry at standard room temperature, so I think it would be better to control the humidity rather than change the temp.

 

[little kitten]

OK. Thank you sir. I will follow that! Thanks for the replies!

 

[little kitten]

OK. Thank you sir. I will follow that! Thanks for the replies!

 

[little kitten]

Let me start by talking about the success of @Scientific's oven-dried rice suggestion.

HOLY MOLY! Toss out your silicone beads and your store-bought desiccants. If you need fast and extreme dehumidifying, GO WITH RICE!

The basic info is that rice took the RH in the jar from 75% to 50% in about 90 minutes. Yes, 25% moisture reduction in an hour and a half. I had to open the jars to let the buds re-hydrated from the moisture in the air!

So when you do this, make sure you have a hygrometer in the jar and don't walk away for too long .

What you need: uncooked white rice (not instant!) and panty hose/knee-highs or something similar.

Here's what I did:
I poured uncooked white rice in the bottom of a mason jar to fill about 3" which was to be divided across three jars of buds (1 rice ball in each jar). I spread the rice on a cookie sheet and put it in the oven at 200° for about 45 minutes. When it was done, I needed it to cool down. However, if you leave it out to cool down it will absorb the moisture from the air and end up at the ambient RH, offering no desiccating properties. So I put it in a ziplock bag, got the air out, sealed it, and put it in the fridge. This kept the rice dry as it cooled.

From there, it went into panty hose balls and into the bottoms of the jars.

Within approximately an hour and a half the RH in the jar had dropped to 50% and the buds felt crunchy again, so I took the rice out and left the lids open for about 20 minutes until the RH had risen to 66%. Then I closed them up and put them back in the dark to sit overnight.

Works like a charm!

Shed, do this right after chopping....or still let it hang?

 

[InTheShed]

Shed, do this right after chopping....or still let it hang?

Let it hang, and the longer the better! The rice-ball technique is best used for folks who live in high RH environments (over 65%), or anyone using the low and slow fridge method who wants to quickly get the RH down in the flowers after two+ weeks in the fridge.

The purpose of hang-drying is to let the chlorophyll escape while the buds lose their moisture. The whole dry/burp part after the chop is to combine the drying process with the removal of chlorophyll, before sealing the jars at 62% (or 58% if you prefer) for the cure.

For example, if you lived in a stable 62% RH environment, you could let your buds hang for three weeks and then jar for the cure, skipping the burping part. If you lived in a higher RH environment, you would keep a fan on the flowers during the hang, but then use the rice balls when you cut them down and put them in jars. If you lived in a really high RH environment, get a dehumidifier! And if you lived in a low RH environment, you would probably be hanging for less time (to keep them from getting over-dry) and then burping for longer.

I hope this is clear!

 

[little kitten]

Let it hang, and the longer the better! The rice-ball technique is best used for folks who live in high RH environments (over 65%), or anyone using the low and slow fridge method who wants to quickly get the RH down in the flowers after two+ weeks in the fridge.

The purpose of hang-drying is to let the chlorophyll escape while the buds lose their moisture. The whole dry/burp part after the chop is to combine the drying process with the removal of chlorophyll, before sealing the jars at 62% (or 58% if you prefer) for the cure.

For example, if you lived in a stable 62% RH environment, you could let your buds hang for three weeks and then jar for the cure, skipping the burping part. If you lived in a higher RH environment, you would keep a fan on the flowers during the hang, but then use the rice balls when you cut them down and put them in jars. If you lived in a really high RH environment, get a dehumidifier! And if you lived in a low RH environment, you would probably be hanging for less time (to keep them from getting over-dry) and then burping for longer.

I hope this is clear!

• VERY clear! And good news; so mine will be done b4 I had their "due date" set.

 

[InTheShed]

With your crazy low RH, not surprising! Better to get them into jars early and burp them in a controlled manner than have them get too dry on the line.

 

[little kitten]

Let me start by talking about the success of @Scientific's oven-dried rice suggestion.

HOLY MOLY! Toss out your silicone beads and your store-bought desiccants. If you need fast and extreme dehumidifying, GO WITH RICE!

The basic info is that rice took the RH in the jar from 75% to 50% in about 90 minutes. Yes, 25% moisture reduction in an hour and a half. I had to open the jars to let the buds re-hydrated from the moisture in the air!

So when you do this, make sure you have a hygrometer in the jar and don't walk away for too long .

What you need: uncooked white rice (not instant!) and panty hose/knee-highs or something similar.

Here's what I did:
I poured uncooked white rice in the bottom of a mason jar to fill about 3" which was to be divided across three jars of buds (1 rice ball in each jar). I spread the rice on a cookie sheet and put it in the oven at 200° for about 45 minutes. When it was done, I needed it to cool down. However, if you leave it out to cool down it will absorb the moisture from the air and end up at the ambient RH, offering no desiccating properties. So I put it in a ziplock bag, got the air out, sealed it, and put it in the fridge. This kept the rice dry as it cooled.

From there, it went into panty hose balls and into the bottoms of the jars.

Within approximately an hour and a half the RH in the jar had dropped to 50% and the buds felt crunchy again, so I took the rice out and left the lids open for about 20 minutes until the RH had risen to 66%. Then I closed them up and put them back in the dark to sit overnight.

Works like a charm!

So glad you posted this; I've used it 3x since you put it up! GREAT when it comes to testing OR when you're out of smoke and the plant is not quiet ready!

 

[InTheShed]

So glad you posted this; I've used it 3x since you put it up! GREAT when it comes to testing OR when you're out of smoke and the plant is not quiet ready!

I'm glad folks are still finding this one helpful!

 

[StoneOtter]

Rice balls! So simple and effective! Thanks for this one Shed!