Crafting cannabis concentrates via alcohol extraction: A DIY guide

Online tutorials on extracting cannabis oil with alcohol abound, each presenting their own approach, albeit often similar in principle. For expert insights on alcohol-based cannabis extraction, perusing user comments under these YouTube tutorials might surprisingly unveil numerous self-professed extraction experts.

Jokes aside, crafting cannabis concentrate, including dabs, wax, or shatter, using alcohol is relatively straightforward and achievable with household items, most of which are likely already in your possession.

However, it’s crucial to recognize inherent risks and grasp essential tips to ensure the resulting concentrate is clean, pure, and potent. Here’s a step-by-step guide on crafting marijuana extracts using alcohol, all within the comfort of your home.

Materials needed for cannabis concentrates via alcohol extraction.

To commence cannabis oil extraction using alcohol, you’ll require marijuana, heat-safe glass dishes, a strainer, a mixing implement, a heating source, and high-proof grain alcohol.

Alcohol serves as an efficient solvent due to its chemical properties, adept at extracting active compounds like THC and CBD from the plant material. Post-extraction, letting the alcohol evaporate leaves behind a concentrated residue.

Here’s a more structured list of the materials for crafting cannabis concentrate at home through alcohol extraction:

• Cannabis flower
• Food-grade alcohol (commonly 190-proof Everclear)
• Various sizes of oven-safe glass bowls (Pyrex dishes are suitable)
• Mesh or wire strainer
• Unbleached coffee filters
• Non-open flame heat source (e.g., hot pad, rice cooker)

With this array of accessible materials, you’re on track to create your marijuana concentrate via alcohol extraction swiftly.

However, before delving in, it’s crucial to review some safety considerations to acknowledge potential hazards involved in the process.

Safe practices for crafting weed concentrates with alcohol.

Ever witnessed someone creating a fireball with high-proof alcohol? While this spectacle is often reserved for movies or TV, it aptly showcases the flammability of alcohol—a key consideration when making cannabis concentrate through alcohol extraction.

Ensuring safety during this process requires two primary precautions: working in a well-ventilated space and eliminating any open flames or spark-producing sources.

Although high-proof alcohol is less combustible than other volatile solvents like butane or hexane, there’s still a risk of accidental fires or explosions without proper safety measures.

Tragically, several incidents resulting in fatalities have occurred due to improper ventilation during home-based cannabis concentrate production.

Safety is paramount. Prioritize understanding the process and its safety requirements before attempting it. Additionally, verify the legality of such activities in your region.

We explicitly disclaim any responsibility for illegal actions or any adverse outcomes stemming from attempts to create weed extracts at home using alcohol.

Opting for professional-grade products from a dispensary might be a safer choice rather than embarking on DIY extraction. Ultimately, your safety and compliance with legal regulations should be the foremost considerations.

Simple steps for crafting cannabis concentrate with everclear (high-proof alcohol)

This method delves into making weed concentrate using 95% (190-proof) Everclear alcohol, a prevalent technique given its availability across most U.S. states.

Before you begin, ensure you’re in a well-ventilated area without open flame sources. Here’s a breakdown of the steps involved:

1. Prepare the Cannabis: Break the buds into small pieces, excluding excessive stems and sticks. Avoid grinding the flower too finely; a grinder isn’t recommended.
2. Optional Drying: While not essential, if you wish to reduce moisture content for improved extraction, spread the ground buds on a baking sheet. Bake at 180°F for around 20 minutes to achieve drier plant material, enhancing the alcohol-based extraction process. Note: This won’t decarboxylate THCa but aids in moisture reduction.
3. Mixing with Alcohol: Transfer the ground buds into a glass jar and cover them entirely with alcohol. Stir gently but consistently for approximately 10 minutes.
4. Straining the Mixture: Place a strainer over a clean glass dish and pour the Everclear-cannabis mix through it. The strained liquid in the clean dish should have a bright green hue. Retain the saturated nugs for subsequent extraction rounds.
5. Evaporating Alcohol: To separate the alcohol from cannabinoids, heat the Everclear-cannabis mix in a rice cooker over low heat for several hours. Ensure the temperature remains low to prevent combustion or degradation. Alternatively, use a boiling water bath.
6. Checking for Alcohol Content: Following evaporation, the concentrate should appear as a thick, tar-like substance with minimal alcohol. To test, place a tiny concentrate sample on a needle’s head and expose it to a lighter flame. A spark indicates residual alcohol, while no spark suggests purity.
7. Harvesting the Concentrate: Scrape the remaining concentrate from the dish or rice cooker and transfer it onto wax parchment paper. For easier handling, consider freezing or refrigerating it.
8. Repeating the Process: If desired, repeat steps 1-7. Note that the initial extraction generally yields the purest and most potent concentrate. Subsequent rounds may contain more plant impurities and be less potent.

Insights on your newly crafted alcohol-extracted cannabis concentrate.

This form of cannabis concentrate has various names; commonly known as honey oil, it shares similarities with Rick Simpson Oil (RSO concentrate).

Regardless of its title, note that the concentrate you’ve created is suitable for oral consumption exclusively. Using this alcohol-extracted cannabis concentrate in a dab rig or vaporizer is not recommended.

Why the restriction?

Well, attempting to dab or inhale it might result in an unpleasant taste. Although alcohol efficiently extracts active cannabinoids like THC and CBD, it also pulls chlorophyll, contributing to the dark, thick, tar-like consistency.

While chlorophyll holds value in a regular diet (found in leafy greens), it doesn’t vaporize or combust well and may not be ideal for the respiratory system.

Hence, it’s best to administer alcohol-extracted cannabis oil orally, sublingually (under the tongue), or infuse it into edibles. Dabbing is an option, but expect an altered taste profile—not advisable if seeking a pure taste experience.

Assuming the extraction process was executed correctly, the resulting concentrate should contain solely pure plant extract. It might appear and taste unconventional, yet it ensures the absence (or should ensure) of foreign chemical substances in your consumption.

Creating QWISO cannabis concentrate (quick wash isopropyl alcohol technique).

Another popular method for cannabis concentrates using alcohol extraction is the Quick Wash Isopropyl Alcohol technique, known as QWISO.

This process tends to be faster and, when done correctly, yields a visually appealing amber extract, though typically in smaller quantities compared to RSO concentrate.

For this QWISO cannabis extraction, gather:

• Marijuana flower
• Isopropyl alcohol of 99% or higher (avoid using rubbing alcohol)
• Unbleached coffee filters
• Glass jars and dishes in various sizes
• Wire strainer
• Heat source without an open flame

A properly executed QWISO extraction can result in a beautiful golden or amber-hued concentrate, possibly forming into a shatter of 80% or more, depending on the extraction conditions.

The steps largely resemble the previous Everclear extraction technique but with key variations:

1. Break the nugs by hand, avoiding a fine powder consistency.
2. Place the nugs in an oven-safe dish at 180°F for 20-30 minutes to remove moisture (without decarboxylating the buds).
3. Seal the dried nugs in a glass jar and freeze with the high-percentage isopropyl alcohol for around four hours.
4. Retrieve both the nugs and alcohol from the freezer, pouring enough alcohol over the buds to fully saturate them. Swiftly stir the mixture (hence “quick-wash”) for no more than two minutes (duration may vary based on the quantity of bud; a smaller amount may require only 20 seconds of stirring).
5. Strain the alcohol/cannabis mixture through a wire strainer into a clean jar, resulting in a clean, lightly tinted liquid extract.
6. Further filter the liquid by pouring it through an unbleached coffee filter into another clean jar.
7. To evaporate the alcohol, place the jar in a warm water bath, avoiding excessive heat that could decarboxylate the THC and CBD. Alternatively, let it evaporate naturally, which may take over 24 hours.
8. Once the alcohol completely evaporates, scrape the cannabis concentrate onto a clean wax parchment paper. Test for purity by scraping a small amount onto a needle’s head and holding it to a lighter flame. If it sparks, residual alcohol solvent may remain, requiring further evaporation.

In essence, utilizing alcohol extraction for cannabis concentrate is a relatively basic technique. However, when executed properly, it can yield a safe, pure, medicinal, and notably potent end product – with a touch of intended pun.

Safety is paramount; ensure you work in an open-air space or a well-ventilated environment. Avoid any open flames, sparks, or vaping devices during the process.

Additionally, confirm the legality of this practice in your region. It’s crucial to note that we bear no responsibility for any legal infractions, harm to yourself or others, or property damage resulting from attempts to create cannabis concentrates through alcohol extraction.

Disclaimer: The information provided on this page is for educational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before using any THC product.