A perfect cure every time

[sire]

thanks

thanks

Hey guys...I'm working on this cure method now, thus far with great results (Afgoo and Bubba Kush). It took about five days to get them dry to the point of bendy stems. Jarred them up, Afgoo was a bit drier than the Bubba, but both had to be taken out of the jars for a few hours. Humidity on

Hello Simon my friend Dave Coulier (sorry if i spelled u wrong my friend) hip my on to ur metod. right now im flowering 3 nebulas, 1 grand daddy purp, 1 white widow, 1 cinderella99 and 1 bubba kush. i would really like to cure this batch right i grew bubba kush and cindy99 the last time there were all sorts of issues: heat (while flowering), then once i harvested i got a big box cut a hole( in the bottom) for exhaust and and a passive hole at the top/side and attached a 10 inch fan pulling air through the exhaust (is this ok) and hung the buds from twine going across in the inside of the box. i let them dry for ten days the cindy99 over dried the bubba was kinda moist so i bought the hygrometers and the bubba was at 65% the ciny99 was at 60% then dropped to 55% and it was pretty much crap. the bubba kush was ok but it was extremely couchlock (i think i let the trichs ripen too much thats another story though) well then i found ur method. im on week 6 for the bubba kush and the white widow. nebulas r 3-4 days behind so i'll keep u posted. oh yeah shout out to simon and dave!

 

[Budweiser13]

Good info here I am surprised this ain't stickied yet....

 

[NoRest]

Simon, at what temperature are you determining your RH in your original post?

 

[simon]

Simon, at what temperature are you determining your RH in your original post?

70-75F

Simon

 

[NoRest]

One thing to keep in mind with products geared for tobacco. Tabacco's prime RH is ~70%, which is a bit higher than what we're looking for.


Simon

70-75F

Simon

Tabacco RH of ~70%@ 70°F is equal to ~59%@ 75°F

Point being the moisture content of bud and cigars is very close the same for optimum combustion.

You imply bud should be dryer than tabacco but if I understand your numbers correctly your guide is about the same.

as shown here.

http://www.oldetownetobacconist.com/new.html#humidity

Thanks again for starting this thread.

 

[nvthis]

As the curing process needs air to continue, you can preserve a given point in the cure by removing the air from the container. A Pump 'n Seal can work well for this and it's a fairly inexpensive solution:

http://www.pump-n-seal.com/

Though this product does work, its seals leak over time and I'd suggest also vacuum-sealing the container for longer-term storage.

Simon

Hey Simon, just curious man, would freezing at this point also work? Freezing will rupture plant cells and discontinue the breakdown of nutrients, even after brought back to room temp (I suppose not unlike bringing it below 55% rh to stop the process??)?? Seems like a short period of freezer time might "freeze" the cure in place??? Or would flavors/smells continue to change afterwards?

Also.. Is it possible to change the batteries in the Caliber yourself? Or would this interfere with the calibration??

 

[simon]

Hey Simon, just curious man, would freezing at this point also work? Freezing will rupture plant cells and discontinue the breakdown of nutrients, even after brought back to room temp (I suppose not unlike bringing it below 55% rh to stop the process??)?? Seems like a short period of freezer time might "freeze" the cure in place??? Or would flavors/smells continue to change afterwards?

I've never frozen any cured product, so I hate to comment without personal experience.

Also.. Is it possible to change the batteries in the Caliber yourself? Or would this interfere with the calibration??

Sure, you can change the batteries yourself. It doesn't seem to interfere with the calibration of the unit.

Simon

 

[nvthis]

I am in the middle of a cure now. I can split a jar and give it a try, if you are open to having that info here..

1/2 of the jar will go into the deep freeze for 72 hours. The other half will continue as it is. I can test this weekly for smell/flavor/smoothness and see what happens?

One more stupid Q bro... If your jar begins to get a little low (RH, let's say... 58%) will adding moisture (via lettuce, fan leaf, bread etc., etc.) prolong the cure indefinitely? The reason I ask is that assuming the cure process is living cell matter that continues to convert nutrients etc., would these cells not eventually just die on there own, given time?

 

[Bulldog11]

watch out freezing weed that isn't dry. Can cause problems for sure.

 

[nvthis]

Hey BD, I think the idea is to freeze it at the point it is optimum for the user (not considering moisture content/RH), once it has already reached a prefered spot in the cure. The question is that if a cured bud is at the height of preference, how do you stop it? Assuming further curing will change certain values making it less desirable for that particular individual.. Actually, it sounds kinda wierd like that, but for the sake of knowing.......

 

[staff11]

Just a little heads up on trying the salt test on the claiber III's, if you read the little instruction manual that they come with it says to NOT use the salt test to test these meters.

 

[igrowone]

a small note on my small curing project(which is going well)
after a false start, i got to 59% rh, and the cure really went well from there
i wasn't comfortable keeping the jars shut for too long, just nervous after mold from my first attempt
anyways, the humidity is up in the north east, so after every jar opening and airing, my RH has gone up a point
currently seeing 63%, which seems a bit topsy turvy, all looks/smells well, just seemed a little strange

 

[NoRest]

Relative Humidity is a measure % of water vapor in air at a given temperture. Cooler air can hold less moisture, while warmer air can hold more.

So RH of 59% at 75F is the same as RH of 63% at 73F because the air can hold more water vapor at 75F the same moisture nets a higher RH at 73F


A note on freezing bud freeze are very dry enviroments. Even the best storage container will leak due to the expantion and contraction associated with the freezing process. Not a good choice for storage.

 

[igrowone]

Relative Humidity is a measure % of water vapor in air at a given temperture. Cooler air can hold less moisture, while warmer air can hold more.

So RH of 59% at 75F is the same as RH of 63% at 73F because the air can hold more water vapor at 75F the same moisture nets a higher RH at 73F


A note on freezing bud freeze are very dry enviroments. Even the best storage container will leak due to the expantion and contraction associated with the freezing process. Not a good choice for storage.

thanks for the quick data point, it is a bit of a moving target
from what i can recall, the RH's i mentioned were at the same temps, but i didn't write it down, so just a best guess
and humidity has cranked up in the north east, feels it anyways

 

[THC123]

Here too

i have a jar that is at 60%

noiw that it is raining and humid , RH sometimes rises to 60-65%

i just don't open the jar on those days i wait till the RH outside is lower than in the jar

 

[igrowone]

Here too

i have a jar that is at 60%

noiw that it is raining and humid , RH sometimes rises to 60-65%

i just don't open the jar on those days i wait till the RH outside is lower than in the jar

thanks for feedback, that was my plan too, just have had so many humid days i didn't dare leave the jars closed for that length of time
no harm done from what i can see, but i continue to watch carefully

 

[simon]

Relative Humidity is a measure % of water vapor in air at a given temperture. Cooler air can hold less moisture, while warmer air can hold more.

So RH of 59% at 75F is the same as RH of 63% at 73F because the air can hold more water vapor at 75F the same moisture nets a higher RH at 73F

Perhaps due to the microcosm of a relatively small enclosed container, a temperature variance doesn't impact the end product as much as one could think. As shown above, a 2F change in temp can manifest itself as a 4% change in RH. On a practical level, IMHE, ambient temperature (within reason) makes no difference relative to the cured product and its measure via a Caliber. Plainly put, one can cure the same strain at 85F and 65F, and rely on the same numerical breakdown.

Simon

 

[simon]

a small note on my small curing project(which is going well)
after a false start, i got to 59% rh, and the cure really went well from there
i wasn't comfortable keeping the jars shut for too long, just nervous after mold from my first attempt
anyways, the humidity is up in the north east, so after every jar opening and airing, my RH has gone up a point
currently seeing 63%, which seems a bit topsy turvy, all looks/smells well, just seemed a little strange

Two thing may be happening. As THC mentioned, the product may be absorbing some humidity from the air. Similarly, as the product sits in an container, the flower mass is pulling moisture from the stems, increasing the humidity inside the car. If the product was jarred at a right time, you should be seeing higher numbers as it sits. HTH

Simon

 

[igrowone]

Two thing may be happening. As THC mentioned, the product may be absorbing some humidity from the air. Similarly, as the product sits in an container, the flower mass is pulling moisture from the stems, increasing the humidity inside the car. If the product was jarred at a right time, you should be seeing higher numbers as it sits. HTH

Simon

that is very valuable info simon, i did notice that there was quite a delay in the RH rising after closing the jar
which makes me feel even better about the cure

 

[ChaosCatalunya]

Perhaps due to the microcosm of a relatively small enclosed container, a temperature variance doesn't impact the end product as much as one could think. As shown above, a 2F change in temp can manifest itself as a 4% change in RH. On a practical level, IMHE, ambient temperature (within reason) makes no difference relative to the cured product and its measure via a Caliber. Plainly put, one can cure the same strain at 85F and 65F, and rely on the same numerical breakdown.

Simon

Will the rate of reaction not be significantly quicker at 85F as opposed to 65F ? Temps normally speed up actions in the lab.

Great thread, ideas here, after the 420, chatting to a few people who were getting to the idea that, generally, Sat Dom plants coould be bit different to Indica Dom, specifically that the Indica Dom plants with their fat stinks did not seem to gain much apart from smoothness, but tamed the stinkyness a bit, whereas the Sat Doms with woody/spicy aromas got a bit better and lost the green minty taste. Generalised and not true for all plants or tastes of course, but a thought.


FWIW, before bagging I always liked whole plants dried pretty quickly, but properly, then bagged and checked rather than burped. With a lot of stuff I saw, it looked like the plant had lost a lot of her aromas and some effects from Composting slightly during a slow humid drying. The best crop of our old Superskunk clone was dried in full room warmth, 30 degrees, with oscillators and extractors on 24/7. Will be trying this system too, sounds very promising.