Improving BHO yields? (general Q's)

[MrAwder]

So I've been running BHO for about a year now. I still prefer smoking bud so I only run a little bit every few months. I was bored this weekend and had a few hours to try and run a little more than usual. I had 2 x 100g bags of sugar trim, one old mixed, one from a recent Deep Strawberry Diesel harvest. Process is as follows:

- 50g trim into glass tube (x2)
- 2 unbleached coffee filters
- run 1.5 cans of power 5x per tube
- blowing directly onto PFTE sheet which is secured to a pyrex dish
- pyrex dish with sheet still attached place in water bath for ~15 min
- PFTE sheet removed, wiped dry and placed into 1 gal vac chamber
- continuous vac @ 90F for 1 hour

So for one "run" I would blow 2 tubes, 100 grams material using 3 cans of tane. In both cases I got the usual consistency/end product which is somewhere between shatter and pull-n-snap depending on room temp. My preferred form for getting on the dabber.

The problem is, each bag (100 grams) of trim yielded roughly 5 grams of oil. 4 easily collected grams each and probably about a gram which I am still collecting from the sheet (small pieces and "dust" crumbles from folding the sheet). So the math is pretty easy... 5% yield. I know on nug runs people are hitting 15% yield, maybe more. The logical explanation is my starting material I suppose. The only problem with that is that there still appear to be some trichs on the material after this is all done. Should I be running more tane through 50 grams of material?

Another thing I noticed since I switched to a larger glass tube: it takes like half a can of tane just to work from one end of the tube to the other. Sometimes it seems like more. Is this normal? I am I maybe packing too tightly? The tube I am using is advertised for 40-60grams materials so I am right in that ballpark. Just feels like the tane is sitting in there and maybe I'm not getting it all out of the tube. One last concern is that it was about 20-30 degrees outside when I ran. Could that effect how the butane moves through the tube? In general I know colder is better (freeze material and freeze the butane for better extraction). It just seemed like the butane was running into the tube and just kind of sitting, slowly working its way to the bottom.

Just looking for some general input on my process and what I might do to bump my yield up a few %.

Some pics of my setup (old stainless steel tube pictured) and oil from an old run. It's darker since I used to run my temps around 115f and my hotplate controls sucked.

 

[bull619]

Your tech seems solid. It wouldn't hurt to run an extra half can through each tube making it two each. This way you don't take any chances on not extracting all your oil. The temperature outside will have an affect on yield at times I have found out, but the biggest weather factor I run into is humidity.

 

[BredForMeds]

if u aren't repacking. u are wasting.. so if ur tube holds 50 grams. I suggest packing the 50.. running it.. then unpacking run a new batch.. then .. unpack.. mix the 2 together.. and then re run all the material 1 time each....

u can add them together or keep separate.. the second run.. is usually more body.. while the first more heady. . I usually mix 2:1 twice the amount of the FIRST run.. as the SECOND run.. just to make it a more even high ..also I keep the rest of the second run for sleepy time meds

 

[CarefulGrower]

5% for trim isn't unheard of. I've gotten 10-29% using buds.

I'dd add another can of butane when running, 100g = 3.5oz, 3 1/2 cans. 2 cans per 50g isn't a bad ratio. I also wouldn't advise running the material twice. You usually get 85% of all the THC the first run, the remaining 15% on the second run... the second run will give maybe a gram of oil for $20 in butane/time.

Your tech is solid, the starting material is the bottleneck. You can check your trim after you run it with a 20x scope to see how much THC heads are remaining.

 

[-Boris]

The butane is running slowly because both tane and tube were frozen. Instead, freeze your tube and warm your butane in a bowl of warm water, or just leave it at room temp but DON'T freeze it.

 

[BredForMeds]

if ur running a glass tube u should be able to tell if u need to repack or not.. if its not getting the material completely wet it mite be missing some.. iuno when people say. don't run the material again.. I don't get why. I got a tube that holds between 100-175 grams.. and if I repack.. I usually get another 2-5 grams.. in my area.. a gram goes for between 50-90 for the best of the best shatter.. and 20-40 for anything else.. so if I get my tane for 30 a case. at 2.75 a can.. I mite waste 10 bucks in tane.. to make usually around 3.5 grams of oil from stuff most would TRASH? I don't think so lol .. maybe wen I am growing more then I could ever smoke..and I never run out.. but I always make extras. and do re runs.. and keep the reruns for the times were hey. im all out of weed.. shit I wana smoke so bad.. oooo ya.. I got that bho in the safe for these times,. lol.

 

[BredForMeds]

my friend gets to run 4 packs on his stainless steel turkey baster.. PER CAN.. and since its a tiny tube. he just runs bud mixed 1 part weed.. 3 parts keif.. and last yield to can ratio was 15-20 grams per can of tane.. so .

 

[ChemDgMillionre]

Ppl tell you not to do a second run because your likely grabbing more plant waxes than glands. Listen to these ppl.

 

[LyryC]

Blow two cans per tube - you can purge the excess butane like you already are - only way to be sure you got all the trichs off the trim and the purge speeds things up so it won't be a huge difference in required time.

Try not to repack your trim - waste of your butane and the finished product comes out darker.

If you can do a pure nug run - the rewards are pleasing!

good luck!

 

[BredForMeds]

I was only stating to rerun material that has keif or buds in it.. and collect in a diff pyrex,,,

see my first run.. usually don't grind the buds. up.. just full buds packed.. and add kief and back.. then my second run. I grind buds.. and add a lil kief to the bottom closer to the screen.. and run again..

my friend doesn't run 2 times.. and he gave me 2 pounds of buds that already ran threw bho.. I ran my first run last night.. 2 cans of butane.. threw 160 grams of buds.. that I grinded up . he uses full buds.. and just runs extra can of tane threw his.. so anyways.
wen I told him my first run. yielded 4.5 grams of some very good shatter.. he was pissed.. 160grams.. so I have 6 runs.. at say average 4 grams each. is another 24 grams .. an oz of oil in my area.. even the shittiest oil is going for 25 bucks wholesale or 50 each.. so an extra 600 bucks.. is made with maybe 10 hours of work.. and 35 $ a case of butane.. so in all seriousness.. take the 35 off that and u make 565$ for 10 hours of work.. so ill take 56.5$ an hour .. that's fine with me lol.... shit even this second run oil.. is better then ALL THE BHO ive seen in my area PERIOd.. everything I see is being made with PVC PIPES. and is being hot water purged.. and that's IT.. no vac purge.. no secondary purge AT ALL.. the shit sparkles like forth of july.. and will light ur FACE ON FIRE... if u try to DAB A HUGE DAB IN A SMALLER BONG!!!

and people are omg. this bho is soo fucking good.. I get baked..

and im like ya. its soo good u take 1 tiny hit and cough ur lungs out for 20 minutes.. sounds like a great time.. atleast the shit I make.. even without a vacuum chamber.. I am getting it to be atleast 2xs as good as whatever is around here wholesale atleast.

 

[MrAwder]

thanks for all the replies. makes sense to keep the tane warm now that I think about it. I did not freeze the tane when I had this problem but it was sitting in my garage at like 30f. i'm assuming keeping it room temp allows it to release at full pressure when blowing.

I will definitely start running 2 cans. I havent decided about re-running material yet but I have been saving material I have run. I'm thinking I might wash it with ISO and use for topicals or other experiments. I'm assuming using it for edibles is out of the question once it's been bathed in tane regardless of if it evaporates.

 

[ChemDgMillionre]

I'm not arguing the value of time spent, I'm saying 2nd run is of lesser quality & shouldn't be sold to ppl

 

[LyryC]

 

[BredForMeds]

I'm not arguing the value of time spent, I'm saying 2nd run is of lesser quality & shouldn't be sold to ppl

well iuno kuz 1 of my tubes.. I added. 50 grams of keif.. and good keif.. at that.. and about 20 grams of buds.. and 120 grams of good trim.. and only yielded 16 grams on that tube..

so your saying.. that u wouldn't run that again? I know I packed it to tight after I started blowing the material I said fuck its too tight. so I ran it.. just didn't run too many cans threw it. I ran 4 cans and wen I unpacked it.. it fucking had about 15-20 grams of keif .. untouched.. all heads.. so? what would u do? just throw it away?

lol the thing is.. all the BHO I run .. is mainly for headsmoke. I do sell a lil here and there.. but I tell people. straight up. plus the second run shit.. is mixed with the first usually.. but this time I didn't have the time.. so I said fuck it . but hey man.. if u knew what the dudes in my area are selling as BHO .. ud see why I am saying.. do a second run.. even if u don't sell it .. or even smoke it.. do the second. run . put it in edibles.. tinctures.. or bed time meds.. why waste it? u grew that plant for that purpose.. why let anything go to waste?

 

[CarefulGrower]

well iuno kuz 1 of my tubes.. I added. 50 grams of keif.. and good keif.. at that.. and about 20 grams of buds.. and 120 grams of good trim.. and only yielded 16 grams on that tube..

so your saying.. that u wouldn't run that again? I know I packed it to tight after I started blowing the material I said fuck its too tight. so I ran it.. just didn't run too many cans threw it. I ran 4 cans and wen I unpacked it.. it fucking had about 15-20 grams of keif .. untouched.. all heads.. so? what would u do? just throw it away?

lol the thing is.. all the BHO I run .. is mainly for headsmoke. I do sell a lil here and there.. but I tell people. straight up. plus the second run shit.. is mixed with the first usually.. but this time I didn't have the time.. so I said fuck it . but hey man.. if u knew what the dudes in my area are selling as BHO .. ud see why I am saying.. do a second run.. even if u don't sell it .. or even smoke it.. do the second. run . put it in edibles.. tinctures.. or bed time meds.. why waste it? u grew that plant for that purpose.. why let anything go to waste?

And you leached all the waxes/fats from the bud through the second run, lowering the quality of your second.

Run bud/trim once, run the kief once through a butane soak (coffee pot/thermos method) not through a single pass column and you'll get a perfectly efficient extraction on the kief and not need a second. If you are putting all your kief in a tube mixed you are making good tasting bud bho taste hashy (kief tastes hashy in BHO) when you could have better tasting bho (from bud) and another bulkier pile full of hashy kief bho.

Kief/bubble hash/finger hash needs more time soaked in butane to dissolve. Thermos/coffee pot soaks are ideal if you don't have a closed loop extractor.

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=168388 - Primary non-polar extraction. - Describes a soak extraction, better for hash/kief.
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=255819 - more on it

 

[-Boris]

I would just stick with the ratio of 1 300ml can/1oz material. Adding more wont increase yeild at all, it will just degrade aesthetics and pleasantness. Don't repack your tubes, just know how much material is in them so you can judge how much butane to use. After you have

ran butane through the material it is garbage. Any "keif" left in the material after a run has no resin left in it. Further extracting just pulls more undesirables.

 

[BredForMeds]

ok.. I haven't even run the second run on all of it yet.. and pulled a nice oil.. so I guess next time im running the method for kief instead of the tube.. thanks for the advice..

as a noob on bho.. I am open to suggestions..

I was also told.. to unpack right away.. let it dry out. then repack it a few days later.. as to not allow the butane to extract as much wax on the second run . basicly.. the second run shit.. is just stuff that sits around until I have no weed and no oil left.. and im waiting for my harvest to finish up.. so I don't cut anything down earlier then I like..

that's all. lol. for me wasting 20 grams of oil that's better then all the oil that ive bought and smoked in my area.. is just that.. a WASTE. so I will take your advice.. but I will also just use a few more pyrex dishes.. as to not mix anything together..


but shit. I am the type of person were if I throw 20 grams of decent oil in the trash.. and I run out of buds before harvest.. ill be kicking myself in the ass. saying man I could have had a nice 20 gs. of second wash oil.. that mite not be TOP QUALITY. but works until harvest time..

believe me . if I could find a good hash In my area. I would be all over it.. but the shit that goes around here. is like carmel. no vac purge.. or .. looks like brownie mix. dark black not see threw at all even in thin layers? ..

but thanks for the info. I will not mix shit anymore.. but when I can post pictures.. ill post the pictures of the First tube first run.. second tube 1st run.. and both tubes of second run.. just to show u guys wat im talking about. mite be a waste to people who have unlimited amounts of herb an oil.. but for someone who relys on his product .. ill do this second run. and then ill rethink my method..

 

[fulltimehuman]

Hey good job dude! Always nice to economize and get the mostest to get the toastest right?
I agree you would tell anyone who you gave that to what process you used but shit, its your deal, you got to satisfy your needs, not the 'supposed moral dictates' of a few dudes on icmag. Never saw so many uptight stoners.....its almost a paradox right?