A perfect cure every time

[silver hawaiian]

Pulled out my Caliber IIIs a few days ago. They're about three years old. I put fresh batteries in all of 'em also.

Of the three, one shows a mostly-accurate reading, one shows --%, and the third shows LL%.

And the one that shows the mostly-accurate reading seems to waver between accurate-ish and --%.

Anyone have any ideas? Again, this is with fresh batteries..?

 

[Jhhnn]

Pulled out my Caliber IIIs a few days ago. They're about three years old. I put fresh batteries in all of 'em also.

Of the three, one shows a mostly-accurate reading, one shows --%, and the third shows LL%.

And the one that shows the mostly-accurate reading seems to waver between accurate-ish and --%.

Anyone have any ideas? Again, this is with fresh batteries..?

Some of mine acted a little wonky like that when starting up, but cleared up by itself in use. Why, dunno. They're digital, so they might as well be magic. Maybe try clearing the memory.

 

[Weezard]

On Cal IIIs I hold down both buttons for 5 seconds.
Then release.
That should do a reset.
Edit:
If not, well, some fresh batteries are fresher than others.
Try swapping the battery with the working unit.

A. ,
W.

 

[silver hawaiian]

Weird. Holding both buttons down got me no relief, swapping out for other fresh batteries, .. No luck.

BUT, I did blow a stiff breeze at what I'm imagining is the sensor -- the little microphone doodad lookin' thing on the one end, with the three little slits in the plastic & the screen behind it, and now I at least have an RH reading.

They both started in the 90s (once the RH reading came back to life), but both are steadily dropping now. Looks like that may've done the trick.

(Is everything in life like an old Nintendo cartridge?)

 

[Jhhnn]

Weird. Holding both buttons down got me no relief, swapping out for other fresh batteries, .. No luck.

BUT, I did blow a stiff breeze at what I'm imagining is the sensor -- the little microphone doodad lookin' thing on the one end, with the three little slits in the plastic & the screen behind it, and now I at least have an RH reading.

They both started in the 90s (once the RH reading came back to life), but both are steadily dropping now. Looks like that may've done the trick.

(Is everything in life like an old Nintendo cartridge?)

Heh. That may have been what I did. I'm gonna give the Ronald Reagan answer- "I don't recall" because I was really baked right then.

It's PFM- pure freaking magic.

 

[Libeccio]

The half gallon jars filled up.



View Image

nice! hey cobra420, i really dig these hygrometers... can you tell us the brand and such? $? how do they work? thanks man.

 

[Cobra420]

Libeccio, Thank you.

I got them from PetsMart. They were found in the reptile section. I've done a salt test with them and they are all close enough for me. When they are all next to each other, I've seen at most a 2% difference between them all.

Here's a post budelight made after talking about them in one of my grow threads. Should be most of the info you are looking for.

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showpost.php?p=6179493&postcount=53

So far, I'm VERY satisfied with them. The jars from above were filled 19 days ago and as of the other day, they seem to be stabilizing. All of the jars when I checked them this morning were sitting at 62%. I picked up another one the other day, but looking at my harvest and what still needs to be chopped, I think I'm going to need a few more.

Hope that helps. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.

 

[Libeccio]

Libeccio, Thank you.

I got them from PetsMart. They were found in the reptile section. I've done a salt test with them and they are all close enough for me. When they are all next to each other, I've seen at most a 2% difference between them all.

Here's a post budelight made after talking about them in one of my grow threads. Should be most of the info you are looking for.

https://www.icmag.com/ic/showpost.php?p=6179493&postcount=53

So far, I'm VERY satisfied with them. The jars from above were filled 19 days ago and as of the other day, they seem to be stabilizing. All of the jars when I checked them this morning were sitting at 62%. I picked up another one the other day, but looking at my harvest and what still needs to be chopped, I think I'm going to need a few more.

Hope that helps. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.

thanks a lot man! from petstore it isn't doable for me, as i live in italy and shipping costs would be around 60 $ (from their site...). i made a small research and it appears no one sells them online around here... i'll search better later. amazon has the bigger thermometer-hygrometer version, just like the one i got... i like those because they're small and they only read rh, just what we need...

since i'm here, just another question : recently i changed my drying place as i turned my garden perpetual and use now more space... the spot where i'm drying my plants now is just outside the grow room, in a closet (which disguises the op's entrance ). it's dark, ventilated (a small fan blowing from the ground but not directly to the drying buds), temps around 18 °C (64 °F) but i think the rh is a little too high: mostly around 65% but with peaks of 71% (expecially when i'm around working in my garden...) i added a small passive dehumidifier (the box with salts) and it helped a little... do you guys think i should buy a real dehumidifier? (now it takes around 10 days to properly dry the buds...) i was trying to save Ws, as electricity is very expensive here... to the ones who use dehumidifiers, do they use a lot of electricity? i was thinking to build a wooden drying box... thanks a lot, ciao!

 

[Aspenou812]

Hey Thanks Simon my calibers 4's are on the way!! what a monster read this thread has been.......

 

[BrassNwood]

By the time I found this thread I'd worked a lot of this out on my own but this is still my send them to thread for new growers for dry-cure help.. While it's is a good method and gets the job done it has some drawbacks.. When you start working with larger amounts says 2 or 3 outdoor plants all them jars gets real clumsy..

My grow is So Calif and between the temps and the very low humidity it's very easy to over dry.. Even a single day to long on the line can ruin it all..
To keep the wife happy all my work is restricted to the garage so I get to be inventive at times.. If you search long enough you'll come across the 777 of curing .. This being the 7 days @ 70 degrees @ 70% humidity.. Works well if you have a temp and humidity controlled room.. We don't so we use jars to achieve the same ends..

While I started in jars this soon proved impractical trying to unscrew all the jars over and over.. Some trial and error later I worked out a method to limit exposure to our stone dry air and still get things done in a timely way..

I take the plant a branch at a time and trim close while seconds off the living plant.. All the leafs are standing tall and you don't get a better shot at trimming.. Hang..
http://forum.grasscity.com/uploads/monthly_02_2014/post-645641-0-53287100-1393031894.jpg
Depending on temp and humidity this stage can take from 24 hours to a week.. just hung bud is dead limp to the touch after 12 hours or so.... When the buds start to stiffen when slightly compressed I remove from the branches..
http://forum.grasscity.com/uploads/monthly_02_2014/post-645641-0-78036400-1393031909.jpg
And the buds get placed in cut down paper shopping bags about 3 inches tall..
http://forum.grasscity.com/uploads/monthly_02_2014/post-645641-0-47581400-1393031922.jpg
Next I place the bags in a air snug-tight container.. Mostly I use either an Ice Chest or a New unused Trash Can.. I try and size the container to the load.. You don't want 1 bag of buds in a trash can..
While I did use several hygrometers early on for this stage I've since found I can do it all just by feel now.. Leave bags in can till limp to the touch again.. This first day that won't take very long. a couple of hours... Once limp remove from container and set bags out till stiff when compressed slightly.. I'll flip the contents of the bags to a third bag to get the lowest buds up on top.. I'll continue this rotation of the bags into and out of the container gradually spending less and less time exposed.. the last few days the bags will only be out an hour or so.. This takes me about 7 days..
This is where I do use the Hygrometers.. The can is now acting like a large jar.. Your best readings come in the morning after the can has had 12 hours or more to stabilize and will tell you how much exposure your product will need that day.. Combined with a hygrometer telling me what is outside helps..
http://forum.grasscity.com/uploads/monthly_10_2013/post-645641-0-60244500-1381192804.jpg
A full can requiring a single meter as well as being able to get the product in and out rapidly made this a much more practical way at least in the extremely dry SW USA..

Once the can has reached 65% and 7 to 10 days have elapsed It gets jarred in Half Gallon mason jars with a 62% Boveda 60 gram and I'm done.. 60 days minimum cure time for me.. Longer is better but you'll have a very respectable smoke in 2 months..
http://forum.grasscity.com/uploads/monthly_02_2014/post-645641-0-68444100-1393296931.jpg

Caution this may get you a large container of mold in a less dry area.. Just what I've worked out in my smoking hot and extremely dry garage..

 

[jede3]

Just a quick question before I decide to peruse 126 pages of this amazing thread. I followed this technique exactly with my last cure, and had a bit of problem. I waited until my flowers were completely dry, and the stems snapped, jarred them up at 62% with a Boveda pack, and the flowers were still a bit too dry and developed a very slight hay smell.

My current run, my flowers feel nice and dry to the touch, they've been trimmed and hanging for 5 days, BUT the stems are still quite flexible. I'm using large pyrex dishes with lids, and my RH stabilizes at 65%, so I'm wondering if jarring them up at this point, without the stems snapping completely, will they cure properly? I'm just afraid of waiting until the stems snap and them getting too dry again, and also worried they won't continue to dry out and cure correctly if I jar them with flexible stems.

 

[chappie]

I've found with this method, it is better to jar them too wet than too dry. Don't wait for the stems to snap. The slight mold risk (which is pretty low, in general) is better than overdrying, since indeed, you cannot go back once that happens, but you can always dry it out more.

 

[DETStrainKey]

Great thread guys

 

[RB56]

I've found with this method, it is better to jar them too wet than too dry. Don't wait for the stems to snap. The slight mold risk (which is pretty low, in general) is better than overdrying, since indeed, you cannot go back once that happens, but you can always dry it out more.

Completely agree. I shoot for a slow dry to about 65% and then into jars where I slow the dry down even more by opening the jars for a few minutes each day. Stems that snap are too dry for my conditions.

 

[Jhhnn]

I've found with this method, it is better to jar them too wet than too dry. Don't wait for the stems to snap. The slight mold risk (which is pretty low, in general) is better than overdrying, since indeed, you cannot go back once that happens, but you can always dry it out more.

Indeed. It's easy to get buds dry on the outside, damp on the inside in dry air. I try to jar it up before the outside is too dry, wait overnight or 24 hrs, see what I've got. Being jarred seems to even out the inside/ outside moisture differential.

If it's still too wet, I take back out of the jars over night or for a few hours, depending, try again until the RH holds under 70. I then open the jars for a few minutes daily or so until it holds under 65, pop in a boveda pack, quit. Then it goes into a nice cool crawlspace for a month's nap w/ only occasional checking. So far, that's been my storage method, as well. The last grow, Yumbolt, has just gotten better curing over the last few months.

Yeh, I fuss with it a lot because conditions are never the same, & because it's really worth the trouble to treat yourself to the best. I guess it's a point of pride, too- I don't grow any hay.

 

[rangergord]

Eureka!

Eureka!

Well I have been growing and harvesting for many years now and for the first time with the knowledge I gained from reading this massive thread, my herb is DANK. Everything I have grown before was great until I dried it out. Then although it was potent, it had a weak smell and flat taste. Humidity was the key that unlocked the door for me. I live in a cold dry climate and heat with wood. My indoor humidity is 20-30%, sometimes less. I always thought it was not a big deal. At least I had no mold right?

Well first I got a calibre 4 hygrometer. Then I trimmed and placed my herb on a hanging net rack. I put it in my grow closet with a ventilation fan and carbon filter for a smell free cure. I hung a wet towel and aimed a circulation fan at it. Got my humidity up to 65- 70%. Managed to stretch the drying time out to 7 days to semi-stem crack stage. Usually by the time 3-4 days go by I am done hanging.

Then I put the buds in a clear rubbermaid tub with the calibre to monitor. Got the humidity down from about 75% to 65% by burping the tub. You may not need that many calibres to get the job done. I managed just fine with one, on my 8 ounce harvest. Well I was blown away by the taste and smell of my buds. I'll put mine up for judging against the best now. No Problem! I put the tub outdoors for a couple of weeks in the -20 to -40 winter temps before jarring it up. This worked well because the humidity outdoors was fairly high because it was cold and snowing. No further curing was needed.

I was so impressed I decided to get a CAP HUM-1 humidity controller and an ultrasonic fogger designed for hydroponics. Now my closet has a controlled atmosphere that is perfect for growing and drying. My plants are growing much faster as well in the higher humidity. If it gets too damp, all I have to do is have the ventilation fan come on and dry air floods the space. The difference is like night and day! Thanks to Simon and everyone else for setting me on the right path.

 

[Indicamann]

Happy 4-20 everybody, I hope everyone is having a great time
Quick question, I do not mean to bother I was just interested in applying this method in regards to curing. My question to all you wonderful folks here is which hygrometer should I get Do I buy the Caliber 3 or the caliber 4, which one is better for this application?
Thanks
Indicamann

 

[igrowone]

the caliber III may be no longer made? i think i've seen that mentioned, and a few complaints about the IV
the III i bought 3 years ago is still working for me

 

[Indicamann]

So your saying that if I still know where to purchase the caliber 3 then i should buy a few of them. Word thank you I am on it. I must say this is exciting and I am looking forward to positive results. Thank you

 

[rangergord]

I have never tried a calibre 3 and am very happy with the performance of the calibre 4.