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QWISO purge

hamstring

Well-known member
Veteran
I have made a couple QWISO runs using the thin film method. I have been able to achieve 14% yield with two washes. I am using the thin film method but would like to purge to completely remove any remaining solvent. The end result is not shatter consistency and some of it is still a little soft and oily even in the freezer overnight. I am assuming small amounts of ISO are still present.

The starting material is this years outdoor 70% popcorn 30% trim.

Although I could use GW's method of the oil bath I really want to use a vac chamber just to educate myself for future adventures.

I would like a cheap vac chamber I read the DIY vacuum chamber over at skunkpharma but was wondering if these online inexpensive vacuum chambers are ok for small 6-7 grams of QWISO.

The one below is 200 $frog skins would love some feedback.:tiphat:


RKSEN© 4CFM Vacuum 1/3HP Pump w/ consistency Chamber 3 Gallon Silicone consistency Degassing
 
To get shatter from QWISO you need to freeze the plant matter and 99% ISO then only do one 10 second wash then filter and thin film evap. You can use a fan first and low heat towards the end to purge. You don't need vacuum, but may be able to use it (just I never have).
 

hamstring

Well-known member
Veteran
CC

Thanks for reply

I didn't word my initial post well. Yes I would love shatter but equally interested in making sure all solvent is gone.

I did freeze the bud and Iso and did all the work in a 20 deg garage. I shook for 40 sec on 1st and a violent 50 on the 2nd.
I separated the two runs and I am not exaggerating when I say the 2nd run was harder in consistency and only .6 grams less than the 1st.

I googled it and saw guys purging QWISO. They were purging for 3hrs a smaller amount of time than BHO .

How much Iso is left when just air drying? I mean the stuff around the edges of the Pyrex dish was thicker and always looser. Is that because of starting material (70% popcorn 30% trim)? Or is the fact that more concentrate settled around the edges and because of the density that it may still be holding some solvent?
 
Low heat at the end should purge all of the ISO as long as it is above the evaporation temp of ISO. But you don't want to get it too hot.

If you are not worried about getting shatter you could just whip the end product while heating and get wax or butter. I usually whip it then let it sit for a bit, and repeat that a few times to make sure all ISO is gone.

I've read you can heat butter to melt it into shatter but I'm not sure as I've never done it.
 

PDX Dopesmoker

Active member
When you got almost to the end of the evaporation, was any of the small amount of remaining fluid milky looking? I ask because I pick up condensation in my cold jar and on the cold alcohol and plant material if I don't do the entire filtering process in a cold & low relative humidity environment. I used to get much less solid concentrates when I was permitting all that excess water get into my solvent, without the water I can make nice stuff thats quite solid even without using a vac oven.
I use Everclear, but I think the behavior should be pretty similar to isopropyl.
 

hamstring

Well-known member
Veteran
CosmicCharlie-
Thanks for the tip. I used a heating mat for propagating seedlings to evaporate the ISO. It is in my garage so it was just above freezing inside around 20 deg outside but was able to evap 2 quarts in 24hrs. I then brought the concentrate in the house and pour some hot water in a larger pyrex dish for a double boiler. I have to admit I didn't leave it more than a couple minutes because I didn't see any bubbles but whipping it sounds like something I should have tried.

PDX
I think you may be onto something. I didn't look to see if there was a milky fluid. Its out in my garage which is not attached to my home so I didn't check until the following morning.
I could only get 91% iso and there was frost on the outside and maybe the inside of both the iso bottle and the quart jar with the weed. I may have some water in my concentrate.

I'm going to do a search on vacuum chambers in this forum just to see what i can come up with. I am interested in the production of concentrates and want to have my own vac chamber to play with.
 

hamstring

Well-known member
Veteran
Was over at the BVV (BEST VALUE VAC)website and saw this . I was hoping to get a chamber to play with my QWISO before I moved to BHO and if I understand the below correctly I think I can use the ShatterVac for both correct?



Compatibility Explanation:
• BestValueVac® Chambers are not compatible with stabilization resin (i.e. Cactus Juice™, Gator Venom™, Minwax™ etc.), alcohol, ethanol, acetone and acrylic based monomers or polymers.The lid may only be cleaned with soapy water.
• ShatterVac® chambers are not compatible with stabilization resin (i.e. Cactus Juice™, Gator Venom™, Minwax™ etc.), acetone, acrylic based monomers or polymers. The lid may be cleaned with soapy water and low strength cleaning agents.
• GlassVac® chambers are compatible with all solvents and stabilization resins. We only recommend and warranty GlassVac® chambers for resin infusion and wood stabilization.The lid may be cleaned with any solvent or cleaning agent.
Pump Facts:
• We recommend the oil is changed every 50-75 of operating hours.
• CFM is a measure of cubic feet per minute.
• Single stage pumps reach a max vacuum of 50-75 microns (0=complete vacuum).
• Dual/Two stage pumps reach a max vacuum of 10-15 microns (0=complete vacuum).
 

Chevy cHaze

Out Of Dankness Cometh Light
ICMag Donor
Veteran
Hi Hamstring,
Try using 99% Iso if you can get it, if you you use 91% Iso you will have 9% water left, even after all the Iso has evaporated...No biggie, but it just takes more time to fully evaporate... Or do a search for qwiso here on icmag and look for hush's thread, he's going through trying out every possible setup and it's a great read too.
best,

CC
 

blastfrompast

Active member
Veteran
i won't touch qwiso unless it has been in a vac chamber....

Last time buddy gave me some...a bit of vac and a touch of heat and the iso started off gassing like a mofo...

Took a vid to show buddy so he won't put any more out there...ick..
 

Old Gold

Active member
i won't touch qwiso unless it has been in a vac chamber....

Last time buddy gave me some...a bit of vac and a touch of heat and the iso started off gassing like a mofo...

Took a vid to show buddy so he won't put any more out there...ick..

Rinsing ithe extract multiple times with another alcohol (i.e. ethanol), or anything very miscible and low-boiling like acetone, will greatly reduce the residual iso left behind.
And I agree, I also recommend a vacuum for any solvent that isn't readily boiling at room temperature sensor, especially when you've got the surface tension created by our lovely cannibanoids.
 

hamstring

Well-known member
Veteran
Hi Hamstring,
Try using 99% Iso if you can get it, if you you use 91% Iso you will have 9% water left, even after all the Iso has evaporated...No biggie, but it just takes more time to fully evaporate... Or do a search for qwiso here on icmag and look for hush's thread, he's going through trying out every possible setup and it's a great read too.
best,

CC

Thanks for the advice I will lookup hush to get some techniques. :tiphat:

UPDATE
ok I found Hush's thread and it is a great primer for QWISO. I learned a bunch and will use this info to help stabilize the concentrate.
 

hamstring

Well-known member
Veteran
Demon
thanks for the reply I am purchasing a vac chamber from BVV.

Blastfrompast
My problem is all my buddies are over 50 and change is painfull to my age group. I have been trying to get them to consider concentrates. They like the potency and taste but hate the sticky mess. They refuse to go away from flowers but if the concentrate was less messy I may be able to win them over. I really think its healthier than flowers.

oldgold
Thanks for the reply.
 

hamstring

Well-known member
Veteran
Low heat at the end should purge all of the ISO as long as it is above the evaporation temp of ISO. But you don't want to get it too hot.

If you are not worried about getting shatter you could just whip the end product while heating and get wax or butter. I usually whip it then let it sit for a bit, and repeat that a few times to make sure all ISO is gone.

I've read you can heat butter to melt it into shatter but I'm not sure as I've never done it.

CosmicCharlie

Hey brother after banging around the web I think whipping while heating along with a vac should help stabilize the concentrate. I appreciate the info and once i have my vac chamber I will test this theory.:tiphat:
 

hamstring

Well-known member
Veteran
Ok thanks everyone for their input and again thanks to the concentrate community for all the help.

I have a vac chamber on order and from the data I have read a couple of things i may have been doing wrong and effecting the concentrate consistency.

1. Using a heating pad to evap the ISO. I think the heat maybe causing some decarb of the weed.
2. I need to use vac chamber with a PID controlled heating pad to get the shatter consistency.

I have a couple of questions

A. I have read on the BHO threads they are looking for 95 -105 deg F. What temp should the heating pad be while in the vac chamber?

B. When do you whip the concentrate?
 
Ok thanks everyone for their input and again thanks to the concentrate community for all the help.

I have a vac chamber on order and from the data I have read a couple of things i may have been doing wrong and effecting the concentrate consistency.

1. Using a heating pad to evap the ISO. I think the heat maybe causing some decarb of the weed.
2. I need to use vac chamber with a PID controlled heating pad to get the shatter consistency.

I have a couple of questions

A. I have read on the BHO threads they are looking for 95 -105 deg F. What temp should the heating pad be while in the vac chamber?

B. When do you whip the concentrate?

I find there is only a 5 degree difference from what the PID is set at versus the temp inside the chamber. In other words ...... if you wish to achieve 95 degrees inside the chamber, set the PID to 100 degrees.
 

hamstring

Well-known member
Veteran
I find there is only a 5 degree difference from what the PID is set at versus the temp inside the chamber. In other words ...... if you wish to achieve 95 degrees inside the chamber, set the PID to 100 degrees.

Hey digi man
I am going to purchase a very cheap IR gun but honestly nothing is better than personal experience thanks for the info.
 

Old Gold

Active member
If you want "shatter", dont whip it. Winterize it (not 100% necessary but really helps) and minimize the amount of moisture seen.
 

hamstring

Well-known member
Veteran
Hello all
I got my BVV chamber and digital heating pad so I wanted to give my experience since I had so much help from GW,Sky and the concentrates community.

The starting material was 32 grams, I call it a bakers oz. It was this seasons outdoor but was harvested late so the trichs were darker. I dried it bone dry and broke it up with my hands. I used the standard QWISO method of freezing the weed and Iso. I did all of this is a unheated garage that was just above 32 degrees F.

My first run was shook in the jar lightly more like rotating the jar than shaking it for 45 seconds. The second run was shook violently for 60 seconds.

I purged at 95.5 degrees F but I didnt have my IR gun yet so I could only go by the setting on Digital matt. I purged for 45 minutes and the both pattys were not sticky to the touch but they were still very flexible so much so there was no flipping straight out of the vac chamber. I put them in the freezer for 5 minutes and they almost fell off the parchment paper. I flipped them and purged for 30 minutes more.

Both runs weighed around 2.9 grams before purging and 2.7 after the purge. Which is around a 16.9% yield and I am happy because I am after yield vs perfect quality. The color of the first run was like weak coffee and not shatter more like pull and snap. The second run was darker in color and about the same consistency as the first run.


If my friends are happy with it I am going to move forward with making more. I have a few questions.

1. Maybe its my old brain but it seems like I get more bubbling when the vac is on vs off. Why would this be because I am at full vac either way so it doesn't seem like it should matter?

2. My next purchase will be a Buchner Funnel and a Filter flask. It sucks big balls to try and poor this through a coffee filter.
What should the pore size of my filter paper be ?

3. I want to use the same vac that came with my BVV chamber on the filter flask is there a valve I can purchase to control the amount of vacuum I pull?
 
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