Decarboxylating Cannabis/Cannabis Products Using a Pressure Cooker...

[ShLUbY]

I'm sorry if this is a question that has been asked a lot... but does anyone use this method? Water boils at 240 deg F. at 10 psi, seems like it would be a great way to decarb cannabis products. Of course you need a proper container in the pressure cooker to ensure your product stays dry/intact/whatever. Thoughts?

 

[reallybigjesusfreak]

mason jar.

 

[SlownLow86]

mason jar.

Mason jar in a pressure cooker sounds like a good way to blow yourself up...

The question though (Im assuming we are having a brain storming session here) what would you use to keep it dry that wouldn't turn into a bomb or melt? Would it be feasible to decarb it in the pressure cooker and then dry it on a sheet or something? You could use one of those loose leaf tea thingies to hold it. My second question would be is it worth the effort? How would doing it in a pressure cooker be more beneficial and/or more efficient than other methods like the oven?

I don't have any experience in this arena; Im just playing devils advocate and trying to learn for future endeavors. Plus I love a good brain storming session. Maybe I should have been an engineer... LOL

 

[reallybigjesusfreak]

Mason jar in a pressure cooker sounds like a good way to blow yourself up...

The question though (Im assuming we are having a brain storming session here) what would you use to keep it dry that wouldn't turn into a bomb or melt? Would it be feasible to decarb it in the pressure cooker and then dry it on a sheet or something? You could use one of those loose leaf tea thingies to hold it. My second question would be is it worth the effort? How would doing it in a pressure cooker be more beneficial and/or more efficient than other methods like the oven?

I don't have any experience in this arena; Im just playing devils advocate and trying to learn for future endeavors. Plus I love a good brain storming session. Maybe I should have been an engineer... LOL

Exactly, you have no experience in the area. So why would you tell me what I suggested would blow up? You sterilize mushroom spores in mason jars in a pressure cooker. There’s multiple recipes showing how to decarb in a pressure cooker. It’s actually one of the easiest ways.

 

[gwheels]

Actually this idea is really something i hadnt thought about. I was going to get a lift but i will try a pressure cooker first. I have a spare wolfgang puck since i got my instant pot it just hangs around and now its my giant decarber. Hurry up and grow you tent so i can try it out.

And the pressure is not so much it would expode a mason jar out of the pressure cooker.

In effect it is how the soup companies cook the soup in the cans...IT goes in raw and is put in a giant pressure cooker thing.

 

[Fogdog]

It's better to decarb at lower temperatures than higher ones due to oxidation to CBN. I also want to capture as many terpenes as possible. I don't even dry my weed out if I'm going to make canna oil. I vacuum seal 4 ounces of freshly harvested/shredded buds in a plastic bag and submerge it in a water bath held at 93F for 2 1/2 hours. Then place the wet decarbed weed in a mason jar, cover with 1 pound of coconut oil and place back in a water bath at 190 F for another two hours. I drain off the oil and use an orange juicer to squeeze the last bit of oil out of the weed.

Here's an article that talks about lower temperature decarb using a 200 degree water bath or as he calls it sous vide.

http://marijuanagrowershq.com/decarboxylation-marijuana-alchemy/

 

[ShLUbY]

mason jar.

mason jars do not blow up in a pressure cooker

 

[ShLUbY]

Actually this idea is really something i hadnt thought about. I was going to get a lift but i will try a pressure cooker first. I have a spare wolfgang puck since i got my instant pot it just hangs around and now its my giant decarber. Hurry up and grow you tent so i can try it out.

And the pressure is not so much it would expode a mason jar out of the pressure cooker.

In effect it is how the soup companies cook the soup in the cans...IT goes in raw and is put in a giant pressure cooker thing.

autoclave

and yeah, it seems like a reasonable way to decarb to me. different pressures will yield different temperatures that water boils at. a good way to control temp with minimal variance.

i use pressure cookers for mushroom substrate all the time, so i started thinking about decarbing cannabis with them. I think i'm going to have to try, and then send to a lab and see how it goes

 

[ShLUbY]

It's better to decarb at lower temperatures than higher ones due to oxidation to CBN. I also want to capture as many terpenes as possible. I don't even dry my weed out if I'm going to make canna oil. I vacuum seal 4 ounces of freshly harvested/shredded buds in a plastic bag and submerge it in a water bath held at 93F for 2 1/2 hours. Then place the wet decarbed weed in a mason jar, cover with 1 pound of coconut oil and place back in a water bath at 190 F for another two hours. I drain off the oil and use an orange juicer to squeeze the last bit of oil out of the weed.

Here's an article that talks about lower temperature decarb using a 200 degree water bath or as he calls it sous vide.

http://marijuanagrowershq.com/decarboxylation-marijuana-alchemy/

thanks for the link. interesting results. i'm wondering why there was so much variance in total THC content though. but it's a good reference point

 

[Fogdog]

thanks for the link. interesting results. i'm wondering why there was so much variance in total THC content though. but it's a good reference point

Idk

They didn't do any replications so the experimental error isn't quantified.

They pretty much say that in their discussion.

THC is lost during oven decarb too. So, I figure its a wash. Lose a little either way.

 

[Renfro]

Exactly, you have no experience in the area. So why would you tell me what I suggested would blow up? You sterilize mushroom spores in mason jars in a pressure cooker. There’s multiple recipes showing how to decarb in a pressure cooker. It’s actually one of the easiest ways.

With mushrooms you have tiny holes in the lid that are used to innoculate the jar. Those holes allow pressure to escape. If you put a jar thats sealed in a pressure cooker it will blow up if there is any moisture content inside.

 

[Renfro]

Also with a pressure cooker you have to let it cool down before opening, this gradual temperature decline will cause more decarboxylation than you may want. You can't do a cold water bath to stop the process.

 

[JohnDee]

mason jars do not blow up in a pressure cooker

Ya...people have been using pressure cookers for canning for hundreds of years.

One issue regarding the decarb process is that it's very temp critical so you wouldn't know the exact temp inside. Any pressure cookers have thermometers?
JD

 

[ShLUbY]

Ya...people have been using pressure cookers for canning for hundreds of years.

One issue regarding the decarb process is that it's very temp critical so you wouldn't know the exact temp inside. Any pressure cookers have thermometers?
JD

actually, the temperature is directly related to the pressure. you can look up a chart for the temp that water boils at under certain pressures. 10psi, water boils at 240 deg (which is the oven temp most suggest). that's why i wanted to experiment with using the pressure cooker. it's more stable than an oven, because you set the rocker weight to the pressure you want inside the pot. once you get the pressure stable, it's just a factor of time after that!

 

[JohnDee]

you can look up a chart for the temp that water boils at under certain pressures.

So you can hear the water boil? Or you just heat it to a certain pressure...and trust that your guage is accurate...
JD

 

[ShLUbY]

So you can hear the water boil? Or you just heat it to a certain pressure...and trust that your guage is accurate...
JD

you know the water is boiling by steam exiting the port on the lid of the cooker. make sure your cooker comes with a weighted rocker that has 5, 10, and 15 PSI specified on it (on the right side of the lid in the pic). the weight of the rocker is calibrated to the actual cooker to maintain that pressure. after you see steam flowing heavily from the port, place the rocker on it with the desired psi lined up with the steam port. then adjust your heat accordingly to maintain a steady pressure. the lid also contains a pressure gauge that will tell you where you are at pressure wise (left side of lid).

 

[JohnDee]

ShLuby,
Just seems iffy to me. Keeping pressure sometimes requires heat adjustment. Seems like an oven with a good oven thermometer should do the job with fewer variables. You want to keep the product at temperature only for as long as needed to get the job done...to ovoid thc degradation.
JD

 

[GoingGreen805]

Mason jar in a pressure cooker sounds like a good way to blow yourself up...

The question though (Im assuming we are having a brain storming session here) what would you use to keep it dry that wouldn't turn into a bomb or melt? Would it be feasible to decarb it in the pressure cooker and then dry it on a sheet or something? You could use one of those loose leaf tea thingies to hold it. My second question would be is it worth the effort? How would doing it in a pressure cooker be more beneficial and/or more efficient than other methods like the oven?

I don't have any experience in this arena; Im just playing devils advocate and trying to learn for future endeavors. Plus I love a good brain storming session. Maybe I should have been an engineer... LOL

I own a Wolfgang Puk Pressure Oven and it works amazingly well. If you have a vacuum sealer and those heavy-duty .5ml bags or whatever you can find in the store that is food grade and can withstand the heat. So what I do, is put whatever cheap oil i can find that has a high smoking point and find a large square pan that’s about 3” deep. Fill with oil and place into the oven @ 250* f. You do not need to ‘Pressure Cook’ the oil, just get it up to temperature.. then place whatever amount you have into the bag, get it spread as evenly as possible (just make sure there are no large lumps of your plant material) vacuum seal until all air is pulled out. Pull out the oil that is up to temp, place bag into the oil bath (you might need a metal spoon or something to hold it under the surface of the oil decarb for 25-30min, pull everything out, then pour your oil of choice that you’re infusing into a new container, wait until your herb has cooled to room temp, and pour in the oil you want to infuse, not the oil you used to decarb the bag of weed in, but let’s say coconut oil. (Melted). Then what I do is pressure cook that mixture at 205 for about 2-4 hours in a water bath. (Same method as before, but substitute the oil with water. You may have to add water periodically, but not much...). So you’re infusing your oil in a bag but not vacuumed.. I haven’t tried just putting it into the oil to start, this was a friends method and I haven’t strayed too far from the method...

 

[ShLUbY]

ShLuby,
Just seems iffy to me. Keeping pressure sometimes requires heat adjustment. Seems like an oven with a good oven thermometer should do the job with fewer variables. You want to keep the product at temperature only for as long as needed to get the job done...to ovoid thc degradation.
JD

yeah i understand that. i work with pressure cookers a lot in the mushroom business, they're not hard to keep at pressure if you watch them closely for the first 5 minutes.

 

[ShLUbY]

I own a Wolfgang Puk Pressure Oven and it works amazingly well. If you have a vacuum sealer and those heavy-duty .5ml bags or whatever you can find in the store that is food grade and can withstand the heat. So what I do, is put whatever cheap oil i can find that has a high smoking point and find a large square pan that’s about 3” deep. Fill with oil and place into the oven @ 250* f. You do not need to ‘Pressure Cook’ the oil, just get it up to temperature.. then place whatever amount you have into the bag, get it spread as evenly as possible (just make sure there are no large lumps of your plant material) vacuum seal until all air is pulled out. Pull out the oil that is up to temp, place bag into the oil bath (you might need a metal spoon or something to hold it under the surface of the oil decarb for 25-30min, pull everything out, then pour your oil of choice that you’re infusing into a new container, wait until your herb has cooled to room temp, and pour in the oil you want to infuse, not the oil you used to decarb the bag of weed in, but let’s say coconut oil. (Melted). Then what I do is pressure cook that mixture at 205 for about 2-4 hours in a water bath. (Same method as before, but substitute the oil with water. You may have to add water periodically, but not much...). So you’re infusing your oil in a bag but not vacuumed.. I haven’t tried just putting it into the oil to start, this was a friends method and I haven’t strayed too far from the method...

right on. you're not "pressure cooking" anything at 205 though fyi. have you had lab analysis done for your method? do you know how effective it is? I'm a data kind of guy...