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Bud washing

DeadlyFruit

DeadlyFruit

New member
Any bud washers out there? I have lately taken to washing my bud, mainly for outside where there are more contaminants but I am thinking I may also do it indoors given much of what I do is edibles. I have a few thoughts/questions on which I was hoping for input.

1- if you wash what recipe do you follow? I followed the three bucket recipe: 1 five gallon bucket filled with water, half cup lemon juice and half cup baking soda. Two five gallon buckets with fresh water for a double rinse. Thirty seconds in each bucket with gentle swishing.

2- Do you think having lemon juice and baking soda in the same bucket defeats the purpose? If baking soda is alkaline and lemon juice is acidic putting them together just neutralizes them and if the alkali/acid is what is beneficial in the recipe it is now pointless. Having them in separate buckets seems like it would be more appropriate.

3- Do you think 30 seconds in the lemon juice and baking soda bucket is enough? Most instructions I see for cleaning produce show much longer soak times.

4- Do you think a half cup of each in 5 gallons of room temp water is strong enough? I found recipes for cannabis ranging from 1/4 cup to a full cup. I split the diff and went with roughly a half cup. The recipes I found for other types of produce all call for a stronger mixture.


in short I was thinking that I should have the baking soda in the first bucket, lemon juice in the second, a rinse in the third and maybe a fourth bucket with another rinse. I should increase the ratio of lemon juice and water and baking soda and water and the dip times should be longer. Make sense? I am open to any input.
 
I wash anything grown outdoors. I use 3 bucket method. 1. Lemon juice & baking soda. 2. Water and hydrogen peroxide at the rate of 34% peroxide, 10ml/gallon of water. 3. plain water. Water should be tepid temperature. to cold, the trichomes may break off with agitation. To hot may vaporize off terpines. Why lemon juice & baking soda together? IDK, That is what someone came up with. It may be a corporate theory of 12 monkeys type of thing... My experience is that the first (lemon & soda) physically remove contaminants, dirt, bugs, hair, etc. The second acts as a disinfectant against any potential pathogens (molds). The third just as a rinse. Peroxide degrades to water and oxygen so I am satisfied that there will be no chemical contamination.
 
Thanks Ckbrew for your take on it. I had heard of using peroxide but thought lemon juice might be doing the same job. I guess my main interest now is does the soda and lemon cancel each other out (assuming the pH change is the reason they are useful in the washing process) and is there a concern that the process (as we growers do it) strong enough or long enough as compared to how people wash other produce.

Cheers!
 
I grow outdoors and I currently just use 2 buckets of only fresh water. I in the past used baking soda for first wash but wasn't happy with the end result because it tended to dry kind of crunchy I felt. Now i just clean in straight water and that seems to get most of the debris off. I found that doing it immediately after harvest worked best for me.
 
Re: lemon juice & bicarb, There is more going on here than pH issues. I believe the high ionic concentration has a part in this. I have followed instructions for cleaning certain mechanical parts in killed acid (hydrochloric or sulfuric acid neutralized with sodium bicarbonate) and had very good results for that project.
 
"2- Do you think having lemon juice and baking soda in the same bucket defeats the purpose? If baking soda is alkaline and lemon juice is acidic putting them together just neutralizes them and if the alkali/acid is what is beneficial in the recipe it is now pointless. Having them in separate buckets seems like it would be more appropriate."

Single buckets, if you combine the lemon and baking soda the chemical reaction will happen in the bucket. You want it to happen on the buds. Dip and swirly swirl for a while in lemon or soda....then move to the other bucket. You'll notice the reaction happening on the bud itself, which is what we want I think.
 
Eh, I'm sure it works somewhat either way. They're still being washed. But starting with baking soda, then dumping them into the lemon juice bucket (or vice versa).....I get some nice foaming on the buds themselves. Putting them together, all the foaming happens right away and really nothing afterwards.
 
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