Drying question

[YYCannabis]

When drying freshly cut plants there are two factors to a quality drying: Temp and humidity

My drying space humidity avg for 24 hrs is 45% and my temp avg is 12C. I’m running a small 6” fan blowing directly across a large bowl of water just to keep the RH where it is and to keep some air movement.

It’s my temps that worry me. What difference do cooler temps make in drying compared to warmer (23-25C) temps? (In regards to turps and flavors)

Cheers
YYC

 

[s62]

I’m drying in ~65F temps with 45-50RH on average. I’m curious, too, how lower temps affect the drying process. I’ve heard that drying over 70 causes a loss of terpenes.

 

[Mr.furley]

YYCannabis
drying at 12c isn't that bad just keep some air moving away from your plants as your moisture evaporation will happen slower and mold can catch you if not careful. drying cannabis has three factors TEMP, HUMIDITY, AND TIME.

s62t
Has your grow tent got above 70f?

 

[s62]

Fantastic guide! Doesn’t appear that any of those specific terps cook off at 70F. I wonder which do, if any. I can’t remember who told me over 70F was no bueno on here...
Then again, I guess if you can smell it, it’s losing terps. And yes, my grow tent hits 73-75 on average. I’m sure I’m losing some there, but minimizing is the name of the game.
Should I not be drying at 65-68F?

 

[Mr.furley]

Your temperatures are just fine, it is the three thing that come together to form the perfect conditions.

I don't remember what terpenes you are referring to although I remember seen something once and saying to myself "that one's a gonner in my tent"
I run 65 to 72f for night time and 72f to 76f daytime.

 

[YYCannabis]

Mr.furley Thanks for the graphic.

 

[Toker1]

I believe you keep drying under 70F and 55RH because all of the liquid oils will harden up faster and you retain the more of the desired qualities in the final buds that way. Over 70F will keep the desired oils in a more liquid state for a longer period of time. That’s where the loss of terps come into play.
It’s not just about vaporization... although that can effect the process as well, it’s the drying process for the plant material interaction with the drying of the oils on the plant material.

 

[s62]

Thanks for this explanation!

 

[YYCannabis]

Great information.

 

[JohnEmad]

Drying my current harvest in a closet with a small fan and a humidifier keeping things at close to 70 F and 50 RH. 3days and not ready to jar yet. maybe a couple 3 more days.

 

[s62]

Sounds just like what I’m doing; literally the same, except I’m using a larger free-standing fan. My closet has hanging doors, so I’ve placed the doors in the middle together so that there is an opening to the left and an opening to the right, with the doors overlapping and blocking out the middle. It ensures the buds can hang in the darkness even if the light is on in the room. I use blackout curtains to keep the room dark 85% of the time.
I use my fan to exhaust air out of the right side, thus creating a (very mild) negative differential; this means fresh air gets brought in and across the buds from the left to the right. The temp ranges from 65 - 68 and the RH is on average 48-50 (I’ve had a few swings, so as low as 44% and as high as 55%; usually, however, it’s a lot closer to 49 on average).
I use a small humidifier to make 4-7% shifts in RH, and I rely on manipulating an HVAC (fortunately a smaller secondary zone for a different floor) to set the general RH to 50%-ish.
It’s imperfect, but surprisingly good. I’m glad it’s functional, because I can then use my tent as a perpetual grow without needing interruption for drying.

 

[JohnEmad]

sounds about as good as it gets.s62 without spending a bunch or too much trouble. And with that beautiful grow you just completed I am sure the quality will only get better.

 

[Mrblu]

i just dried a plant in 72F steady and avg RH 55% or less. after the first 2 days RH was fairly consistent at around 45%. my sm stems never snapped mu buds were a little on the dry side after day 4 but the trichomes were still full and not withered or falling off and the smell rich. when i jared it the RH read about 50% in jar after 24hr. added an 8g 62% boveda and RH is up to 56% after 24hr. my experience cooler and dry is far better than warmer and dry.

 

[gbauto]

I have a spare bath downstairs that stays around 70 degF and 65%RH. I hang whole plants that have had a basic wet trim to remove fan leaves in the shower until the stems crack. I then buck the plants and do a dry trim and then into paper grocery bags for a few days to let the moisture level stabilize and then the are jarred and ready for curing.

 

[Toker1]

I will save a fresh stem from harvest in a baggie in the fridge. When I accidentally over dry I stick a fresh stem inside the jar and raise the RH.

 

[YYCannabis]

Sounds like I shouldn’t worry too much about temp. Still struggling with temp but the weather outside has warmed slightly so I can now get temps in the upper teens. Humidity day average is 49%. My little plant has been hanging for 7 days. No snapping twigs yet. Not sure if I should just buck-n-jar the stuff or let it ride a few more days.

 

[Mr.furley]

Squeeze a nug and see if it's squishy or crunchy.

 

[YYCannabis]

Kinda crispy in the outside but still slightly squishy on the inside...sadly this plant (Runty) didn’t give me a lot of nugs to work with.

 

[Mr.furley]

I personally find that if a let my plants dry till the small buds snap I have over dried them.

EVERYBODY'S GROW ENVIRONMENT IS DIFFERENT SO YOU HAVE TO MAKE THE FINAL CALL HERE YY.

You are probably to the point of trimming and putting in a jar, seal it for 12hrs and see what the humidity has come to.

58% or less add some leafs
59% to 68% burp for 15 mins
69% to 74% remove from jar and spread out in a tray for a hour or two
75%+ remove from jar and put in paper bag for 12hrs then rejar and repeat.

 

[YYCannabis]

Thanks for the advice. I’ll jar them tomorrow. I don’t reckon there’s even an 1/8oz on her. 🤣