Hang Drying

[CrankyMaddog]

So I have been reading and reading about what to do after hang drying. I understand that you let it hang until the stem is flexible and doesn't snap in half, and the bud feels dryer on the outside, but still moist inside. But it seems to me after that people are split on what to do next. I read where you then put the buds in paper bags, and I read where you go right to jars. Anyone know which is better? Or is it just personnel preference? I have been drying for three days now and think the buds are ready for the next step. I lowered the amount of ventilation as well, due to fear of them drying to quick. I have both paper bags and jars ready to go. Any help or comments are welcomed as always. My setup in case you didn't see it yet.

 

[WizHigh]

Glass jars everyone use for curing process

Nice harvest by the way

 

[Muttt]

I'd let them hang for a week ..... minimum. Then, put them into mason jars to cure. You can get a dozen (quart) jars with lids at Walmart for 10 bucks.

Nice harvest. Any idea what the weight ended up being??

 

[HipsterDoofus]

I follow this guide:

Harvest the bud, trim it per your preference, hang to dry. Take it down while the stems still have some flex, but the product feels dry on the outside. This is a perfect opportunity to drop the dry-feeling flowers onto a screen and collect prime-quality kief that would otherwise get lost in the jar.

Jar the product, along with a Caliber III hygrometer. One can be had on Ebay for ~$20. Having tested a number of hygrometers - digital and analog - this model in particular produced consistent, accurate results. Then, watch the readings:

+70% RH - too wet, needs to sit outside the jar to dry for 12-24 hours, depending.

65-70% RH - the product is almost in the cure zone, if you will. It can be slowly brought to optimum RH by opening the lid for 2-4 hours.

60-65% RH - the stems snap, the product feels a bit sticky, and it is curing.

55-60% RH - at this point it can be stored for an extended period (3 months or more) without worrying about mold. The product will continue to cure.

Below 55% RH - the RH is too low for the curing process to take place. The product starts to feel brittle. Once you've hit this point, nothing will make it better. Adding moisture won't restart the curing process; it will just make the product wet. If you measure a RH below 55% don't panic. Read below:

Obviously, the product need time to sweat in the jar. As such, accurate readings won't be seen for ~24 hours, assuming the flowers are in the optimal cure zone. If you're curing the product for long-term storage, give the flowers 4-5 days for an accurate reading. If the product is sill very wet, a +70% RH reading will show within hours. If you see the RH rising ~1% per hour, keep a close eye on the product, as it's likely too moist.

Burp the jars when you see moisture forming on the jar. If you can go buy a hygrometer that will help with drying your buds correctly. That way you can monitor the RH inside the jar, if it increases several % an hour, you want to burp them for an hour or two, this can be done with the lid off, or you can put it in a brown paper bag for a more even dry. A 3 week cure is good, month or more is optimal.

 

[trichomes]

I agree w/ (hipster) above, use RH / humidity, smaller stems should snap when you're close, jars after that.

 

[trichomes]

they should b curing in the dark. (just in case) u did not mention that.

 

[CrankyMaddog]

Thanks everyone for the positive comments!!

@mutt- I did not weigh it yet. Figured I would wait until it was all dry.

@Hipster-Thanks for that. I had read that posting. My question about that is, if I get one meter, that reading would be for that glass jar only correct? Can I base the reading of that one meter to be right for the rest?

@Tricombs-Yup total darkness, except when I check them. Once in the morning and once at night.

 

[kimmy]

I hang mine for exactly 5 days with their sugar leaves on. I have tried 4 days and they are still too wet. I tried 6 days and they were too crispy on the outside. After they get their sugar leaves trimmed, they go directly into mason jars. 12 hours later I check them for excess moisture. They are usually good and can be left to cure until needed. Until you get the feel for this it may be a good idea for you to dump them out on a glass baking dish a couple of times a day just to check them out. Good luck.

 

[Muttt]

But keep in mind that Kimmy's environment (humidity, temp, airflow, ventilation) is going to be unique to Kimmy. So, don't neccessaryily use those numbers as a hard and fast rule. But, it sure does sound like a great place to start.


I'm looking to get those little RH strips you can put in the mason jar. That way you can get a quick read. I also have two temp/humidity guages in my grow box. This is where I intend to do my first dry ..... after harvesting, putting them right back into the grow box. But, with only the vent fan running (no lights). I can keep an eye on the humidity while they hang there. Then, stick them into the jars for curing and watch the RH strip to keep an eye on them.

 

[JJ Bones]

You typically do want to dry until the stems snap, you mentioned the opposite?

Keep it in basically the same conditions during grow, 70-75F, 50% humidity. Also make sure you have good air flow, not fan directly on the buds but good air flow, like a fan bouncing off the walls.

I recommend going straight to jars, I don't really like the whole paper bag method. Once you get them in the jars, purchase a humidipak to handle humidity levels for you, we sell them on our site

 

[Amsterdam28]

I follow the post that Hipster put up, regarding the hydrometer and jars. I had one jar where the bud was a bit over dried going in so I put some fresh leaves in the jar with the bud. I've heard that this doesn't really re-moisten the dried buds at all, only makes them soggy. Well that certainly wasn't the case for me. The fresh leaves got much more dry and the overly dried flowers tended to get some stickiness back. Having the hydrometer in there I could even see the overall humidity in the jar as it moved up. Completely worth the $12-15 purchase price.

 

[kimmy]

I believe that if you wait until the stems snap, you have waited to long and they will be too dry.

 

[Muttt]

I've had over dried bud .... and I'd rather have bud that is too dry than bud that hasn't been cured well. It's always harsh if it doen't cure long enough.

 

[CrankyMaddog]

Well, thank you for all the comments. I checked them last night and they seemed to be pretty dry all around (smaller branches snapped). So removed them from the branches and into the jars the buds went. I checked them this morning and opened them for the air, there was no sweating that I saw and all appears good.

For those who wanted to know what my yield was (I'm looking at you Muttt).....from that one plant I got 81.8 grams or 2.92 ounces. Not to bad for my first time, I say. Still have the other plant to go, it's still not ready, maybe the end of this week.

 

[JJ Bones]

I've always gotten moisture out of buds after stems snap, guess it just depends though.

Now-a-days I don't even hang on stems, they get removed before drying in nets.

 

[Muttt]

That's a fantastic haul for one plant. Hope mine do at least an ounce each.

 

[eric686]

How is the cure going? I used the R Hydro meter for the jars as mentioned for the first time, it sure does take the guess work out the cure.

 

[CrankyMaddog]

I believe it is going well. I check them twice a day and have not used a meter. I open the jars once a day for at least 20 minutes in a well ventilated space. The humidity of the space runs between 57% to 62%. I noticed on the inside of the jar when I ran my finger on the glass, I could feel a slight dampness the first couple of days, but none now. The buds look great, no signs of mold and they smell powerful. Everyone likes pics, just a sample:

 

[kimmy]

Now that you have done it you are a pro !!

It's like riding a bike...

 

[Nickystickybuds]

I hang mine for exactly 5 days with their sugar leaves on. I have tried 4 days and they are still too wet. I tried 6 days and they were too crispy on the outside. After they get their sugar leaves trimmed, they go directly into mason jars. 12 hours later I check them for excess moisture. They are usually good and can be left to cure until needed. Until you get the feel for this it may be a good idea for you to dump them out on a glass baking dish a couple of times a day just to check them out. Good luck.

For how much? Same go for only a few ounes?