Curing while on vacation

[2Crispy]

Ok, so I have a problem. My grow took longer than anticipated so I had a late harvest. The buds are at the point where I put them in jars and will open them daily. However I am going away for 10 days.

Should I
A. Leave the lids off when I go?

B. Stick the whole jars in the freezer?

C. Seal in cryovac bags with the air removed?

I fear if I just leave them they will be moldy upon return and I dont have anyone I can trust to burp the jars for me. Anyone else ever have this situation?

 

[2Crispy]

I guess maybe I could just leave them in paper bags as well

 

[VladimirPutin]

Paper bags. Only put enough buds in each for 1 layer of bud per bag. Don't let them crowd each other since you won't be there to turn them and what not.

Vlad

 

[Weaselcracker]

I'm usually away a lot myself and can't be there for constant burping. As long as the buds are dry enough to be in the safe range you won't get mold. Get a hygrometer that will fit in your jar and stick it in there for a few hours at least. Under 65 RH at room temp should be quite safe in my experience. Vacuum sealing them won't help keep rot away if they're wet, I think, so the freezer should be a second best option.

 

[2Crispy]

Cool, thanks. I put the hygrometer in one of the jars last night, I will check it out

 

[Gorgar]

See if you can find some Boveda Humidipaks (62%) before you leave.

 

[2Crispy]

Thanks Gorgar, thats a great idea. I think I have seen those on the counter and the hydro supply store. If I cant find them I have an endless supply to those little pouches you find at the bottom of your beef jerky bag. They are in a lot of different items at the catering company I work for.

 

[Gorgar]

Be careful with those 'beef jerky pouches', as they may strictly be desiccant (I don't know what they are). The Humidipaks will maintain the moisture at 62% and are specific for marijuana. They do make other moisture level packs for cigars and such. Dry your bud as you normally do and then place it in a sealed container with a Humidipak for curing. My brother-in-law went away when curing and came home to a moldy mess since he was unable to burp. He's now using the Bovedas.

Boveda Humidipak

 

[2Crispy]

Thanks again Gorgar. I stop in the hydro store last night and picked up 5 bovedas. They are $1 each so well worth it seeing as I have already come this far.

 

[JBUptown]

Hi 420Bros,

I just thought I might share little knowledge I gained from an experience and a phone call ...

After running into the same problem and situation as you are describing, I thought I would pack the buds with Bovedas and hope the next two weeks would be OK in the Jar. Turns out, the packs remove an insignificant amount of moisture from the air as a desiccant. They add water vapor to the air, but they cannot remove water vapor from the air very well.

I called the manufacturer regarding this subject a couple of years ago when I cured too wet bud in a jar with a few packs and got mold. The customer service rep informed me of a common misconception: They are designed with a one direction, release only, reverse osmosis vapor membrane. Their product is designed to maintain RH at a specific level once the "Organic Matter" is dried and rolled. The packs can add some RH, but cannot remove much RH. Just a little FYI, I hope to prevent another person from losing their harvest due to a shared misconception.

Best Of Buds

JB

 

[Gorgar]

Yes, JPU that is a significant point. On another forum, the inventor of the cVault that uses the Humidipaks instructs to: "Dry your cannabis thoroughly, it is ok to dry to a point you would consider to be a little over dried" before placing in the cVault.

In addition, the Humidipaks come in an 8 gram size and a 60 gram size so that also needs to be taken into consideration.

I've cured around 4 ounces in a cVault with the 60 gram packs following the above drying directions and it worked well.