Water curing

videoman

The following is an extract from the now defunct Overgrow site.

Introduction - What is the water cure? Why would I want to do it?
The water cure has only recently come to light as a widely accepted form of curing. Water curing uses osmosis to flush out the chemicals, chlorophyl, pesticides, pests, and anything else you would rather not be smoking. The water cure is also very fast (about 7 days) with optimal quality (as compared to 30 days air curing), and as well does not stink like an air cure does. Water-cured buds are also more potent than air-cured (however there is proportional weight loss to potency increase).

THC is not water soluable, and the bud is protected from air/light, enabling potency to be maintained at it's highest levels, while the nasty chemicals are flushed out. Some growers report being able to add nutes all the way up to their harvest date because the water cure takes care of the built up chemicals.

Because of its speed, stealth and clean taste, water cure is very inviting to most non-commercial growers. The commercial grower might not be attracted to the water cure, as the weight of the bud is diminished.
Water cure can also be attractive to those smoking/cooking with suspect cannabis (schwag), moldy bud, pest infested bud, unflushed bud, etc.
How will my bud taste/smoke/smell/look?

Properly water-cured buds (submerged for 7 days and properly dried) will have a clean, thick taste when smoked, as well as being more potent than air-cured buds. This is one of the major advantages to the water cure; a quick drying process that retains potency and has a clean taste and flavor.
Smoking reports vary, however most people agree that water curing provides a very clean, smooth taste. Those with hashier, sandlewood/piney and harsher strains will find this method enjoyable for the clean, thick flavor without the edge (like a fine whisky).

However, those with frutier tasting strains have mixed results. They report the smoke is almost too smooth - much of the fruity/citrussy flavor removed.
The smell of the bud is greatly diminished, which many believe is one of the positive side-effects of water curing. Some also report a diminished smell in the smoke itself.

Water-cured buds tend to look more earthy and dark in tone. Some say the bag appeal is decreased, however proper care while water-curing can improve bag appeal.

What do I need for this? What is the process?
1. A container hold your bud and appropriate water (about 4 times as much water as amount of bud). A cooler with some kind of drainage works great.
2. A dehydrator or low-impact heat device. Dehydrators work great and cost about $40 from walmart. Radiators work well (as long as it isn't too hot), and some report using hair dryers.
3. A cool, dark place to put the water-curing container.
You need at least 7 days to do this, any less than seven can result in undesireable quality. Even 5 days in water is not enough - you need seven!!!
Plop in your freshy cut buds (or schwag, whatever, but fresh buds work best) into enough water to completely submerge the buds. The buds will float to the top for the first few days of this, so you need something to hold them down (a block of wood, a plate, etc). Change the water every day for 7 days, any less than seven could result in undesirable results (trust me). Try not to disturb the buds when changing the water as plant material can break off more easily (read: trichomes). Always keep the lid of the cooler open, do not seal off the container.

The water may take on a yellowish/greenish (even brownish) tint each day, more so as the bud becomes completely saturated with the water. It will probably also stink. This is good, as it is the nasty chlorophyl and salts are exiting your plant.

After 7 days remove the buds from the water. They will be sopping wet, and can be dried relatively quickly. You can purchase a food dehydrator from wal-mart for about $40 and consensus tells us this may be the best method for drying. Put the dehydrator on the lowest setting and dry for about 5 hours or so.

Radiators and other low-impact heating devices can also be used. Users have reported hair dryers working with some success, as well as hanging the wet buds on a clothes line with a fan circulating air. The important thing to do is to ensure the buds dry quickly enough to not become moldy, but with as low-impact of a drying environment as possible.

What I plant to do, as I wont be doing a massive drying here, is place them on a paper plate, and place it on my monitor, for some gentle heat to dry them out.


7 DO'S and DON'TS of water curing
1. Do not close the lid on the cooler. As the chlorophyll bleeds off into the water it evaporates - this is good and sealing the cooler just puts the crap back in the water.
2. Keep out of direct sunlight. I just put the cooler in the garage and that's the end of that.
3. Don't stir or agitate. This serves no useful purpose.
4. Don't bother straining the water for trichomes when you change it each day. I've tried it countless times and have yet to get enough trichones to make it worth the effort, though some hairs will break loose.
5. I've water cured as long as 9 days, but there was no real improvement over the 7 day mark - so why bother?
6. Do use a dehydrator. They cost $35 over at Walmart and you set it on the lowest possible setting. Mine takes about 5 hours to dry out a 1/2 pound of sopping wet buds. If you line dry make sure there is a drip tray or tarp for them to drip on.
7. DO NOT water cure seeded buds that were intentionally seeded so you can harvest seeds. Air cure these buds only...
What is the dry-weight ratio comparison with air curing?
Dry weight using air cure usually returns about 25% of the freshly cut bud weight. That means if you had 10 grams of freshly cut plant, you would get about 2.5 grams dry.

Water cure, on the other hand, returns about 15% from wet to dry. In our 10 gram example, that would be about 1.5 grams.
So why is there less weight using water, but more potency?
THC is not water soluble. When the buds are underwater, they are protected from environmental conditions such as humidity, over exposure to air, temperature, and light. This consistent state is something not easily achieved through the traditional air cure, which can be prone to a harsher smoke with decreased potency if everything isn't just so.
Water cure enables the removal of undesirable elements from your bud while retaining potency.

How potency is increased through the water cure
I should explain this so that the conspiracy theory kooks don't land on me like a ton of bricks.
Here's the "magic" behind the increased potency you get by water curing.
For the sake of making it simple, I'll use an example of 100 grams of bud going into the pot.
Now, you had this bud assayed and know that 15% of it is pure THC.
15% of 100 grams is 15 grams. So in our example the 100 grams of fresh bud has 15 grams of THC in it.
You water cure it and dry it. Now you have only 70 grams of bud left. WTF?
But you are deceived because the 15 grams of THC is part of the remaining 70 grams of bud. 15 divided by 70 equals 21.42%.
Sooo....
The mass didn't change, just some of the things that were there - aren't there anymore, so what is left becomes a bigger proportion of the entirety.
You go assay your water cured bud and find out it has 21.42% THC content - a 50% increase in potency.
Not bad, eh?

How osmosis leaches nasties, saves trichs
In air, chlorophyll breaks down at a rate that is only slightly faster than the breakdown rate of the resin - hence the reason the pot is dried for a short time then placed in jars and burped - but always out of direct sunlight because sunlight plus air equals an ideal situation for the THC is to break down and thus a loss of potency may ensue.
In water, the chlorophyll breaks down (out of the plant) while the THC remains suspended in the resin and is relatively unaffected by the surrounding water medium.

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ISO2BWELL

Think I'll try this when I harvest Bertha..she will have several ounces on her and I'll try a couple oz.s this way and see how it comes out!

(It sounds great, in theory!)

ISO

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2stoned

it sucks..peace

videoman

I've tried it several times, I liked it each and every time.
Your mileage may vary.

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2stoned

an a matter of opinion..i have done several water cures..an have never liked it..but have has several buddies that do like it..so it's juat a matter of oponion i guess...peace

Kieahtoka

I've also tried it.. it's better for when I'm using schwag seeds when the taste isn't all that good. But when I'm growing a high quality strain, I usually indulge in the taste of my bud too much to lose it.

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green_nobody

as kieah said, it isn't the thing you want to do to a strain you grow for its taste - that would be nuts to do.

but it works great - even if you close the lid as i did the weed ends smooth as silk

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scott06

I've tried it and love it....smooth smooth smoke.....I may use it all the time from now on.

SoulRider

Hey guys,

I'm new to the forums, but found this page because I was looking for some information on water curing that I had used to start a while back.

I've been unable to find the information but having seen some of your members concerns about water curing , I would like to share my recollection of the thread I learned from, and my own experiences.

I am not a heavy grower, I have only had a couple of crops, but I am always interested in techniques which get me my smoke quicker....

The report was done over 7 days. The guy used a PPM counter in his water measurements every day before emptying the water, and after filling up, so he knew how much rubbish and detritus was being removed.

He had PPM differences of 300-500 over the first 3 days, from then on only about 100-150 a day on the last 4 days. This method washes away all the flavour and taste, which makes for a smooth smoke, and a smoke that isn't recognisable instantly as Marijuana, so is good for people who go fishing, etc.

One bright spark on the forum hypothesised that the rubbish was being removed over the first 3 days, and the next few days, as they were constant, were probably the flavour molecules etc being washed away.

He then did a 3 day cure himself and posted his results. Obviously he did not record the PPM's, as this was already known, he was after the result.

And what a result it was, all the taste and flavour of air dried bud, with the potency of water cured, and in only 3 days. Good things sometimes come to those who are impatient

It was only my 2nd grow when I discovered this, so I put it to the test with a 3 day and a 7 day cure.

All I can say is I'll never air cure again. If I need some gear to smoke in public, I'll knock up some 7 day cure, but I will always 3 day cure for standard smoking. It is the best of both worlds.

A good humidifier would be great, but I don't have one/can't afford one, so I stagger my curing by a day each time, so I can dry my cure with a hairdryer.

I would whole heartedly recommend people try this. On my last trip to Amsterdam, I got one of the girls in Sensei Seeds to try it. I will be getting her results when I go back next month.

Try it, even with a small piece. Also with the 3 day method you get slightly more weight left too, but only a couple of percent.

I'm posting this twice as I'm not sure how often the sticky gets read.

Any questions, I'll try and answer.

jangel

Wow! just great info! Thanks for sharing your knowledge. That is what Green Passion is about.

Nice to have you here.
and again, Welcome.

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j-angel


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