Bud mould

[Cookie monster]

This has been annoying me for a while.

People post a thread wondering what to do with mouldy bud, some folks say throw it in the bin as spores are very dangerous to inhale.
Others say iso, bho, or bubble it and the end result will be fine to smoke.

To my knowledge spores are tiny things far smaller than a resin gland so I'd say that rules bubble hash out.
A lot of folks say bho/iso is the best thing to do so can somebody please explain to me in idiots terms how either method works to remove/kill the spores?

 

[Frozenguy]

Are you ruling bubble hash out as in, saying its a bad method? I assume thats what you're saying. If so, think about as you said, how small the mold particles are; smaller then resin glands. So they pass right through bubble bags as your resin stays behind.

With bubble bags you're not removing the mold, you're removing the THC and leaving the mold/water/plant material behind.

With other methods (Iso, cannabutter). Its my understanding that the alcohol kills the mold, and so does the heat from cannabutter. Plus you're eating cannabutter and our digestive system can deal with mold MUCH better then our respiratory system can.
I've never made iso hash let alone with moldy bud so I'm not too sure how long the alcohol is in contact with the bud which could have an effect.

 

[Cookie monster]

Are you ruling bubble hash out as in, saying its a bad method? I assume thats what you're saying. If so, think about as you said, how small the mold particles are; smaller then resin glands. So they pass right through bubble bags as your resin stays behind.

With bubble bags you're not removing the mold, you're removing the THC and leaving the mold/water/plant material behind.

I'm not saying it's a bad method so to speak, but I have a hard time in believing some of the spores dont get caught up with the trichs.

The other methods probably kill the spores which leads me to the next question.

Is it only live spores that are harmful when smoked/inhaled?

 

[Frozenguy]

I'm not saying it's a bad method so to speak, but I have a hard time in believing some of the spores dont get caught up with the trichs.

The other methods probably kill the spores which leads me to the next question.

Is it only live spores that are harmful when smoked/inhaled?

Well yes thats true, if you imagine all the tichs getting blocked by the screen and staying behind, then spores could potentially get blocked by all the packed in trichs. But I think with some swirling and re-washing of the extract you can rinse those spores out.

With that said, I'm pretty sure water kills the mold spores too.
Inhaling dead or live mold spores can be bad, live ones being worse.
Not all mold is bad, and its usually only bad when you have a suppressed immune system from disease or medication, or genetic disorder.

Powdery mildew (among many other molds) are outside all day long and we breath this stuff in all the time.

You still want to avoid it, but I dont think its as deadly/sickening as everyone would have you believe. But its good practice not to smoke any mold.

But taking precautions while extracting should yield you some clean clean hash. Its a safe bet you wont have any spores in a rinsed bubble hash product, and if there are any (very very very few), they are dead and more then likely wont pose a threat. ( I say more then likely because nothing in this world is guaranteeable)

EDIT: I've made bubble hash from powdery mildew buds and used a microscope and saw no mold particles. They are tiny tiny tiny tiny when they break up in water. tiny tiny tiny.

 

[ozkid]

Iso does only one thing: it dissolves trichs and leaves everything else behind and I really can't see mould spores surviving immersion in pure alcohol. The iso is then boiled, more or less, and it would be hard to convince me that at the end of all that mould spores could still survive. I regularly throw my mouldy buds into my oil bucket. Of course, we are not talking mould that has become rampant, but rather mould that has been removed as soon as it is observed by a diligent grower.

 

[blastfrompast]

mold is such a broad term..

There are five categories of toxic mold. They are Cladosporium, Penicilium, Fusarium, Aspergillus, and Stachybotrys. Some of the species included in these categories may only cause hay fever-like allergic reactions, while others can cause potentially deadly illnesses.

The toxin produced by Stachybotrys chartarum is the most deadly. It has been tied to diseases as minor as hay fever, to those as serious as liver damage, pulmonary edema, and in the most severe cases, brain or nerve damage and even death. It has also been linked to severe illness in infants. Those with compromised immune systems, small children, and the elderly are highly susceptible to illness when they come in contact with this species of mold.