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Guerilla Drying and curing
- Thread starter mountainoutlaw
- Start date
goingrey
Well-known member
They had their guess with surface area and opacity but who knows. It is a good question what the margin of error is, probably more than this increase.
I've seen that report too, the 0.5% per hour is very misleading. It makes it sound that in one day you'll be left with 0% which is ridiculous at best.This is just one experiment and not the "final truth" but it's pretty interesting.
Testing for Truth Part 3: Does Sun Damage Cannabis? - Orange Photonics
Sunlight contains UV light, which has well known destructive properties. Anecdotal reports suggest that the acidic form of THC, THCA, would degrade into Δ9THC (the active form) and then further into CBN. We put some buds to the test to find out.orangephotonics.com
They noticed a loss of 0.5% per hour. And sure 0.5% might not be perceivable but it adds up. That's like half gone after a week assuming the rate stays constant. Well two weeks I guess as the sun doesn't shine at night, and to be fair the rate won't stay constant.
But even half gone would mean the other half is still there. And sure, there are possible benefits as well. For example degradation of chlorophyll to the "golds" (smoother smoke), also recall reading about Moroccan hash getting it's distinct aroma as a result of myrcene reacting to the light when they sun dry their crop, though I guess these may be more light in general not just UV specifically.
Worth discussing both the pros and cons. No need to get upset.
The bar graph that they also show on that webpage shows a better picture, and after 40 hours under their light blaster, or over a week of October days, shows a total loss of about 2%, so a couple of days like I was thinking about would again be, not perceptible to "normal" humans.
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Yeah, more internet nonsense. Just because something is wrote somewhere does not make it fact.
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goingrey
Well-known member
2 percentage points, not 2%, though. They say a total loss of 20% after 40 hours with their mid-potency weed. Still easy enough to not notice by just adjusting the amount slightly or whatever but worth considering, especially if it can be mitigated with a shade cloth for example.
Yes I should have added percentage points (semantics) ie about 16% down to 14%.
Heat is another aspect of the sunlight. How much is it heating up the flower, especially if using a dark color tarp? Maybe it will decarboxylate it and it will be activated THC? Also heat could result in some degradation I would assume.
The 0.5% is probably an average value of degradation, and sounds pretty significant. Although it would take a long time to approach 0%. Probably some sort of tangental curve approaching but never becoming 0%. Also some of the flower would be more affected than other other parts that were shaded.
Yeah if you used filtered light with a shade cloth in an open area with direct light it may speed it up. The sun dries the air in full sun so much, it would work well. Similar to tobacco being dried in a barn with slots in the wall in an open field. Filtered light would allow the sun to have some effect drying it, but would reduce degradation.
Humidity is good, to slow the drying process and allow the flowers to begin to cure. As the flowers re-hydrate overnight they would be ready for another round of intense drying in the sun and still not be too dry.
The 0.5% is probably an average value of degradation, and sounds pretty significant. Although it would take a long time to approach 0%. Probably some sort of tangental curve approaching but never becoming 0%. Also some of the flower would be more affected than other other parts that were shaded.
Yeah if you used filtered light with a shade cloth in an open area with direct light it may speed it up. The sun dries the air in full sun so much, it would work well. Similar to tobacco being dried in a barn with slots in the wall in an open field. Filtered light would allow the sun to have some effect drying it, but would reduce degradation.
Humidity is good, to slow the drying process and allow the flowers to begin to cure. As the flowers re-hydrate overnight they would be ready for another round of intense drying in the sun and still not be too dry.
Ca++
Well-known member
People test for potency during the final weeks now. The peak thc-a figure is often before the plant slows and shows the observable signs of being ready. The decay of thc-a becoming greater than the rate of production.
It's a shame no control sample was spoke of.
It sounds like they used a lot of light. Mid day in cali, peak season. 40 hours of that, would take many days to accumulate, even left out in cali. So I feel better about having my weed in the light now. Though one major point not spoke of much, is that we are drying wet weed, not storing dry crumbled weed. It's not just thc-a degradation to think about. Within dried up heads.
It's a shame no control sample was spoke of.
It sounds like they used a lot of light. Mid day in cali, peak season. 40 hours of that, would take many days to accumulate, even left out in cali. So I feel better about having my weed in the light now. Though one major point not spoke of much, is that we are drying wet weed, not storing dry crumbled weed. It's not just thc-a degradation to think about. Within dried up heads.
Old Piney
Well-known member
Many moons ago when I was 16 I did this out of necessity, this is how I did it. I'm not saying it was the best but it worked well .I picked long stems of buds ( it was long thin fluffy Hawaiian sativa) and hung them under clear plastic in the bush .it was late in the season and was partial shade but some sun. I cut the very top of the plastic off so the heat and moisture could escape. I hung a second small canopy of plastic about a foot above to keep the rain out. It dryed in about a week green with no mold .It was untrimmed so the leaves helped protect the buds from the sun.This was my first successful out door grow
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