Drying Questions...ect.

Hello from the East Bay!
I've had my 5 gal/8bag system for a couple of months now
and finally feel like I have enough of a grasp of whats going
to ask a couple of questions.

I've read all your posts about drying and there seem to be a ton of varying opinions. All I know is that leaving it on the cardboard to dry is not cuttin' it with the local clubs.
They keep saying, "looks good, smokes great, but too wet"
What am I missing here?
My bubble looks just like the pics posted; it's dry enough to cut up into a fairly fine powder/crystal, kinda a Foldger's crystals look, but then what?
How long should it be left on the cardboard? Where? In a dark cupboard?
Does it need to be pressed?
What's the method for pressing?

Also, in the last 2 bags (25/45) because of the "slamming" of the bag to get the water out, there seems to be a ton of foam. There's definitely particles worth keeping in that foam, but how do you get it to dissipate?
Is just a matter of waiting? Also, when there's foam, it seems to be super wet too. Any secrets to avoiding this?

Thanks in advance,
Bk

There are a ton of experts that will have all the answers for you. I also am interested in most of the questions/answers. But I can help with the slamming of the bag issue. Get a spray bottle with super cold water in it. Wherever the foam is just spray it using the mist setting. The foam will decipate almost immediately. Woorks everytime..Also instead of slamming the bags in the water. Gently push the water in the bag up from underneath it with your hands. Hope this helps. But like I said, I am no expert like the yukon guy or bubbbleman himself. Those guys rule the bubble!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bksuperstar

Hello from the East Bay!
I've had my 5 gal/8bag system for a couple of months now
and finally feel like I have enough of a grasp of whats going
to ask a couple of questions.

I've read all your posts about drying and there seem to be a ton of varying opinions. All I know is that leaving it on the cardboard to dry is not cuttin' it with the local clubs.
They keep saying, "looks good, smokes great, but too wet"
What am I missing here?
My bubble looks just like the pics posted; it's dry enough to cut up into a fairly fine powder/crystal, kinda a Foldger's crystals look, but then what?
How long should it be left on the cardboard? Where? In a dark cupboard?
Does it need to be pressed?
What's the method for pressing?

Also, in the last 2 bags (25/45) because of the "slamming" of the bag to get the water out, there seems to be a ton of foam. There's definitely particles worth keeping in that foam, but how do you get it to dissipate?
Is just a matter of waiting? Also, when there's foam, it seems to be super wet too. Any secrets to avoiding this?

Thanks in advance,
Bk

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Hey BK,

Are you using Wet Fresh Plant Material to make your Water Hash?

Are your squeezing or "lightly pressing" your wet hash to "get the water out"?

If so this could be the start of your drying problems.

I would always use fresh dry plant material. Resin needs to dry before being harvested from the plant.

Let all the water drain from your bags until there is only a random drip, then lay your bag on top of a stack of shami's or kitchen paper towels. Let the shami absorb all the water out of your wet hash turning it into a dry sanding hash, that can then be harvested with a plastic card and layed out on to a 23µ silkscreen. You can find silkscreens at any good Silkscreen supply store for making t-shirts and stuff. I lke the aluminum ones, they are lighter and easy to clean up.

When you lay your wet sandy hash out on the drying screen to dry you can take a wad of paper towels and touch under the screen under your pile of wet hash, absorbing more water from your hash over time.

I like to break it up with a plastic card and touch under the hash everytime with a wad of paper towels absorning any water. Your hash will not break up easily the first time, you will have to come back every 20 to 30 mins and repeat the process of breaking it up with the plastic card and drying underneath it with the wad of paper towels, each time it will be dryer allowing you to break it up into more of a powder form. After about 2 to 3 hours you should have it broken down into a consistent powder. Now you can leave this for 24 hours and it should be dry, depending on the climate area you live in. I would leave it dry on the screen for a 5 to 7 days if you plan on pressing it to store for long periods of time.

The foam can be washed away with clean water.


Aqua Lab Tech

Thanks for the advice.
I'm using fresh dry plant material that has been frozen.
Typically, when I pull the bags, I've shaken the excess water out and the hash forms it own little blob on the screen & then I just scrape it off and put it on the drying the screen. The drying screen is on thick towel. After I've pulled all the bags, I place it on the cardboard and it usually slices up pretty easily (some levels better than others).

I definitely haven't been coming back to it & breaking it up again.
As far as the blotting, I've lightly pressed it with the other screen & another towel...maybe I've been too heavy handed?

I leave it on the carboard in the cupboard for about a week and then put it these little cylinders. They look kinda like test tubes that are plastic & have metal caps. Do you think that's the problem? The "test tube"?

Also, sometimes when I'm scraping the screen, it seems like there's more of a "hash-ish" liquid left and I'll scrap that up & put it on the 1st blob that I took out the bag. That might be to watery to save? Maybe I should just go ahead and rinse off the bag (in the next bag to be pulled) and call it good?

Any thoughts on pressing?

I dont press my hash at all in the 'pressing' screen. No blotting or anything, breaking the resin heads at this point and mixing them with water makes hash very hard to dry or chop. I keep saying it should be called the 'dabbing' screen. I just put the wet hash blobs (foamy or not, the cold water sparyer trick works great) on the dabbing screen on top of a stack of paper towels. By the time I pull the last bag, enuff water has wicked thru the dabbing screen so that the hash will chop apart easily like wet sand, more often than not I can get it to a fine enuff consistency to dry in a couple days. Rinsing the bags into the next to be pulled is the easiest way to save those resin heads. Most times I dont press the dry hash either, its easier to handle and smoke powdered up. The most common reasons for pressing are transportation and adulteration. I don't adulterate my hash, or smuggle it, so a pressed hash block is only something fun to do with it.

Thanks for everyone's input. Last nights bubble run was excellent!
I found that really all I need to do is to be a little more conscientious and patient when I'm pulling my screens. When I put the blobs on the "dabbing" screen last night, so much water had already been wrung out that I was able to chop it a bit right there. When I transfered it to the cardboard it was easy to chop into an even finer consistency. We'll see in a couple of days if that makes a huge difference in the overall dryness, but I would assume it will.
Glad to hear that you don't press yours in the end. I think it looks better in the powder form and it seems like it would crush the resin heads in the end.

Thanks again,
BK

PS. Do you think 2nd runs are really worth the trouble? I've been putting my ice in a large sieve and rinsing it into 220 bag and now it seems like the 2nd run is really small...must be getting more effcient at getting all the trichomes the 1st time around?

Some folks will get an amount almost equal to the first pull, cept its not quite as nice quality as the first. I give my material away after the first run to a fellow that makes butter out of it. He walks with 2 canes and it helps him with pain. Peace GS