The realm of do-it-yourself extraction seems to be ever growing. As regulations ease across the world, more cannabis consumers are trying their hand at home-based extraction techniques. Hash has traditionally been a favorite end product for commercial and professional use with various methods at your disposable to create a connoisseur cannabis treat. One of these methods involves using solid carbon dioxide , otherwise known as dry ice, and is quickly emerging as a popular ‘new’ way to make hash.
The Allure
The dry ice method for making hash has two main attractors — it’s both cheap and easy. You also won’t need that much equipment or materials to get started, which means you’ll have a harvest of hash in no time. Some hash makers also claim that this method provides a more flavorful end product than other methods. At a temperature of −78.5°C, the dry ice effectively freezes and separates trichomes without the need to soak or sift cannabis material.
The Necessities
To make dry ice hash you will need the following materials:
- 2-3 pounds of dry ice broken into cube size pieces
- Dried or frozen cannabis plant matter (at least an ounce)
- Filter bags/bubble bags
- A large bucket
- A scraper
- A workbench, table, or other sufficient work surface.
- Safety equipment including heavy-duty gloves suitable for working with cryogens and goggles
The Process
- Place your plant matter into the bucket
- Wearing the gloves, add the dry ice
- Let this sit for 2-3 minutes to give the material time to freeze
- Empty the frozen cannabis and dry ice into a filter bag (a 160-micron bag is good for the first extraction although smaller micron bags may result in higher quality). *An alternate version of this step can be done by placing the filter bag in the bucket and then doing steps 1-3 above
- Shake the ice and plant material within the bag and/or bucket heavily for 2-3 minutes
- While shaking, the trichomes will freeze and pass through the filter bags onto your collection surface
- You can repeat the process with a higher numbered filter bag for an additional extraction
- Scrape the kief that has collected on the working surface into a storage container of your choice.
The Considerations
The fast-frozen plant material created by using dry ice will result in a powder or kief filtering through the filter bags. Pressing the kief converts it to hash. You can leave the hash as is or form it into a ball to resemble other forms of hash you might be familiar with.
Dry ice can be dangerous. Always wear productive gloves and goggles to protect your skin and eyes from freezing. And never keep dry ice in a fully-sealed container or use it in a poorly ventilated room. This can result in an explosion or suffocation.
There are several takes on how to make dry ice hash and you may want to experiment with the above to best suit your needs. Take a look here and here for some slight variations on the method found above.
Image source: Albert Hu at Unsplash
