Unknown Extraction Precipitant?

I ground up some weed very finely using mortar and pestle. The result was a very find powered and some larger bits(I only did it for a few minutes). I then put in some ethanol and let set in the fridge for a few minutes. I am now boiling off the ethanol.

I noticed a precipitant and am curious as to what is going on? Is this the THC/CBD's or something else? This occurred just after a few minutes of heating(low temp in rice cooker/water bath but did bring to a boil initially).

If this is all the good stuff and the liquid is chlorophyll and ethanol, could I pour it off for a cleaner extract, or vice versa to remove this stuff if it is junk? I don't wanna waste anything, of course.

The liquid color is about the same as what I started with, maybe slightly lighter.

You do not mention filtering.
I assume you are decanting. The leaves and stems have tiny mineral "jacks" or needles called spicules. You probably poured them over while they were dilute enough to show clear to the eye. On concentration, they "dustbunny up" and you can see them, like Satan's own thrips infestation.

I have found that the spicules go right through paper towel but are retained on a coffee filter. I suggest filtering at some point during the volume reduction stage.

cannabineer said:

You do not mention filtering.
I assume you are decanting. The leaves and stems have tiny mineral "jacks" or needles called spicules. You probably poured them over while they were dilute enough to show clear to the eye. On concentration, they "dustbunny up" and you can see them, like Satan's own thrips infestation.

I have found that the spicules go right through paper towel but are retained on a coffee filter. I suggest filtering at some point during the volume reduction stage.

Click to expand...

I filtered with a paper towel so you are most likely correct. Are these things bad to smoke or just reduce the quality? I smoked a little earlier and it was a great hit but it as very harsh. Possibly one of the harshest hits I've had from a bong. I imagine that is from the chlorophyll? The residue is a dark tan brown color and slightly runny(I didn't evaporate completely as I am going to ingest it).

I did transfer the solution to another container and the original one had a tacky waxy feel to it. Could that stuff be plant waxes or would the paper towel have caught that?

Thanks.

Stretto said:

I filtered with a paper towel so you are most likely correct. Are these things bad to smoke or just reduce the quality? I smoked a little earlier and it was a great hit but it as very harsh. Possibly one of the harshest hits I've had from a bong. I imagine that is from the chlorophyll? The residue is a dark tan brown color and slightly runny(I didn't evaporate completely as I am going to ingest it).

I did transfer the solution to another container and the original one had a tacky waxy feel to it. Could that stuff be plant waxes or would the paper towel have caught that?

Thanks.

Click to expand...

In reverse order ...
I think the tacky feeling is leftover extract. The stuff goes gluey when dry or mostly dry.
Paper towel won't catch waxes very well. I use diatomaceous earth on a frit (porous glass) to catch the waxes. When I use just the frit, it likes to clog, turning a simple filtration into German opera.

The harshness is most likely from the active ingredient. I have made 99+% THC, water-clear, and HOOOO will that make you feel like you gave a jigsaw a blowjob!

The filtration can only improve quality. Have a small dropper pipet ready with the solvent of choice and wash the "color" into the collection vessel.

The added materials don't make it bad to smoke. They reduce quality and boost the yield a bit. Responsible craftsmen take the yield hit and go for quality. My sermon

Chlorophyll in my opinion is blamed for many smoking ills unfairly. It carbonizes. It is my opinion that much of the NONdrug harshness(this is an inherently harsh drug as the pure THC experiment proved) is not chlorophyll but sugars and their caramelization products. Rolling paper makers are very careful to minimize glycerin (a minimal sugar) because under strong heating it produces acrolein (a prototypical tear gas, eeww)

So using a hydrocarbon plus a dewaxing step reduces harshness to "it's from the paydirt". That is my experience so far ...

cannabineer said:

In reverse order ...
I think the tacky feeling is leftover extract. The stuff goes gluey when dry or mostly dry.
Paper towel won't catch waxes very well. I use diatomaceous earth on a frit (porous glass) to catch the waxes. When I use just the frit, it likes to clog, turning a simple filtration into German opera.

The harshness is most likely from the active ingredient. I have made 99+% THC, water-clear, and HOOOO will that make you feel like you gave a jigsaw a blowjob!

The filtration can only improve quality. Have a small dropper pipet ready with the solvent of choice and wash the "color" into the collection vessel.

The added materials don't make it bad to smoke. They reduce quality and boost the yield a bit. Responsible craftsmen take the yield hit and go for quality. My sermon

Chlorophyll in my opinion is blamed for many smoking ills unfairly. It carbonizes. It is my opinion that much of the NONdrug harshness(this is an inherently harsh drug as the pure THC experiment proved) is not chlorophyll but sugars and their caramelization products. Rolling paper makers are very careful to minimize glycerin (a minimal sugar) because under strong heating it produces acrolein (a prototypical tear gas, eeww)

So using a hydrocarbon plus a dewaxing step reduces harshness to "it's from the paydirt". That is my experience so far ...

Click to expand...

Thanks. This is about my 4th extraction... the others were very similar but with varying results from virtually none to this latest stuff being pretty good. If I ever get in to it big enough(when it's legalized around here) I'll probably learn to do a better job

I wonder if the harshness is from the lack of CBD's? Maybe a certain combination works well for a cleaner hit? Could also explain why some strains are more harsh than others.... of course, as many other reasons too.

For my purposes it's not all about the high but also about the medicinal qualities so I tend to err on the side of keeping stuff in there.

Stretto said:

Thanks. This is about my 4th extraction... the others were very similar but with varying results from virtually none to this latest stuff being pretty good. If I ever get in to it big enough(when it's legalized around here) I'll probably learn to do a better job

I wonder if the harshness is from the lack of CBD's? Maybe a certain combination works well for a cleaner hit? Could also explain why some strains are more harsh than others.... of course, as many other reasons too.

For my purposes it's not all about the high but also about the medicinal qualities so I tend to err on the side of keeping stuff in there.

Click to expand...

I cannot tell you if CBD is harsh. I've never had a pure sample in my hands. Someday i will and i'll check it out ...
But it has been my vague experience that, barring stupidities like sugars and glycerin (generally not soluble in hydrocarbons) the THC is the principal source of the harsh.

that's why you see distillate being flavored with other sourced terpenes. pure thc does taste like crap on a stale biscuit.

R&RHashman said:

that's why you see distillate being flavored with other sourced terpenes. pure thc does taste like crap on a stale biscuit.

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No. Pure THC has a soft pine smell and taste. Then it chews your throat out ... ~grin~