I can't get my cannabis capsules to work, does anyone have any advice? Thanks :)

[James C]

I've tried to make them four times now, and have wasted almost a half ounce, and none of the pills have worked. I ate around a dozen of them last night and perhaps got a mild buzz, but could have been nothing.

Anyone have any tips?

This is the recipe I have been following:
http://boards.cannabis.com/concentrates/140616-cannabis-capsules-step-step-guide.html

What I do:
1. Finely grind weed (1g for 10 capsules)

2. Make a double boiler by suspending a jar in a pot of lightly boiling water (but not touching the bottom, so its staying at 100˚C). Adding 2 teaspoons organic virgin coconut oil to the jar, allow to melt, and add the weed.

3. Let "cook" for 3 hours, stirring every 15 minutes or so. I have also tried varying this for 2-6 hours with no luck. Poor warm oil and residual weed into capsules, cool in fridge. I've also tried decarbing the weed first for 30 minutes at 250˚F, but no luck, and have tried straining and not straining out the herb afterwards.

The oil always turns a dark green color and smells very potent (but not burnt), but clearly its not good.

Is there something I am doing wrong here? Any help would be greatly appreciated, I really like the idea of these things!
Thanks

 

[RUDE BOY]

Decarb at 350 for 20 minutes you will have better results.

 

[James C]

Decarb at 350 for 20 minutes you will have better results.

OK thanks ill give it a shot! im just a bit confused tho as it doesnt seem like i should even have to decarb it before cooking?

 

[RUDE BOY]

The temperature using a double boiler or crock pot just isn't hot enough to release the actives from the bud.
I never made caps like this but reading the instructions it seems to need this step if your looking for a buzz.

 

[James C]

The temperature using a double boiler or crock pot just isn't hot enough to release the actives from the bud.
I never made caps like this but reading the instructions it seems to need this step if your looking for a buzz.

Ok, so essentially I would be doing the majority of the decarboxylation in the oven at 350 degrees and just releasing the thc into the oil in the crock pot?

 

[RUDE BOY]

Yeah that's how I understand it to work.

 

[Bouldorado]

Decarb at 350 for 20 minutes you will have better results.

I think 350 might be a bit hot for 20 minutes (350 is hot enough to vape some cannabinoids). This seems to confirm: http://www.marijuanagrowershq.com/decarboxylating-cannabis-turning-thca-into-thc

@James C
What kind of weed are using? If you ate a dozen capsules and barely got high, I'd say it's most likely a potency issue.

Your process sounds good, but I would reduce the cook time. I'm not sure if 3 hrs is necessary, especially in boiling water. It's possible you could actually be cooking of some actives

Couple things you can try:

• increase the amount of weed. at 1g/10 capsules, you're probably only getting (after accounting for loss), a max of .09g per capsule. At 20% THC (assuming top shelf bud) this is only .018g, or 18mg. Lower shelf will be closer to 10% THC, or 9mg. In my experience with dispensary edibles, I need at least 100mg to feel higher than I would from a normal vape session. 200 mg or so is my personal upper limit for enjoyment. Try doubling the weed; either 2g for 10 caps, or 1g for 5 caps
• use hash instead. since you're eating them, quality is not at all important. Do a long QWISO/QWET soak for the maximum extraction. after evaporating the alcohol, simply mix this into coconut oil and heat for an hr or so. If you dose the caps at .1g hash each, they should be plenty strong.
• add soy lecithin. this helps to potentiate THC in your body. You don't need very much, 1/4 teaspoon will do the job.

 

[IamBenito]

• add soy lecithin. this helps to potentiate THC in your body. You don't need very much, 1/4 teaspoon will do the job.

this X10000000
nite and day difference!
will almost double the effectiveness.
do it.
had better luck with the powder/granules the the liquid.

 

[James C]

• add soy lecithin. this helps to potentiate THC in your body. You don't need very much, 1/4 teaspoon will do the job.

Awesome, thanks for the tips guys. I ate around 16 of them today, and felt moderate effects, so I think it probably is a potency issue as mentioned.

For the weed, I'm using decently high quality bud - not the highest, but well above midgrade. Vaping it gets me ripped off of 2-3 hits and I have a high tolerance.

For the soy lecithin: 1) where do you buy it? And 2) by 1/4 teaspoon, should I just mix 1/4 teaspoon of the powder into the oil/weed mixture? And if so, at what part of the cooking process should you add it? Right at the beginning?

The other thing I was wondering was if I increased the amount of weed to oil ratio (like using 2.5g for 10 capsules or something, how do you load the capsules. Because at that point for me, its a ton of weed just kinda wet with a small amount of oil, and if I increase the amount of oil, then it would make more diluted capsules. So how much oil should I use? Right now I used 2 teaspoons.

Thanks everyone

 

[Bouldorado]

Awesome, thanks for the tips guys. I ate around 16 of them today, and felt moderate effects, so I think it probably is a potency issue as mentioned.

For the weed, I'm using decently high quality bud - not the highest, but well above midgrade. Vaping it gets me ripped off of 2-3 hits and I have a high tolerance.

Ok definitely a potency issue if you can eat 16 and still function. I made some hash cookies recently (each has ~.04g of low-grade oil). I have a high tolerance and also forgot to add lecithin- yet after eating 6-7 one evening, I woke up stoned the next morning.

For the soy lecithin: 1) where do you buy it? And 2) by 1/4 teaspoon, should I just mix 1/4 teaspoon of the powder into the oil/weed mixture? And if so, at what part of the cooking process should you add it? Right at the beginning?

I bought my soy lecithin at health/vitamin store (vitamin cottage maybe?). It was ~10 bucks for more lecithin than I will use in my lifetime. Like me2, I recommend the granules or powder. The liquid will work as well but IME it's kind of a mess to use since it's so sticky.

I would add the lecithin after you've strained the weed out. If you're using hash, you can add thelecithin at the same time.

The other thing I was wondering was if I increased the amount of weed to oil ratio (like using 2.5g for 10 capsules or something, how do you load the capsules. Because at that point for me, its a ton of weed just kinda wet with a small amount of oil, and if I increase the amount of oil, then it would make more diluted capsules. So how much oil should I use? Right now I used 2 teaspoons.

Thanks everyone

I think the problem is that you're not using enough oil to saturate the weed/extract actives. I've never made caps before, so I haven't had to deal with precise quantities of weed/oil. However two teaspoons of oil for a gram (or more) doesn't seem sufficient for a good extraction. Short of using hash, I'm not sure how you can get around the potency barrier.

Also try looking for badkittysmiles (grasscity I think)- this person has made some awesome edible guides, including one for caps.

 

[t-dub]

Also try looking for badkittysmiles (grasscity I think)- this person has made some awesome edible guides, including one for caps.

Her work is fantastic. The decarb is so important. Here is some of her GC thread she transcribed here:

http://fuckcombustion.com/threads/b...ical-grade-edibles-drinkables-oils-more.4235/

Edit: another good thread: http://fuckcombustion.com/threads/soy-lecithin-as-a-potentiator.4826/

 

[James C]

I think the problem is that you're not using enough oil to saturate the weed/extract actives. I've never made caps before, so I haven't had to deal with precise quantities of weed/oil. However two teaspoons of oil for a gram (or more) doesn't seem sufficient for a good extraction. Short of using hash, I'm not sure how you can get around the potency barrier.

Also try looking for badkittysmiles (grasscity I think)- this person has made some awesome edible guides, including one for caps.

Awesome, thanks for the replies! Do you know if its ok to not strain out the weed and just put it in the caps as well to minimize losses of any thc? I've eaten grams of decarbed regular weed (don't ask me why, stupid idea...) and haven't had any stomach irritation so that's not an issue.

 

[Bouldorado]

Awesome, thanks for the replies! Do you know if its ok to not strain out the weed and just put it in the caps as well to minimize losses of any thc? I've eaten grams of decarbed regular weed (don't ask me why, stupid idea...) and haven't had any stomach irritation so that's not an issue.

I don't think that'd be a problem. I've made brownies with powdered abv before and they were gross but effective.

If you go that route, I would powder the weed and add soy lecithin at the beginning. You'll basically end up with a weed slurry. This will help make the caps more consistent in potency. If you use a syringe/dropper it could get clogged up though.

Another option is to use a garlic press/lemon squeezer combined w/ a coffee filter to squeeze most of the oil out.

 

[t-dub]

Another option might be to dry (ice) sift your plant material or make a concentrate in some way and then proceed.

 

[deadheadbill]

Another option might be to dry (ice) sift your plant material or make a concentrate in some way and then proceed.

I wouldn't stop there. I would blast the weed with tane and mix the bho with the coconut oil to make my caps. No actives missed.

 

[James C]

Another option might be to dry (ice) sift your plant material or make a concentrate in some way and then proceed.

I wouldn't stop there. I would blast the weed with tane and mix the bho with the coconut oil to make my caps. No actives missed.

Sorry, I literally have no idea what you guys are talking about lol. Enlighten me?

 

[t-dub]

Well, its better to make your caps from concentrates and save your nice flowers for vaping. If flower is your only source you can hash it by many methods, bho or kif or bubble hash like BadKitty uses etc which just concentrates the medicine separating it from the underlying plant material. I didn't mention blastin butane because you seem new and have a little reading to do before you start anything like that

 

[James C]

Well, its better to make your caps from concentrates and save your nice flowers for vaping. If flower is your only source you can hash it by many methods, bho or kif or bubble hash like BadKitty uses etc which just concentrates the medicine separating it from the underlying plant material. I didn't mention blastin butane because you seem new and have a little reading to do before you start anything like that

Yeah, unfortunately flower is my only source atm. So would you recommend that I make hash from the flower and then use the hash to make the cannabis capsules? Or would that be wasting some thc? Thanks!

 

[t-dub]

I think the general consensus is to make hash but its more about your resources, abilities, and safety at this point. The more you learn the better medicine you will be able to make.

 

[Bouldorado]

Yeah, unfortunately flower is my only source atm. So would you recommend that I make hash from the flower and then use the hash to make the cannabis capsules? Or would that be wasting some thc? Thanks!

I think you would have much better luck making hash. A QWISO/QWET extraction is what you want. You can look up a guide, but since you don't need smoking-grade, here are some basic instructions:

• Acquire high-proof alcohol. 90% +. Either isopropyl (ISO) or ethanol (everclear) will work. ISO is much cheaper, however everclear is food grade.
• Grind your bud and add to a mason jar/something you can cap.
• Add enough alcohol so there is at least a 1/4" covering the surface of the bud (you want it fully submerged).
• Now for the soak. Normally 30 secs is recommended for ISO and 3 minutes for ethanol. This will make some good oil however it's not a complete extraction. In your case I would do 1.5 min for ISO and 8 min for everclear. Shake the jar every 15 sec for ISO and every min for everclear.
• After the soak, you need to separate the weed from the alcohol with a coffee filter. Transfer the filtered alcohol to a heat safe pan or bowl. Now create a double boiler (just boil some water in a pan) and place the alcohol-pan on or over it. Try not to get any water in the hash. Ventilation is strongly recommended.
• After the alcohol has completely evaporated, you can either scrape up the hash and weigh it, or just add lecithin/coconut oil directly to the pan.

 

[pressure]

I've tried to make them four times now, and have wasted almost a half ounce, and none of the pills have worked. I ate around a dozen of them last night and perhaps got a mild buzz, but could have been nothing.

Anyone have any tips?

This is the recipe I have been following:
http://boards.cannabis.com/concentrates/140616-cannabis-capsules-step-step-guide.html

What I do:
1. Finely grind weed (1g for 10 capsules)

2. Make a double boiler by suspending a jar in a pot of lightly boiling water (but not touching the bottom, so its staying at 100˚C). Adding 2 teaspoons organic virgin coconut oil to the jar, allow to melt, and add the weed.

3. Let "cook" for 3 hours, stirring every 15 minutes or so. I have also tried varying this for 2-6 hours with no luck. Poor warm oil and residual weed into capsules, cool in fridge. I've also tried decarbing the weed first for 30 minutes at 250˚F, but no luck, and have tried straining and not straining out the herb afterwards.

The oil always turns a dark green color and smells very potent (but not burnt), but clearly its not good.

Is there something I am doing wrong here? Any help would be greatly appreciated, I really like the idea of these things!
Thanks

Yeah i wasted weed trying that method

Are you still around o.p? Trying to.make that hash is dangerous many people have blown themselves up

But did the hash method work?