I'd like to know more about the epoxy dots. Call me a purist.
There is nothing to worry about with the epoxy dots. They are fully cured with zero possibility of outgassing. One function of the epoxy is to hold the temp sensor in its critical position.
Questions
1. Is there temperature variances among units? I see swear my friends units are cooler. My ABV is always darker.
Ahhhh... a great question about unit to unit variability. Unfortunately the answer is yes, even with calibration. Earlier units had more variation because the assembly process was still getting figured out. Early units' calibration was set for +/-20F, currently they are allowed to be +/-10F. Calibration data was reviewed months after first deliveries and it was noted that a few got out the door that shouldn't have because they were running too cool - where they went nobody knows since SN tracking wasn't implemented yet. If you are concerned that your Herbie is running too cool, maybe you're right. And if so you have a few options. You can either first check it our yourself by following the instructions below, ask Herbalizer to review calibration data for your SN, or send it in for recalibration (as an early adopter they would probably do this for free).
The first is a home checkout by following this method:
1. Grind up your weed medium-fine and loosely fill the bowl 1/2 full
2. Make sure your screens are clean
3. Set the temp to 445F (229C)
4. Run it freestyle until the timer automatically stops after 2min
5. Shake the bowl
6. Run it freestyle again
4. Inspect the ABV on a white sheet of paper. It should be extremely dark brown, with almost no green at all; if its still green then its running a bit low
Temperature control has two variables: precision and accuracy, and they are not the same.
This visual will help you understand the difference. So from now on, when a manufacturer states "+/- xF", ask them if they mean accuracy or precision or both? And then there is temperature stability during use, which is holy grail of medical vaporization with flower - is the accuracy and precision maintained under use conditions? In other words, is the temperature accurate and precise while a human is sucking that whip or while filling a balloon => Flow Rate variability matters. It is incredibly difficult to maintain temperature under unpredictable and variable flow conditions that are as dramatic as the difference in lung size between Michael Phelps (@SLIM) and Tweety Bird. I could give a really good lecture on this subject, perhaps for a new thread [but not yet, lets clear out some more Herbie questions first].
2. What can you tell us about the air intake? I know
@Vapodudule had raised some concerns regarding this. Perhaps he could chime in.
There isn't anything to worry about there. Air passes through a fan, then some silicone, then across some super-duper NASA approved plastic (0.001% outgassing), and then into the Thermal Reaction Chamber (TRC) that was described in
response #1 here.
3. Do you currently use a Herbalizer?
Duh.
4. My friends unit has some purple looking stuff in the bulb airpath area. What is this?
I dunno, not from Herbie. Purple Haze?
5. Any tips on using Herbie?
6. What's your Herbalizer ritual?
7. What features would you like to see in future vaporizers?
Happy to answer specific questions for now, we can get into some open-ended dialogue later about advanced usages and such.
8. I have noticed "plastic dust" where the lid meets the unit body. It appears to be from opening and closing the lid. Is this normal?
I can't think of anything, send me a pic (PM it, sounds like an anomaly).
9. What can you tell us about using surge protectors with Herbie? Recommended or no?
Always a good idea with any electronics. Especially if you live in a building with an older power distribution system.
10. Is your
@Herbalizer email still valid? I would like to email you. You cannot receive PMs yet.
Nope, that email address is no longer active. PMs are working from my end.
11. How does your vaping area look these days? Has it evolved from this?
Thanks for reminding me of what my home workbench looked like in 2012! Ha! And nice try
Welcome Josh
@Engineer! Thanks for making such a marvelous machine and stopping by here to generously share your ideas with us.
I am curious about any herbie-related intellectual property. Are there any patents granted/pending on the software, bulb or microcontroller? What are the implications for future products? I'm very excited by this technology and hope to see it take many forms in the future!
You are welcome sir! There are two relevant patents pending that you can look up on Google Patents by searching - mind you, the diagrams are mostly outdated. If there is one person who knows how to design around them.. he's looking at me in the mirror. It would be high risk for anyone else though.