Volcano

[rshetts]

I have had my Volcano for a few weeks now and since the "honeymoon" period is over I figured it was a good time to confirm that this bad boy lives up to all the hype. It is the most efficient vape I have owned and considering the money I spent on other vapes because the Volcano was just too damned expensive, I should have just bought a 'Cano from the start. When I advise friends from now on regarding vapes I will let them know that the Volcano is absolutely worth the price. I was lucky enough to get in on the VapeUSA closeout and got my digital with solid valve for around $330. My next project is to find a workable bubbler solution to use with it. I have asthma and vapor can be a touch harsh on my bronchial area. A bubbler has always done the trick for me so thus begins my quest for a Solid valve bubbler mod.

 

[blackstone]

Hey guys, just got the used volcano i bought on ebay. I noticed that when I turn the air and heat on without the filling chamber on the unit, there's a light "hair dryer" metallic smell. I'm guessing this isn't normal right? Can any of you guys run your volcano without anything on it and tell me if you smell anything? If you don't i'll return it.

I think my chamber was the same when it was new, maybe it's the black coating. Does your chamber look like it was used before?
Maybe it's old resin or some weird thing the last owner vaped!
It's really easy to disassemble that chamber and you could wash with alcohol or run it through a dishwasher once to put your mind at rest.
After that if you place the chamber on an idle hot Volcano for 1-2mins it should heat away most smells.
If it's a genuine filling chamber you got, the plastic parts can be replaced cheaply and the metal parts can be cleaned or heated to eliminate any old residue.

edit: if you didnt get a manual, and need to know how to take the chamber apart, you'll find out here: http://www.storz-bickel.com/media/wysiwyg/PDF/Operating_Manual.pdf
Hope you get up and running soon.

I have had my Volcano for a few weeks now and since the "honeymoon" period is over I figured it was a good time to confirm that this bad boy lives up to all the hype. It is the most efficient vape I have owned and considering the money I spent on other vapes because the Volcano was just too damned expensive, I should have just bought a 'Cano from the start. When I advise friends from now on regarding vapes I will let them know that the Volcano is absolutely worth the price. I was lucky enough to get in on the VapeUSA closeout and got my digital with solid valve for around $330. My next project is to find a workable bubbler solution to use with it. I have asthma and vapor can be a touch harsh on my bronchial area. A bubbler has always done the trick for me so thus begins my quest for a Solid valve bubbler mod.

It is amazing how efficient it is, I was so afraid of the chamber size at the start. And I had seen Epicherbreviews video where they both agreed it was a hog for the herb and you couldn't use it if you were almost out etc. So wrong!!
The way I see it is, as long as you're putting your ground material in the chamber any old way, and placing the bag on properly, you're getting great vapor to herb ratio. The air pump speed and the 30 second bag fill time seem to help the process.
Also the herbs are only heated while vapor is being produced.
If your a fan of bags like us, you'll be in heaven with a Volcano!

 

[Deleted Member 1442]

I think my chamber was the same when it was new, maybe it's the black coating. Does your chamber look like it was used before?
Maybe it's old resin or some weird thing the last owner vaped!
It's really easy to disassemble that chamber and you could wash with alcohol or run it through a dishwasher once to put your mind at rest.
After that if you place the chamber on an idle hot Volcano for 1-2mins it should heat away most smells.
If it's a genuine filling chamber you got, the plastic parts can be replaced cheaply and the metal parts can be cleaned or heated to eliminate any old residue.

edit: if you didnt get a manual, and need to know how to take the chamber apart, you'll find out here: http://www.storz-bickel.com/media/wysiwyg/PDF/Operating_Manual.pdf
Hope you get up and running soon.

I asked the seller and he said that the plastic parts of the easy valve chamber are new (but from a third party seller), and that the metal bits are old. Yeah I'm going to run it through a dishwasher and iso tomorrow, and let it heat for a while and see if the smell is there. What's good is that the seller said that he would refund the money required to buy a new OEM filling chamber if I can't get the smell to go away. And I'm very excited as well! The bags should be coming in on friday, so I might try it out then. And I did get a manual with mine.

 

[blackstone]

I asked the seller and he said that the plastic parts of the easy valve chamber are new (but from a third party seller), and that the metal bits are old. Yeah I'm going to run it through a dishwasher and iso tomorrow, and let it heat for a while and see if the smell is there. What's good is that the seller said that he would refund the money required to buy a new OEM filling chamber if I can't get the smell to go away. And I'm very excited as well! The bags should be coming in on friday, so I might try it out then. And I did get a manual with mine.

It's natural for us to be concerned, and we've heard horror stories about shady factories etc but we can relax some bit with this company's stuff.
Their plastics recipes were probably not concocted by people on the roadside in Shenzhen!
It will be probably nothing more than a harmless smell from the plastic at the start.
I hope you get your bags by the weekend! If you were near me, I have two new ones on standby here. I'll have to make them last, as I'm about to drop a fortune on a Storz and Bickel portable and won't be able to buy vape items for months after!

 

[stickstones]

How are you guys determining how efficient it is? Not arguing the point, just curious how you came to that conclusion.

The volcano has been out so long that its efficiency has always been compared to smoking since there weren't many vape options. Now that we have vapes coming out of our ears, the efficiency claims aren't about being compared to smoking anymore. I've found I can use any of my vapes efficiently, but I haven't gotten there with the volcano yet, except to pack a big bowl and have it last several sessions.

 

[BuzzDanklin]

@stickstones The reasons I always consider the volcano to be pretty efficient are that I can put AVB from almost any vape into the volcano and get a bit more vapor like you mentioned, whereas if I put volcano avb into other vapes I get nothing. Also because when I make edibles out of volcano AVB they always seem to be weaker than I expected

 

[stickstones]

@stickstones The reasons I always consider the volcano to be pretty efficient are that I can put AVB from almost any vape into the volcano and get a bit more vapor like you mentioned, whereas if I put volcano avb into other vapes I get nothing. Also because when I make edibles out of volcano AVB they always seem to be weaker than I expected

Thanks Buzz...I'm definitely seeing this benefit! For me, I tend to classify this more as a characteristic of full extraction rather than efficiency, but I realize the two are related. So while I definitely see the Volcano as being very good at extracting thoroughly, I am not yet convinced it is more efficient that other vapes. But to be clear, I define efficiency as being able to satisfyingly deliver vapor hits from small loads.

For instance, the SSV can very easily be a weed hog, and if I load the stock wands with just a small amount, the hits are wispy and thin. But if you take that same wand and install a @DDave mod, you can get very satisfying, thick hits from a really small amount of bud (the smallest I've ever experienced, actually). So I consider it to be very efficient in this configuration. I'm looking for this kind of efficiency from the Volcano...get thick bags from a little amount of herb. Right now I have to load the Volcano up to get thick bags, but then it delivers thick bags for the whole night!

When I load just a little in the Volcano, I get one average thickness bag that feels wispy. Now, the effects are there after the bag is consumed, but I look to enjoy the session as much as the effects.

 

[Jsmith7326]

I've owned a Volcano for a whIle now and only just visited this thread now.
I was prompted by another user who said "look how short the volcano thread is".

To be honest it's worked so well, I haven't really needed or thought to come here.

I haven't felt the need to come here and proclaim my love either because I felt like it would already be common knowledge among vaporists.

To continue on.. Other threads are littered with:
"what grind"
"What draw technique"
"This broke off"
"I've been waiting 2 years and still haven't got it"
"What mod do I need to make this bearable/useable"
"My 4th warranty unit doesn't perform as well as my 2nd unit"

Bottom line....it just works and works well!

At what point do you think it makes sense to own one for me? I have an Arizer Air which i love, and an 18" RooR. Trying to justify what has always been the last step toward an ideal home solution

 

[Vapinmofo]

@Vapinmofo ,
sweet.
Do you have just the Volcano body or do you also have the herb chamber that sits on it?
If no herb chamber, just the bare Volcano--you'd need the full valve kit, either the Easy Valve Kit OR the Solid Valve kit---- $99.

Have you plugged it in/ tried it/ is the Volcano pumping out hot air?

plugged in. yes. switch intermittent operation. I imagine sending it in will cost.. Is there a good diagram of the Volcano

 

[Thcgos]

At what point do you think it makes sense to own one for me? I have an Arizer Air which i love, and an 18" RooR. Trying to justify what has always been the last step toward an ideal home solution

I think if you answer yes to one or more of these, it might be time buy a desktop:

• You're running your Arizer Air into the ground by using it heavily daily at home
• You're sick of recharging your air
• You're annoyed by constantly repacking stems
• You're tethered to a wall outlet because your air is constantly on charge.
• You hate not being able to service a group of people or party.

The point in time I decided I needed a Volcano was one day, in group situation, I had a solo, indica, crafty, hebe titan2.... all being shared around... needless to say it was annoying.

Nothing beats the volcano for party's or groups.
Benefits included:

• No risk of dropping a vape, you're passing around a bag.
• Not tethered to a wall, fill a bag and go outside on a balcony.
• Double bagging - Filling one bag, as another is being passed around hahahah
• Less frequent repacking
• Leaving it at temp so it's ready to go at any point in the night.

It's truly the best vape for groups/parties.

 

[rshetts]

I define efficiency by results per gram. I can pack a bowl on the Volcano and get several sessions out of it. Compared to my Arizer Q, it seems that I can get almost twice the sessions out of a gram with the Volcano. What I do is vape a session and when Im done put the herb back into a small airtight container. Then next session I just stir and refill. Ive milked a gram for a couple of days with a Volcano. Now granted, my method is not scientifically quantifiable but its based enough on repeated testing that I feel pretty solid in declaring the Volcano extremely efficient. And as far as smoking? Its not even close. I burn through at least 3 times as much herb smoking as I do vaping.

 

[stickstones]

Now granted, my method is not scientifically quantifiable but its based enough on repeated testing that I feel pretty solid in declaring the Volcano extremely efficient.

It's as good as any of us are doing...thanks for sharing!

 

[Jsmith7326]

• You hate not being able to service a group of people or party.

This is a pretty good reason personally ... thank you

 

[Poostuff]

Breaking News!!

WIFE STRANGLES HUSBAND WITH VOLCANO BAG!

USA vaping COMMUNITY OUTRAGED!

"Woulda been way cheaper with a turkey bag." was one disgruntled member comment.

 

[stickstones]

It's not just the fact you can pass bags around that make the Volcano a great group vape.

Last night I had four of us using it. I wasn't sure what we would need, so I packed a half full bowl like I would if I were going to go slow alone all day. Here's the deal...that first bag is so fucking potent that the noobs got hammered off one hit. That was all they needed all night. I was feeling great after one bag, and went in for more only because one other person wanted some more.

Bottom line is we got three bags off that bowl and four people were done for the night. I still have the bowl for a nightcap tonight. So the Volcano is teaching me the difference between strong vapor and stupid strong vapor!

The only complaint I have, and I've mentioned this before and it is problematic of all bags, is that it gets harsh after four or five minutes in the bag. If I can finish the bag within two minutes, it is great. Any longer and I'm choking it down.

 

[mixchu69]

I am impressed with this beast too. I thought I would like the herbie better for bags because of the smaller bowl (I vape solo) but I love packing the volcano bowl and temp stepping. Still in honeymoon phase but my Other vapes have Been neglected.

 

[Slow Draw McGraw]

It's not just the fact you can pass bags around that make the Volcano a great group vape.

Last night I had four of us using it. I wasn't sure what we would need, so I packed a half full bowl like I would if I were going to go slow alone all day. Here's the deal...that first bag is so fucking potent that the noobs got hammered off one hit. That was all they needed all night. I was feeling great after one bag, and went in for more only because one other person wanted some more.

Bottom line is we got three bags off that bowl and four people were done for the night. I still have the bowl for a nightcap tonight. So the Volcano is teaching me the difference between strong vapor and stupid strong vapor!

The only complaint I have, and I've mentioned this before and it is problematic of all bags, is that it gets harsh after four or five minutes in the bag. If I can finish the bag within two minutes, it is great. Any longer and I'm choking it down.

Last week, I floored my buddy with two bags run off of JUST ABV.
He went from excited as a high school kid scoring for the first time, to an overly medicated senior citizen in a nursing home.

 

[Vitolo]

You can reuse the easy valve. Take them apart with a small flat blade screwdriver. Clean in ISO, rinse and reuse.

This is the easiest method I have found for replacing turkey bags - except zip ties seem to work better than hair ties to close the end.
https://www.thcfarmer.com/community/threads/easier-volcano-easy-bag-replacement.40952/

Save your old bags. Cut up into strips and simmer in whole milk (or chocolate milk!) for 15 minutes, strain let cool. Careful with this stuff....it has a kick!

Tales of bag rebuilding:
http://fuckcombustion.com/threads/volcano.220/page-67#post-753029
http://fuckcombustion.com/threads/volcano.220/page-46#post-569774

 

[OrionNebula]

Modnote: Several posts below were merged into this thread from different threads in Ask FC

OK, I bought a used Volcano yesterday (an amazing deal) and wanted to ask experienced users whether or not it's ok to keep the herb in the Volcano as it's warming up (to preheat the material). I had the vapir rise before and it heats up so quickly that I never even thought about it.

The Storz-Bickel website says

Not only the vaporization material, but also the Filling Chamber Cylinder has to reach the vaporisation temperature. Our recommendation: Set the Filling Chamber on the hot air outlet of the VOLCANO without the Valve Balloon attached yet and allow hot air to warm up your plant material for a few seconds before placing the Valve Balloon on the Filling Chamber. That ensures that the Balloon is completely filled with aromas and fragrances from the very beginning.

But why not simply heat up the whole thing without blowing air through it, by keeping the chamber w the herb in the volcano, if not for the whole time it's heating up, for maybe a minute or two?

p.s. I have the "easy valve" cano

 

[h3rbalist]

Hi,

Check out the volcano thread here.

http://fuckcombustion.com/threads/volcano.220/page-94#post-935056

There's probably already an answer to your question in there but I'll tell you now it's ok to have on till it's up to temp just remember to take it off between fills.

There are various methods of filling and using bags in the thead. (Mines the best ) It's well worth reading and fairly short compared to some others.

Enjoy.

 

[legalcloud]

I like to present heat it a couple second before the fan is on, but not sure I would leave it on there the whole time it's warming up.

 

[OrionNebula]

Could the Volcano be used with a whip by turning off the fan after each hit - perhaps in a faster session? Has anybody tried this?

 

[StickyShisha2]

try putting a mouthpiece on both ends of the bag

 

[paytonpenn]

try putting a mouthpiece on both ends of the bag

This is actually what I have been doing with my Zephyr, just attaching a whip to the other end of the bag.

 

[vapeguy]

I noticed my Volcano ABV is very pale almost like a sand color with a greenish tint, even when ending at 440. Is this normal? Is it a sign of incomplete vaporization? I tried vaping a full solid valve load of abv at 440 and do get a bit of vapor but barely anything.

My LSV's abv was a mix of both black burnt bits and green unvaped bits, the Volcano's abv is perfectly even in color but very pale like there may be something left. Should I be concerned the Volcano isn't getting everything out?