How to Make Cannabis Extract
Cannabis extracts, much like other cannabis products, are growing in popularity, and it would take an eternity to explain each method and submethod separately. However, we take great pleasure in explaining how to make cannabis extract by using one of the six most popular extraction methods.
Take a look at our guide and learn more about the types of cannabis extracts, how to make them, the steps included in each method, and the storage of the cannabis extracts.
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Understanding Cannabis Extracts
Cannabis extracts are a concentrated mass full of cannabinoids, terpenes, and all other components present in the cannabis flower. They are also referred to as concentrates, and their rising popularity in the market is due to several factors:
Larger alternative options
Enhanced potency
Enhanced flavor and smell (terpene profile)
Cleaner and purer product
Cannabis extracts or concentrates can be extracted in two ways: with or without solvents. Solvent-based extractions involve dissolving a solid material, such as a cannabis flower or trims into liquid solutions with the help of chemicals. With solvent-based extraction, you can manipulate to isolate specific cannabinoids from the cannabis plant, be it for relaxation or for body-high purposes.
The most used solvents in the cannabis industry are butane, propane, and CO2. In contrast, solventless extractions do not involve the use of chemicals in the process, not interfering with the purity of the extracted material.
Still, regardless of the extraction method, the concentrates can be incorporated into various products such as pre-rolls, vapes, tinctures, etc. Because of the popularity of products with cannabis extracts, dispensaries incorporate sophisticated technologies to meet customer demand.
Compounds in cannabis
The cannabis plant is full of various cannabinoids and terpenes. These are the organic compounds in the cannabis plant that provide its distinct properties.
The cannabinoids are the components that bind to cannabinoid receptors, providing the effects of the plant. There are hundreds of cannabinoids present in the cannabis plant, of which the most notable are THC and CBD.
By binding to the cannabinoid receptors, the cannabinoids may cause feelings of high in the body and mind. Besides THC and CBD, other notable cannabinoids are the following:
CBN
CBG
CBC
THCV
While the cannabinoids affect the potency of the plant, the terpenes serve another purpose. The cannabis plant's terpene profile provides its distinct flavor and aroma characteristics. Cannabis extracts contain a more concentrated mass of all plant components.
Types of cannabis extracts
On the cannabis market today, consumers have a wide choice of cannabis extracts to choose from. Depending on the texture and extraction method, cannabis extracts can range from liquids to crumbly, dry extracts.
Concentrates
Kief
Creating cannabis concentrates involves the process of collecting the resins and trichomes that are on the leaves and buds of the flower. The trichomes contain high cannabinoid and terpene content.
The collection of trichomes and resins is known as kief. Due to the high cannabinoid content of the substance, it serves as the source of all concentrates.
Hash
Most commonly, manufacturers press kief into hash. They do this by applying light heat and high pressure to the kief, which gives it a solid and shapeable form.
Hash concentrates preserve most cannabinoids and terpenes. Hash ranges in color from light amber to dark black and often has either a grainy consistency or a smooth texture.
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Bubble hash
Another popular concentrate is bubble hash, pressed from kief and extracted with a water bath.
During the extraction, manufacturers immerse the cannabis flower or trim it in ice water, which they agitate to separate the trichomes from the plant. They collect the trichomes and press them into a purer hash.
Rosin
Rosin is one of the concentrates that has gained significant popularity in recent years. The extraction process involves heat and pressure. The rosin concentrate contains a high content of cannabinoids and terpenes with no significant changes to the chemical profile.
Cannabis oils
When it comes to cannabis oils, we recommend extracting cannabis oils from the leaves, seeds, or buds of the cannabis plant. There are various cannabis oils for different consumption methods. Generally, most cannabis oils available in dispensaries are produced for dabbing or vaping.
In contrast, cannabis cooking oil is not meant nor safe to inhale and can only be consumed in edibles. Moreover, topical cannabis oils are only meant for external use.
Cannabis oil variations include the following:
CBD oil
Hemp seed oil
Vaporizer oil
Butane hash oil
Below, there are a few cannabis oil extracts that are meant to be vaporized and can be inhaled.
Wax/budder
Wax or budder is a liquid cannabis oil extract. Wax or budder is typically opaque and has a gummy-like texture. The extracts usually stick to their container and are simple to roll onto a pin and dab.
Pie Crust/honeycomb
A type of wax/budder that is softer than shatter but crumblier and more brittle than wax/budder is pie crust/honeycomb. Although it is simpler to remove from the jar, it is prone to crumbling and dispersing.
Shatter
Like glass candies, shatter is a clear, brittle cannabis concentrate that is incredibly pure. Shatter has an amber-like appearance and is considered the best concentrate for dabbing.
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Moonrocks
Moonrocks, also known as caviar, are created by rolling premium resin-coated cannabis buds in kief. Typically, to make jelly hash, one part of cannabis oil is combined with eight parts of bubble hash.
How to Make Cannabis Extract
Choosing cannabis material for extraction
You can make distillate from cannabis flower or trim. The initial preparation for extraction involves choosing which plant material and strain they will use.
The strain determines the potency and effects of the final extract. This is why it is crucial to choose a high-quality strain that will ensure you create a potent extract.
When considering which plant material will produce a higher yield, the answer is cannabis flowers. But you should not disregard trims as they contain high terpene content.
The trims are the leaves and excess material that falls off during the processing of the cannabis flower. Collecting the trims and turning them into cannabis distillate creates highly potent extracts.
If you're wondering how much distillate per pound of trim you may get, it may yield about 35-40g.
Equipment and materials required
The extraction process for cannabis requires the use of appropriate equipment and materials, such as the following:
Plant material (cannabis flower or trims)
Solvents (optional)
Solvent tank
Extraction vessels
Filters and filter press
Heaters
Distillation machine
Extraction methods
Solvent-based extraction methods
Cannabis extracts that utilize a solvent-based extraction method add chemicals (solvents) to the plant material. The solvents cause the cannabinoids and terpenes to separate from the cannabis plant.
Once the separation is complete, the components are purified to remove any remaining solvents, leaving a concentrate rich in cannabinoids and terpenes. Manufacturers use several solvent-based extraction methods.
The most common solvents used in this extraction process are butane, propane, and CO2. Each method has its benefits and risks, but the end result of each is a highly potent cannabis concentrate.
Hydrocarbon (butane, propane, ethanol) Extraction
Hydrocarbon cannabis extractions are generally the same for all solvents used. But, depending on the manufacturers' materials, the results vary in consistency. The cannabis plant materials are soaked in the solvents to start the process.
The solvents help separate the cannabinoids and terpenes from the plant materials. After that, the manufacturers purify the contents to remove any remaining solvent. For this purpose, manufacturers use high temperatures, which cause the solvents to evaporate.
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CO2 extraction
CO2 extraction uses temperature and pressure to extract chemicals from cannabis plants, much as butane and propane extraction.
As with the butane and propane extractions, any mold or bacteria in the processed plant material are eliminated during the CO2 extraction process.
Certain compounds can be extracted by adjusting temperature and pressure rather than extracting all of the plant's chemicals simultaneously. The process also evaporates the solvent after the compounds are separated.
The one possible disadvantage of CO2 extraction is that the extracts could not have the same flavor profile as BHO and PHO because of a potential loss of terpene concentration.
Solventless extraction methods
Water or a mix of heat and pressure are the most widely used non-solvent extraction techniques. Solventless extraction methods are usually safer than solvent procedures and considerably easier to use. We have to say that you can make solventless concentrates at home.
Dry sift
Dry sifting involves physically separating the trichomes from the flower and gathering them to produce kief. The great thing about dry sift is that it can be done at home as long as you have the necessary equipment.
Dry sifting is typically done with a grinder (or you can grind it manually until the material is separated and falls to the other chamber) and has to go through three or more chambers. As the cannabis flower is ground, a screen on the bottom of the second chamber in most herb grinders allows the kief to pass through, and you can collect the material once it falls on the third chamber.
In the second chamber, you’ll have the ground cannabis flower, while the third chamber collects the trichomes. They are usually lost when grinding plant material, but with dry sifting, you may collect them and use them to make more potent extracts.
Hand rolling
The process of hand rolling is among the earliest discovered ways to create hash. Use fresh cannabis that hasn't been dried or cured, and slowly roll it between your palms.
The plant sheds its sticky trichomes, which adhere to your hands. After that, you can scrape the material off or keep rubbing your hands together to form a sticky ball or stick of hash known as "charas."
Dry ice or ice water
The safest and most straightforward ways to make your own concentrates are with dry ice and ice water. The procedure is to submerge the flower in ice water to cause the trichomes to freeze and then shake the mixture to remove the trichomes from the flower.
To fully separate them from the bud, you must filter the blend through progressively smaller filters to separate them from the bud. To make hashish, you flatten the wet hash into cakes after letting it dry in a cool, dark environment.
Heat and pressure
Flowers, kief, or bubble hash can be heated and compressed to produce rosin. A t-shirt press or hair straightener can be used, or you can buy a rosin press designed specifically for this process.
Starter flowers, kief, or bubble hash are placed between two sheets of parchment paper or in a small-micron sack and then compressed between two hot metal plates.
The steps involved in the extraction process and purification
The extraction process, especially when using solvent-based methods, requires expert knowledge and monitoring to ensure quality and safety.
Due to the complexity of the extraction or distillation process, manufacturers use trained professionals and advanced equipment.
Preparation and primary extraction
It is crucial to be extra cautious when preparing the chosen plant material for extraction. This is why professionals usually use solvent-based extraction methods. Other methods may put too much physical stress on the plant material, affecting the yield quality.
To extract the trichomes and cannabinoids, they place the flowers or trims in a solvent tank. The manufacturers then pour the solvents over the plant material, separating the wanted components from unwanted material.
Filtration (winterization and decarboxylation)
The next step in extraction is filtering the blend, usually through a winterization process. Winterization involves storing the extracted blend at below-freezing temperatures for certain periods.
During this period, unwanted fats, waxes, etc., coagulate so the manufacturers can filter them out with a filter press. After winterization, the next step is decarboxylation, which activates CBD and THC.
During this process, the manufacturers apply high heat under vacuum in the blend, releasing CO2, residual solvents, and terpenes in the extract.
Purification (distillation)
The last step after separating the wanted compounds and activating CBD and THC is purification, meaning removing any leftover solvent traces.
This process is also known as distillation, and the extracted mix gets heated at high temperatures once again. Once it reaches boiling temperatures, the extracted liquid becomes vapor, with the solvent completely evaporating.
The leftover vapor contains only the cannabinoids and terpenes, which get passed through a chilled condensing head to turn them back into liquid form.
Testing and quality control
After the extraction process is complete, manufacturers turn the distilled extract into various products, including:
Edibles
Tinctures
Vape Cartridges
Every product made with cannabis extracts must pass quality control and safety testing. We have to say that manufacturers use certified labs to test their products for safety. Testing also helps ensure the cannabinoid content complies with regulatory laws.
Storage and preservation
No matter which extraction method you use for your cannabis extract or you purchase from a dispensary, you need to store it properly. You should store cannabis extracts in cold and dry spaces away from direct sunlight or heat.
Storing your extracts in a dry and cool space helps preserve the cannabinoid and terpene profiles for longer periods.
Source: shutterstock.com / Photo Contributor: Roxana Gonzalez
Conclusion
The above-mentioned methods on how to make cannabis extracts are just a touch of the surface– there are more methods or subtypes, depending on the product. Choose the extraction method that works best for you, but remember– once the extraction is complete, store the extract in a cold storage space with little to no light to preserve the potency for longer.
