I have a bottle of nitrogen that I use for purging mylar bags of Japanese Tea before I seal it. The stuff oxidizes and loses freshness very quickly otherwise.The idea being to displace the oxygen with nitrogen thereby reducing oxidation. Works for Tea!
Could I take my cured weed, put it in a mylar bag, seal the bag about 75% leaving a hole big enough for the nitrogen nozzle, inject nitro for about 20 seconds then quickly finish off the seal?
I know this wasnât directed at me, but I think it would work fine! Nitrogen is lighter than air, so youâd need quick hands, and a small opening (like you mentioned) to prevent it from exchanging with the natural air before you get it sealed.
Argon, on the other hand is much heavier than air, so as you add it to the container it will displace air until thereâs only argon remaining.
Then there is this:
I posted a rather long video in another thread the other day speaking a bit about this. There are many variables surrounding terp retention/improvement through curing. As some of the folks here have already mentioned. More Terps > Less Terps
-Strain A > Strain B - Strain/Pheno selection
-Low temp and long cure > high temps and short times - Low and Slow for the win
*-Under vaccum > any other form of atmoshere - Nitrogen and Argon (typical in other industries)
Finally got around to purchasing some argon from BVV.
I think we are going to give the argon purge a try on this years bounty. Our storage tends to show noticeable oxidation at around 10-11 months when stored at room temperature in humidity monitored and controlled glass containers.
E.g. ~0 months / ~12 months
This oxidation doesnât really affect taste negatively although there is a decrease in overall terpenes with some terpenes disappearing entirely. It mainly starts picking up a sour/acidic/diaper smell with increasing amber. Unable to determine if the missing terpenes are converted to something not in the test panel. Mrycene and limonene, for instance, increased in the test batch while terpinolene disappeared entirely. Tends to indicate that the terpenes may convert to different terpene forms or that the test panel is wack.
Past lab runs show that the potency remain equivalent with conversion for CBGA to THCA. Or further natural decarb into delta-9. Terpenes have decreased at about 30% while calculated THC stayed about the same. Details on the test results can be found in https://overgrow.com/t/cultivar-laboratory-testing-results/16066/44i
For what itâs worth, the rate of storage decomposition that weâve experience is much less than what has been reported elsewhere. It also suggests that harvest timing e.g. clear/cloudy/amber only suggests cannabinoid ratios at that specific point in time as the conversion process continues over time. @LD50 makes note of harvest timing here and I tend to agree with that but more specifically focused on natural down-conversion.
So, Iâm thinking weâll set-aside some samples to evaluate a 12+ month result of argon vs no argon storage to produce comparative results for both cannabinoids and terpenes. Probably will put some samples into high vapor barrier bags once moisture has stabilized and purge one of the samples with argon.
With vapor barrier bags, I do have concerns about botulism potential under a no-oxygen environment. I have yet to come across a reference on this for cannabis and, particularly, regarding storage with low-oxygen. Will do a water activity test on the cured product prior to test and storage.
I still use Mason jars. Mainly because I already own a ton of them. Last year I got the jar sealer attachment for my food saver. Vac sealed with a 62% boost pack, I canât notice any deterioration at about 7 months. Also you get that satisfying pop when you open a new jar.
