Not only is making your own Bubble Hash using ice water easy to do, it is also safe, environmentally friendly, and uses no harsh chemicals that can degrade the quality of the end product.
Another bonus is that you don’t necessarily need to use expensive equipment, a little bit of elbow grease, ice, water, and micro meshes are all it takes.
Contents
What is Bubble Hash
Also known as ice water hash, bubble hash is simply the Trichomes that have been broken off of the cannabis and collected. It can be found in biscuit form, or a granulated sandy texture, both are still hash. The difference in their final appearance, is caused by the way that they are dried out and stored.
Something to Keep in Mind
There is one important rule to remember, and that is quality in equals quality out. This doesn’t just apply to yield, it also applies to taste and potency of the source material, and the quality of the water. Weak or bad tasting cannabis will not necessarily be improved by undergoing this process. Similarly if dirty or contaminated water is used, it could change the flavor profile, or even degrade the quality of the hash.
To help improve the over all quality of the hash, it is best start with the best possible cannabis that you can get your hands on. You can use either the buds, trim or even shake to make your hash, just be sure that it’s good shit.
The same goes for the water. Tap water, rain water, bottled or distilled are all perfectly fine to use. You just need to make sure that it’s quality drinking water. If your local supply of tap water taste funny, or has a high concentration of minerals such a lime, iron or sulfur, this could effect the smell or flavor profile of the end product.
How Do We Make Bubble Hash
Simply put, we get bubble hash by breaking the cannabis up into smaller pieces. This is easier to do if you have frozen the cannabis first, otherwise dry out your cannabis and rub it between your hands and pull it apart.
We begin by covering the cannabis in ice, and add enough water to cover the cannabis itself, not the ice.
Soaking the pieces of cannabis in ice water, freezes the Trichomes solid. The water is then vigorous agitated to break them off of plant material.
We then run the water through several grades of micro meshes, starting at around 220 micron, and incrementally stepping down to 25 micron. We do this to remove the the plant material and other impurities, leaving behind the hash.
Choose Your Processing Method
Regardless of which method you use, be it the manual, with tools, or mechanical, the process for filtering and separating the hash from the plant matter is the same.
1) Manual Processing
Manual processing is by far the cheapest method to use, the trade off is that its yield is much much lower then the other processes, and the same batch may need to be run through 3-5 times to ensure that as much of the trichomes have been removed as possible.
The cannabis is placed loose in a bucket or tub and is mixed by hand with either a whisk, spoon or a spatula. After a lot of elbow grease, the water is poured out onto a 220 micron micro screen to remove the larger plant material. We would recommend flushing this material under running water to try and collect as much of the Trichomes as possible.
2) Tools and Mixers
Instead of mixing your batch by hand, try using an electric drill with paint mixer or similar attachment, or a handheld mixer with beaters. This will replace the need for manual labor, and speeds up the agitating process.
Filtering the mixture is exactly the same as filtering the manual process.
3) Using a Jar or Sealed Can.
For smaller batches, placing the cannabis, ice and water in a seal-able jar or can, can work just as well. Seal said jar or can and give it a shake. If you have access to a paint shaker or similar machine, this can speed up the process.
As you are working with a smaller batch, you may want to try placing your cannabis inside a 115 Micron Rosin Press Squish Bag and sealing in shut. This will help to contain the plant material inside the bag while releasing the trichomes into the water, reducing the need to filter the water through as many micro screens.
4) Mechanical Agitations
There are a few “mini washing machines” available on the market. One of the more well known and trusted brands is the Bubblebagdudes who have a 5 gallon unit that literally washes the trichomes off of your cannabis. These machines do require that the cannabis be contained inside a micro screen bag with a micron of around 220. This is to help make the machines easier to clean, as well as ensuring that the cannabis is evenly agitated.
The process is pretty much set and forget. Place your cannabis inside the bag, fill the machine with water as directed, place in the bag and cover with the required amount of ice.
The water will churn one direction, then the other for as long as you require. Once the cycle has finished the machine will shut off allowing you to drain the water out through a hose.
This sort of system will yield the highest amount of hash. Its also the least labor intensive, making it the most efficient method. Aside from the initial outlay, the mechanical method offers the most bang for your buck and helps to ensure that none of your cannabis goes to waste.
Collecting the Hash
After using your chosen method for agitating the trichomes off of the cannabis, the mixture is filtered through several micro screens, each screen having a smaller micron then the last, until you reach a micro screen of 25 micron.
When clumps of plant material is collected on a screen, we recommend that you give it a rinse under running water to help ensure that all of the trichomes are collected.
When you start collecting a light brown oily substance on the screen mesh, you have started to collect your hash. Screens larger then 25 micron, will yield a lower grade hash, it is up to you weather you collect multiple grades of hash, or if you water it down and try filtering it again.
Drying Your Hash
Regardless of the grade of hash that you are trying to collect, the drying process is pretty much the same. You can spread it out on a sheet of 25 micron micro screen, and press the excess water out, before letting it to dry over night or longer – pending on the humidity of where you live.
Alternatively, if you have access to a food dehydrator or freeze dryer, you could use these to remove the water from your hash.
The End Product
Once dried, your hash could take one of two forms, a biscuit or slab like solid mass, or a granulated sand texture. If you have a solid formed hash, you can turn it into a the sand texture by grating it with a microplane.