Freeze dry before extraction?

I have found a freeze dryer for home use. Still a little bit to expensive for me, but I hope the price will drop in within the next few years making them more affordable.

Would freeze dried fresh non cured buds be good starting material for BHO and QWET-extractions?

I have blasted fresh buds, but never tried putting them in the freezer. Hopefully some one will be around here knows. How cold does that freeze dry unit get?

Freeze dried fresh would be ideal if you're doing bubble hash actually would be recommended.

BHO is butane (a gas) now this is just my nonscientific brain thinking here but I would never think to use fresh (frozen or not) buds to make BHO. The moisture from the bud (non dried buds) is going to get into the oil, butane boils off at a lower temp than water (you can double check but im sure im right) so getting that water out is going to be a bitch since most the butane will evaperate first and whats left will be a thick bho material that you're trying to pull moisture from.

I've used fresh buds before, not frozen, and got some very nice shatter. You're right about bubble hash. Freeze dried cannabis would probably be awesome.

Thanks for your input!

My idea is that the freeze dryer would be much more effective to dry the material than normal drying process which stops att the same RH as indoors in room temperature. If the plant material is extremely dry when I exctract with either anhydrous ethanol or butane, there would be less polar solvent during extaction and perhaps less pickup of chlorophyll? It’s just me daydreaming and being a non-chemist I am not able to evaluate if and how much freeze drying would help the process.

Also it would be interesting to try smoking freeze dried buds. Freeze drying dries the material within 24 hours so it could spare some time. I am always worried to get mold on buds during drying specially in the late summer. Freeze drying would eliminate the risk for mold…

Harvest Right, a US company sells freeze dryers for consumers. Price starts at $ 2300. I would love to own one. Unfortunately I live in EU and the sales tax and customs fee costs too much.

Joker1121 said:

I have blasted fresh buds, but never tried putting them in the freezer. Hopefully some one will be around here knows. How cold does that freeze dry unit get?

Click to expand...

good question, the material is frozen to -40 degrees Fahrenheit or colder.

I know this is an older thread but to answer the original posters question.. YES. Freeze drying fresh material frozen at harvest yield excellent results with an ethanol 5 minute wash. I'm not as familiar with BHO but I'm pretty sure they just run it frozen off the stalk. Keep your ethanol wash as cold as possible both the material and solvent to avoid green oil.