Smoking moldy weed is something that will completely ruin your next smoking session. Moldy weed can have a negative impact on the fragrance, taste, and overall potency of your weed. It can also cause a bunch of health issues, so if you’re not sure how to tell if weed is moldy, you’ll want to keep reading to be better informed of it.
Mold And Your Health
There are two different types of mold that can wreak havoc on your cannabis:
Botrytis cinerea (also known as bud rot weed)
Aspergillus
The more dangerous mold is the bud rot, but both can still have a negative impact on your health, such as causing lung damage. If you breathe in aspergillus, you can get an infection that will cause you to cause and experience a lot of fatigue. If an infection caused by aspergillus isn’t treated right away, it can lead to pulmonary aspergillosis, and that can cause death.
You’ll want to stay away from mold as much as you can, but how do you stay away from it if you don’t even know what is causing it to grow all over your weed? And further, how do you know how to avoid it if you don’t know what it looks like?
What Are Some Of The Causes Of Moldy Cannabis?
There are a variety of different things that can cause mold to grow on your weed.
Oxygen
Mold requires oxygen to live, much in the same way that many other organisms require it to survive. But you’re not able to just place your weed in a vacuum that contains zero oxygen. Vacuum sealing your sealing to store for long periods of time might be a possibility, but then you won’t be able to smoke your weed anytime soon. Take your focus off of the oxygen levels and consider what is causing your cannabis to go moldy.
Humidity Levels
The main cause of mold developing on weed is the level of humidity where you’re storing it. Once the humidity levels begin reaching over 63%, mold will start to develop. It doesn’t take much for mold to expand and grow exponentially. Plants require a mixture of sunlight, water, and nutrients in order to grow, but mold doesn’t even need sunlight. All it needs is water and oxygen. You could put your weed in the darkest part of your home, and if there is a sufficient amount of humidity and oxygen in the area, mold will start to accumulate.
Airflow
Mold also tends to grow rapidly in areas that don’t have much airflow. If you’re growing your weed outside, the constant wind on your plants will usually prevent any mold from growing. If you’re storing your cannabis, you’ll want to make sure that you keep the lid on your jar or bag cracked open for a period of time each day so that the oxygen is replenished.
Lack of airflow usually isn’t a concern if you’re using your cannabis every single day. Just opening your cannabis bag or jar should be enough airflow to keep the mold from getting into it, but the humidity levels should still be low in the area that you’re storing it.
Temperature
Temperature levels also have an impact on the growth of mold on your cannabis. The tricky thing with temperature is that mold tends to thrive in the same temperature levels that humans live in. If you’re wanting to prevent mold from growing on your weed, the ideal temperature levels you’d want to store it at are under 40 degrees Fahrenheit or higher than 100 degrees Fahrenheit. While these temperatures aren’t very realistic to live in, the mold will have a very tough time infesting your precious weed stash.
Light
The best environment you want to store your weed in is an area that is cool and dark. Some people just keep their weed stored in the kitchen, and light from windows, the stove, or the oven can potentially raise those ambient temperatures to a point where mold will have a higher chance to develop.
A lot of people don’t even think about these things when they are storing their weed. You’ll always want to keep your weed off of the counter where the sunlight can shine. If you’re persistent in storing your weed in the kitchen, you should at least store it in the cupboard away from all sources of heat.
How To Look For Moldy Cannabis
There are a number of tell-tale signs that mold has started to accumulate on your weed. Some signs to keep a look out for are:
Cobwebs on your weed
The weed begins to look powdery
Dark spots on the buds begin to develop
Yellow fuzz starts to develop
Grey fuzz is coating your weed
Slimy texture
If you happen to notice any of these textures on your weed, then you can assume that mold has gotten to it.
Smell
Another way to tell if mold has gotten a hold of your weed is the smell of it. If the smell begins to be very different in comparison to when you purchased the weed, then that is a sign that it’s starting to go moldy. Sometimes the scent of your weed can be difficult to distinguish because certain molds don’t cause any smells at all until they are a lot further in the process.
Feeling Your Weed
Cannabis that is cured the right way should have a crispy and dry feel to it. If your weed is starting to feel spongy and damp, then that’s an indicator that it is going moldy. Determining if your weed is going moldy consists of a couple of simple tests.
The look of your weed
The smell of your weed
How your weed feels
If you’re wanting to further confirm that your weed has gone moldy, you can take things to a deeper level.
Microscope
If you have a microscope kicking around your house or don’t mind purchasing one, you’ll be able to spot mold on your weed before your own set of eyes can spot it. Structures known as hyphae look much different than anything else on your weed, and if you see these structures, then it’s an indicator that your weed is going moldy.
Recalls
If you purchased your weed from a dispensary, then sometimes they will post recalls on their website for certain strains that they have. While this isn’t the most effective way to determine if your weed is going moldy, it’s more of a last resort to figure out if it’s just your storing methods or has nothing to do with you.
Can You Get High From Moldy Weed?
Moldy weed can still potentially get you high if the THC level in it is high enough, but it depends on a few things:
The composition of your body
Your body’s tolerance levels to THC
How much weed do you consume
The method that you’re using to consume the weed in
The THC level in your weed
We know that when people develop a craving to get high, they’ll go to extreme lengths to do so, but you might want to reconsider getting high with moldy weed. Once mold gets a hold of your weed, it’s almost like the mold you see on your bread. It spreads to areas of the loaf that you sometimes can’t even see with the naked eye. Some people think that just cutting off the discolored part is all fine and dandy, but there are areas that could still be infested with mold that you can’t see. It’s just not worth it.
It’s even more difficult removing the mold-infested areas of your weed because it’s even smaller and tougher to see in comparison to something like a loaf of bread.
If you’re still wanting to save your moldy cannabis, there are a couple of ways you can do so in the proper way.
What Do I Do With My Moldy Weed?
The safest thing you can do with your moldy cannabis is to dispose of it. If you’re bent on still wanting to salvage what’s left of that ounce of moldy weed you have, there are a couple of things you can try to do.
Decarboxylate It
Putting your moldy weed in the oven and decarboxylate it should help to get rid of some of the molds on it. The majority of molds aren’t able to withstand temperatures higher than 140 degrees Fahrenheit, so if you keep your weed in the oven for about 30 or 35 minutes, the mold should be extinguished.
Concentrate
If you have a bunch of moldy weed and have never tried concentrates before, then now is a perfect time to do so. Certain chemicals such as butane and alcohol are used in the process, and these are effective at killing mold.
Recycle Your Weed
If you’re into composting, you might want to throw your weed in the composter to recycle it. Composting will provide nutrients to your soil and you’ll be investing into the future of your next crop of cannabis by doing so.
cannabis hemp plant leaves alternative medicine concept
cannabis hemp plant leaves alternative medicine concept
Moldy Weed – How Do You Tell That Your Weed Has Gone Bad?
Smoking moldy weed is something that will completely ruin your next smoking session. Moldy weed can have a negative impact on the fragrance, taste, and overall potency of your weed. It can also cause a bunch of health issues, so if you’re not sure how to tell if weed is moldy, you’ll want to keep reading to be better informed of it.
Mold And Your Health
There are two different types of mold that can wreak havoc on your cannabis:
The more dangerous mold is the bud rot, but both can still have a negative impact on your health, such as causing lung damage. If you breathe in aspergillus, you can get an infection that will cause you to cause and experience a lot of fatigue. If an infection caused by aspergillus isn’t treated right away, it can lead to pulmonary aspergillosis, and that can cause death.
You’ll want to stay away from mold as much as you can, but how do you stay away from it if you don’t even know what is causing it to grow all over your weed? And further, how do you know how to avoid it if you don’t know what it looks like?
What Are Some Of The Causes Of Moldy Cannabis?
There are a variety of different things that can cause mold to grow on your weed.
Oxygen
Mold requires oxygen to live, much in the same way that many other organisms require it to survive. But you’re not able to just place your weed in a vacuum that contains zero oxygen. Vacuum sealing your sealing to store for long periods of time might be a possibility, but then you won’t be able to smoke your weed anytime soon. Take your focus off of the oxygen levels and consider what is causing your cannabis to go moldy.
Humidity Levels
The main cause of mold developing on weed is the level of humidity where you’re storing it. Once the humidity levels begin reaching over 63%, mold will start to develop. It doesn’t take much for mold to expand and grow exponentially. Plants require a mixture of sunlight, water, and nutrients in order to grow, but mold doesn’t even need sunlight. All it needs is water and oxygen. You could put your weed in the darkest part of your home, and if there is a sufficient amount of humidity and oxygen in the area, mold will start to accumulate.
Airflow
Mold also tends to grow rapidly in areas that don’t have much airflow. If you’re growing your weed outside, the constant wind on your plants will usually prevent any mold from growing. If you’re storing your cannabis, you’ll want to make sure that you keep the lid on your jar or bag cracked open for a period of time each day so that the oxygen is replenished.
Lack of airflow usually isn’t a concern if you’re using your cannabis every single day. Just opening your cannabis bag or jar should be enough airflow to keep the mold from getting into it, but the humidity levels should still be low in the area that you’re storing it.
Temperature
Temperature levels also have an impact on the growth of mold on your cannabis. The tricky thing with temperature is that mold tends to thrive in the same temperature levels that humans live in. If you’re wanting to prevent mold from growing on your weed, the ideal temperature levels you’d want to store it at are under 40 degrees Fahrenheit or higher than 100 degrees Fahrenheit. While these temperatures aren’t very realistic to live in, the mold will have a very tough time infesting your precious weed stash.
Light
The best environment you want to store your weed in is an area that is cool and dark. Some people just keep their weed stored in the kitchen, and light from windows, the stove, or the oven can potentially raise those ambient temperatures to a point where mold will have a higher chance to develop.
A lot of people don’t even think about these things when they are storing their weed. You’ll always want to keep your weed off of the counter where the sunlight can shine. If you’re persistent in storing your weed in the kitchen, you should at least store it in the cupboard away from all sources of heat.
How To Look For Moldy Cannabis
There are a number of tell-tale signs that mold has started to accumulate on your weed. Some signs to keep a look out for are:
If you happen to notice any of these textures on your weed, then you can assume that mold has gotten to it.
Smell
Another way to tell if mold has gotten a hold of your weed is the smell of it. If the smell begins to be very different in comparison to when you purchased the weed, then that is a sign that it’s starting to go moldy. Sometimes the scent of your weed can be difficult to distinguish because certain molds don’t cause any smells at all until they are a lot further in the process.
Feeling Your Weed
Cannabis that is cured the right way should have a crispy and dry feel to it. If your weed is starting to feel spongy and damp, then that’s an indicator that it is going moldy. Determining if your weed is going moldy consists of a couple of simple tests.
If you’re wanting to further confirm that your weed has gone moldy, you can take things to a deeper level.
Microscope
If you have a microscope kicking around your house or don’t mind purchasing one, you’ll be able to spot mold on your weed before your own set of eyes can spot it. Structures known as hyphae look much different than anything else on your weed, and if you see these structures, then it’s an indicator that your weed is going moldy.
Recalls
If you purchased your weed from a dispensary, then sometimes they will post recalls on their website for certain strains that they have. While this isn’t the most effective way to determine if your weed is going moldy, it’s more of a last resort to figure out if it’s just your storing methods or has nothing to do with you.
Can You Get High From Moldy Weed?
Moldy weed can still potentially get you high if the THC level in it is high enough, but it depends on a few things:
We know that when people develop a craving to get high, they’ll go to extreme lengths to do so, but you might want to reconsider getting high with moldy weed. Once mold gets a hold of your weed, it’s almost like the mold you see on your bread. It spreads to areas of the loaf that you sometimes can’t even see with the naked eye. Some people think that just cutting off the discolored part is all fine and dandy, but there are areas that could still be infested with mold that you can’t see. It’s just not worth it.
It’s even more difficult removing the mold-infested areas of your weed because it’s even smaller and tougher to see in comparison to something like a loaf of bread.
If you’re still wanting to save your moldy cannabis, there are a couple of ways you can do so in the proper way.
What Do I Do With My Moldy Weed?
The safest thing you can do with your moldy cannabis is to dispose of it. If you’re bent on still wanting to salvage what’s left of that ounce of moldy weed you have, there are a couple of things you can try to do.
Decarboxylate It
Putting your moldy weed in the oven and decarboxylate it should help to get rid of some of the molds on it. The majority of molds aren’t able to withstand temperatures higher than 140 degrees Fahrenheit, so if you keep your weed in the oven for about 30 or 35 minutes, the mold should be extinguished.
Concentrate
If you have a bunch of moldy weed and have never tried concentrates before, then now is a perfect time to do so. Certain chemicals such as butane and alcohol are used in the process, and these are effective at killing mold.
Recycle Your Weed
If you’re into composting, you might want to throw your weed in the composter to recycle it. Composting will provide nutrients to your soil and you’ll be investing into the future of your next crop of cannabis by doing so.