Why is kief better

If you want to go one step farther, you can also press your refined kief using light heat and get something similar to a shatter, which can be easier to work with than loose, dusty kief.

Our recommended method for smoking kief is to use a screen on top of a glass pipe. You can purchase durable specialty titanium screens for smoking hash at well-stocked head shops, but you can even use a standard stainless steel pipe screen with no issues. Gently heating the kief using indirect flame held an inch or two above the kief is the best way to release the essential oils and prevent burning it -- good kief will begin to bubble and melt like you see with high-grade water hash, leaving behind very little residue and giving a full-flavored hit.

On the flip side, poorly refined kief can taste harsh and woody due to the presence of remnant plant matter, so if you care about flavor, it's important to try and get your kief as clean as possible before smoking. Generally, no… but there are exceptions.

However, most at-home kief collected in a grinder won't be clean enough for these methods, and will leave behind a lot of residue which can clog up a vaporizer and leave an unpleasant taste on the nail of your dab rig.

These are called trichomes, according to Leafly. Trichomes protect the plant against predatory animals, but when dried, it turns into a resin called kief, that can also deliver a stronger high. Trichomes are actually the main producers of cannabinoids — which is what THC tetrahydrocannabinol and CBD cannabidiol are — and terpenes , which gives cannabis its distinct earthy aroma.

Humans turn to trichomes and kief for:. These crystals are excellent on their own or mixed with some flower, providing an overall boost to your medical or recreational experience. Kief's potency, terpene profile, and flavor depend on its source strain. Genetics, nutrition, and environment all play a role in deciding how strong and diverse the plant - and its kief - will be.

Kief poses no more risk than any other cannabis product. However, if you're inexperienced or don't use cannabis often, we don't recommend you add kief to your recreational or medical bowl, joint, or blunt.

Even though it's not dangerous, excessive THC can make you feel anxious and ill. It's good to stockpile some kief, so you have room to experiment. The good news is you probably have everything you need to collect it. Why a three-chamber grinder? Because one chamber contains a mesh screen meant to let kief through, collecting below.

To separate the kief from the plant matter, grind your weed as usual. Don't put too much in at once. You'll want to leave space for the kief to fall through your mesh without being blocked by ground herb.

You can also gently scrape a nug across the mesh screen in a back-and-forth motion until a fair amount collects. After grinding your flower, giving a gentle shake to your grinder before opening also helps collect a bit more kief.

This method is affordable and accessible but also requires patience. It'll take quite a while to build a decent amount. What separates good kief from great kief is the level of refinement. Your grinder might work well collecting tiny plant matter and full crystals, but it's the trichome heads we want. To separate the weed from the chaff, you'll need a very fine single screen at 80 to LPI lines per inch or several layers of gradually smaller screens.

There are also specially-designed sift boxes you can get online if you're willing to pay a little extra. Apart from its chemical effect on the human body, you can use Kief safely as long as you store it correctly and is in good condition.

Kief is also added with other forms of marijuana to get the added high. You may add it to your morning coffee or tea too. Put a damp buffer over the parchment paper and apply heat again, and the hash is done. How to Tell if Kief is Bad? Next, taste it. When the weed has been sitting for too long, it will taste harsh. Kief that has lost its smell and taste completely has probably lost its potent chemicals also. Change in texture is also a sign that Kief may no longer be useful or fit for consumption.

Check for molds. Small molds may be too tiny and hard to detect. Moldy Kief will also smell musty like hay. How Long Does Kief Last?