Hey there,
I am currently making my own vape pens mixed in with terps. I am having some issues with the mixing process as my mixture turns cloudy. This occurs before I even add any terps or diluent. The distillate I receive is 91% and is very clear in the syringe. However, once it is mixed it turns quite cloudy. I am wondering how I can fix this. Thank you.
Can you outline your process and additives?
I heat up the distillate syringe until it is runny enough to dispense into a 10 ml beaker. It is clear once dispensed until the very end. I place the beaker on a hot plate to maintain its liquid form, but once I start mixing it starts to turn cloudy. This before I add anything.
Is it possible that your whipping air into the mixture? Thc distillate on it’s own should not cloud when heated.
I agree with Sox that the distillate should not be clouding just because of heat. In my experience gentle heat helps to clarify, up to a point.
Pix please, so we can help…
BTW: my patients still prefer their vape sticks made from shatter or distillate diluted 10-50% with Kosher food-grade PEG400, because added temps cause coughing or persistent throat tickle. Kosher grade is a requirement for the highest purity.
I think that might be the problem. How can I prevent this from occurring or reversing it? Thanks.
What is the size of the batch total? You mentioned a 10 ml beaker. Heat and vaccum should liberate any trapped air, but at the expense of the terps…
I am currently waiting on all the supplies you mentioned.
Right now I am just heating the distillate on a coffee warmer and using a lighter to get the distillate out of the syringe.
The pens I’ve made do cause a slight cough, but nothing overwhelming. Does the PEG400 cause any change in color or any other effects?
I am currently doing test batches of 2 grams
Ahh, try a 5ml beaker or dram sized vial.Use a small stirring rod to mix, at that small of a scale you should not need magnetic stirring. That should cut down on incorperating air. An ultrasonic bath to sonicate the vial in would also be usefull.
I have a digital hot plate with magnetic stirring on the way. Would that solve the issue? I will be making big batches in the future.
For larger batches it will work well, you just don’t want the vortex to reach the stirbar when mixing.
If you do it may put alot of air into the mix, then despensing volumetrically becomes unpredictable with trapped air. Post a pic of the cloudy mix if you can. Without stirring does the mixture turn cloudy when heated? And this is just the thc distillate we are talking about here right? no additives, just the distillate?
So basically I need to mix it slow and steady. I’ve been mixing it like eggs haha. Probably not the best idea. I’ll give it another try and see how it looks. Thanks a lot Sox!
So this is after mixing all the ingredients together? To me looks like an emulsion, your mix is seporating like salad dressing. Is this with peg?
If so try just terps+ distillate. It should look a alot clearer.
I used 91% distillate, 5% food grade terps, and 5% Viscosity liquifier from trueterpenes. The cloudiness occurs even before I add anything.
Well that baffles me! I have never had that issue, or seen distillate cloud just from heat. I have seen distillate that has lots of waxes in it cloud as it cools, but never as it was heated. That combination should work, we used to use these products. Hey @cyclopath you ever see this phenomenon?
Me too! I think I may be overheating the distillate. It is very clear distillate before I stir it as well.
I think the last little bit of distillate cools when I heat the syringe to dispense it into a beaker, and when stirred causes the rest of it to turn cloudy.
The first bit of distillate is clear as day, until I get to the end.
What temp are you heating it to? I’ve never seen distillate go cloudy when smoked either (250c), and that is the hottest it can go without bursting into flames. @Beaker what do you got?
