In this article:
- Vapor Clouds Aren't Everything
- Pay attention to the taste of terpenes
- When is a dry herb vape done vaping?
- Check the color of the weed
- How do you know when to stop vaping dry herb?
- Find your sweet spot: gradually increasing the temperature
- How to save already vaped bud (AVB or ABV)
- How to store AVB (ABV)
- Tips to Keep your Vape Sessions Efficient
- Cleaning your vaporizer for best quality vapor
It can be tough to tell when the herb in your dry herb vape is finished. How do you know when the vaping session is over?
You inhale, then breathe out, but you're not sure whether the cannabis has any THC or CBD left in it, or if it's just done. You ask yourself if you feel any different, if you see vapor escaping your lips or not.
Vapor Clouds Aren't Everything
Vaporization with a dry herb vape is such a clean process, and vapor isn't always visible. So just because you don't see enough vapor clouds, that doesn't mean you aren't still getting active ingredients out of your herb.
For example, at the beginning of a session, if you're vaporizing at lower temperatures, your vaporizer might not generate any vapor you can see. Desktop vaporizers tend to produce more visible clouds than portable vapes.
We explain more about the basics in our dry herb vaporizer intro.
But even if you can't see vapor clouds, vaping is likely still having an effect, possibly a strong one! How can you know for sure?
Pay attention to the taste of terpenes
One of the ways to tell whether a vape is finished is by taste. In addition to cannabinoids like THC and CBD, marijuana contains compounds called terpenes. Terpenes give strains their smell and flavor, and also produce other effects.
The taste will change during a session. The first hit is usually weaker because the vape is still heating up, but in general the first few hits will have the fullest flavor.
As the session goes on, the cannabis will gradually vaporize all the terpenes. So a lack of flavor is an indication that the strongest hits are over, and you're nearly finished the bowl.
When is a dry herb vape done vaping?
If you hit a point where the pulls become harsher and you start coughing more, that's a sign that you've nearly gotten all the useful vapor out. It may also be starting to smell bad. It's probably time to replace the bowl with some fresh flower.
Once the flavor tastes straight-up burnt, with maybe an overdone popcorn odor, then you're going too far and it's definitely time to empty your vape. And reload, if you still want more!
One drawback with most portable dry herb vaporizers is that you have to clean and reload the oven, which isn't always convenient when you're on the go. The Furna vape features swappable ovens, letting you instantly swap a cashed oven for a fresh one.
You can also pre-pack them before leaving the house, and there are specialized ovens for cannabis concentrate too. Furna gives you options no other dry herb vape does.
Check the color of the weed
Another thing you can do is have a look at the bud in the chamber and see how toasted it's looking. Be sure to turn it off and not to touch any hot parts.
If the vaped bud is brown, brittle, and very crumbly, then it is done, and it's not efficient to keep vaping it. If you still see areas that are green, and nothing too dark brown or black, you can definitely vape it further and get some more mileage out of it.
You can give it a stir to help expose different surface area to the heat, to vaporize more of the green pockets. This can be especially helpful if you've got a conduction vaporizer. Convection vaporizers tend to be a better job of heating evenly, so giving them a stir isn't as useful.
How do you know when to stop vaping dry herb?
Ultimately when you decide your vape is done comes down to personal preference. Usually, a bowl can last between five to fifteen minutes, but how long you keep vaping it depends on what temperature settings you're using, and your preferences in terms of taste and flavor.
You can squeeze some extra hits out of brownish-looking herb by using your vape at its top temperatures, but the flavor might really start tasting unpleasant to you. Ultimately, you're the best judge of when it's fully done.
Find your sweet spot: gradually increasing the temperature
It can be a good idea to experiment with different temperatures when using your vape. Many people like to start their sessions with a lower temperature setting, and then slowly turn it up. The beginning of the session will have clearer, more delicious flavor. Then as you turn up the temperature, you'll likely start seeing more vapor when you breathe out.
If you don't mind the change in tastes, you can still get a few more hits out of your bowl, but they'll still be lower in quality compared to the rest of the session. Using the highest temperature settings can make vaping a little less easy on your lungs, and result in some combustion, but the effect is still nothing like smoking.
But once things start tasting burnt, it's definitely done, and there's no point to choking on gross flavors for nothing.
How to save already vaped bud (AVB or ABV)
Lots of folks prefer to avoid over-toasting their herb. Besides the bad taste when you do, there's another way to enjoy the last remainders of your vaped herb: already vaped bud, or AVB weed, sometimes also called ABV.
AVB can be enjoyed a variety of ways, including cooking edibles, smoking it, and even making it into DIY oil capsules. However, ABV isn't a great smoke in terms of taste and potency, and the high wears off more quickly than usual.
If you've thoroughly cashed the bowl while vaping and your herb is very dark brown or black, your already vaped bud won't really be useful or tasty. So if AVB is your priority, you'll want to stick with a lower temperature, or at least a lower maximum temperature.
How to store AVB (ABV)
Combustion methods like smoking a joint leave basically no usable bits of cannabis. But vaporizing marijuana with a dry herb vape is a different story. Vaporized weed still has some potency left, even if it's brown and there's no vapor left in it.
Store AVB in an airtight container; a mason jar is perfect. And keep it in a dark, cool, and dry place.
Keep in mind that the color of ABV will always look a little different, depending on the strain and the temperature and duration of a session. Convection vapes tend to vaporize cannabis more evenly, so the ABV is more likely to be the same color. Conduction vapes might have areas that are more cooked than the rest.
To get the best effects from your vaporizer, regularly, loading and cleaning it properly goes a long way. Good maintenance will also keep the effects light on your lungs, which could especially be important to medical users.
Grinding down the marijuana flower with a grinder before packing your vape is key. If your herb isn't well ground, it'll burn less evenly. If you're using a conduction vaporizer, make sure the grind is fine.
Don't pack the chamber too tight - you don't want to fill it so much that you block air flow in the device. You want a nice smooth draw when inhaling. If airflow is blocked, you can even end up with heat pockets, scorched weed, and smoke.
Cleaning your vaporizer for best quality vapor
Be sure to clean your vape oven in between sessions. It's easiest to get all the plant material out if you empty the chamber right after vaping, while everything is still hot. Your vape probably includes a tool to help you do this.
The Furna vaporizer features oven-swapping technology that lets you replace a cashed oven for a fresh one instantly, reducing the amount of cleaning and maintenance you need to do.
Having a swappable oven vape means you can load up ovens before leaving the house. Then you don't ever have to empty and reload your vape chamber on the go, which can be messy and inconvenient.
Furna can even vaporize cannabis concentrates using a specialized oven, a big improvement on the awkward concentrate inserts used by some other portable vapes. It takes vaping to another level of portability completely - learn more about the Furna vaporizer here.