Activated THC oil means the THC oil has been through the decarboxylation process and doesn’t need heat to produce psychoactive effects. THC isn’t actually present in dried cure cannabis, it’s THCA. Upon decarboxylation, the acid or A molecule is removed leaving behind THC. When we smoke cannabis, the flame that ignites the plant matter performs the decarboxylation process as we inhale our smoke. Concentrates are the same thing. When we apply heat to them to turn them into vapor, they become decarbed.
If you were to start eating raw cannabis off of a plant, the chances of feeling intoxicating effects are slim to none. There is a possibility that the cannabis could do a low temperature decarb in your body while being digested if you ate enough of it and it was potent enough but this definitely isn’t the best way to ingest THC for any type of effects beyond the therapeautic value of THCA.
The science behind making activated THC oil is quite fascinating. Most commercial grade activated THC oil also undergoes another process known as winterization.
When activated THC oil is winterized, this process removes extra lipids, fats, and waxes. In the end it works to create a purer more potent product. When it comes to activated THC oil, anything can become a cannabis infused edible.
How to Make Activated THC Oil at Home
Making activated THC oil at home is easy to do. There are two ways you can go about doing this. There are also two different base products you can use to make activated THC oil. Concentrates or cured cannabis can be used to make activated THC oil at home.
The first step is to decarb your material. Cannabis can be decarbed in the oven and concentrates can be decarbed in a shot glass using a hot water bath. There are also devices like the Ardent decarboxylation machine that make this process easy peasy. Let’s take a look at what comes next.
Using a decarb unit like the Ardent is the most efficient and easy way to accomplish this process. Simply decarb your cannabis flower in your Ardent. Next put it into a small measuring cup and add MCT oil to it.You can also use olive oil, sunflower oil, avocado oil, etc. Add just enough to cover the leafy material. Place that shot glass full of cannabis and MCT oil back into the Ardent and run another decarb cycle. Remove when it is finished and strain the oil using a cheesecloth, French press, or micron screen.
Making activated THC oil using cannabis concentrates is even easier. Simply add your concentrates to a shot glass and decarb in a hot water bath over low temperature or preferably in the Ardent. When decarbing using the hot water bath you will want your concentrates to turn to liquid and start bubbling. When the bubbles stop you are decarbed. Be careful not to get it too hot though as you don’t want to boil off cannabinoids. When using the Ardent, simply add your concentrates to the Ardent and run a decarb cycle. When it’s finished add your oil to it and run one more cycle. That’s all there is to it.
Ways to Store and Consume Activated THC Oil
Now that you know how to make activated THC oil, here are some suggestions for storing and consuming it. Activated THC oil can be stored inside of jars but a lot of people opt to store it using e-juice syringes. You can add activated cannabis oil to anything turning it into a cannabis infused food. Ice cream, cake, tacos, cheeseburgers, pizza, the sky’s the limit.
Now you might be thinking how do I know how much I’m taking. This is based off of the strength of the flower or the concentrates. As an example if your flower tests at around 24% THC you will be producing roughly 240 mg of activated THC oil per gram you use. If you’re concentrates test at 85% THC you’ll be making an activated cannabis oil that is 850 mg of THC per gram of concentrates added. Simply keep track of the strength of your cannabis and how many grams you add. You can then divide the number of syringes by the total amount of THC for an idea of how much activated THC oil is in each syringe. Another great way to take activated THC oil without infusing it on food is in veggie capsules. This is a very convenient and discreet way to get your cannabis on. I like to call them my chill pills!
