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Why you should be using a Carb Cap whenever you dab

By Karen Jans

Do you cap your nail when you take a dab?

You should be.

The carb cap allows you to lower the temperature of your dab while simultaneously maintaining that temperature so you can volitalizeyour entire glob without wasting or unevenly heating it.

A lower temperature—as many dabbers know—helps maintain all the tasty, terpey flavors and cannabinoids (the stuff, like THC, that gets you high) versus higher temps. Higher temperatures can combust and destroy cannabinoids, and can really make you cough up a lung (and a kidney and maybe also your spleen).

Think of the carb cap like putting the lid back on the pot of boiling water after you threw in the frozen potstickers. Even though the water was at a perfect rolling boil, the potstickers drop that temperature down, until you put the lid back on. The lid creates a little oven so all that heat stays trapped and your better able to control the temperature.

The same is true with dabbing with a carb cap. Once you add the extract into the equation, your nail starts losing heat even faster—especially if you’re trying to start at a lower temperature. But by throwing the lid (carb cap) onto the pot (banger), you’re able to retain that temperature for longer, reducing the risk of leaving a pool of wasted oil.

And once you’ve successfully dabbed, you’ll be better able to enjoy your potstickers!

[fusion_builder_container background_color=”” background_image=”” background_parallax=”none” enable_mobile=”no” parallax_speed=”0.3″ background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” video_url=”” video_aspect_ratio=”16:9″ video_webm=”” video_mp4=”” video_ogv=”” video_preview_image=”” overlay_color=”” overlay_opacity=”0.5″ video_mute=”yes” video_loop=”yes” fade=”no” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding_top=”20″ padding_bottom=”20″ padding_left=”” padding_right=”” hundred_percent=”no” equal_height_columns=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” menu_anchor=”” class=”” id=””][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ last=”yes” spacing=”yes” center_content=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” background_color=”” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” hover_type=”none” link=”” border_position=”all” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding=”” margin_top=”” margin_bottom=”” animation_type=”” animation_direction=”” animation_speed=”0.1″ animation_offset=”” class=”” id=””][fusion_text]Blue Dream is a Sativa-dominant hybrid originally from California. It’s a cross of Blueberry, a top-ranking Indica, and Haze, an uplifting Sativa. Blue Dream has always been one of my favorite strains and has been considered “a staple strain” in the cannabis community. I like its buzzy, creative effects and sweet flavor. According to Leafly.com, Blue Dream takes the cake as Washington state’s #1 favorite strain. You’ll find that most cannabis retailers carry this strain, so it’s really worth trying if you haven’t already.

Besides flower and prerolls of Blue Dream, we also carry Blue Dream concentrates. My favorite right now is Sticky Frog’s shatter. The flavor of this oil is uncompromised; it has a crisp, sweet aftertaste with subtle undertones of berry and wood. Upon exhale, I found the oil to be smooth and optimally flavorful at low temperatures. The consistency of this shatter at room temperature is hard, but not lose-your-dab-in-the-carpet hard. I was able to break off a dab cleanly and then roll it around in my fingers to create a ball for what I like to call a “drop shot”, where I simply drop a piece of oil into my quartz banger for a clean, quick dab.

We currently offer this shatter from Sticky Frog in variety of strains. For a mere $20 a half gram and $35 a full, this shatter is an incredible deal. Needless to say, you’ll find me recommending it to all my concentrate-loving customers. Stop by our James street location to see our selection! Our seasoned staff are happy to help find a strain that works best for you.[/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

[fusion_builder_container background_color=”” background_image=”” background_parallax=”none” enable_mobile=”no” parallax_speed=”0.3″ background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” video_url=”” video_aspect_ratio=”16:9″ video_webm=”” video_mp4=”” video_ogv=”” video_preview_image=”” overlay_color=”” overlay_opacity=”0.5″ video_mute=”yes” video_loop=”yes” fade=”no” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding_top=”20″ padding_bottom=”20″ padding_left=”” padding_right=”” hundred_percent=”no” equal_height_columns=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” menu_anchor=”” class=”” id=””][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ last=”yes” spacing=”yes” center_content=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” background_color=”” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” hover_type=”none” link=”” border_position=”all” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding=”” margin_top=”” margin_bottom=”” animation_type=”” animation_direction=”” animation_speed=”0.1″ animation_offset=”” class=”” id=””][fusion_text]By Karen Jans

As access to cannabis products increase across the country, misinformation continues to crop up about the stoney, sought-after crop. What’s the real relationship between hemp and weed and what can hemp be used for?

According to a 1976 study by the International Association of Plant Taxonomy, “both hemp varieties and marijuana varieties are the same genus, Cannabis, and the same species, Cannabis sativa. Further, there are countless varieties that fall into further classification within the speciesCannabis sativa.”

So does that mean there’s no difference between hemp and weed? Well, yes and no. The real distinction is a matter of semantics, rather than science. According to Canadian researcher, Ernest Small, who first created the classification between hemp and marijuana, “there is not any natural point at which the cannabinoid content can be used to distinguish strain of hemp and marijuana.”

“Weed” or “marijuana” refers to a cannabis plant raised for its trichomes, which contain high amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

“Hemp” contains only trace amounts of THC. Rather, “hemp” refers to cannabis plants that have been bred for their high-growing stalks, which can be used for myriad uses. Hemp seeds can be used in making confections, flour, beer, livestock feed, dietary fiber, non-dairy milk, and baking additives. Hemp oil can be used in cooking, salad dressings, dietary supplements, body care products, fuel, detergents, spreads, and paints. Hemp fiber can be used to produce fabrics, insulation, carpeting, paneling, pulp and paper, recycling additives, automobile parts, animal bedding, and mulch.

Hemp paper is about twice as durable as wood pulp paper and can easily produce more paper per acre than wood pulp with less energy. Hemp farming also produces more oxygen than tree farming can produce. The hemp paper process also uses fewer chemicals than tree paper processing without the harmful dioxins, chloroform, or any of the other 2,000 chlorinated organic compounds that have been identified as byproducts of the wood paper process. Both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were drafted on hemp paper!

Hemp seeds combine beneficial amino acids with fatty acids and has the second highest amount of protein of any food (the highest is soy). Since hemp protein so closely resembles the protein found in human blood, it’s the easiest protein for humans to digest.

Hemp biodiesel can be made from the oil of pressed hemp seeds. By fermenting the stalk of the hemp plant, hemp ethanol and methanol.

The distinction between hemp and weed comes from the purposes the individual stains were bred for. Cannabis sativa strains bred for crystal-encrusted buds to be used either as an entheogen or as a medicine are generally referred to as “marijuana.”  Cannabis sativa strains bred for their fast and tall stalks, seeds, or oil with little to no THC are hemp plants.

But even these distinctions vary based on location. For example, according to U.S. law “hemp” refers to all parts of any Cannabis sativa plant containing no psychoactive properties, except for defined exceptions, whereas Health Canada defines hemp as part of Cannabis sativa with less than 0.3 percent THC.

Regardless of the distinctions between hemp and marijuana, the wonders of Cannabis sativanever end—whether you’re loading up a bowl to smoke with friends, pouring hempseed granola into your cereal in the morning, pulling on a hemp fiber t-shirt, or filling your car with a hemp-derived biodiesel.[/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

[fusion_builder_container background_color=”” background_image=”” background_parallax=”none” enable_mobile=”no” parallax_speed=”0.3″ background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” video_url=”” video_aspect_ratio=”16:9″ video_webm=”” video_mp4=”” video_ogv=”” video_preview_image=”” overlay_color=”” overlay_opacity=”0.5″ video_mute=”yes” video_loop=”yes” fade=”no” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding_top=”20″ padding_bottom=”20″ padding_left=”” padding_right=”” hundred_percent=”no” equal_height_columns=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” menu_anchor=”” class=”” id=””][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ last=”yes” spacing=”yes” center_content=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” background_color=”” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” hover_type=”none” link=”” border_position=”all” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding=”” margin_top=”” margin_bottom=”” animation_type=”” animation_direction=”” animation_speed=”0.1″ animation_offset=”” class=”” id=””][fusion_text]by Karen Jans

Most folks already know that consuming cannabis is a significantly healthier alternative to other activities, like smoking cigarettes, imbibing alcohol, or licking doorknobs. But here at The Joint, our staff often hear even seasoned smokers engaging in some unhealthy habits in an attempt to stay high. However, research shows some of these tactics can do more harm than good. Here are a few tips on how to get high in healthier ways and tone down all that hacking and coughing:

• Stop holding in your hits. Even veteran tokers will swear that taking a hit and holding it in as long as you can will get you higher. But several studies have shown that holding hits has no effect on the experience of the smoker. Found in a study by Zachny in 1991, holding in hits with a placebo cannabis can create a lightheaded, dizzying experience for the smoker, imitating the effects of cannabis. This is most likely due to lack of oxygen circulation. Absorption of the cannabis happens almost instantaneously when smoke or vapor enters the lungs. Just like holding your breath doesn’t mean you absorb more oxygen, holding your hits only increases carbon monoxide in the lungs without increase the amount of THC that enters your system. For consumers who insist on this ritual, try taking your hit, exhaling completely, and then holding your breath. You’ll likely achieve the same effect, but less coughing overall.
• Don’t smoke resin. Some of you are probably gagging at the thought, but there are at least some of you sheepishly thinking back to that one time you were out of weed and out of money and decided to scrape whatever you could out of the bowl of your pipe into a gooey ball of black tar. Resin, not to be confused with the resinous glands of the cannabis plant, refers to the black residue left on smoking pieces after burning a bowl. Some people turn to resin bowls in times of deep monetary desperation in an attempt to get stoned without buying more weed. The problem is that heat destroys cannabinoids, leaving only trace amounts of psychoactive properties in the black resin, while significantly increasing the smoker’s exposure to tars and noxious gases which must be burnt at even higher temperatures. Smoking resin will only maybe kinda sorta get you a little high, but it will definitely make you cough like crazy, hurt your lungs, and expose you to some truly nasty gunk.
• Most stoners already realize that if they are concerned about lung health, the best option is to avoid inhalation. Edibles, tinctures, topicals, and transdermal patches are ideal options for folks looking to bypass breathing in smoke or vapor, but still stay stoney. Edibles provide a long-lasting, body-oriented high, but they can take a while to kick in. Tinctures placed under the tongue provide a similar experience and can affect the consumer a little more quickly through sublingual absorption. Transdermal patches tend to be longest lasting, but can take up to three hours after application for users to feel its effects.
• For folks looking for the immediacy of inhalation without the carcinogens of combustion, vaporizing “leads to blood levels of THC comparable to smoking a joint, but without raising expired carbon monoxide (Abrams 2007).” Vaporizers can come in a multitude of forms, from flower vaporizing machines shaped like volcanoes, to on-the-go kits with interchangeable attachments for vaporizing flower and concentrates, to ready-to-go cartridges that screw onto vape pen batteries, and the ever-popular method of dabbing. Whatever form you wish to vaporize in, the theory is the same: vaporizing heats the cannabis product enough to volatize it without combustion.
  Dabbing refers to the process in which someone uses a blowtorch to heat a nail (generally made from titanium, quartz, ceramic, or glass and situated where the bowl piece would be on any water rig or bong). The person then lets the nail cool down to about 300-400 degrees (about 20-30 seconds after the red-orange glow disappears, depending on the nail) and dabs a small amount of concentrated cannabis extract (also called wax, oil, BHO, shatter, etc.) which melts into a vapor that can be cooled through water before being inhaled by the consumer. Dabs provide a concentration of cannabis, some extraction methods producing oil up to 98% THC, so a small amount can deliver a huge high. Vapor can be considerably less harsh on the lungs than smoke, especially when the dabber takes care to ensure their nail has cooled down enough to take a low-temperature dab. If you dab too hot, you’ll end up burning your oil, which tastes terrible, hurts your lungs like the dickens, and destroys a lot of the cannabinoids you’re trying to consume.
  Despite dabbing’s ability to intimidate novice smokers, dabbing can provide even higher highs than traditional smoking with the potential for much less lung irritation when done properly. Ask your budtender for more information if you’re interested in trying an alternative method of consuming cannabis but are unsure where to begin.
• But there are still plenty of times when smoking flower is exactly what you’re in the mood for. Despite popular belief, smoking through a water filtering pipe or bong “do not appear to decrease the amount of tar and particles in smoke (Doblin 2004).” But since waterpipes cool the smoke or vapor, they can help decrease irritation in the lungs and throat when smoking. The best way to go when smoking flower is to go for quality. The better the quality of the cannabis, the less you have to smoke to achieve the desired experience.
  Quality doesn’t just come down to the percentage of THC, either! Cannabis connoisseurs know that there’s more to quality than test numbers or cost. Talk with your local budtender about pinpointing the best quality products at the price-point ideal for you.

Smoking weed doesn’t have to break the bank or your airways. By maintaining these healthier smoking habits, you can worry less about your lungs and more about what you’re going to snack on to deal with that gnarly case of the munchies.[/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]