Wet Hemp Sticks: How to Effectively Solve This Problem

06. 11. 2023

Whether you have purchased cannabis or grown and dried your own plants, you may find that they are wet or damp. This tragedy is most often caused by improper drying of the sticks, but can also be the result of storage in an overly humid environment, unintentional spillage, or other influences such as rain. You will need to dry your sticks and we will advise you how to do it. In this article, we'll tell you how to tell if your cannabis is too wet, give you advice on what to do if your cannabis gets wet and summarise the best ways to dry your cannabis.

Wet vs. sticky sticks: How to tell the difference?

It's important to know if it's really wet cannabis or just resin-soaked sticks. You can tell if the cannabis is wet by doing the following:

Properly dried cannabis is dry to the touch but sticky. Naturally, you want the hemp to be at least a little sticky. Perfectly dried buds are sticky because they are coated with THC crystals. Yet they retain some elasticity.
If you press the bud gently between your fingers, you will hear the leaves and calyxes crunch under pressure.
Wet cannabis will feel wet to the touch and squeeze when squeezed between the fingers.

Don't worry though, wet cannabis isn't ideal, but if you can handle it in time, it's not a disaster.

The consequences of wet cannabis sticks

You may be tempted to ignore the fact that your cannabis sticks are wet, but we still don't recommend it. While it may be tempting to ignore the problem and hope that it will eventually go away on its own or magically resolve itself, unfortunately that's not going to happen. In fact, humidity is a favourable environment for mould and bacteria to grow . So if you leave your cannabis in humidity for too long, you may end up with more problems than you bargained for.

Mouldy cannabis is bad for your health. If your cannabis has become damp, it is safer to dry it immediately. Plus, using wet cannabis is quite difficult, especially if you're trying to grind it in a grinder. This is because wet cannabis is bound to get stuck in the shredder, making it impossible to crush.

You have to be careful when buying cannabis because you pay by the weight, and wet buds are heavier than dry ones, so for the money you pay for cannabis you just get a lot of water. Cannabis loses up to 75% of its weight when dried. So if you buy perfectly dried cannabis, you will get up to four times more for your money than if you buy wet cannabis.

How to dry wet hemp sticks?

It's possible that you didn't let your cannabis dry enough, or the rain got it wet, or you accidentally spilled a drink on it. Whatever the cause, the sticks are wet and this annoyance needs to be addressed. There are many ways that can help with drying out wet cannabis sticks. Below we will present a few common ways that can be used to dry wet or damp cannabis sticks.

Drying with paper towels

If the sticks are wet, first place them in a paper towel or brown paper bag. Paper towels/bags absorb moisture effectively.

Break the cannabis sticks into smaller pieces.
Wrap them in paper towels or put them in a paper bag.
Store them in a cool, dry place.
If possible, make sure there is air flow in the room. For example, you can turn on a fan or a dehumidifier.
Turn the sticks once every few hours to let the air in.
Repeat this process until the cannabis is completely dry.
Remember that this method of drying increases the risk of mould. Therefore, be very cautious when using this method.

Drying by the rice method

If you've ever doused your phone with any kind of beverage, you're probably already familiar with this method. Rice drying works the same way for cannabis as it does for wet electronics. That's because rice absorbs moisture very well and will dry your cannabis sticks in a matter of hours.

Place the wet sticks in a jar and cover them with rice.
Store the jar uncovered in a dry and dark place for a few hours, ideally 24 hours.
Make sure there is air flow in the room to prevent mould. For example, turn on a fan or dehumidifier nearby.
Leave the hemp sticks in the rice for 24 hours.
Check the hemp sticks, if they are still damp, leave them in the rice for another day.
You can also use paper towels and dry the hemp sticks completely in a few hours.

Drying using a cardboard box

Cardboard is also great at wicking moisture away from wet sticks and speeding up the drying process.

Place the sticks in a small cardboard box.
Close the box and wait 8 hours, but preferably overnight.

After drying, your cannabis sticks may not look quite ideal, but their quality will be the same as before they were soaked.

How NOT to dry wet cannabis?

While drying cannabis sticks is very easy, there are a few pitfalls to avoid. If your cannabis sticks are wet, it can be tempting to dry them using heat. Despite this perfectly natural impulse, it's important to avoid these drying methods, which involve exposure to light and heat. This is because exposing the sticks to heat reduces their quality. Depending on the degree of heat, theTHC content may be reduced .

Therefore, do not microwave wet cannabis sticks. Not only will this not dry out the sticks, but it will also reduce the THC content. The microwave does not suck out the excess moisture, but instead roasts the sticks. So if you put the sticks in the microwave or even in the oven, you will destroy them faster than you can imagine.

Even leaving them in the open air with the fan on can lead to a reduction in quality.

Heat and light also increase the risk ofmould on the sticks . Therefore, when drying wet sticks, it is better to use methods that take longer, as waiting is always worthwhile.

How to prevent cannabis from getting wet?

There are several ways to prevent your cannabis sticks from getting wet. First and foremost , you need to store your cannabis well. Proper storage will ensure that your cannabis sticks do not get wet and remain in good condition. Proper storage will also prevent mold from forming over time due to the moisture. Cannabis is also subject to spoilage, so in addition to keeping it dry, you'll also be extending its lifespan. To keep your cannabis in good condition, store it in airtight containers in a dry, dark place to maintain maximum quality. Canning jars, for example, work well.

Do not leave cannabis wet

Wet cannabis is not the end of the world, of course, but if you want to save it, you need to do it the right way. If you have dropped your cannabis sticks in water, accidentally spilled water on them or didn't let them dry out enough after harvesting, chances are you can save them with paper towels or rice. After our recommended drying methods, your cannabis sticks may not look their best, but they will still be usable. If your hemp sticks are wet, you don't need to stress about it. Just follow our advice and you're guaranteed to save them.

Cannabis sticks that are too wet are one of the problems you may encounter as a cannabis grower. However, don't let this put you off growing. Get some cannabis seeds with a THC content of less than 1% and get growing. If you encounter any problems, our advice will help you solve them easily.