Is 30 minutes enough? Is 2 hours too long?
How long do I need to infuse marijuana oil to extract the maximum amount of THC or CBD? This is a really common and important question.
The concern is that, without infusing for long enough, the CBD or THC won’t move from the flower into the oil. On the other hand, people worry that if they infuse the cannaoil mixture for too long, it will destroy the THC and CBD.
We put this question to the test in the controlled heating environment of the Nova Decarboxylator and Infuser. After decarbing some Orange Sherbert cannabis flower, we infused it into almond oil, which is amazing for all sorts of applications.
The decarbed Orange Sherbert flower had ~ 21.5% THC in each gram = 215 mg THC in each gram of this decarboxylated cannabis.
We made three infusions, each with one gram of decarbed Orange Sherbert flower* and one ounce of almond oil. We infused for three different durations – 40 minutes, 1 hour, and a full Nova cycle (1 hr 45 min – 2 hours)
The results?? All of the infusions were almost identical. Each had just about 200 mg total cannabinoids in the final ounce, an excellent infusion rate of ~90%. There was no significant difference in potency between the 40 minute and 2 hour infusions in the Nova. There was no more degradation at the longer cycle, and the shorter cycle had full infusion. Check out the results below to see these easy, potent infusions were able to pull ~190 mg THC out of just one gram:
Below, 1 gram of decarbed Orange Sherbert in 1 oz. almond oil – infused in Nova for 40 minutes
Below, 1 gram of decarbed Orange Sherbert in 1 oz. almond oil – infused in Nova for 60 minutes
Below, 1 gram of decarbed Orange Sherbert in 1 oz. almond oil – infused in Nova for a full cycle (2 hours)
The results above show how long you need to infuse to extract THC and CBD into potent marijuana oil. With Nova, it comes to personal preference and schedule. You can extract ~90% with either short or long infusions.
Was this video helpful? What are your favorite oils to infuse? Let us know in the comments, and don't forget to check out our post on how to use THC oil!
*Each sample used decarbed flower. Decarbing before infusing is required in order to have an active infusion.