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Isopropyl Alcohol is an excellent solvent for extracting cannabinoids and making QWISO hash. There are multiple methods of making weed extract using solvents, here we are going to focus solely on the “short soak” or “quick wash” (QWISO) method using 99.9% Isopropyl Alcohol.
In the traditional long soak process, alcohol (and water) stays in contact with the plant material for up to months at a time. As alcohol is a polar solvent, this technique also extracts water soluble materials like chlorophyll and various plant alkaloids and waxes into your final product.
Keep it brief
Using a quick wash involving only brief contact with the solvent, cannabinoids can be separated from the plant material while leaving behind most of the water-soluble materials and keeping them out of your final product. The quick wash method (QWISO) will still extract some impurities, but they can be quickly and easily filtered off.
A note on Purity
A quick note on Isopropyl Alcohol: The higher purity of alcohol that is used, the lower amount of water-soluble materials will be pulled into your product during your QWISO. 70% Isopropyl Alcohol, available at the grocery store, is 30% water so you will pull much more water solubles using this strength versus a 99.9% ISO. Also, properly cured and stored cannabis will have between 10-15% water content as well.
Using a low strength 70% Isopropyl Alcohol for your QWISO will absorb way more unwanted impurities, making your final product far “dirtier” because of the water solubles that were pulled into the mix. More water also means a longer evaporation process. For the absolute best results, spring for the 99.9% Isopropyl Alcohol – your final QWISO hash will be night and day better.
Getting Good Alcohol
Amazon sells 99.9% Isopropyl Alcohol for a reasonable price if you truly want the best extraction. In comparison to 100% ethanol, Isopropyl Alcohol is far less expensive but does have its drawbacks. You cannot use Isopropyl Alcohol to make a tincture that you will ingest, as Isopropyl Alcohol is poisonous if taken internally. QWISO extractions are for making concentrate only.
As with an ethanol extraction, you can recover the Isopropyl Alcohol that you would normally evaporate off using a recovery still or a product like the Source Turbo by ExtractCraft. This will save you money by allowing you to reuse the alcohol, especially if you do this often. If the Source is a bit out of your price range, you can also use a simple water distiller.
Want it Cleaner?
If you want to have very clean, pristine oil you can also choose to first water cure your weed. This involves some extra time, so plan accordingly. This step is totally optional but makes a night and day different product.
The Wash
There are those who advocate processing these 2 QWISO washes separately to achieve products with 2 different effects. Feel free to explore this method if desired, but here we will be combining them into a single product.
*NOTE: The cannabis used in this process may still contain some cannabinoids after the 2 soaks. Save the leftovers! Dry them thoroughly to ensure all the ISO has evaporated off and use it to infuse some coconut oil for topical balms or salves or for cooking purposes. You can also grind the dried herb and put into gelatin capsules to ingest. Waste not, want not!
Instructions
To perform a QWISO extraction, start with fresh or dried cannabis buds or shake/trim. Freezing the cannabis overnight will help to help tie up the water content as ice crystals that can be filtered off later.
There is no need to grind your plant material, that will just make filtering 1000 times harder. Simply break up your buds a bit by hand on your favorite custom rolling tray. If using shake or trim, just use it as is. Place the broken up cannabis into a clean dry mason jar. Put it into the freezer along with the bottle of alcohol you will be using until they both reach freezing temperatures. (overnight will be sufficient). Alcohol will not freeze solid in your home freezer, so do not wait for that to happen or you will never get started.
The Next Day
Once the correct temperature has been achieved, working quickly pour alcohol into the jar of cannabis until covered by an inch or so. Screw on the lid and gently swirl for a few seconds. Place both back into the freezer immediately. For the next 3 minutes, gently swirl the QWISO jar of cannabis once a minute, keeping in the freezer until complete.
After 3 minutes, remove the lid and pour the cannabis / alcohol mixture through a quick draining stainless steel mesh strainer into another jar. Cover the cannabis with more alcohol and place everything back into the freezer. Repeat the previous 3-minute process, straining the alcohol into the same jar you used to collect the first wash and place that jar back into the freezer.
Filter out the big stuff
Loosely attach a coffee filter to top of a second jar with a rubber band so that it can sag in a bit. Remove the jar from the freezer and pour the contents from your QWISO into the jar with the filter. If the liquid has not been left out of the freezer for more than a few moments, any remaining water will be removed by the filter in the form of ice crystals.
You can further filter the alcohol at this time in order to remove any plant matter that made it through the coffee filter. Use a 20 micron syringe filter attached to a large 150ml syringe for this process. This will give you the cleanest possible extract.
Evaporate
Now you must evaporate off the Isopropyl Alcohol, leaving the cannabis oil behind. Pour the ISO mixture into a shallow glass dish, like a pie plate or baking dish. Place the dish preferably in a sunny spot and use a small fan to circulate air over the plate. You can also put the place on a nonflammable heat source at a very low temperature (<100 degrees) to speed up the process.
Isopropyl Alcohol is Extremely Flammable and heavier than air, so DO NOT evaporate this near any source of ignition. Never use a gas stove to heat your ISO. Vapors will settle into low lying areas and carry an explosion risk.
After evaporating off the alcohol you will have a very high-quality extract that can be smoked or dabbed. I suggest if you plan on doing this often or in large quantities, look into the available methods of alcohol recovery. That will help you keep your price down. Good luck and enjoy your homemade extracts!
Have you made QWISO weed extract using this method? Let us know how it turned out in the comments below!
If you are looking for the 3 minute QWET (Ethanol) extraction guide, click here.
Thanks I was looking for an updated version of this!
You’re welcome Tom!
Can you use this for on your skin like for sore muscles? I know it’s poisonous to drink but ??
You probably could, but I imagine that it would leave a sticky residue that you may not enjoy.
Thanks for answering! I didn’t think about it being sticky 😞😞😞
You would be better just infusing some coconut oil and rubbing that on your skin.
In the article you mention a simple water distiller as an alternative to The Source, but doesn’t the water distiller temperature go too high? 200F+
They make water distillers with adjustable thermostats. The Source is a much better option because it works under vaccum. Although a distiller is cheaper, it is not the best option, rather an acceptable one for price conscious people.
im tryna make me some cannabutter, is it safe to use isopropyl for my alcohol extraction?
apparently there is food grade isopropyl but since it will get evaporated off anyway it should be safe right?
ethanol is hella expensive :3
As long as you fully purge the Isopropyl Alcohol, yes you can use the resulting extract to make cannabutter.
No, the alcohol linked here is not safe. Being Utility Grade it is full of impurities that do not evaporate off. Only the alcohol evaporates, not the heavy metals which leaves you with a product with concentrated levels of heavy metals and other toxins. Look for ACS, Reagent or USP grade. Stay away from the one linked here.
Amazon Product Link goes to:
Isopropyl Alcohol 99% (IPA) – USP-NF Medical Grade Concentrated Rubbing Alcohol – Made in USA – 128 Fl Oz/Gallon
Would be better if you linked alcohol that was actually safe and didn’t recommend just letting it sit out to dry causing a fire risk and inviting bacteria to your extract.
I am not sure what you feel is unsafe about the Isopropyl Alcohol that is linked from this post, but if you choose not to use it that is your prerogative.
As for the fire risk, I believe that was quite adequately discussed in the final section titled “Evaporation”.
The evaporation process as described will not create a breeding ground for bacteria. IPA is a natural bactericide as well as being antiviral and anti-fungal.
I’m thinking …. do a 3 minute wash with 99.9% Isopropyl
using wet Bud then filter it
Then put the filtered product in the freezer overnight to let the water
content freeze
then filter it again to remove the frozen water content
then boil off the Isopropyl in the usual manner
I often use this method when using fresh flower – works pretty good!
What’s not safe about it is that there is no grade and the reviews state that the bottles previously stated they were utility grade. This is the lowest grade, below laboratory grade. These grades are not suggested for use with anything that might be consumed in any way. There are harmful heavy metal impurities that do not evaporate and end up concentrated in the final product. It’s not a matter of people’s prerogatives, but a matter of real safety. You are linking the readers to a product that is not a safe for making their concentrates.
Hello Doc, when I click on the link it says:
Hallo can you use this for vaping? 😁
Yes, you can definitely use the resulting product for vaping. I make a lot of concentrate using this method and most of it is vaped.
I use the QWET method, 15 min soak. I use a water distiller to recover my alcohol. I’ve had my extract lab tested for THC level, one sample was 67% delta 9, the other 61%. I used 3 oz starting trim and buds ended up with 12g one sample 19 the other. The start material was old so the extract is dark but amber colored, smells great and your edibles come out so delicious, none of that harsh taste. I’m going to try this 3 minute method next time.
Sounds like you made some good tinctures! Next time you make tinctures using old weed, I highly suggest that you water cure the bud first!
I’m just interested to know how this extract is not safe for eating but is safe for smoking? Wouldn’t anything harmful in the edibles also be harmful if smoked? Would like to try this but am a bit unsure
L.
Isopropyl Alcohol is toxic when consumed, therefore the warning. A safer way to extract is using the QWET method, as ethanol is not toxic and can he safely consumed.
Obviously if you properly purge all of the ISO from your concentrate you should be fine, however not everyone does this properly.
Here’s a link to the QWET extraction: http://mediblereview.com/3-minute-quick-wash-ethanol-extraction-qwet/
Thanks. I will grab some ethanol at some point. Just have a bunch of 99% isopropyl lying around and was unsure if this was safe for smoking. I’ve done a lot of homemade BHO but without a vacuum chamber I’m always concerned about purity. Other than evaporation are there any further purging steps to consider?
I know many people who smoke extract from the QWISO process. Some use a vacuum chamber but most simply let evaporation do its thing. Outside of those methods, there’s not much else you can do really. I have done it both ways without much worry, but to be honest I prefer Ethanol. If you have experience in processing BHO, I don’t think you will notice much difference.
Hey all,
I have a method I do myself which is similar, I freeze the alcohol 2litres iso per 5.5oz 2minute wash, strain 3 times, low heat in a stainless steel pot, sitting in water , in an electric frying pan 100% safe using a fan ,also.. the end result is more or less honey! Don’t do second washes and definitely do not mix 1st wash with 2nd as it will dilute the potency.., use water to extract the remaining iso from the product about 10mins from completion * I use a spray like bottle u would find in ya supermarkets to give even distribution on water over the product it will sizzle on a hot knife if there is still alcohol in it.. so I will take little bits and try it before I stop the process, the high is very clear, u don’t get headaches it’s a gentle rise and down to which when u come off it u don’t feel like uve had any, here we smoke it directly on a hot knife and the results are top notch, hope this helps
“use water to extract the remaining iso from the product about 10mins from completion” – can you please explain this
To add… the water in the frying pan that the pot of product will sit in.. no higher than 80degrees I find is 👌
Can a person “wash” a extraction after all the iso has evaporated? To get a cleaner final product?