Did you know that 18 percent of people in the United States alone have used cannabis at least once in their lives? Since cannabis is becoming more and more legal throughout the country, it’s not surprising that more people are starting to try cannabis products and that the cannabis industry is coming out with products that have never been seen before. A unique new cannabis product is cannabis shatter.
When most people think about using cannabis, they often think about smoking weed in the form of buds or even vape juice. However, cannabis shatter is a completely different form of cannabis. Many people tend to describe it as looking like shattered glass or rock candy.
Because cannabis shatter is so different compared to other cannabis products, you can use it in different ways. It may even provide some unique benefits because of its composition. To learn more about what cannabis shatter is, keep reading more below.
What Is Cannabis Shatter?
Cannabis shatter has a lot to do with cannabis dabbing and marijuana concentrates. If you have never heard of cannabis dabs before, they have to do with butane hash oil which is also known as BHO. Cannabis shatter is a type of dab (and there are many other different kinds of dabs that come in different forms).
Essentially, a dab is a type of cannabis concentrate. Some might like cannabis concentrates of this type because they would be able to experience more intense highs due to the concentrated and very high amounts of cannabinoids. But how do these concentrates or dabs differ from ordinary cannabis?
Ordinary cannabis buds can only reach a certain level of intensity. This is due to the distribution of cannabinoids within a given cannabis plant. The two main cannabinoids are CBD and THC, although there are dozens upon dozens of other cannabinoids.
THC is of particular interest because it is able to provide a psychoactive high. CBD, as popular as it is, is unable to produce a high. For that reason, THC remains one of the most popular cannabinoids.
Cannabis farmers are able to breed cannabis plants in such a way that allows the plants to produce buds that have higher concentrations of THC. However, nature can only go so far. If you want some really intense cannabis products, the lab will have to step in to help.
Through a detailed process that often takes place in laboratories, one can attain a cannabis product that contains very high levels of THC and other cannabinoids. In some cases, the concentration can range from 90 to 99% which is as high as you can go when it comes to the concentration of cannabinoids.
This is, in essence, how cannabis shatter came to be.
How Is Cannabis Shatter Made?
You can’t grow cannabis shatter in the same way you can grow marijuana buds. Instead, cannabis shatter has to go through a long and detailed process before it can take form. The first step is to extract the essential cannabinoids from the cannabis plant.
Machines are able to do this through a series of steps which often involves solvents and exposing the cannabis plant to CO2. In fact, the CO2 extraction method is one of the best and most preferred methods of cannabinoid extraction. That’s because it minimizes the use of alcoholic solvents which can sometimes taint the flavor of the resulting cannabinoids.
However, instead of using CO2, you will need to use butane to create shatter and other dabs. First, the cannabis plant material will enter a special chamber where it will be locked inside. The main plant material inside the chamber will be the marijuana buds.
This is because the marijuana buds have the highest concentration of cannabinoids compared to any other part of the cannabis plant. The next step is to expose the marijuana buds to liquid butane. Using butane for this process is important because it is able to peel off the trichomes from the marijuana plant.
The trichomes are little hair-like appendages that you might be able to see when looking closely at marijuana buds. While these hairs might look like nothing special, they are actually especially rich in cannabinoids. Without trichomes, marijuana buds would not be as rich as they are in cannabinoids.
After the buds soak for some time, it will be necessary to extract the cannabinoids from the butane mixture. After all, you won’t want to be consuming any butane in your shatter. A heated environment is necessary to allow for the butane to evaporate from the cannabinoids.
The Difference between Cannabis Shatter and Cannabis Wax
Many people tend to get cannabis shatter and wax confused. This may be because they are both created in a similar fashion. However, there are a few big differences between cannabis wax and shatter.
They both involve using butane to extract the cannabinoids from the cannabis plant, most notably the THC. For enthusiasts of wax and shatter, the higher the THC levels, the better. Treating cannabis plants with butane not only is an extraction method but also converts the resulting cannabis into a sticky, resinous material.
This is unlike the CO2 extraction method discussed earlier. When you use CO2, you usually end up with a liquid cannabinoid material. When you use butane, you almost immediately end up with cannabinoid wax.
You will be able to identify cannabis wax by its pliable nature. When you hold it in your hand, it will be sticky and somewhat moldable. However, some waxes may be a bit more brittle, especially if someone has left them to dry out.
On the other hand, if cannabis wax picks up moisture, it may become especially sticky. Cannabis shatter is very different because it is always hard and very brittle. Cannabis shatter gets its name because it will shatter into pieces if you drop it or handle it too hard.
Shatter is not pliable like wax and will likely break apart if you try to squeeze or mold it. Because it is more fragile than wax, you should store it in a safe place when you’re not using it. Otherwise, it might pick up moisture or dry out even more which could ruin its quality.
Wrapping it in parchment paper is often enough to keep it safe. But how would you use cannabis shatter in the first place?
How to Use Cannabis Shatter the Right Way
One of the many benefits of using shatter is that it is quite versatile. As long as you know how to handle it, you can bring your shatter with you just about anywhere. However, you will have to know how to use it, otherwise, you might up frustrated.
The most common way people use cannabis shatter is by smoking it. You might wonder how you could smoke such a hard and crumbly material like shatter. However, it’s easier than you might expect and all you need is a bit of heat.
This does not mean you can break up your shatter and roll it into a joint. Instead, you will need a hot surface or a vessel. Some people prefer to use rigs while others may prefer hot surfaces called bangers.
Whatever the case, the goal is to heat the cannabis shatter until it is no longer in its brittle state but instead becomes a thick resin. The fumes that come off of this resin will then be available to smoke. However, keep in mind that the vapors that come from the resin are not actually smoke.
Instead, the vapors are mainly steam. For that reason, many find that using cannabis shatter in this way may be healthier for the lungs, especially if you have respiratory problems. If you want to consume shatter in an easier way, you are free to mix it with cannabis flower.
This method is much easier, but you might not get such an intense high because you are not consuming pure shatter. Many people like to sprinkle some shatter among some cannabis flower before rolling it into a joint or piling it into a pipe. You might also add shatter to some foods, as long as you cook them at high temperatures.
Everything You Need to Know About the World of Cannabis Shatter
Cannabis shatter is unique in the world of cannabis because of its form. Instead of being a bud or an oil, shatter is a hard and brittle material that reminds many of glass or rock candy. Shatter is the result of a special cannabinoid extraction process that involves butane instead of carbon dioxide.
Because of its hard form, you will need to heat shatter until it becomes a resin in order to use it. You will then be able to inhale the fumes. To learn more, check out the lifestyle section on our website.
