5 tips to save your dried-out old weed

We’ve all been there; you feel like getting high, open the weed drawer, and what do you find? Nothing but old weed, many months past its prime.

Or perhaps you had some old weed, and rather than smoking it, bought new weed, and now the old stuff is even older.

Most cannabis users have an old stash of weed that’s well beyond its best years, and aren’t sure what to do with it. Wondering if your weed meets the criteria? There are a couple ways you can tell; old weed has fewer terpenes, as these are the first to break down. It will therefore have a weaker smell and flavor. Old weed also tends to be brittle to the touch, and will easily break down to a powder when handled.

Weed can be preserved by storing it in a cool, dry place in airtight glass jars—not plastic bags. But if you’re reading this article, it may be too late for your batch. Old weed is harsh, dry, and not super appealing to smoke (unless you’re a fan of coughing fits, that is).

Things may sound bleak, but even if your weed is ancient as Methuselah, you have options. Here are five tips for salvaging your aging weed.

1. SWITCH TO GLASS

Is your weed sitting in a dog-eared, balled-up plastic baggie? If you’re storing your cannabis in any kind of plastic container, switch it to a glass jar, stat. This will “staunch the bleeding” so to speak, by preserving any remaining moisture in your cannabis. If you want to prevent dry, desiccated weed in the future, take care to store your weed in glass every time.

The following tips will assume you’ve moved your weed to a glass jar.

2. USE THE PAPER TOWEL METHOD

Moisten a paper towel with lukewarm water and place it in a plastic baggie. Poke holes in the baggie, and place the whole business in another container with your weed. Make sure the container is big enough and your weed isn’t actually touching the wet paper towel, as this can cause mold.

After a few days, you’ll notice your weed getting some color back in its cheeks.

3. MOISTURIZE WITH FRUITS AND VEGGIES

This method is similar to the previous one, but will give your weed a tang of citrus along with the moisture. Peel an orange, and place the peel in the jar with the weed (feel free to eat the fruit itself!). This will bring your weed back to life, with some nice fruity energy. If you don’t like citrus, you can try this method with a apple or potato peels, or even a leaf of lettuce will work. The flavor from the fruit will help add a little “kick” that might be missing from the lost terpenes.

Again, make sure the weed isn’t touching any part of the fruit/lettuce that’s actually wet.

4. USE HUMIDITY CONTROL PACKETS

There are several companies that have the perfect solutions for situations like this. Humidity control packets are designed to keep new weed fresh, but they can also do much to revitalize old weed. Simply place a 62% humidity packet in with your old weed, and wait for a few days.

This method is a little more expensive than the previous ones, but it’ll eliminate the risk of mold, which is a plus.

5. GET MORE WEED

Getting new weed might sound like an abvious solution, but what we actually mean is that adding fresh weed to you old and stale weed might actually help. In the end, mixing the fresh weed with the old one before smoking it will make it taste better in any case.

A NOTE ON DRY WEED

Keep in mind that not all side effects of ageing in weed can be addressed by re-humidifying. Older weed has a different cannabinoid profile—much of the THCA has become CBNA, which converts to CBN upon combustion. CBN produces a heavier and more sedative high, and is likely to lock you to your couch. Like we mentioned before, many of the terpenes will also have broken down, which will influence the flavor and effects profile.

That being said, many users enjoy the distinct “weirdness” of a sleepy CBN high, and if you’re going to smoke old weed, it might as well be moist and smooth. Happy re-humidifying!