The popularity of CBD or Cannabidiol is no more the news. CBD is being used in everything, from vape juices to topical and dermatological products, to drinks and massage oils.
A lot of people have come forward with testimonies of the amazing effects of CBD, especially in treating symptoms of anxiety, epilepsy, depression, insomnia and a lot of other ailments.
The underlying question here is how is CBD oil made and how to make CBD oil at home? Let’s address these two questions one by one. To start with, I will brief you on how exactly is CBD extracted. Once you know the process, making CBD oil at home would be a piece of cake. Read on to know more;
How is CBD Oil Made?
There are numerous steps that you have to follow in order to extract CBD oil from the hemp plant.
Step 1 is the selection of the plant. Needless to say, the first step in making CBD oil is selecting a plant that is naturally high on CBD. Most extractors prefer a hemp strain that has little to no THC and very high content of CBD.
There are hybrid plants and strains developed especially for the purpose of CBD extraction. Remember, the process to remove THC from the extraction is highly costly, so you have to ensure that the hemp plant you are using for extraction is high on CBD with very less THC content.
Plants with low levels of THC (less than 0.3%) are legally available and are not considered marijuana (which is illegal, duh!) but simply, hemp. Now let’s take a look at how to make CBD oil using the oil extraction method;
How to make CBD oil using the Oil Method of Extraction?
Once you have selected your strain and taken out the highest quality buds, stems and leaves from the hemp plant, ensure that you put the raw cannabis through the process of decarboxylation.
Decarboxylation can be done easily through a microwave oven. All you need to do is bake the plant at a temperature of approximately 220 degree Fahrenheit for up to 100 minutes.
In simpler terms, decarboxylation process refers to simply heating the plant at the given temperature for a given time period to activate the different chemicals of the plant.
Ground up the herb in uniform size and mix it with the carrier oil of your choice in a mason jar or any other glass utensil of your choice. Remember, you have to saturate the weed with the carrier oil. The quantity of the oil can be adjusted depending on the potency level you desire for your end product.
Once you have achieved your desired saturation, it is now time to bring the oil and weed mixture to a boil. Screw the Mason jar shut air tight so that there’s no seepage of water or steam into the oil mixture.
To bring the weed and oil to a boil first place a towel on the bottom of a pan, place the mason jar on top of that and fill the pan with water and heat till it reaches a temperature of at least 200 degree Fahrenheit (use a thermometer to determine the actual temperature) (accuracy is the key to extracting the perfect product, or in this case, making CBD oil).
Simmer the oil and weed mixture for three hours and then turn off. Ensure that the water is there in the pan and not evaporated. After three hours let the oil and weed mixture sit for another three hours.
Heat the mixture again for three hours and let it sit for overnight. Your CBD will be ready for use the next morning. You can strain the mixture through cheesecloth and store it in a cool and dark place.
See, making CBD oil is easy; all it needs is precision and a little patience. Now that we have covered making CBD oil with the oil method, let’s take a look at how to make CBD oil through the alcohol extraction method.
How to make CBD oil using the Alcohol Method of Extraction?
Making CBD oil through the alcohol extraction method is preferred by beginners or those who are looking to make CBD oil at home because of the ease of process. You don’t require any advance extraction equipment, making it perfect for home based CBD oil extraction.
This process is also called making CBD oil through ethanol extraction method. Let’s take a look at how it is done in a step by step method;
Place your finely grounded herbs in a glass or ceramic bowl and cover it with alcohol. Mix or stir the mixture for about 6-7 minutes and use a wooden spoon to separate the resin that is produced as a result of this process.
Use a straining bag or a sieve in the bowl to filter out the solvent. Squeeze out as much extract as possible from the herb, repeat the squeezing process to get the maximum output.
Use a double boiler and pour the extracted oil in it. Heat the oil until you see bubbles coming out of it. The motive of doing this is to evaporate the alcohol without raising the temperature of the mixture.
Wait till the oil simmers for duration of thirty minutes in a low flame. Once you are sure that the alcohol has evaporated completely, mix it and shut off the flame.
Once your extract has cooled down, transfer it in a storage jar with airtight lid and store in a cool and dark place.
As mentioned earlier, the quality of your CBD extract strictly depends on the type of Hemp strain you are using for the extraction. Make sure you select the highest quality strain that is high on CBD and contains less than 0.3% THC in order to make the process legal.
Alternatively, you can also buy pure CBD extracts, broad spectrum CBD, full spectrum CBD or other related CBD products like CBD edibles, CBD gummies, CBD creams and CBD vape juices from a reliable retailer or CBD wholesaler. Herb Heals!
