official extraction help thread

[psilocybin]

Any questions or problems you may run into during an extraction can be asked to get other members input in this thread.

 

[Loveall]

Hello folks, hope you have a wonderful day.

I'm attempting my first extraction (STB. Based on this:

) and after reading that I could substitute Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) with Calcium Hydroxide Ca(OH)2 in this I tried that, since Sodium Hydroxide is kind of hard to get where I live.

However I seemingly can't manage to get the PH high enough for the color change to occur. My sludge stays grey with an ever so slightly green tint, instead of the expected black. Is this epected due to the Calcium? The PH strips I have are not super clear in the extreme PH ranges, but it looks like it's in PH 12+. I'm just not sure if it's above the required 12.5 to break down the plant structure.

Can someone who is more experienced and knowledgable in the teks tell me what's wrong? Is it impossible to do with Ca(OH)2? Did I ruin my batch? Can I salvage it somehow?

Any help would be greatly appreciated and

Yes, it should work. However, I think your bark needs to be ground very fine in STB lime to get max yield since lime won't break up the bark as well as lye.

Check out the TEKs on the site. Several use lime. One has a picture of a gray lime paste in the TEK.

 

[thebid2]

Posting for awareness (and help if possible)

Klean Strip Painter's Solvent not seperating in extraction phase.

NYC Home Depot stopped carrying VM&P Naptha. I found out yesterday when I bought the closest thing they replaced it with: Klean Strip Painter's Solvent (Which says on the front - replacement for VM&P Naptha). I had a bad feeling about this.

24 hours after adding it to my MHRB for a 2nd pull, there's zero seperation. I open the lid and it reeks like solvent. For the smarties out there, can I salvedge it? For everyone (!) - do not use Klean Strip Painter's Solvent in your extraction phase


This is the Product - Painter's Solvent SCAQMD - Klean Strip
This is the MSDS - https://www.mtlaney.com/wp-content/...rip-Painters-Solvent-for-SCAQMD-W.M.-Barr.pdf

 

[Toshido]

Posting for awareness (and help if possible)

Klean Strip Painter's Solvent not seperating in extraction phase.

NYC Home Depot stopped carrying VM&P Naptha. I found out yesterday when I bought the closest thing they replaced it with: Klean Strip Painter's Solvent (Which says on the front - replacement for VM&P Naptha). I had a bad feeling about this.

24 hours after adding it to my MHRB for a 2nd pull, there's zero seperation. I open the lid and it reeks like solvent. For the smarties out there, can I salvedge it? For everyone (!) - do not use Klean Strip Painter's Solvent in your extraction phase


This is the Product - Painter's Solvent SCAQMD - Klean Strip
This is the MSDS - https://www.mtlaney.com/wp-content/...rip-Painters-Solvent-for-SCAQMD-W.M.-Barr.pdf

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I think you just wasted your MHRB. Maybe a chemical expert can speak to it. Maybe once you do get a hold of some naptha or heptane you could transfer it to the non polar solvent but I have no way of knowing.

Painter's Solvent is nothing but Acetone, Methyl Acetate and Petroleum, the latter being the only non polar solvent and judging from the MSDS contributes to only 5 percent of the volume.

Did you not look at the MSDS before buying? Did you even do an evaporation test?

I can't get VM and P Naphtha in my state either, but you can get it off of Amazon. You could always drive to PA and go to an Ace Hardware, they carry it and that's where I went. They also carry MEK Substitute (Ethyl Acetate) for mescaline extraction if you ever give the CIELO tek a try.

 

[thebid2]

Thank you for your response. I did get 1 pull first! And I'll pick up some naptha to try for a 2nd pull after the Klean Strip dissolved in so there's some answers on this.

Posting for awareness (and help if possible)

Klean Strip Painter's Solvent not seperating in extraction phase.

NYC Home Depot stopped carrying VM&P Naptha. I found out yesterday when I bought the closest thing they replaced it with: Klean Strip Painter's Solvent (Which says on the front - replacement for VM&P Naptha). I had a bad feeling about this.

24 hours after adding it to my MHRB for a 2nd pull, there's zero seperation. I open the lid and it reeks like solvent. For the smarties out there, can I salvedge it? For everyone (!) - do not use Klean Strip Painter's Solvent in your extraction phase


This is the Product - Painter's Solvent SCAQMD - Klean Strip
This is the MSDS - https://www.mtlaney.com/wp-content/...rip-Painters-Solvent-for-SCAQMD-W.M.-Barr.pdf

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but I think you just wasted your MHRB. Maybe a chemical expert can speak to it. Maybe once you do get a hold of some naptha or heptane you could transfer it to the non polar solvent but I have no way of knowing.

Painter's Solvent is nothing but Acetone, Methyl Acetate and Petroleum, the latter being the only non polar solvent and judging from the MSDS contributes to only 5 percent of the volume.

Did you not look at the MSDS before buying? Did you even do an evaporation test?

I can't get VM and P Naphtha in my state either, but you can get it off of Amazon. You could always drive to PA and go to an Ace Hardware, they carry it and that's where I went. They also carry MEK Substitute (Ethyl Acetate) for mescaline extraction if you ever give the CIELO tek a try.

 

[Toshido]

Still... do an evaporation test. You don't want to be smoking any xtals that have solvent on them, assuming they're even capable of drying completely or resolving at all.

Get some actual naphtha or heptane, or other non polar solvents like xylene or toulene, or better yet something that smells nice like D-Limonene, and start over from scratch.

 

[Superfungi]

Hello everyone. So I just did Cybs' Hybrid ATB 'Salt' Tek and followed it to the letter. The glass dishes are in the freezer now. I opened up my fridge this morning and smelled naptha. Does this always happen and is it going to affect the food in my fridge? As in, does the food absorb the smell and taste or will this go away when I pull the dishes out. Thanks!

 

[Superfungi]

Hello everyone. So I just did Cybs' Hybrid ATB 'Salt' Tek and followed it to the letter. The glass dishes are in the freezer now. I opened up my fridge this morning and smelled naptha. Does this always happen and is it going to affect the food in my fridge? As in, does the food absorb the smell and taste or will this go away when I pull the dishes out. Thanks!

Update: I have decided to throw all the food away (I live alone so not a disaster). Unplugged the fridge and leaving doors open because the smell was substantial. I read somewhere that pyrex dishes with lids work to isolate the smell. I also read that the freezer not getting cold enough could play a part. For those using the freezer for this step how do you control the smell? Thanks.

 

[Voidmatrix]

Hello everyone. So I just did Cybs' Hybrid ATB 'Salt' Tek and followed it to the letter. The glass dishes are in the freezer now. I opened up my fridge this morning and smelled naptha. Does this always happen and is it going to affect the food in my fridge? As in, does the food absorb the smell and taste or will this go away when I pull the dishes out. Thanks!

Update: I have decided to throw all the food away (I live alone so not a disaster). Unplugged the fridge and leaving doors open because the smell was substantial. I read somewhere that pyrex dishes with lids work to isolate the smell. I also read that the freezer not getting cold enough could play a part. For those using the freezer for this step how do you control the smell? Thanks.

Keep following your plan of action.

Yes, it's likely that your freezer wasn't cold enough, and as the solvent evaporated, gaseous volume transitioned to your fridge.

Air it out, then use soap and water (if I'm not mistaken) should clear out the smell and residue.

Ventilate your home well and keep your pets away until complete.

In the future, it may be best to use a Pyrex dish with a lid.

One love

 

[redriderruss]

i can't get any crystals to form all i get is some floating and then when i pour of the fuel they turn to goo also i live in a humid area so the minute i pull it out of the freezer condensation forms and it's hard to keep it out of the mix i feel like i'm following the directions to the tee but i can't get anything like the plate full of crystals

 

[Voidmatrix]

i can't get any crystals to form all i get is some floating and then when i pour of the fuel they turn to goo also i live in a humid area so the minute i pull it out of the freezer condensation forms and it's hard to keep it out of the mix i feel like i'm following the directions to the tee but i can't get anything like the plate full of crystals

You'll need a reverse saturation where the DMT saturates the solvent. Allow more to evaporate then place back in th freezer.

One love

 

[utopia]

Hello friends, Swim did their first A/B extraction from 250g of Mimosa. Freeze precip the first 4 pulls for 48h and got a gorgeous and unbelievable amount of 5g of white crystals! Amazed, thwy decided to try to puff a tad before recrystallize it, but nothing much happened to them. Could that be because the dose was too small even tho the volume looked right? They didn't weight the dose but it seemed big enough for a trip. It smells and looks like dmt.
They are going to recrystallize it now anyway; do they have to expect a major difference in the volume and the weight of the yield? is the baking soda wash necessary even if the crystals are white and beautiful? thanks

 

[Voidmatrix]

Hello friends, Swim did their first A/B extraction from 250g of Mimosa. Freeze precip the first 4 pulls for 48h and got a gorgeous and unbelievable amount of 5g of white crystals! Amazed, thwy decided to try to puff a tad before recrystallize it, but nothing much happened to them. Could that be because the dose was too small even tho the volume looked right? They didn't weight the dose but it seemed big enough for a trip. It smells and looks like dmt.
They are going to recrystallize it now anyway; do they have to expect a major difference in the volume and the weight of the yield? is the baking soda wash necessary even if the crystals are white and beautiful? thanks

This thread will give you some insight as to why you should always weigh your dose. Density can be different depending on polymer.

One love

 

[utopia]

Hello friends, Swim did their first A/B extraction from 250g of Mimosa. Freeze precip the first 4 pulls for 48h and got a gorgeous and unbelievable amount of 5g of white crystals! Amazed, thwy decided to try to puff a tad before recrystallize it, but nothing much happened to them. Could that be because the dose was too small even tho the volume looked right? They didn't weight the dose but it seemed big enough for a trip. It smells and looks like dmt.
They are going to recrystallize it now anyway; do they have to expect a major difference in the volume and the weight of the yield? is the baking soda wash necessary even if the crystals are white and beautiful? thanks

This thread will give you some insight as to why you should always weigh your dose. Density can be different depending on polymer.

One love

Make sense, thank you! WIll a recrystallization produce denser yield?

 

[Voidmatrix]

Hello friends, Swim did their first A/B extraction from 250g of Mimosa. Freeze precip the first 4 pulls for 48h and got a gorgeous and unbelievable amount of 5g of white crystals! Amazed, thwy decided to try to puff a tad before recrystallize it, but nothing much happened to them. Could that be because the dose was too small even tho the volume looked right? They didn't weight the dose but it seemed big enough for a trip. It smells and looks like dmt.
They are going to recrystallize it now anyway; do they have to expect a major difference in the volume and the weight of the yield? is the baking soda wash necessary even if the crystals are white and beautiful? thanks

This thread will give you some insight as to why you should always weigh your dose. Density can be different depending on polymer.

One love

Make sense, thank you! WIll a recrystallization produce denser yield?

You lose some material each time you re-x.

Later I'll find some threads that detail how to produce bigger xtals (I'm working)

One love

 

[downwardsfromzero]

Hello everyone. So I just did Cybs' Hybrid ATB 'Salt' Tek and followed it to the letter. The glass dishes are in the freezer now. I opened up my fridge this morning and smelled naptha. Does this always happen and is it going to affect the food in my fridge? As in, does the food absorb the smell and taste or will this go away when I pull the dishes out. Thanks!

Update: I have decided to throw all the food away (I live alone so not a disaster). Unplugged the fridge and leaving doors open because the smell was substantial. I read somewhere that pyrex dishes with lids work to isolate the smell. I also read that the freezer not getting cold enough could play a part. For those using the freezer for this step how do you control the smell? Thanks.

Keep following your plan of action.

Yes, it's likely that your freezer wasn't cold enough, and as the solvent evaporated, gaseous volume transitioned to your fridge.

Air it out, then use soap and water (if I'm not mistaken) should clear out the smell and residue.

Ventilate your home well and keep your pets away until complete.

In the future, it may be best to use a Pyrex dish with a lid.

One love

Even a freezer at -22C will get vapor contamination if the solvent container isn't completely vapor-tight. In my case it was butyl acetate, so everything ended up tasting of bananas. Some solvents, including - as I found out - butyl acetate, will diffuse through plastic lids in significant amounts even at quite low temperatures. Sealed glass containers are the best option if you're not using either a dedicated chemistry freezer or odorless naphtha/heptane.

 

[tylerkitchens10gmail.com]

Hello all,

First time poster long time lurker…
I did my first extraction a couple of weeks ago and while I thought it went well and ended up with some nice white spice nothing happened when I loaded it up in the dab rig.

Background: I went with lex tek, chacruna. The only issue I ran into was at the end. I added too much base on the last extraction. I didn’t realize that I needed to let the sodium hydroxide mix better when taking the readings and I ended up putting too much base.
But the final naptha pull seemed to look as it should and extracted the milky liquid. Let it evaporate and then freeze.
It looked as though it was crystallized at the end. Scraped it all together for right at 3.5gs of white fish scale looking spice.

But after a week or so I loaded 20mgs or in dab rig and surprisingly it did not melt or evaporate. It just stayed in its same white form. Tried again this time with more heat and fresh scoop but same thing. It doesn’t melt away or burn at all. Just ambers a little.

I’m using a typical dab rig with quartz banger

Admittedly I have never successfully smoked spice in my life. Only a few aya experiences. So it’s possible I’m not doing something correct on that end. But seems more likely that I screwed something up on the extraction.

Thanks in advance

 

[Explorer2023]

Hello all,

First time poster long time lurker…
I did my first extraction a couple of weeks ago and while I thought it went well and ended up with some nice white spice nothing happened when I loaded it up in the dab rig.

Background: I went with lex tek, chacruna. The only issue I ran into was at the end. I added too much base on the last extraction. I didn’t realize that I needed to let the sodium hydroxide mix better when taking the readings and I ended up putting too much base.
But the final naptha pull seemed to look as it should and extracted the milky liquid. Let it evaporate and then freeze.
It looked as though it was crystallized at the end. Scraped it all together for right at 3.5gs of white fish scale looking spice.

But after a week or so I loaded 20mgs or in dab rig and surprisingly it did not melt or evaporate. It just stayed in its same white form. Tried again this time with more heat and fresh scoop but same thing. It doesn’t melt away or burn at all. Just ambers a little.

I’m using a typical dab rig with quartz banger

Admittedly I have never successfully smoked spice in my life. Only a few aya experiences. So it’s possible I’m not doing something correct on that end. But seems more likely that I screwed something up on the extraction.

Thanks in advance

Seems like your smoking sodium hydroxide.

I've experimented with extractions in the past and yes indeed the non ploar solvent pulls the alkaline base. Legit I thought it was happening, so I made a liquid lye only solution and pulled it out with the solvent. The solvent went milky and after freezing was left with flaky white sodium hydroxide crystals.

 

[downwardsfromzero]

Hello all,

First time poster long time lurker…
I did my first extraction a couple of weeks ago and while I thought it went well and ended up with some nice white spice nothing happened when I loaded it up in the dab rig.

Background: I went with lex tek, chacruna. The only issue I ran into was at the end. I added too much base on the last extraction. I didn’t realize that I needed to let the sodium hydroxide mix better when taking the readings and I ended up putting too much base.
But the final naptha pull seemed to look as it should and extracted the milky liquid. Let it evaporate and then freeze.
It looked as though it was crystallized at the end. Scraped it all together for right at 3.5gs of white fish scale looking spice.

But after a week or so I loaded 20mgs or in dab rig and surprisingly it did not melt or evaporate. It just stayed in its same white form. Tried again this time with more heat and fresh scoop but same thing. It doesn’t melt away or burn at all. Just ambers a little.

I’m using a typical dab rig with quartz banger

Admittedly I have never successfully smoked spice in my life. Only a few aya experiences. So it’s possible I’m not doing something correct on that end. But seems more likely that I screwed something up on the extraction.

Thanks in advance

Seems like your smoking sodium hydroxide.

I've experimented with extractions in the past and yes indeed the non ploar solvent pulls the alkaline base. Legit I thought it was happening, so I made a liquid lye only solution and pulled it out with the solvent. The solvent went milky and after freezing was left with flaky white sodium hydroxide crystals.

If not sodium hydroxide, in the case of chacruna it might possibly be soap, i.e. sodium salts of fatty acids.

Explorer2023 - it would be great if you could make a new thread specifically about your experiment since this appears to
be a novel and relevant observation.

 

[downwardsfromzero]

Hi everyone !
A a small update about my last post. After some talk with nice members on the chat, we assume that the white stuff was CaCl2 leftover. So i just filtered it, and go on with the end of the HIELO tek.

I ended with a nice "honey", but i was sceptical about the quantity... i ended up with 3.9g (and started with 50g of MHRB), a yield of 7.8%, sounds huge... so i'm affraid i messed up something, and ended with other chems in the "honey"
Do you have any insight on what could have ended up in there?
all the separation steps was quite easy, i have a separatory funnel

Also, another question about "washing" the solvent, i'm not sure i understood well with my translation ; but if i have 600ml of solvent to wash, i should use 200ml of water with 20g of sodium carbonate. did i understood it well?

Thanks for your answer and insight

Going back a while here, but if you're still out there somewhere, Emb, be aware that your apparent yield is not that of freebase - it's a citrate containing water and possibly excess citric acid, so the yield is/was more like half what you reckoned it to be. In this type of situation it would make sense to turn the honey oil back into freebase, pull it back into a solvent and either recover the freebase to get an absolute yield or repeat the HIELO precipitation. If you were to make freebase, it would be relatively simple to convert it back into citrate honey and either isolate that in order to check the conversion ratios, or follow n00b4life's method (OK, in fairness, additionally we have - of course - Loveall deserving credit here) for turning fb directly into honey vape juice.

PS your solvent-washing calculation looks fine btw.

 

[CheeseCat]

Hello everyone! I have a quick question with regard to Acacia floribunda extraction... today I evaporated my final vinegar pulls from D-Limonene (steam bath). Initially the vinegar smelt of D-Limonene and was pleasant however now that the vinegar has evaporated down to a goo the smell has become quite unpleasant. Is this change in smell normal? Any need to be concerned? It's definitely an unusual smell that repels me a bit. I plan to convert to freebase next, following BLAB tek step 6.