Hash, or hashish, is one of the oldest forms of cannabis concentrate which is made by separating the trichomes from the plant material and forming eventually into a solid consistency like round solid pieces, a slab, or a brick. One of the easiest types of hash to make at home is called bubble hash or ice water hash and is a great way to use up any leftover trim, shake, or smaller buds from your crop. Just like growing and trimming buds for quality smoke, you want to be sure to use quality plant material free from any type of disease or pathogens and make sure you can see the trichomes on the plant material.

How to Make Bubble Hash at Home

Making bubble hash is essentially agitating and sifting the cannabis through ice water so that the trichomes freeze and break off as they are sifted through a series of fine mesh screens. It can help to pre-chill the cannabis in a Ziploc bag in a freezer overnight to start with already frozen material.

Materials needed to make bubble Hash include:

• A set of four or eight 5-gallon ice water hash bags (something like these Bubble Bags should work great) *be careful putting stalks and stems in the bubble bags, as the small amount of trichomes available on stems is not worth damaging your bags with a hole or tear.
• 25-micron filter cloths for collecting and drying
• Two or three 5-gallon buckets
• A large pole or wooden spoon to stir and agitate the ice water mixture
• A stiff card or a butter knife to collect hash from the bags
• About 7 ounces of cannabis flower
• Ice

Instructions for Making Hash

1. Prepare your bucket – line a bucket with a bag of the highest number of microns, which is the largest size of filter.
2. Fill the bucket/bag – place ice in the bottom third of the bucket, then place frozen cannabis material on top, and top off with cold water. Wait for about 15 to 30 minutes for the cannabis to get cold and rehydrate, which causes the trichomes to easily break off.
3. Stir – agitate the mixture by stirring continuously but not too vigorously to not over agitate or pulverize the plant material.
4. Drain – let the agitated trichomes fall to the bottom of the bag for about 10 minutes, then lift the bag and let the water run out in the bucket. Set it aside in an empty 5-gallon bucket while you prepare your next bucket.
5. Line the next bucket – using the rest of your filter bags, line the next bucket with the smallest, finest filter on the bottom, and the largest on top, in order.
6. Fill the bucket – pour the water into the bucket lined with the rest of the bags and allow the resin glands to settle. The water should be a golden hue; if it is green, the mixture was over-agitated.
7. Drain – once settled, lift the top bag to allow the water to flow through each bag. Pull up and remove each bag as the ice-water mixture flows into the next bag through the mesh. *some hash makers collect hash from bags close to the end (if using 8 bags, you can collect hash from the 6th or 7th bag, it should still be good, just not quite as refined)
8. Scrape – when you get to the finest mesh of the last bag, scrape the wet hash on the 25-micron filter cloth for drying and let dry for 2 to 3 hours.
9. Shape – you can then shape the hash into balls or patties and let dry for another 1 to 2 days before consuming.

Make sure the hash is dried in a cool, dark place to prevent mold growth and degradation. If stored correctly, Hash can have a long shelf life. One of the most important rules to remember when making hash is to start with quality flower material and remember quality plants come from quality cannabis seeds.

The Seed Cellar is one of the largest online seed banks and one of the few that offers a brick-and-mortar storefront in Michigan. Active with the cannabis movement and Michigan, the Seed Cellar staff offers extensive knowledge and helpful assistance to choose the best cannabis seeds for you. Check out the many varieties of regular, feminized, and autoflower Cannabis seeds online at The Seed Cellar.