Hot Pressing vs Cold Pressing Rosin
🇺🇸 Retired veteran, father, rock-climbing expert & rosin connoisseur
Adjusting rosin plates to optimal temperatures allows rosin extractors to achieve high yields while maintaining exceptional quality. Due to the variety of variables in pressing rosin, there is no exact formula for temperatures to use during rosin extraction. However, temperature ranges provide great guidelines when first getting to know how a certain source material will squish.
Within normal ranges of pressing, cold pressing refers to pressing with temperatures on the lower side, while hot pressing is pressing with temperatures at the higher, hotter end of the spectrum.
Temperature Ranges for Hot Pressing vs Cold Pressing
Flower
Cold Pressing: 180-200
Hot Pressing: 200-220
Bubble Hash
Cold Pressing: 140-170
Hot Pressing: 170-200
Dry Sift
Cold Pressing: 140-170
Hot Pressing: 170-200
By aiming for either the cold end or the hot end of the temperature ranges, we can impact the quality of our rosin in different ways.
How is Rosin Affected by Heat?
The amount of heat used during extraction impacts the consistency, color, terpene content, and flavor of rosin. Cold Pressing and Hot Pressing affects those qualities in different ways.
Consistency
Lower temperatures used during extraction tend to produce more of a buddery texture. High temperatures are more likely to produce a shatter, or taffy effect in consistency. Low temperature plus high pressure can be used to make THC-A diamonds.
Consistency can be adjusted after extraction throughout the curing process as well, using either a cold curing or warm curing process.
Color
Lower temperatures are more conducive to lighter color, while higher temperatures can lead to darker color.
Terpenes
Terpenes are relatively volatile and therefore lower temperatures optimize for terpene preservation. Higher temps are more likely to cause terpene loss during extraction.
Taste
Because lower temps can preserve more terpenes, this generally leads to better tasting rosin. High temps cause greater terpene loss, which has a negative effect on flavor.
Yield
Lower temperatures are great for optimizing for flavor and consistency, but higher temperatures can help increase yield.
Conclusion
We’ve considered the type of cannabis source material as the main factor in determining the amount of heat to use in extraction. However, the age of the source material, amount of moisture content, and the cultivar (strain) are all variables that impact how much heat is best for rosin extraction.
Identifying a range and experimenting within that range is key to dialing in the right extraction inputs, including heat.
Heat makes solventless extraction possible. Understanding the ripple effects of adjusting temperature, and how those changes work in combination with pressure, is one of the most interesting things to discover in the world of rosin.
Gaining extraction experience will lead to a better feel for the dynamics between pressure and temperature.
Keep pressing!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is hot pressing rosin?
Hot pressing rosin refers to pressing starting material at temperatures on the higher end of the spectrum. The recommended temperatures are different depending on the type of material you're pressing (flower, dry sift, or bubble hash). Hot pressing for flower is 200-220 degrees. Hot pressing for dry sift is 170-200 degrees. Hot pressing for bubble hash is 170-200 degrees.
What is cold pressing rosin?
Cold pressing rosin refers to pressing starting material at temperatures on the lower end of the spectrum. The recommended temperatures are different depending on the type of material you're pressing (flower, dry sift, or bubble hash). Cold pressing for flower is 180-200 degrees. Cold pressing for dry sift is 140-170 degrees. Cold pressing for bubble hash is 140-170 degrees.
What is better hot pressing or cold pressing rosin?
Cold pressing can give you better quality with less contamination, while hot pressing can give better yield but potentially compromise quality.
How can you verify the temperature of rosin press plates?
Using an infrared thermometer (digital laser gun) aimed at your plates is a great way to verify temperature accuracy. Put a piece of tape on the side of the press plate and aim the laser at the tape for the best readings. If you don't aim at the tape, the shiny aluminum of the plates will diffuse the infrared light and lead to inaccurate readings.
What variables of rosin are impacted by extraction temperature adjustments?
Some of the variables in rosin that are impacted by extraction temperature include consistency, color, terpene content (which impacts taste, flavor, and effect), and yield.
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