Which Strains Am I Working With?

Quality should be the ultimate goal when pressing flower rosin. Without quality cannabis flower, quality rosin isn’t possible. Seeking the most worthy cultivars for the job is a great first step to getting started. See the list of best strains for pressing rosin here.  

Even with everything else dialed in, if you’re not working with great plant genetics, your rosin will be lacking. Don’t limit yourself to the list of best strains for rosin, but be open to experimentation and keep in mind the things to look for in a quality flower for pressing rosin: heavy trichome production and pronounced terpene profile. The buds should smack you in the face with a powerful aroma!

Read more in our article How To Find The Best Flowers for Pressing Rosin.

Bear in mind that within the same cultivar, or cannabis strain, many phenotypes can exist. Experimentation with the strain is beneficial. To learn more about phenotypes and how to conduct a phenohunt to find the best genetics for rosin, check out this article. 

How Much Flower Do I Have?

Knowing how much flower you plan to press will help you determine what type of press and what size of rosin plates you need to work with. If you’re only pressing a few grams of flower here and there, a hair straightener will be enough to get you started and familiar with the process. Learn more about pressing with a hair straightener here.

If you’re growing your own cannabis and have access to several ounces of flower at a time, building your own H-Frame press and purchasing quality rosin plates will probably be the most effective approach. 

Do you need to grow your own cannabis to press rosin? Absolutely not! But it can be beneficial. Learn more here.

One of the first things to decide is which type of press you’ll use for rosin extraction. How much source material you plan to process will dictate what type of press you should use. 

It’s not feasible to press pounds of flower with a hair straightener (but it has definitely been done!) and likewise you don’t need a 20-ton press if you’re just squishing a few grams here and there for personal use. 

After you determine how much source material you’ll have and the amount of flowers you’ll be pressing on a regular basis, it’s time to come up with your rosin press set up. 

What Kind of Rosin Press Should I Buy?

When you’re just getting started pressing flower rosin, a great option is to build your own press. You can use an H-frame hydraulic press in combination with a set of rosin plates and be good to go. This homemade approach is not only cost-effective, but it gives you the chance to customize your setup to best fit your situation. Learn how to build your own rosin press here.

What Other Equipment Do I Need?

So far we’ve reviewed plant genetics, considered the amount of cannabis flower you’ll be pressing, and which type of rosin press best matches your expected rosin production volume. Let’s look at the list of additional equipment you’ll need. 

Rosin Bags - filter bags that hold the cannabis flower and keep unwanted plant material, lipids, and other contaminants from mixing with the final product. Filter bags also help maintain consistent pressure on the source material during extraction, thereby increasing rosin yields. 90, 120, and even 160 micron bags are good for pressing flower rosin. 

Parchment Paper - parchment paper is used to catch the fresh rosin immediately after it’s extracted through the filter bag. Use a sheet of parchment paper folded in half and place the rosin bag in between the layers (silicone-coated side facing the rosin bag). Parchment paper allows for easy rosin collection after extraction and keeps rosin from staining your rosin plates. Find quality parchment paper here. 

To see the full list of equipment needed to press rosin, check out our full article on What Equipment You Need To Press Rosin.

Flower Rosin Extraction Process Overview

1. Choose correct micron rosin bag
   
2. Load the rosin bag with flowers
   
3. Pre-press the material
   
4. Load the rosin bag into the press
   
5. Preheat material
   
6. Begin applying pressure and slowly increase pressure until max PSI
7. Collect rosin from parchment paper
   
8. Place in mason jar for curing
   

Microns measure the fineness of the screen filters that comprise rosin bags. Higher microns (like 160) have larger gaps in the filter screen, while the lower microns (like 15) have very tiny holes. For flower rosin, we want to use rosin bags in the 90-160 micron range. 

It’s a good idea to experiment with a few different micron sizes for each strain you’re pressing, as the optimal micron may be different for various strains. It’s also a matter of personal preference, so trying a few different micron sizes will help you find your ideal size. 

Read more about microns and how to select the right micron here.

Loading The Rosin Bag

After you’ve chosen the size micron bag you’re using (and ensure the seams are on the inside of the bag), lightly break apart the cannabis flowers, removing the main stems. The buds should be handled carefully to keep trichomes from breaking off before they make it into the bag. No need to grind the flowers, just breaking apart into small chunks that you can pack into the bag is fine.

The most important thing to remember when packing the rosin bag with cannabis flowers is to eliminate any air gaps and empty spaces in between pieces of cannabis material. Ensure the bottom corners are filled in with cannabis and that cannabis is packed evenly along the sides and bottom of the bag.

Empty pockets within the flower will reabsorb rosin as it’s being extracted, thus decreasing total yield. Evenly and firmly packing the flowers within the rosin bag will prevent this. 

Read more about how to pack rosin bags here.

Read more about why it's important to use a pre-press mold here.

Loading The Rosin Bag onto The Press 

Now that the rosin bag is loaded with material and pre-pressed, it’s time to begin the extraction. Make sure your rosin plates are set to the correct temperature (more on temperature and pressure below). You can heat up the plates at the beginning of the process as you’re getting started with preparing the rosin bags, to give it a chance to reach the proper temperature. 

Fold a piece of parchment paper in half and place the bag in the middle, between the two sides. Slip the folded parchment and rosin bag horizontally in between the plates and lower the plates so they’re just touching the top and bottom of the rosin bag. 

You can also use the Bottle Tech Method and load the rosin bag vertically, which helps control pressure during extraction. Read more about Bottle Tech here.

Preheat 

With the heated plates barely touching the bag, let the material preheat for 30 seconds. The idea is to let the plant resins begin to melt and prime the oils for their flow away from the material once full pressure is applied. 

Extraction 

Now it’s time to apply the full pressure. After preheating for 30 seconds, gradually increase pressure, reaching a maximum PSI toward the end of the press. It’s very important to gradually ramp up to full pressure, which helps maintain a steady flow of rosin throughout the press. If full pressure is applied all at once, there’s a higher risk of rosin bag blowouts and a reduction in the even flow of rosin. 

The total duration of the press should be in the 90-120 second range, but you can continue to press as long as you notice rosin still flowing from the filter bag and onto the parchment.  

The optimal temperature range for pressing flower rosin is around 180-220 degrees Fahrenheit. Lower temperatures have a tendency to yield rosin with a more batter-like consistency, while higher temps can produce rosin with a shattery consistency.  

When pressing flower rosin, it’s important not to measure pressure by the gauge on your hydraulic rosin press, which is just the reading of the internal pressure created within the hydraulic system. The pressure we’re interested in is the Platen PSI, which is the amount of pressure being applied to the source material. You can learn how to calculate Platen PSI here.   

Aim for Platen PSI in the range of 1000-2000 PSI.

The right balance of heat and temperature is critical in achieving the highest quality rosin. As a rule of thumb, higher temps will facilitate higher yields, but at the expense of quality as additional terpenes are vaporized away which can negatively impact flavor.  

Additionally, more pressure can produce heavier yields, but at the expense of quality in the form of extra plant material ending up in the rosin. As pressure increases, more of the fats, waxes, and lipids produced by the cannabis plant will be forced away from the source material and flow through your bag into the rosin. 

At the end of the day, your rosin is your creation, and you have the freedom to experiment with all the variables discussed above to find the settings that work best for you and your favorite strains.  

Curious about what to expect for yields? See this article which breaks down yields for different source material, including flower. 

Carefully peel the rosin bag away from the parchment paper (keep it aside, you can use it later), and use a rosin stamp to collect the rosin from the parchment paper. Then, place the fresh rosin in a sealed jar for storing and curing.

How To Cure Rosin 

Use the Jar Tech Method to cure rosin. Learn more about Jar Tech here. Jar Tech involves either cold or warm curing conditions. Learn about cold curing vs warm curing here.

Best Ways To Use Rosin 

Once the rosin is cured you can dab it, or find other ways to use your rosin. Here are some ideas about how you can use your rosin. 

Want to reuse the pressed rosin bags, or rosin chips? Find out how to use the spent rosin bags and material in this article. 

Congratulations! 

You’ve navigated the rosin extraction process and you’ve got some homemade flower rosin to enjoy. We hope this guide has been helpful in starting you off in the right direction. There’s so much more to learn and innovation with new ideas is one of the most exciting things about the solventless extraction space.  

Remember to try to keep it simple. Complexity is the enemy of execution. Remain open-minded, experiment, and take notes as you progress and get more presses under your belt. By collecting data for each press, you can refer to previous results and accelerate your learnings as you adjust variables in the process. This article helps with taking notes and collecting data.  

Need help getting started? Let us know in the comments.

Press on!

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Do you need to use a pre press mold for rosin?
To get the highest rosin yield from your cannabis material, rosin pre press molds can be helpful in compacting and priming the cannabis for optimum rosin flow. Rosin pre press molds are an efficient and easy way to ensure the cannabis material is properly packed into the bag without any gaps or spaces between the material and sides of the rosin bag.

How much pressure do you need to press rosin?
The pressure needed to extract rosin depends on the cannabis source material being pressed. Flower requires 1000-2000 PSI while bubble hash can be extracted with as little as 500 PSI (pressure applied to the rosin bag, not as a reading of the internal pressure of the press). Pressure applied to the rosin bag is referred to as Platen PSI.

Should you heat your pre press mold?
Yes, slightly heating a pre-press mold can be effective in preparing source material for extraction. Place one side of your pre press mold on top of the lower rosin plate on your press. Heat until it's warm to the touch, then pre press the source material for around 30 seconds. 

Where can I buy a rosin press?
Rosin presses can be purchased online as preassembled solutions delivered to the home, or made from equipment gathered locally or online. DIY presses give extractors more freedom to design a setup that's ideal for their needs, and are a cost effective contribution to an in-home extraction lab. Read how to build your own in our guide on DIY rosin presses. 

Is buying a rosin press worth it?
Yes, buying a rosin press is worth it. Even if you only purchase a $100 hair straightener, the economics and convenience of being able to produce your own rosin at home normally makes sense for rosin enthusiasts. Buying your own press gives you the flexibility to experiment with creating and curing rosin in a variety of ways.