Can You Freeze Weed?

What if you’re going out of town, bought too much weed, grew too much, or simply don’t smoke that often? If this is a problem you’ve encountered, there’s good news — you can freeze your weed for long-term storage. The bad news is that it’s a little tricky. 

You should only freeze your weed when it’s absolutely necessary, as handling frozen weed can easily damage the precious trichomes responsible for the high you know and love. However, it can safely be done while preserving the cannabinoids. 

Keep reading to learn all about freezing your weed and how to do it correctly. 

Can You Freeze Weed?

Technically, you can freeze weed, but it’s not typically recommended. 

Cannabis can last up to a year when stored properly. Realistically, you probably won’t have cannabis lying around for any longer than that. 

But if you find yourself needing to freeze your cannabis, for whatever reason, it’s essential to do it correctly. Let’s go over the proper steps to follow to ensure it maintains its quality.

When to Freeze Your Weed

Freezing your weed is only recommended if you need to store it for over a year. Ideally, you would buy or grow an amount that doesn’t have to be stored for so long as its quality will diminish over time.

That being said, freezing your weed is the best way to store it if you’re looking to keep it good for an extended period of time, such as months or years, to come.

How to Freeze Your Weed

You need to understand the intricacies of how moisture, thawing, and handling your frozen weed all affect how successful your storage will be to achieve the best results. The considerations below are the most crucial elements of freezing. 

Moisture

Moisture is your biggest enemy when storing weed. You need to make sure your cannabis is completely dry before you freeze it, which is even more vital if it’s homegrown since you have to dry it yourself.

Seal your weed in an airtight bag — ideally vacuum sealed — when storing it in the freezer. You can get away with airtight jars, but you run the risk of condensation collecting on the inside of the jar.

Why is it so important to avoid moisture? Moisture easily leads to mold, and inhaling mold is a serious threat to health. As this study bluntly puts it: “Don’t mess with mold. If you can see or smell it — and especially if health problems are occurring — clean it out, throw it out, or get out.”

Mold is no joke, and you definitely don’t want to be lighting moldy weed on fire and inhaling the smoke. It’s just not safe!

Thawing

It’s important not to refreeze your weed after it thaws. You should only be taking out the amount you’re going to use and putting the rest back as quickly as possible.

If you want to preserve your weed, it’s important to avoid what this study describes as a “pathological breakdown [of the cannabis] due to the presence of moisture.” Thawing and re-freezing your weed is just asking for moisture, and we already know what a disaster moisture spells!

Handling

Frozen weed is very brittle. This will make the trichomes on the outside of your weed very fragile and cause them to fall off easily when handled. Be very gentle when handling frozen weed in order to preserve these delicate structures. 

The trichomes are the tiny white crystalline structures found on the outside of cannabis buds that are responsible for the psychoactive and medicinal properties of cannabis. It’s the trichomes — not the buds themselves — that produce the beloved effects of our favorite plant.

Cannabis farmers and handlers are very careful to preserve these trichomes as that’s where all the cannabinoids and terpenes live. You’d be wise to follow suit!

Final Thoughts

Freezing weed is an effective, albeit somewhat risky, option when you need to put your cannabis in long-term storage.

If you’re going to freeze your weed, make sure you do it properly so as not to collect moisture or damage the trichomes. Likewise, only thaw the amount you’re going to use because a cycle of thawing and re-freezing your weed is a recipe for disappointment.

Freezing weed shouldn’t be your standard storage method and should only be done when needed. If you need to freeze your weed, that’s fine. Just be sure to take your time and do it properly so you don’t end up ruining it and damaging a portion of your stash.