Temperature Control: The basics of taking a well-timed dab

By Ryan Najjar

With 7/10 Day rolling around, you & your stoner friends might be eyeing the concentrates at your local dispo harder than usual.

Outside the tempting deals you’ll find on dabs, wax pens, and the like, you might be enchanted by how their THC & terpene numbers are through the roof nowadays. We can imagine you want to feel every drop, and nailing the temperature you take your dabs at is the key. 

You might see one friend get their rig red hot & take their hit immediately after. In the same sesh, your other friend might wait some time to take their dab after heating it up. Another might load the wax in before starting up at all, waiting till after to heat the nail & take the hit. 

Here’s the kicker - all their methods are valid! One may outshine another in some way, but the other will have a factor that makes it a sure thing for someone else. It’s all up to personal preference, and we’re here to help you make the choice that fits your style. 

If you go for a high-temperature dab, you’ll be able to take it lighting quick, and it’ll hit hard. There’s a caveat, though. As you might know, cannabinoids & terpenes burn off if they hit a certain high temperature. If the dab is hot enough, a decent amount of the good stuff might burn off & fail to make it into your hit. It won’t all burn off, and you’ll still get plenty high, but it’s not very efficient. 

Low-temperature dabs, while taking a bit longer than their high-temp siblings, can give you more return on your investment. While you can run the risk of not getting the THC & terpenes hot enough to vaporize, you’ll avoid any chance of burning them off, so you’re more likely to experience more of every dab you take.

The process is similar at first, heating up the nail until it gets red, but low-temp dabs call for you to wait a bit before taking the hit. Personally, we recommend the 30-30 rule; heating for 30 seconds, and letting it rest for 30 seconds before hitting. 

The timing can depend on what type of nail you’re heating, though. If you’re using a thicker quartz nail, you might want to heat for 30 and wait for 45, while a ceramic nail might work best if heated for 45 seconds and left alone for another 45. A titanium nail will both heat quicker & hold heat longer, so a balance like 20-40 might work better in that instance.

As an alternative, you can also consider putting the dab in at first, then heating it up steadily until it vaporizes in the nail. If done right, this can be quicker than the usual low-temp method, and can even be done as quick as a high-temp dab. It takes time to get the method right, though, so try for yourself before doing it in a group smoke sesh. 

Whatever method you decide to go for, make sure you’re enjoying your concentrate responsibly! From all of us here at Unbalanced Hybrid, we hope you have a wonderful 7/10 Day.