We often talk about the various effects of cannabis and the research surrounding its use. But there’s another important consideration that everyone who has cannabis in their homes should concern themselves with— storing cannabis.
There are two main things to keep in mind when it comes to storing cannabis. The first, of course, is safety. It’s crucial to keep cannabis products away from children. The second is maintaining the quality and freshness of the product. After all, you’re counting on it to maintaining its potency and usefulness. Storing it properly can help ensure it remains good for as long as possible.
Storing Cannabis Away from Children
While you may keep your over-the-counter medications in your medicine cabinet, if you have children in your home, this isn’t a safe location for your cannabis meds.
To protect against accidental ingestion, make sure to store your cannabis where it’s out of reach to youngsters. A small lockbox or another type of enclosed box can be placed on a high shelf to ensure little ones can’t access anything they shouldn’t.
While children generally know not to take things like capsules, tinctures, and vape cartridges can look pretty interesting, and you don’t want a young detective investigating.
Storing Cannabis Away From These Elements
The second thing to keep in mind is maintaining the effectiveness of your cannabis. Depending on the type of cannabis products you’re storing, you’ll want to keep your medicine away from the following elements.
Heat
While heat transforms THCa into THC during the decarboxylation process, it’s not something your cannabis medicine should be subjected to. Heat can cause vape cartridges, oils, tinctures, and flower to lose potency and cause soft gels and other capsules to lose their shape or degrade.
Humidity
Humidity can cause mold or mildew to grow on flower and can soften the coating on soft gels and other capsules.
Light
Just like light can make olive oil go bad sooner by causing it to degrade faster, it can also shorten the lifespan of your cannabis meds, particularly flower, vapes, tinctures, and oils.
Storing Cannabis Medicines to Protect their Potency
Flower
Flower is best stored in glass or metal containers. This can help contain the aroma while blocking out any humidity. Metal containers have the added benefit of blocking out light. Keep your flower in a dark, dry spot—i.e., not the bathroom. The kitchen, which can sometimes get hotter when you’re cooking, also isn’t the best spot. Skip plastic baggies, and if possible, plastic altogether. The plastic can take on the aroma of your flower rather than reduce it, and it provides a poor shield against the elements.
Vape Cartridges
Store vape cartridges upright. If you keep your original packaging, you can easily store your cartridges upright in a small box. Keep your vape cartridges in a dark spot and away from heat.
Tinctures & Oils
Most tinctures come in dark glass or plastic containers. Some oils, on the other hand, come in clear containers or syringes. Store your tinctures and oils upright in a manner that reduces the amount of light they come in contact with, and keep them away from heat.
Capsules and Soft Gels
If you don’t have kids, keeping your capsules and soft gels with your other medications should be fine. If your medications come in a see-through container, consider placing them in a dark spot.
Storing Cannabis: Accessibility
While we’ve mentioned keeping cannabis out of reach and stored in containers, another consideration is whether you are able to access it when needed. If you have trouble twisting open jars because of arthritis, for instance, it may be best to find secure, flip-top jars so that you can comfortably access your medicine.
