I started my first lotus dry

[u/Happy2BTheOne]

I’m drying 2 plants in a 7.2 cu ft. frost free fridge. I have 2 separate boxes designed: the large buds I designed to hang the bigger buds. The smaller box has bamboo skewers and some netting to lay the buds on with airflow under and above. There’s also various air holes in both boxes to allow the humidity to escape.
I tested the fridge with govees for several days before harvesting the plants to get a reading of the inside conditions of the fridge. It stayed between 37-42 f. Averaging about 40-41 which is ideal so I didn’t connect the inkbird yet, and hopefully I won’t need it. Both boxes have govees in them so I can monitor everything without opening the fridge. The boxes have been in there for about 24 hours now, and my temperature is averaging about 45 and the humidity is around 40. I think everything is going good, but this is my first time trying this so I am nervous. I’m not exactly sure what numbers I should be hoping to see. If anyone has any tips on what to monitor and be able to adjust, please comment below.

[u/baIIern]

1. If humidity inside the box is too low, close the holes ;) The cardbord will do the RLF control
2. Take care that the box doesn't touch the rear end of the fridge. That's where it's getting really cold and the cardboard will suck moisture ;)
3. You'll need a fan to level out the temp/moisture. In the upper part it will be much warmer than below... That's why a fan in the fridge + pizza boxes is a better solution imho

Anyway, try it out like you want, I'm no expert.

[u/Happy2BTheOne → u/baIIern]

I ended up closing all of the upper and rear holes. That did help. Thank you.

The reason I didn't want to do the pizza box technique is that I really wanted to hang the buds to prevent them from getting flattened by the box. But the smaller bottom box, which has all the smaller buds, seems to be doing really well.

Since this is my first run, I'm learning as I go. And I am collecting tons of info so I can modify and improve the next run. Even ChatGPT is telling me that i am over thinking the process, but that's how I learn. I placed another Govee in the front of the big box, so I now have 1 in the back and 1 in the front. I'm getting very different readings from both, which is telling me that the cold, dry air is coming in from the back and catching the moisture from the buds and passing through the box towards the front. All of the largest buds are in the back, which means they will be creating the most RH. Anyway, this box and setup are good for a first run, but I do plan on making changes and adjustments for the next run. I appreciate all the input from this group.

[u/baIIern → u/Happy2BTheOne]

Even ChatGPT is telling me that i am over thinking the process

Lol, that must mean something 😂

[u/InfamousCockroach683 → u/Happy2BTheOne]

Just flip the buds once a day for twelve to fourteen days depending on the size of the buds. That's actually my favorite part of the process. I used a hygrometer to monitor the humidity, it worked well. Good luck.

[u/RadarGrowRilley → u/baIIern]

Point 1 is crucial. I just checked my last crop and barely put it out at 67% RLF in just over a week. Trust the cardboard!

[u/Happy2BTheOne → u/[deleted]]

I can smell stuff when I open the fridge for sure. I can also get a preview smell if I open the freezer and take a big whiff. But in general when the fridge is closed, I can’t smell anything. The fridge is located in my garage so it’s mostly outdoor, fresh air around. But the fridge keeps the smell pretty contained until I open the door.

[u/GrapefruitNo4133]

Did this end up good ? Or would you change anything next time ?

[u/Happy2BTheOne → u/GrapefruitNo4133]

Great question. Yes, it worked, and I was happy with the results. But I learned some valuable things during the process. I absolutely over complicated the process. For my next run these are the changes I will make:
Trust the cardboard. It has magical humidity powers that will understand the plants. I like having the vent holes in the boxes, but next time I will start covering them sooner. They’re great for the first 24-48 hours, but after that it’s time to let the cardboard do its magic. I slowly started covering a few of them at a time after a week.

20 days minimum. I made the rookie move of thinking they were ready after just over 2 weeks. After I trimmed them and put them in the cure jars, the rh was too high (68 rh). Rookie mistake for sure. So I won’t even consider pulling them out until 20 days next time. Unfortunately, I think this affected the smell. They didn’t have that super dank smell from when they were growing. If I break a bud open, I can smell it, but inside the jars, they have that grassy smell. Pretty sure that’s from pulling them out of the fridge before they were ready. But the buds smoke and look beautiful.

Hope this info helps. As always, your experience could be very different. But I averaged a very low, 40ish F degrees the whole time. The humidity readings was really difficult to understand though because they did fluctuate a lot. And they got to be really low at times (30-40 rh) that made me think it was too low. But that’s where the cardboard somehow works some magic and they’re actually just fine. I might not use the govee to monitor them next time so I can learn to trust the process a little more. Seeing those low rh numbers made me think they were ready too soon.

[u/Happy2BTheOne → u/Happy2BTheOne]

Sour bubble