Ask Cheri

What Can I Do About Sediment in Cannabutter and Cannaoil? 

By Cheri Sicard
February 17, 2021

Dear Cheri,

This is my first year making cannabis oil (MCT coconut oil). I strained with cheesecloth but I have a sediment in the bottle bottom...it does mix when shaking. Is this just debris...chlorophyl...or trichomes?  What can I do about sediment in cannabutter and cannaoil?

By the way, thanks to one of your videos , I re-infused one batch of oil that was not strong enough. I was contemplating tossing it but now it’s WOW strong.

Thanks again and am looking forward to your reply/video.

Sediment in cannabutter and cannoil is common when making cannabis infusions.  

It's ugly, but it does not hurt anything, although it might add a bit more unwanted flavor of weed.

 Sediment in marijuana butter or cannabis oil is mostly tiny bits of plant material.  One of the things you can do to avoid it is to NOT finely grind the decarbed plant material before making the infusion.

To get rid of sediment in cannabis infusions, I like to use a small yogurt strainer which is far finer than most cheesecloth.  I don't see one exactly like I have (I have had it forever it looks like a small flat bottomed funnel with mesh sides) but one like in the photo below should also work.

Using a yogurt strainer will get all or nearly all of the ugly sediment out of your marijuana infusions. 

yogurt strainer ofr removing sedimnet in marijuana butter or oil

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About the author

Cheri Sicard is the author of Mary Jane: The Complete Marijuana Handbook for Women, and The Easy Cannabis Cookbook.  Her online courses at Cannademy.com have educated 1000s of students about marijuana, cannabis cooking for home cooks, and making infused topicals.

  • Plz help. I mAde gummies using wax. After they set in the molds the top is bright red and the bottom is whitish… What is causing this?

  • Hi Cheri,
    I read that I can re-use the cannabis in my electronic vape after I’m done. It’s quite brown but the article said to “wash” it, dry it, and then I can cook with it as there is still THC in it. True?

    • You can yes, you may or may not want to. (As to washing it no, don’t do that you wash off what little good stuff is left, definitely don’t do that).

      The majority of the trichomes, and likewise the cannabinoids, are removed when you vaporize marijuana or when you use a kief screen or dry ice to remove kief (you’ll find a separate lesson on how to do this).

      Nonetheless, the semi-brown toasty tasting plant material left after vaporizing still has some trichomes and cannabinoids left behind. So does the plant material left in the sifter bag after making dry ice kief. Naturally both are less potent so you would need to use much, much more to make a potent batch of marijuana butter or oil but it can be done.

      Personally I don’t bother making edibles with vaped or kiefed cannabis. But then I am fortunate enough to have easy access to great cooking material anytime. If money and access to plant material is a big issue for you, try using this material to make a batch of butter or oil and see what you think of the results. Like everything else with cannabis, everyone reacts differently.

  • Hello, and thanks for sharing your knowledge of Cannabis preparation. I have read many comments on the oily, messy task of straining an infused oil. I use an MB machine. I myself hated this part of it, not only getting slimy, but I felt I was wasting finish product. Now I let the oil settle in the MB machine for a few hours. I then, carefully of the top, with a large syringe, suck the oil up in the syringe and push it into a mason jar. I continue this until almost all the oil is out. (Get to risky at the bottom to suck up sediment) Next, I scoop the little bit of remaining oil and sediment “mud” into a different mason jar. This accumulation from many batches made through the day will fully settle, then you suck up the oil on top and it goes into your primo jar.
    There is hardly a mess, no cheese cloth squeezing and hardly any wasted product.
    Why have I not seen this technique mentioned anywhere?

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