Is Anyone Using Oco Labs' Superc Co2 Extraction Machine For Cannabis?

  • Thread starter CannaOilGirl
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skaterdude

skaterdude

25
3
My prototype is working! Here's the first full run profile as displayed on the web interface. Note that I have no affiliation with OCO Labs. The title was just to identify the page.

1589070820751
 
M

Mak

11
3
Hi Everyone,

I recently noticed that the wires to the pressure sensor were severed. I disconnected the wires but forgot to take a picture of the wiring, and now I'm not sure which wire goes where in the plug for the sensor😅. I contacted GEMS sensors, but they couldn't help me since the plug is not part of their items.

Any help would be appreciated :)

I uploaded a couple of pictures to show what I'm talking about

Thanks,

Mak
 
WhatsApp Image 2021 05 06 at 120145 PM
WhatsApp Image 2021 05 06 at 120145 PM 1
pj1613

pj1613

2
1
Out of curiosity how loud is this unit when motor is running? Thanks

@CannaOilGirl

 
OjoDeMalo

OjoDeMalo

65
18
Hi Everyone,

I recently noticed that the wires to the pressure sensor were severed. I disconnected the wires but forgot to take a picture of the wiring, and now I'm not sure which wire goes where in the plug for the sensor😅. I contacted GEMS sensors, but they couldn't help me since the plug is not part of their items.

Any help would be appreciated :)

I uploaded a couple of pictures to show what I'm talking about

Thanks,

Mak
 
M

Mak

11
3
OCO labs is no longer in business so if you posted this link for my aid, unfortunately, I cant use it. I need someone to tell me which wire goes where or take picture of their sensor connection and share it. Thanks in advance!
 
Willyweed

Willyweed

2
1
Oco labs is still in business, I ordered parts Tuesday 1-18-22 and received them the next day Wednesday 1-19-22. It did take them a bit to respond to my original email.
Mak if you still need a pic I will post one for you.
 
Garbage_bear

Garbage_bear

394
93
Oh I am so happy that they are back in business! My 3k machine will no longer be a paper weight! The only thing that concerns me is the blast tube is aluminum. I have heard that long term exposure to aluminum will cause dementia.
 
techno_mech

techno_mech

3
3
I gotta post a big thank you to @CannaOilGirl for starting this thread several years ago. Because of this forum, and specifically this post I have learned so much, and have taken the plunge into making my own co2 oil!! I'm so very excited!

Also, being a bit of a DIY scientist and a little on a budget, I decided to go the route of the F10 Shoebox, and purchase the extra parts like the chamber body from OCO labs. I've still got a few components to get together to run co2 into the shoebox, and test to make sure it works as expected. It does appear that the creator of shoebox compressor is a man named Tom Kaye, who is also behind OCO labs, he is a PhD in physics or astrophysics or something like that.

I have been in touch with OCO labs, and ordered some parts. I look forward to updating with my results.
 
C

CannaOilGirl

33
18
Hiya everybody, I've been laying low for far too long. There was a lot to take care of elsewhere, but I thought I'd poke my head up and let you all know what I've learned. I started this thread when I got my machine because I didn't know what I was doing and I hoped someone else would.... so, you are welcome techno_mech, but I was doing it to try for a shortcut.

First, all of my experiments really only proved that I was doing something wrong, but I didn't have enough information to figure it out. During the pandemic, I dug in and got some answers. It also helped that I live in a place where I can finally grow enough to run many experiments with the same bud, from the same plant.

Tl;Dr If you read my posts from earlier in this thread, forget all you know. Follow the directions that came with the machine. Ignore my experiments and results. Changing pressure, once supercritical, causes plant lipids (fat tissue) to break free and "pollute" the oil. If you want more explanation, keep reading.

Information came to my attention (either it's newly available, or I finally got the right search) about what happens to the biomass under supercritical conditions. When I was setting it to 2300psi and running for a while, I was loosening-up the fats so when I later set it to 3000psi, I started getting oils and fats at the out. One must pick a pressure (above 1800psi when the CO2 becomes liquefied) and stay there for the whole process. Don't change it.

I don't know if running at 3200psi gets all of the cannabinoids, or only the THC. I suspect it gets them all and someday I plan to pay for some more testing, but seeing up and running my garden took enough cash that I'm just going to enjoy clean, clear oil for a while.

I've also done more experiments about runtimes and oil result. I'm loading the machine with about 34g of biomass that I'm estimating has about 20% cannabinoids. My spreadsheet suggests I should run it for 5 hours to get about 7.6g of oil.

But CannaOilGirl, you are probably thinking, the machine needs to be lubricated every 2 hours. How can you run it for 5 hours? Here is what I do:
1 hour - 45C, 1500psi Terpenes
Stop the machine, release the pressure, put the tube in the oven,
heat the machine to 60C, change the tank, if you want
1 hour - 60C, 3100psi Cannabinoids
Stop the machine, close the valve, keep the pressure there and lubricate
2 hour - 60C, 3100psi Cannabinoids
Stop the machine, close the valve, keep the pressure and lubricate
2 hour - 60C,3100psi Cannabinoids

I did that and I got 7.92g of delicious oil.

You might've noticed that I'm not using exactly what is recommended for pressure. The recommended pressure is 3200psi and that is a fine pressure. I used it a few times, but I found that 3100psi is working better for this grow. The only difference I noticed is that the oil had more of a slight jelly consistency at 3200psi. It might be the plant, it might be my gauge, it might just be my preference. You should try 3200 and see what you think.

The trick is... pick a pressure and stay there.

One last thing I now have the definitive answer for (I think... for right now) that I'd like to share. To convert THCA to THC, the biomass must be heated to remove the H2O from the THCA. After the oil is extracted, it's too late. The THCA stays bonded to the biomass during extraction so decarboxylating the oil is meaningless. The biomass needs to be decarbed before extraction of the cannabinoids. It will not come with the CO2.

I think I've covered everything I've picked up so far. I hope everyone is having a great week!
 
techno_mech

techno_mech

3
3
Hiya everybody, I've been laying low for far too long. There was a lot to take care of elsewhere, but I thought I'd poke my head up and let you all know what I've learned. I started this thread when I got my machine because I didn't know what I was doing and I hoped someone else would.... so, you are welcome techno_mech, but I was doing it to try for a shortcut.

First, all of my experiments really only proved that I was doing something wrong, but I didn't have enough information to figure it out. During the pandemic, I dug in and got some answers. It also helped that I live in a place where I can finally grow enough to run many experiments with the same bud, from the same plant.

Tl;Dr If you read my posts from earlier in this thread, forget all you know. Follow the directions that came with the machine. Ignore my experiments and results. Changing pressure, once supercritical, causes plant lipids (fat tissue) to break free and "pollute" the oil. If you want more explanation, keep reading.

Information came to my attention (either it's newly available, or I finally got the right search) about what happens to the biomass under supercritical conditions. When I was setting it to 2300psi and running for a while, I was loosening-up the fats so when I later set it to 3000psi, I started getting oils and fats at the out. One must pick a pressure (above 1800psi when the CO2 becomes liquefied) and stay there for the whole process. Don't change it.

I don't know if running at 3200psi gets all of the cannabinoids, or only the THC. I suspect it gets them all and someday I plan to pay for some more testing, but seeing up and running my garden took enough cash that I'm just going to enjoy clean, clear oil for a while.

I've also done more experiments about runtimes and oil result. I'm loading the machine with about 34g of biomass that I'm estimating has about 20% cannabinoids. My spreadsheet suggests I should run it for 5 hours to get about 7.6g of oil.

But CannaOilGirl, you are probably thinking, the machine needs to be lubricated every 2 hours. How can you run it for 5 hours? Here is what I do:
1 hour - 45C, 1500psi Terpenes
Stop the machine, release the pressure, put the tube in the oven,
heat the machine to 60C, change the tank, if you want
1 hour - 60C, 3100psi Cannabinoids
Stop the machine, close the valve, keep the pressure there and lubricate
2 hour - 60C, 3100psi Cannabinoids
Stop the machine, close the valve, keep the pressure and lubricate
2 hour - 60C,3100psi Cannabinoids

I did that and I got 7.92g of delicious oil.

You might've noticed that I'm not using exactly what is recommended for pressure. The recommended pressure is 3200psi and that is a fine pressure. I used it a few times, but I found that 3100psi is working better for this grow. The only difference I noticed is that the oil had more of a slight jelly consistency at 3200psi. It might be the plant, it might be my gauge, it might just be my preference. You should try 3200 and see what you think.

The trick is... pick a pressure and stay there.

One last thing I now have the definitive answer for (I think... for right now) that I'd like to share. To convert THCA to THC, the biomass must be heated to remove the H2O from the THCA. After the oil is extracted, it's too late. The THCA stays bonded to the biomass during extraction so decarboxylating the oil is meaningless. The biomass needs to be decarbed before extraction of the cannabinoids. It will not come with the CO2.

I think I've covered everything I've picked up so far. I hope everyone is having a great week!
@CannaOilGirl This is golden information. Thank you for the update! I too had read/watched that it was better to decarboxylze (Heat the biomass up in the oven to decarb prior to co2 extraction) Interesting that you are doing a terpene run prior to decarbing, that's good info. Also 7.92 grams of oil from 34 grams of biomass!!!!! Wow that's wonderful!

Once this process is complete do you re-introduce your terpenes into your oil? All of them, or just to test via experimental tasting?
 
C

CannaOilGirl

33
18
@CannaOilGirl Once this process is complete do you re-introduce your terpenes into your oil? All of them, or just to test via experimental tasting?
Hi! I never separate the terpenes from the collection vessel. I just connect up the vessel and run the machine through its stages.

My process has gotten stupidly simple and I'm producing the most magnificent oils. I am no longer using the inline heating elements (around the collection tube), but I am using a small beaker for collection and it sits in a Bain-Marie. I probably don't even need that, but the oil collects better against warm glass than a colder one, so I use it. The collection tube has stopped freezing over, now that I've stopped messing with the pressures.

The moisture in the biomass impedes the extraction, so I try to let my plant material dry out completely (I put it in a bowl and cover it with a flattened coffee filter on top, to keep dust from settling, for a few days -- it dries out to the air's humidity, and that's about 10% RH around here). I grind it, load the machine, I set the controls for terpenes (45x1500), and let it run for an hour. The beaker collects a small amount of terpenes during the run (usually it's less than 0.1ml). If I took them out, I'd be afraid they'd disappear, so the oil just fills in on top of it.

After the first hour, I turn up the temperature to 60C and wait 30 minutes to be sure it's mostly temp-stable, but I don't touch the collection vessel. It stays connected, just waiting for something else to come down the tube (including any slow-to-drop terpenes). When everything is ready, I start pulling cannabinoids for the next hour. Then I stop the machine, but I leave the pressure up and the heater on while I lubricate for another 2 hour run. I repeat this until I get close to the time I expect to be done (usually somewhere between 4 and 6 hours -- I get a more "precise" estimate when I know the weight and percentage) whereupon I start looking at the size and frequency of the droplets coming off the tube into the collection vessel. During early running, drops are rather large and come at a rate of about one every 30-45 seconds. As there is less and less cannabinoids to pull, the size and rate will be reduced. Near the end, it's normal to see small drops (a little less than about half the size of the earlier largest drops) coming longer than one minute between them. At that point, I decide whether I've had enough, the machine has had enough, and more importantly, if the plant has given enough. If it has little more to give after all of that, then I shut it down and declare victory over the dispensaries, again.

As an aside, I gave my already-been-extracted and discarded biomass to some friends. They just had to know if there was anything left at all in it, after I was done. It looked like I was committing an awful act by stripping only what I wanted and carelessly throwing the rest aside. I gave them the discard from a run and they were so excited. They packed a bowl and lit it up, describing smoking it as being very much like smoking cardboard. There was nothing in the smoke but combusted matter. You knew you were smoking something, but it had absolutely no affect going down or exhaling. There wasn't even a hint of cannabis. Nothing.

I'm going to tease you with some photos. Take care!

This one is of my setup while I'm preparing the biomass for the tube. I grind it up, weigh it, fill the machine, and weigh it again to determine how much went into the tube (scale, not shown).
20220115 215555

This one is of my collection chamber, still in the Bain-Marie (the heating element is the red platter at the top-right). This was pulled at 60C and 3100psi for 4.5 hours. There was 5.73g of oil extracted.

20211225 163811

Here is the collection vessel from the side, so you can see how clear it is "that way" too.
20211225 163901
 
techno_mech

techno_mech

3
3
First time... please don't hate too hard on the ghetto setup. It's functional!! Currently running the first 2 hour cycle of @CannaOilGirl 's recipe.

Today I set it all up and got it running. I ran it for about an hour and a half to clear out any residual oils... but I'm thinking I may have to scrap this batch and completely take apart the F10 Shoebox and clean all the parts to just be sure there is no old oil from airsoft or something. Although... from what I understand people use these things to charge up scuba tanks... so maybe it's good to go. If you anybody has any insight, I'd love to hear it. Thanks Y'all!!
 
IMG 3212
Garbage_bear

Garbage_bear

394
93
Anyone looking to buy one of these at a steep discount? I’ll sell mine for $1000.00.
 
HigherVedic

HigherVedic

5
3
Hello everyone. I'm glad to have stumbled on this thread. I've been working with the Super C for almost 6 months now and in that time I've ran over 80 batches so far. I'm grateful for the info shared here, and I'd also be glad to share anything I have learned so far. At the moment, I have a leak at the bottom of the Gauge Block, or Chamber Block as it's sometimes called, which the manual suggests to contact OCO about but I have yet to hear back. I removed the block and there appears to be a small pin that has loosened from it's countersink, with some debris that appears similar to pieces of dried glue. Can the pin simply be glued back into place, or does the Gauge Block itself need to be replaced?
 
Photo 2022 08 12 11 00 33
HigherVedic

HigherVedic

5
3
Already got a reply from OCO, and it's just an o-ring! Looking forward to be back up and running soon.
 
Block5
HigherVedic

HigherVedic

5
3
First time... please don't hate too hard on the ghetto setup. It's functional!! Currently running the first 2 hour cycle of @CannaOilGirl 's recipe.

Today I set it all up and got it running. I ran it for about an hour and a half to clear out any residual oils... but I'm thinking I may have to scrap this batch and completely take apart the F10 Shoebox and clean all the parts to just be sure there is no old oil from airsoft or something. Although... from what I understand people use these things to charge up scuba tanks... so maybe it's good to go. If you anybody has any insight, I'd love to hear it. Thanks Y'all!!
 
You did it crazy son of a bitch meme jurassic park
pj1613

pj1613

2
1
Is anyone interested in a better controller for the automatic pressure controller? I've been working on one that controls pressure. temperature, and the motor all in one device. It's not an easy plug-n-play replacement because some wires are soldered in and the thermal sensors and heatling elements are wired into the PID controller(s). However, I'm using a microcontroller that has WiFi, so it can report the current status of the system. I've set it up so you program in the full sequence, eliminating the need to change the temp and pressure settings each time you want to step to a new pressure / temp setting.

Right now, that temp / pressure / time profile is programmed into the prototype and you can't change it (unless you know how to use Arduino IDE). So it would perform the same run every time.

I don't know how many of these systems are out there with the AutoPilot add-on and how many people are actively using them. If there were enough interest, I'd consider designing a custom device and maybe upgrading the WiFi interface to allow remote programming from a web page. The custom devicecould also be designed to use other pressure sensors and parts to replace the ones no longer available through OCO Labs.

Thoughts? How much would you be willing to pay for something like this, recognizing that you would have to do some re-wiring yourself, or send it to me to be re-wired at additional cost.
Hey Skater, you still have the code/arsuino project for the Oco Labs extraction machine by chance? Interested. Thx, Pete
 
W

williaminlondon

1
1
A great post... if I was a bit younger I might consider playing with one of these, although for now I'll bely on someone else's expertise. One question I have is what the CO2 oil tastes like without the terpenes being r-introduced? In the 70s we got stuff called honey oil. I'm not sure how it was made but it was a honey colored and same consistency, but was potent as hell and perfectly clear, although yellow/gold. It had a unique taste and we usually smoked it out of an oil pipe...looks a lot like a modern meth pipe. Anyhow, the oil had a unique taste, which is very similar to BHO or alcohol extracts. All of the CO2 oils that I've tried were either flavored (Ugh!) or had terps re-introduced... sometimes with a Pine-Sol effect, depending on what was pumped back in. I just wondered what unflavored, straight CO2 oil tasted like? Would it taste like the Honey Oil of days past?
Hello
I’m new to this group but recently purchased a Super C but sadly not getting results like on their how 2 video.
Any advice ?
 

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