How To Clean Your Grinder

Like any piece of high quality equipment you invest in, if you want to get the most bang for your buck out of your cannabis accessories, it’s important to maintain them over time.

And while a grinder may be one of the more low maintenance pieces in your collection, keeping it clean is an important step - a clean, well maintained weed grinder will not only function better, it can last a lifetime if you treat it properly.

Getting Better Grinds

One of the reasons that we take the time to grind our weed is to separate the trichomes from the rest of the flower.  While it may seem like a trivial detail to a novice, the experienced smoker knows that these valuable little crystals pack a ton of THC.

But they also pack a ton of stickiness.  Because those precious trichomes that produce all that THC goodness are also responsible for the resin that builds up in your grinder.  

And over time, that resin can jam up your gear and make it a lot harder to use.

Health & Safety

While you certainly don’t have to be as meticulous (and frequent) about cleaning a weed grinder as you do a bong, you should definitely give it a good scrub every once in a while.

Remember, weed is a plant, and plants are living things.  

All that residue on your grinder after you use it?   Well, over a long enough period of time, mold and bacteria can start to build up on it.  

Not what you want to be grinding up into your next bowl.

Preparing Your Grinder

The first thing you’re going to want to do is take your grinder apart into its separate parts and put them in the freezer (yes, the freezer).  

That may sound like kind of a weird step, but it’s an important one.  The freezing process will actually cause any sticky material to harden and make it a whole lot easier to remove.

After about 30-60 minutes, you can start cleaning.  Here’s what you’ll need to get the job done:

• A toothbrush
• Some kind of metal pick (dab tool, screwdriver, etc.)
• A tray or plate
• A bowl
• Isopropyl alcohol (aka “rubbing alcohol”)

Removing Your Kief

First, you’ll want to get all that extra weed and kief that’s been building up between the teeth and around the sides of your grinder.  Simper take your metal pick and gently start scraping it off and onto your tray.

After you’ve done that, the next step is to do the same thing with your screen.  However, since this is the most fragile piece, we’re going to use a toothbrush instead of a pick.  Gently (key word) go over the screen, brushing all of that sweet kief onto your tray.

Finally, take the bottom kief collector, empty it onto the tray and store it all for future use (no sense throwing away perfectly good weed).

Cleaning Your Grinder

For the actual cleaning part of the operation, simply place all the pieces of your grinder in a bowl with your alcohol.  Using your dedicated toothbrush, go through and scrub each piece until it’s nice and shiny.

Once you’re done, take all the pieces out, let them dry and reassemble.  

Congratulations -you’re back in business!  Feel free to grind away with your freshly cleaned piece.  

And if you do happen to be in the market for a new unit, be sure to check out our full selection of traditional and toothless grinders and other cannabis accessories.