Herbert Gilbert secured the first-ever e-cig patent in 1965, but vapes didn’t go mainstream until 2003. Back then, you could only vaporize nicotine. But today, cannabis vapes are quite popular. So what’s the best temp to vape THC cartridges? 315°F (157°C) is ideal for pure THC but to fully enjoy your marijuana, you need to consider the entourage effect. Let’s dig into it!

What’s the Best Temp to Vape THC Cartridges?

The Science of Endocannabinoids

As we mentioned, early vapes were meant as cigarette substitutes so their emphasis was on nicotine. They originally used freebase nicotine though the industry later introduced nicotine salts. Both are forms of concentrated nicotine derived by processing tobacco-based nicotine in the lab. These early vapes had flavors like black mint to sweeten the sensation of vaping.

Today, vapes still have flavors, and some have removed the nicotine altogether. These are called nicotine-free vapes and are labeled as 0% nicotine. But the vape sector also developed cannabis vapes for marijuana. These weed pens can vaporize cannabis that’s packaged as oil, wax, dry herb, distillates, badder, scatter, budder, etc. The device depends on the weed type.

Weed cartridges aka cannabis carts vaporise weed oil. The carts can be disposable for single use or refillable. The marijuana is typically infused in carrier oils like palm, coconut, olive, soy, or vegetable glycerine (VG). These oils are all thicker than the propylene glycol (PG) that holds the flavor and nicotine in vape pens. That’s why weed pens have higher temperatures.

But why does weed work in the first place? It’s because our brains have natural neurons that attach and respond to cannabis molecules. They’re called CB1 and CB2 receptors, and they’re built for endocannabinoids – our body’s inborn version of cannabinoids. The ones inside our bodies influence aspects like mood, appetite, alertness, sleep patterns, and pain perception.

Cannabis Oil Vs Nicotine Vape Juice

The people who first used weed were inadvertently simulating the body’s natural response by introducing an external equivalent of an internal chemical. The difference is our bodies make very small doses so we barely notice. But when you inhale or ingest cannabinoids from plants then the effect ramps up. Smoking is the quickest delivery method, followed by vaporizing.

However, since weed oil has concentrated forms of cannabis, the weed vape hits your system faster and lasts longer, releasing fewer toxins than combusted or smoked marijuana. It’s also gentler on your lungs since it’s an aerosol rather than burnt material. Generally speaking, weed pens get hotter than e-juice pens, but the THC itself is released at a lower temperature.

Also, unlike the nicotine e-liquid or flavored e-juice in vape pens, weed oil might have fewer additives since it has no added sucralose or flavoring agents. The main issue with weed oil is the potency of the various cannabinoids and strains, so you still need to source it from a reliable supplier. You could brew your own, but that’s only as safe as your verified dry herb.

Earlier, we noted that the minimum setting to vaporize THC is 315°F or 157°C. In case you’re unfamiliar, THC is tetrahydrocannabinol, and it’s the psychoactive part of marijuana. This means it’s the component that gets you high, and some weed oils have as much as 90% THC. But weed has lots of other cannabinoids too. Outside of THC, the top ones are CBD and CBG.

The Best Temperature For Vaping Weed

CBD is cannabidiol and CBG is cannabigerol. While weed plants have hundreds of natural chemicals, CBG is ‘the mother’ that later breaks down into CBD and THC. Also, while many people use these terms interchangeably, technically speaking, cannabis refers to the whole plant while marijuana is mainly the THC part. But in everyday use, there’s little distinction.

People who use weed medicinally sometimes prefer CBD instead of THC. It offers all the benefits of weed i.e. it reduces pain, inflammation, and anxiety while increasing your appetite and enhancing sleep. But unlike THC, it doesn’t change your mental state or alter perception so it doesn’t get you high. On the other hand, some people prioritize the mind-expansion of THC.

Cannabinoid Initials	Cannabinoid Name	Vaping Temperature in Degrees Fahrenheit	Vaping Temperature in Degrees Celsius
CBG	Cannabigerol	126°F	52°C
THC	Tetrahydrocannabinol	315°F	157°C
CBD	Cannabidiol	356°F	180°C
CBN	Cannabinol	365°F	185°C

That said, for THC to fully absorb into your bloodstream, it needs a little CBD and CBG to help it along. That’s what we call the entourage effect. So as we explore the best temperature for THC carts, we have to consider the ideal heat levels for CBD and CBG as well. As a point of reference, THC vaporizes at 315°F (157 °C) while CBD is 320°F to 356°F (160°C to 180°C).

But due to the entourage effect, the best temp to vape THC cartridges is between 365°F and 401°F (185°C and 205°C). This is because the mind-altering part of weed needs higher temps while its calming parts prefer a lower heat setting, so this range offers the best of both. This range also accounts for the various strains with varying percentages of CBD, CBG, and THC.

The Entourage Effect in Weed

Let’s talk about that entourage effect we mentioned earlier. The various chemicals in weed interact to produce their full effect. That means CBD products will often have trace amounts of THC to make them metabolize effectively, but not enough to get you high. Similarly, a THC cart still needs some CBD to make it function. Terpenes are more about the experience.

In the same way that smell is a big part of tasting food, the terpenes or scent chemicals have a huge influence on how much you enjoy your weed. Some types of weed e.g. distillates lose a lot of their terpenes during extraction. Many weed professionals will add terpenes back in to compensate. And while THC carts rarely have added flavor, some strains have it built-in.

For example, fruity strains like mango, blueberry, or pineapple will have aromatic elements at their base. The same goes for floral strains of dry herb or bud, and these can be carried into the weed oil if it’s carefully infused to bring out the smell. Vaping temperature matters here too because it can heighten or lessen your perception of terpenes as well as your mood.

This is why you can’t vape weed oil in an e-cig, cigalike, or nicotine pen unless your device has compatible temperature settings. So before you screw your THC cart into a random 510 thread pen, check that it can reach 315°F (157°C) on the lower end and 401°F (205°C) at the top. Some vape mods cover both extremes and have tanks and screens for any vape product.

THC Delivery Options

THC carts are commonly packaged as 510 threads so they can cut across batteries and brand names. You can also get a magnetic end-clip to fit your 510 cart onto a vape mod without any built-in threads. But you can also find THC carts as a plug-in or clip-in pod like the ones on STIIIZY pens. Devices designed for THC carts typically have adjustable temperature settings.

On the fancier pens, you can set the exact temperature by raising or lowering the degrees on the coil. But most have a button with four or five levels from warm to scalding. You can check the instruction booklet or product website to get the estimated temperature range for these weed pens. As a side note, vaping weed oil, wax, or even dry herb has a less potent smell.

This is because the cannabis aerosols disappear within minutes, just like the clouds on other vapes. The terpenes express less intensely than combusted weed. That said, the vaporizers that burn dry herb on a live coil will smell just as intense as smoking a blunt, bowl, or pipe because they’re hotter and produce ash, smoke, burnt bud, and other marijuana by-products.

In comparison, a convection pen uses the hot air in the oven to vaporize the dry herb inside the chamber, so the scent is the same as vaping weed oil. Convection pens produce pretty puffs and leave behind ABB (already baked bud) or ABV (already been vaped). This residue has much less THC, CBD, etc., but you can still use it for edibles, teas, and other infusions.

Why You Need More Than THC

In general terms, while THC gets you high and CBD doesn’t, THC offers more mental effects while CBD is geared towards your body. So setting your vape at lower temperatures will release more THC to relax your mind. Meanwhile, although we see anxiety as an intellectual reaction, it produces effects in your body too. Your heart rate rises and your breath quickens.

You may also feel an adrenal rush that draws blood toward your muscles for fight or flight. And it pulls blood away from vital organs so you won’t lose as much in case of injury. In this way, CBD can minimize the anxiety response. That’s why vaping at 315°F or 157°C is ideal for THC, but to get the full entourage effect, you should opt for a heat range of 320°F to 356°F.

As a parting shot, it helps to know that CBN is oxidized THC. It can develop when you keep weed too long so the THC degrades, and it can make you really sleepy. Since CBN is released at around 365°F or 185°C, setting your vape temperature too high is likely to sedate you and make you drowsy. So if you want to stay up and enjoy your high, keep those cart temps low.

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