Dry herb vaporizer: how to choose one and what temperature to use
By the Golden High teamUpdated 27 October 202610 min read
Gear
A dry herb vaporizer heats weed enough to release its cannabinoids and aromas, but not enough to set it alight: no flame, no ash, far less smoke. Picking the right one comes down to two things, the heating method (conduction or convection) and temperature control. Here's how it works, what the studies say, which temperatures to aim for and how to keep it clean.
Amnesia Delta-P 12%
A moderate strength and a lemony, spicy profile: an easy flower to grind finely for a vaporizer chamber.
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Jaune Mousseux 30%
A soft resin with lemony, sweet notes, best kept for vaporizers that take concentrates or used with a dedicated pad.
From7,90 €View product →How it works
Heating weed without burning it.
When you light a joint, the cherry gets far hotter than the point where weed burns: the plant material combusts, and takes part of the cannabinoids with it. A vaporizer does the opposite. It heats the flower to a set temperature, usually between 170 and 210 °C, so the cannabinoids and terpenes turn into vapour while the plant itself stays intact.
The researchers from California NORML and Chemic Labs who tested the Volcano vaporizer in 2004 sum it up like this: cannabinoid vapours form typically around 180-190 °C, while combustion and its toxic by-products show up close to 230 °C. The whole idea of the device lies in that gap of roughly forty degrees.
- No flame: an electric element heats the chamber or the air.
- No ash: the weed comes out brown and dry, not charred.
- A cleaner taste: the terpenes aren't masked by smoke.
- A subtler smell: vapour clears faster than smoke.
Quick note on terms: we're talking about a dry herb vaporizer (dry herb vape), which you load with ground flower. It has nothing to do with cartridge e-cigarettes or pods, which hold a ready-made liquid. Cartridge vapes have their own rules and their own risks, which we cover in THC vapes: what the law says.
The main choice
Dry herb vaporizer: conduction or convection?
It's the first question to ask yourself before buying a weed vaporizer. Both technologies do the same job, just not in the same way, and you'll feel the difference every session.
Conduction
The weed sits against the hot walls of the chamber, like in a frying pan. It heats up fast, and the device is often more compact and cheaper. The catch: flower touching the walls gets hotter than flower in the middle, so it's worth stirring halfway through a session.
Convection
A stream of hot air passes through the weed, like in a fan oven. The heat is more even and the flavour often sharper. The catch: you need to draw more slowly, and the models are usually bigger or pricier.
| Conduction | Convection | |
|---|---|---|
| How it heats | Contact with a hot wall | Hot air flowing through the weed |
| Heat-up | Fast | More gradual |
| Evenness | Average, needs stirring | Good |
| Draw style | Short, easy draws | Long, slow draws |
| Best for | Beginners, on the go | Flavour chasers, relaxed sessions |
Plenty of recent devices are hybrids: they combine a heated wall with an airflow. Focus on how precise the temperature setting is and on the quality of the materials in the air path.
What the studies say
Less smoke, but not less effect.
Vaporizing is one of the best-studied ways to consume, largely because medical research was looking for an alternative to smoke. Here's the most solid work, along with its limits.
Gieringer et al. · Journal of Cannabis Therapeutics, 2004
200 mg samples vaporized between 155 and 218 °C: the vapour is made up overwhelmingly of cannabinoids, with traces of three other compounds. In the smoke from the same burnt weed, more than 111 compounds are identified, including several polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The Volcano delivers 36 to 61% of the sample's THC.
Hazekamp et al. · Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2006
Leiden University sets up the same device for a clinical study: on average 54% of the loaded THC ends up in the balloon, reproducibly, and around 35% of the inhaled THC is breathed straight back out.
Abrams et al. · Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics, 2007
Eighteen volunteers compare a joint and a vaporizer: THC blood levels are similar, but exhaled carbon monoxide drops with vaporizing.
Spindle et al. · JAMA Network Open, 2018
Seventeen infrequent adult users try both routes at the same dose: vapour produces stronger felt effects and a higher THC blood peak than smoke (14.4 vs 10.2 ng/mL at 25 mg). Some effects on attention and coordination last up to 6 hours.
Lanz et al. · PLOS ONE, 2016
Four electric vaporizers tested in the lab don't all deliver the same share of cannabinoids: from 54.6 to 82.7% of the THC depending on the model. Efficiency clearly depends on the device.
The practical takeaway: less smoke doesn't mean less effect. Gram for gram, vapour can hit harder than a joint. So start lower than usual, wait between draws, and never get behind the wheel after a session. Adults only.
French authorities reached the same conclusion. For its medical cannabis trial, the ANSM (the French medicines agency) chose dried flowers for vaporizing, with a vaporizer supplied by Storz & Bickel, and ruled out smoking "given the health risks". The flowers have no longer been supplied to patients since March 2024. References at the bottom of the page.
Vaping temperature
Which temperature for which flavour?
This is where a vaporizer really shines: every molecule evaporates at its own temperature. By stepping up gradually, you choose what you extract. The values below are the ones published by researchers John McPartland and Ethan Russo (2001) for the main cannabis terpenes, plus the one usually quoted for THC.
| Molecule | Typical aroma | Quoted boiling point |
|---|---|---|
| Alpha-pinene | Pine, resinous | 156 °C |
| THC (delta-9) | — | 157 °C (measured under vacuum) |
| Myrcene | Earthy, ripe fruit | 166-168 °C |
| Limonene | Citrus, zest | 177 °C |
| Linalool | Floral, lavender | 198 °C |
| Weed combustion | Smoke, burnt taste | ≈ 230 °C |
Beware of magic numbers: THC's 157 °C was measured at very low pressure. At normal pressure, the real boiling point is higher and poorly known. These values are reference points for setting your device, not exact thresholds.
170-185 °C: flavour
Light vapour, terpenes up front. Perfect for discovering a flower's aroma profile.
185-200 °C: balance
The range the 2004 researchers describe as typical. Denser vapour, flavour still there.
200-215 °C: density
Thick vapour, toastier taste. Stay under 220 °C to keep a safety margin from combustion.
To understand why the same flower tastes different from one step to the next, read our article on terpenes, the secret behind the taste.
Flower or resin?
Vaporizing flower and resin: what works, what gums up.
Most devices are designed for dry flower. Resin, on the other hand, melts when heated and can clog the chamber and the screen. Vaporizers for both herb and resin do exist, but you need to know how they handle each one.
Grind matters as much as temperature. Too coarse and the vapour slips past; too fine and the powder goes through the screen. We compared models in how to choose a grinder, and everything about resin is covered in how to vape hash.
Best dry herb vaporizer
What makes a good vaporizer.
There's no such thing as the "best dry herb vaporizer" in absolute terms, only the one that fits the way you use it. Rather than a brand ranking, here's what to check on the spec sheet.
- Precise temperature control, ideally to the degree, or at least in steps.
- An air path in inert materials (ceramic, glass, stainless steel) rather than plastic near the heater.
- An easy-access chamber that empties and cleans without fiddly tools.
- Suitable battery life: enough for several sessions if you use it on the go.
- Spare parts available: screens, seals and mouthpieces wear out.
- A device with no brand and no manual, where you know neither the materials nor the real temperature.
- A chamber that smells of hot plastic in the first few uses, even after an empty burn-off cycle.
- Health promises: a vaporizer reduces exposure to smoke, it doesn't make consumption harmless.
If you're torn between different ways to consume, we also look at the water pipe in what is a bong. And for what goes in the chamber, all our flowers show their strength and stay under 0.3% THC: you'll find them in the Delta-P flowers collection.
Cleaning
A clean vaporizer tastes better.
Residue builds up on the screen, in the mouthpiece and in the air path. It gives an acrid taste, restricts the draw and ends up getting heated too. Regular cleaning only takes a few minutes.
After every session
Empty the chamber once it's cool, brush the screen and the chamber with the little brush supplied.
Every week
Take off the mouthpiece and the removable parts, soak them in isopropyl alcohol, rinse, and let them dry completely.
Every month
Check the seals and replace any warped or clogged screens.
Never
Dunk the body of the device in liquid, or heat it up again before the parts are completely dry.
Always follow your manufacturer's manual: some parts can't handle alcohol or hot water.
CBD and Delta-P vaporizer
Vaporizing CBD or Delta-P.
A CBD vaporizer and a dry herb vaporizer are the same device: what changes is what you put in the chamber. Our Delta-P flowers vaporize like any other dry flower. Start at a low setting to taste the profile, then turn it up if you want denser vapour.
Strength-wise, a moderate flower like Amnesia Delta-P 12% is a good starting point. What Delta-P is, its molecule and its framework are explained in our Delta-P guide. Golden High only sells products under 0.3% THC, lab-tested.
Reminder: in France, THC is a controlled drug; only hemp products under 0.3% THC are tolerated. A vaporizer doesn't change the status of what you put in it. Adults only, and never before driving.
Your questions
What people ask us about vaporizers.
What temperature should I vape weed at?
Between 170 and 210 °C depending on the effect you're after. Around 170-185 °C you favour flavour, around 185-200 °C balance, and above that vapour density. Stay under 220 °C: combustion starts at around 230 °C.
Dry herb vaporizer: conduction or convection?
Conduction heats the weed through contact with a wall: fast, compact, cheaper. Convection pushes hot air through the weed: more even heating and sharper flavour. For beginners on the go, conduction is often enough.
Does a vaporizer get you higher than a joint?
At the same dose, a Johns Hopkins University study (JAMA Network Open, 2018) measured stronger effects and a higher THC blood peak with vapour than with smoke. So start lower.
Is vaping less harmful than smoking a joint?
Vapour contains far fewer combustion products than smoke: a 2004 study counted over 111 compounds in smoke against a few traces in vapour. Less exposure doesn't mean risk-free.
Can you put resin in a dry herb vaporizer?
Not directly on the wall: it melts and clogs the device. Use a pad or a concentrate capsule if your model has one, or finely crumble dry resin into a little flower.
How do you clean a dry herb vaporizer?
Brush the chamber once it's cool after every session, then soak the mouthpiece and removable parts in isopropyl alcohol once a week. Let everything dry before heating it up again.
Can you vaporize CBD or Delta-P?
Yes, a dry herb vaporizer takes any ground dry flower. Our Delta-P flowers stay under 0.3% THC and vaporize like regular flower, starting at a low setting.
Sources
The references cited in this article.
- Gieringer D., St. Laurent J., Goodrich S. (2004). Cannabis Vaporizer Combines Efficient Delivery of THC with Effective Suppression of Pyrolytic Compounds, Journal of Cannabis Therapeutics 4(1).
- Hazekamp A. et al. (2006). Evaluation of a vaporizing device (Volcano) for the pulmonary administration of tetrahydrocannabinol, Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences.
- Abrams D. I. et al. (2007). Vaporization as a smokeless cannabis delivery system: a pilot study, Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics.
- Spindle T. R. et al. (2018). Acute Effects of Smoked and Vaporized Cannabis in Healthy Adults Who Infrequently Use Cannabis: A Crossover Trial, JAMA Network Open.
- Lanz C. et al. (2016). Medicinal Cannabis: In Vitro Validation of Vaporizers for the Smoke-Free Inhalation of Cannabis, PLOS ONE.
- McPartland J. M., Russo E. B. (2001). Cannabis and Cannabis Extracts: Greater Than the Sum of Their Parts?, Journal of Cannabis Therapeutics (boiling point table reproduced by Project CBD).
- ANSM. The medicines and suppliers of the trial (medical cannabis, in French).
