I will be drying 7 plants within a couple of weeks in my basement. So far the plants are in my tent with the charcoal filter fan/combo which takes care of the odor so it does waft upstairs. (Plants are a couple weeks away from harvesting) Once I take the lights out, can I dry the plants in the tent and leave the carbon filter running? does that dry out the plants? Do I leave the tent doors open or partly open? Not sure what I should do, would appreciate some answers.
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Hi @Bobbi i just recently dried 9 in a tent i had 2x400w mh bulbs going too. I set up 4x strings hung them up 1 branch at a time until done i left them in there with the filter going and a fan blowing on them i made sure ther was no direct light shining on them as this would turn them crispy realy fast. Hung for 3 days checking daily until they felt abit dry on the outside then i broke them down into individual buds put them all into a sealed bucket with paper towels for 12 hours to make them sweat/draw out the inner moisture from there i spread them on paper at the base of the tent for 12 hours wich made them a touch over dry so nack into the bucket for 12 hours then just right. Hope this helps my tent is pretty big tho.
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you want to watch your humidity and temperature just like when you were growing them the ideal temperature is about 65° and your humidity you want to keep it around 60% if your humidity is too low they will dry too fast if your humidity is too high they could get mold you don’t really want a fan blowing directly on the bud You need airflow and darkness so the tent would probably be the best because you can control temperature and humidity hope this helps 
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Thank you @Saffa and @eric2, I appreciate the info. I ‘ll use the tent and keep a close watch on the temp and humidity. Don’t want to mess up after all the time & work I’ve put in. My tent is 6’ 3" X 4’ X 4" so I have plenty of hanging room for the plants.
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Heres another option to hand inside ur tent
@Saffa Those are nice, I like the open ones, cheap too! Do you use them? I have plenty of rods running across both ways on my tents so I’ll use them to hang the plants on. The hanging herb netting would be great for drying garden herbs. Normally I chop up garden basil, rosemary and chives and freeze in ice cube traya, then forget about them in the winter. LOL
I dont use them but have thought about it i just use string or thin wire
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I do the same thing you are thinking of doing.
When I harvest I chop the plants down and hang them in the grow tent by strings.
I leave the carbon filter going on low (I have a speed controller for the speed of the exhaust fan)
I have a small fan on the floor blowing air around if needed. This year I didn’t need the fan because my humidity stayed right around %60 so I didn’t have excess moisture.
It is good to keep the carbon filter going to help eliminate order and exchange the air so that it doesn’t get stagnant.
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@Jmesser80 Awesome news, I didn’t know if the carbon filter would dry out the plants too quickly. I have the low setting too! The humidity will be my only problem but if I Zip the tent up I think the humidity will go up and I can always put a dish of water with a wet sponge in it if needed. The water and sponge trick worked in vegie state when I needed higher humidity.
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I would definitely monitor the humidity @Bobbi.
My carbon filter is nestled in the top of the tent in the corner so I try and hang my buds away from it a little bit so the ones closest to the filter don’t get dried out too fast. Works great for me. Happy harvesting! It
Can be the most tedious part of the grow but also one of the most important so it is good to dry it properly. Then onto the cure!
I harvested my plants a few weeks ago they are in jars currently curing. I ended up with around a pound. (About 20 quart jars)
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@Jmesser80 How many plants did you have to end up with a pound? I’m a newbie so I ask lots of questions! 
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@Bobbi yes you can leave them in tent with carbon filter running keep door closed you also want to leave a second fan of low in tent to move air don’t point directly at buds you want to dry slow
Also those racks are nice I have one and do use it
But I hang my biggest and beat buds off hanger from top of my tent and use the rack for the smaller stuff
Your buds will get flat on one side if you just place them on rack this doesn’t effect anything but I don’t like the way it looks lol
I’ll trim my bigger buds after about a week and place on rack a few days before jaring
I maintain about 56-60 % humidity during the drying process and monitor humidity levels in my jars as well I’ll stop burping when I have around 60% humidity in the jars and vacuum seal them for the cure
Hope this help
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My last grow was 5 white widow fem. photo period plants.
I topped and fimmed them. I think I got a lot because I ended up vegging them for like 2 months because 2 of them weren’t doing great and I wanted to get them
Right before I switched to flowering.
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@Countryboyjvd1971 is it nescesary to vacuum seal them to get a cure?
I don’t vacuum seal mine so o was curious if it is better to do so. I imagine you would vaccine seal after they have been burped for a while.
@Countryboyjvd1971 Yup, sure does help, thanks a bunch. I wasn’t sure about keeping the tent zipped shut. I don’t have the mesh hanging bag, I’m just going to hang them on the many rods I have crossing my tent top. I do have a screen window I could use if needed for small pieces. My plants are maturing at different times plus some I’m taking earlier than others, it’ll be a learning process. Too bad it takes so long to cure. My neighbor wanted to try some early, just a sample. But for a quick try, you have to bake a tiny sample at 150 degrees and her oven only goes down to 170. Anyone tried a crock pot?
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@Bobbi you can smoke it as soon as it’s dried FYI
Cure only let’s it reach full potential so give a little bit a try once it dry the small stuff will dry faster
I separate mine by size
And place like size buds in same jar
Anything 1inch and smaller then 1-2 inches etc
I’m not a fan of any of the quick drying methods imo
It ruins the taste and high
So once you harvest you should be able to sample some in about 5-7 days
Woohoo your almost there @Bobbi
I haven’t tried a crock pot either
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@Countryboyjvd1971 Good information to know on putting like sizes together, I wouldn’t have know to do that. I appreciate the info. I have a vacuum sealer but didn’t have the mason jar attachment so I ordered it today, needed $12 more in merchandise to get free shipping. I ordered the hanging herb baskets you were talking about to fill out the order plus some bud pruning shears. Do you cut off all the stems on your weed so it’s just the buds left? I can’t remember if it was you or @bob31 that cut off all the sugar leaves too? I see some folks leave some sugar leaves on, just cut the parts off that stick out.
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@Jmesser80. I asked both the gentlemen that have helped me along the way how to store large quantities of MJ. Country boy told me to store it in glass mason jars that are sealed. It doesn’t cure them, it’s just a great way to preserve the weed after it’s been cured.
@Bobbi Good Morning! Wow this has become a perfect how to for anyone needing info on drying and curing!
I cut down my plants and hang them to dry for 2-3 days. Then I dry trim them. IMO it is easier than wet trimming. But I don’t think it makes any difference which way you do!
And yes, i trim some but not all of the sugar leaves as I am using them for my other applications of creams etc! But if they are flat against the bud I don’t bother with them.
Hope this helps and as far as how many plants per pound, there really isn’t a formula. Best is to cut and trim then weigh the harvest. You will loose quite a bit to drying but what would you say wet to dry ratio is about I want to say it is like 30-40% of the wet weight @Countryboyjvd1971
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