Dry herb vaporizers are here to stay.

Offering practically all the benefits of smoking without the carcinogens, dry herb vaporizers are getting more and more popular. With them, you can vaporize all the active ingredients of your dry herb, without inhaling any smoke.

However, with so many dry herb vaporizers to choose from, choosing the right one for you can often get overwhelming. That’s why we put together this guide to tell you how dry herb vaporizers work, and how to choose the best one for you.

And, who knows? You may end up vaping your dry herbs from now on!

What is a dry herb vaporizer?

A dry herb vaporizer is a device that uses controlled heat to vaporize herbs and flowers, without combustion. Whereas smoking can combust herbs at well over 480°F, dry herb vaporizers expose herbs to temperatures between 350°F and 450°F. This lower temperature is enough to vaporize dry herbs and their medicinal active ingredients without exposing your lungs to the carcinogens associated with smoke.

Dry herb vaporizers are not just healthier. Since you’re not combusting any herb, you’re not burning off any active ingredients. This allows you to extract all benefits from your dry herb more effectively, and therefore limit your consumption.

Finally, since dry herb vaporizers work at lower temperatures, they allow you to get smoother hits that are less likely to burn you.

The anatomy of a dry herb vaporizer

A normal dry herb vaporizer will usually be made up of these parts:

The Chamber

Here is where you put the herb you want to vaporize. Chambers are usually made out of stainless steel, although ceramic and quartz chambers are gaining popularity thanks to how they keep your vapor clean and flavorful.

The Power Source

Whereas desktop vaporizers simply plug into any outlet, portable dry herb vapes will be equipped with lithium-ion batteries, usually with a USB port to recharge them.

Depending on the vaporizer, batteries may be replaceable or fixed and may have different wattage capacities to achieve different temperatures.

The Mouthpiece

The mouthpiece connects your chamber to your mouth. There are multiple kinds of mouthpieces depending on the vaporizer. Cheaper vaporizers may have plastic or metal mouthpieces, whereas higher-quality mouthpieces often have glass or ceramic vapor paths for pure and unaltered flavor.

How do dry herb vaporizers work?

Looking to get to know how a dry herb vape works?

Your herb is placed in the chamber. You’ll want to grind your herb with a grinder, just as you would do if you were to smoke it. Depending on your vaporizer, you may want to pack it loose or tight to get a better hit.

Then, you can turn on the vaporizer, select your temperature, and the vaporizer will turn on a heating element to heat up the chamber. With every draw, the hot air passes through the herb, vaporizing and extracting all active ingredients before getting inhaled.

Fully vaporized herb usually looks fully dry and has a dark brown shade. At that point, you can replace the herb and start over.

There are three main kinds of vaporizers:

Conduction dry herb vaporizers

Conduction vaporizers are the most common kind of vaporizers out there. These work by putting the heating element in direct contact with your dry herb.

Since this design tends to be more compact, it’s extremely popular with all kinds of vaporizers, from affordable dry herb vape pens like the Yocan HIT, to high-end dry herb vaporizers like the DaVinci IQ2.

However, since the heating element is in direct contact with the material, low-quality conduction dry herb vaporizers may end up burning your herb. Plus, you’ll typically experience more drag, and therefore less powerful hits.

Convection dry herb vaporizers

In convection dry herb vaporizers, the heating element doesn’t come into direct contact with the dry herb. Instead, convection vapes pass hot air from the heating element through the herb to vaporize it.

Since this kind of heating system takes up more space, it’s often seen in desktop vaporizers, like the Arizer Extreme Q, although there are portable convection dry herb vaporizers, like the FireFly 2 Plus.

Although this method is usually in larger or more expensive models, it allows for less drag and stronger hits.

Hybrid dry herb vaporizers

Hybrid vaporizers use a combination of convection and conduction heating to get dense vapor clouds filled with flavors. This heating method is used mostly in high-end vaporizers, like the acclaimed Volcano Hybrid desktop vaporizer, or the Crafty Plus portable vaporizer.

Choosing the right dry herb vaporizer for you

The right dry herb vaporizer will likely depend on three main things:

• Your budget: There are dry herb vaporizers as affordable as $35, or as lavish as this 24-karat gold plated desktop vaporizer. Decide how much you’re willing to spend based on the next two things.
• Your portability needs: Desktop vaporizers can offer stronger hits at affordable prices, and offer a premium experience with rich and flavorful hits. However, smaller, more portable vaporizers are more discreet and can easily be taken anywhere.
• Your vaping preferences: The higher quality the dry herb vaporizer is, the better the vaping experience will be. Vaporizers like the Firefly 2 Plus and the ones made by Storz & Bickel are famous for their rich and flavorful clouds, although smaller portable vaporizers may be better to use on the go.

Final thoughts

Dry herb vaporizers give you all the convenience of smoking without the harsh and smelly smoke clouds.

Ready to get a vaporizer? Check out our dry herb vaporizer collection at Grasscity and get the best vaporizers at affordable prices.