How long you heat your glass dab rig matters a lot.
- Not heating long enough leaves your dabs half-vaporized. You’ll see unmelted concentrates in your banger and get very weak effects.
- Heating too long burns your dabs. The extreme heat destroys compounds and terpenes, wasting your dabs and creating hot vapor that triggers coughing.
Heating time for beginners:
Heat the bottom, corner, and sides of your banger evenly with a dab torch for 30 seconds. For a stronger but harsher hit, let it cool for 30 seconds before adding your dabs. For a gentler and more flavorful vapor, let it cool for 60 seconds before dropping in your dabs.
Keep in mind: How long you heat your glass dab rig depends on the type of banger you have and the temperature setting you prefer (hotter is more potent and harsh, while lower temps are gentler on the lungs but more flavorful).
Mastering the 30-seconheat-up
Heating your dab nail for 30 seconds is just the start. Torch placement, torch movement, and your banger’s thickness are three key components you need to master during the 30 second heat up.
1. Torch placement
A butane torch has three heat zones, and where you place your banger in your dab torch during those 30 seconds matters a lot.
- Inner Cone: Closest to the nozzle, pale white, and the hottest part.
- Intermediate Zone: In the middle, bright blue, and very hot.
- Outer Cone: Farthest from the nozzle, faint, transparent blue, and cooler.
Always place your banger at the tip of the outer flame (end of the outer cone) where the heat flows most steadily for your banger to absorb the heat. If you hold it too close to the inner blue flame, the high-speed heat will ricochet off the quartz surface for uneven heating.
Pro tip: Now, all torches are made equal. Check out our list of the best dab torches that produce the steady stream of heat necessary for a productive and potent dab.
2. Torch movement
During the 30-second heat-up, you want to heat the entire banger evenly so that when you drop your dabs in it vaporizes the concentrate productively.
To heat your banger evenly, start at the corner where the bottom meets the wall. Heat the bottom left for 5-10 seconds, then the bottom right for 5-10 seconds, moving the flame around the upper walls for another 5-10 seconds. Finish with a few seconds on the banger’s base, keeping the torch moving the whole time.
Warning: Never heat your banger until it glows orange. Heating a quartz banger until it glows orange can cause thermal shock, leading to microscopic cracks in the quartz structure. Over time, this repeated stress can weaken the banger, making it more prone to breaking.
3. Banger thickness
While 30 seconds is a general rule of thumb for heating your dab rig, it comes down to the thickness of your quartz banger.
- Thicker bangers are heavier and sturdier. This can include high-quality American-made bangers or more intricate types of bangers like double walls or thermal core bangers.
- Thinner bangers will be much lighter, and the glass walls will feel much thinner.
While both thicker and thinner quartz bangers get the job done, how long you heat and let them cool matters.
For thicker or more intricate bangers, it’s best to heat for 30 seconds and let it cool for 60-90 seconds because it takes much longer for the heat to cool down with thicker quartz. For thinner bangers, you can heat for 20-30 seconds and let it cool for 30 seconds before dropping your dabs in.
Different bangers; different heat-up times:
There are over 30 types of dab bangers and each of these bangers require different heating and cooling times before dropping your dabs in.
When you drop your dabs in, you've hit the sweet spot if it melts evenly and produces a steady stream of vapor. If it instantly vaporizes with a harsh sizzle or leaves a black residue, it's too hot. If it barely melts and sits as a puddle, it's not hot enough.
Below are the different heating times for different bangers:
Quartz banger heating times
Heat a standard quartz banger for 30 seconds and let it cool for 30 seconds for a medium-temp dab (balance of flavor and potency). Thicker quartz will need longer cooling times (60-90 seconds), and thinner quartz will need shorter cooling times (about 30 seconds).
- Quartz low-temp (flavor): Heat for 30 seconds, cool for 60-90 seconds
- Quartz med-temp (balance): Heat for 30 seconds, cool for 30 seconds
- Quartz high-temp (potency): Heat for 30 seconds, cool for 15 seconds
Titanium nail heating times
Heat a titanium dab nail for 20-30 seconds. You’ll know it’s done heating when the nail glows orange, then let the nail cool for 20 seconds before dropping dabs in for flavor, 15 seconds for a balanced hit, or 10 seconds for potency. Titanium heats quickly and retains heat very well, so be careful not to overheat.
- Titanium low-temp (flavor): Heat for 20 seconds, cool for 20 seconds
- Titanium med-temp (balance): Heat for 25 seconds, cool for 15 seconds
- Titanium high-temp (potency): Heat for 30 seconds, cool for 10 seconds
Ceramic banger heating times
Heat a ceramic dab nail for 45-60 seconds, moving the flame evenly to prevent cracks. Let the nail cool for 45 seconds before adding dabs in for flavor, let it cool for 35 seconds for a balanced hit, and let it cool for 30 seconds for potency. Ceramic heats slowly but holds heat very well.
- Ceramic low-temp (flavor): Heat for 45 seconds, cool for 45 seconds
- Ceramic med-temp (balance): Heat for 50 seconds, cool for 35 seconds
- Ceramic high-temp (potency): Heat for 60 seconds, cool for 30 seconds
Thermal banger heating times (double wall)
Heat a thermal banger (double wall) for 40-50 seconds, so enough heat enters into the insulated air pocket between the two buckets. Cooling times depend on your preferred hit: let it cool for 60 seconds before dropping your dabs in for flavor, 50 seconds for a balanced hit, or 40 seconds for a potent hit.
- Thermal low-temp (flavor): Heat for 40 seconds, cool for 60 seconds
- Thermal med-temp (balance): Heat for 45 seconds, cool for 50 seconds
- Thermal high-temp (potency): Heat for 50 seconds, cool for 40 seconds
Thermal core banger heating times
Heat a thermal core banger (hockey puck core at the bottom) for 40 seconds, so heat spreads evenly through the banger’s bottom, walls, and core. The core holds heat so cooling times are longer. Let the banger cool for 60 seconds before adding dabs in for flavor, 50 seconds for a balanced hit, and 40 seconds for potency.
- Thermal core low-temp (flavor): Heat for 40 seconds, cool for 60 seconds
- Thermal core med-temp (balance): Heat for 40 seconds, cool for 45 seconds
- Thermal core high-temp (potency): Heat for 40 seconds, cool for 30 seconds
Terp slurper heating times
Heat a terp slurper for 50 seconds, focusing your dab torch on the dish and the bottom half of the tube connected to the dish. After heating, let your slurper cool before adding your dabs in: cool for 60 seconds for maximum flavor, 45 seconds for a balanced hit, or 30 seconds for potency.
- Terp slurper low-temp (flavor): Heat for 30 seconds, cool for 60 seconds
- Terp slurper med-temp (balance): Heat for 45 seconds, cool for 45 seconds
- Terp slurper high-temp (potency): Heat for 60 seconds, cool for 30 seconds
Round bottom banger heating times
Heat a round bottom banger for 30-45 seconds, letting the heat spread evenly along the smooth, rounded base so the oils pool to the center. After heating, let the banger cool for 50 seconds before adding your dabs in for flavor, 40 seconds for a balanced hit, or 30 seconds for potency.
- Round bottom low-temp (flavor): Heat for 30 seconds, cool for 50 seconds
- Round bottom med-temp (balance): Heat for 35 seconds, cool for 40 seconds
- Round bottom high-temp (potency): Heat for 45 seconds, cool for 30 seconds
Opaque banger heat times
Heat an opaque banger for 30-40 seconds, allowing the thicker, non-transparent base to warm evenly and hold the heat necessary to vaporize your concentrates. Let it cool for 60 seconds before adding your dabs for full flavor, 45 seconds for a balanced hit, or 30 seconds for hotter, more potent dabs.
- Opaque low-temp (flavor): Heat for 30 seconds, cool for 60 seconds
- Opaque med-temp (balance): Heat for 35 seconds, cool for 45 seconds
- Opaque high-temp (potency): Heat for 40 seconds, cool for 30 seconds
After torching a rig, how long do you wait?
After torching your dab rig’s banger for 30 seconds, you want to wait about 30 seconds for a fairly potent hit that can potentially be hot enough to trigger coughing. For a gentler hit, try waiting 60-90 seconds before dripping your dabs in for a more flavorful and smoother hit.
Cool-off times depend on which type of dab temperatures you prefer (low, medium, or high). Below are the three dab temperatures that relate directly to how long you let your dab rig cool off after torching:
1. Low-temp dabs (cooling for 90 seconds)
Wait about 60-90 seconds after torching. This longer cool-off keeps the banger at a lower temperature (around 350-400°F), giving you a smoother, more flavorful hit that preserves terpenes and reduces harshness. Expect a gentle, tasty dab with less intensity but a more enjoyable experience if you’re all about terpene flavor.
2. Medium-temp dabs (cooling for 60 seconds)
A 60-second cool-off brings your banger to around 400-500°F, offering a balanced hit. This range gives you a bit of both worlds: decent flavor with a stronger vapor cloud. It’s perfect if you want a satisfying experience with a good blend of taste and potency.
3. High-temp dabs (cooling for 30 seconds)
For intense hits, wait only about 20-30 seconds, letting the banger stay at 500-600°F. At this temperature, expect a powerful, thick cloud of vapor with intense effects, though it’ll be harsher on your throat and may lose some flavor. This is the way to go if you’re looking for potency and don’t mind the stronger, “throatier” hit.
How do I gauge the temperature of my banger?
Heat your banger with a dab torch for 20-30 seconds to bring it up to around 500-600°F. This temperature lets your concentrate release compounds and terpenes as vapor. The only way to know you've hit the right temperature is to drop your dabs in.
If your dabs bubble and then turn to a liquid and begin forming vapor, then you’ve hit the right temperature. If you see black charring, then you went too hot, and if you see unmelted dabs left in the bang, er then you didn’t heat it enough.
Precise dab heating
For precision, a thermal terp timer can gauge the exact temperature, so you don’t have to guess and can hit the perfect temperature every time.
A terp timer is a wireless thermal sensor that dials in the exact temperature of your banger so you know the exact dab temperatures before dropping your concentrates in. They are tried and true within the dab community and can save you money by protecting your dabs.
If you plan on dabbing without a thermal sensor gauge, just know it’ll take some trial and error. To reduce complications, stick with the same dab rig, banger, and torch, and measure how long you heat and cool down times and how your concentrates react.
How hot does a dab rig need to be?
A dab rig’s banger needs to reach around 500-600°F to vaporize extracts. This is the temperature range that releases compounds and terpenes from the concentrate in the form of vapor for you to inhale. Using a thermal sensor gives you precise results, but dabbers generally heat for 30 seconds and cool for 30 seconds for a balanced hit.
How to properly heat a dab rig
Hold the torch at a 45-degree angle where the bottom meets the wall, keeping the flame tip 1-2 inches away. Heat for 30 seconds (depending on thickness), moving in circles. Focus 60% of the heat at the base to create an even surface that melts your dabs fully and prevents them from sticking to the sides.
- Prioritize the base: Focus 60% of your heating time on the banger’s bottom; the remaining 40% should be on the walls and corners where the wall and floor of the banger connect.
- Steady, slow circles: Move the torch slowly in circles to avoid uneven heating. Quick, whipping motions leave cold spots, causing dabs to pool unevenly.
- Timing by thickness: Heat thicker bangers for 30-50 seconds and thinner ones for 20-30 seconds.
Final Thoughts
Getting the perfect dab comes down to mastering your heat-up technique. While the basic 30-second heat and 30-60-second cooldown is a good starting point, it's really about how you use your torch.
Keep that flame at the right distance (placing your banger at the tip of the torch near the end of the flame), keep the flame moving along the corner, sides, and bottom, and focus most of your attention on heating the base - this is where your concentrates will vaporize.
Going too hot will just waste your dabs and leave you coughing, while not enough heat means you'll watch your concentrates sit there doing nothing. If you're just starting, try heating for 30 seconds and waiting a full minute before dropping your dabs in. You'll know you've nailed it when your concentrates melt evenly and give you a steady stream of vapor. No sizzling, no black residue, and no unmelted puddles.
