How to Clean a Bong (and Other Smoking Devices)
If you light your water pipe regularly, it will quickly become apparent that your habitual smoking device may become waterlogged. The tap water you use to filter your smoke can turn your bong or bubbler into a wet grotto if you don’t regularly empty your piece and deep clean it.
Stoners must diligently sanitize their bongos, vials and vape pens, otherwise they must suffer from using dirty objects that smell, thereby suppressing their cold vibrations. Here are some tips on how to keep these important tools clean so you can take full advantage of them without breathing in the nasty stuff.
Why you should clean your water pipe
Bongs are the largest glass tubes, so they can be the darkest. It is important that what you breathe is filtered through clean water. As with any stagnant body of water, mold and mildew can grow in bongo water (fusarium, a pink fungus that tends to thrive in humid environments likes to grow in and around bong percolators, according to Herb.co ).
Needless to say, get rid of mold and smoking weed at all costs. Mold exposure can lead to “nasal congestion, wheezing, redness, or itching in the eyes or skin,” according to the CDC , although some people are much more susceptible to symptoms than others. There are also rarer conditions such as hypersensitivity pneumonitis, which can cause pneumonia symptoms such as fever, cough and chills from over-exposure to “sensitizing substances such as bacteria, fungi, organic dust and chemicals,” the CDC notes.
In general, just use common sense: if the water at the base of your tube is cloudy and cloudy, you are probably at risk of not cleaning it up until your next session.
How to clean a bong or bubbler
Fortunately, the cleaning process is straightforward. Most seasoned bong aficionados recommend two simple plumbing cleaners: 99 percent isopropyl alcohol and rock salt. Alcohol is used as a disinfectant while rock salt adheres to the glass walls of the product to make sure all debris is absorbed.
To clean your bong or bubbler, follow these guidelines:
- Remove the bottom and bowl and submerge them completely in a plastic bag filled with alcohol.
- Make sure your bong is empty, then pour rubbing alcohol and rock salt into it. Weedmaps recommends using about 1/4 cup each, but the amount will vary depending on the size of your item, so zoom in wisely.
- After the alcohol and salt have settled, shake the bong vigorously until a good amount of resin has come off. Obviously, you will have to plug all the holes so that dirty water does not flow out; you can do this with whatever works for you, or with your hands (with rubber gloves).
- Use both hands when shaking because it is a piece of glass and you don’t want it to fly.
- Lift everything up, including the bottom and bowl.
Alternative Method: Boil the bubbler
Another method that some people prefer is to boil a tap in apple cider vinegar and water.
As Weedmaps explains , you only need a few utensils (although you risk spoiling your kitchen momentarily). Here’s what to do:
- Pour 2 cups water and 2 cups apple cider vinegar into a saucepan.
- Bring to a boil, then bring to a simmer.
- Place the water pipe in a saucepan and let it simmer for an hour. (Make sure your pipe is at room temperature before submerging it in water, as cold pipes can crack, notes Weedmaps.)
- Remove the tube (which is likely to burn) with tongs and place on a towel to dry.
How to clean vape tanks
If you are partial to modern weed-fighting technology, you can use a vape pen to consume THC. Whether you use hash oil or regular old juice for e-cigarettes, cleaning these devices is a little more difficult than a bong, but not much.
Let’s first start with how to clean the tank of a vape pen as it was distilled at theVeppo Vape Shop, in this video:
- First, you want to completely disassemble the device, which means removing the vape reservoir from the battery and coil.
- Make sure there is no excess e-juice dripping from the device.
- Submerge your tank in warm, soapy water, but only after making sure your tank can handle anything but plain water (your user manual usually tells you this).
- Clean the battery, coil and mouthpiece with a Q-tip or Q-tip.
- Remove the container from warm water and leave it on a paper towel for 10-15 minutes.
- It is recommended to do this every 2-3 weeks or whenever you change the taste of e-juice.
Between extending the life of your device’s coils and replenishing your e-juice level, maintaining an e-cigarette or other vaping device is a whole universe . But if you understand the basic mechanisms of your device and how it functions, cleaning it becomes a habit – another step towards cannabinoid relaxation.