8 Simple Steps on How to Clean a Bong
The recent wave of legalization and decriminalization of cannabis in various countries worldwide has led to a substantial rise in its consumption. As research clarified the old misbeliefs of people concerning the adverse effects of cannabis, the public has become more accepting of it. Therefore, many industries are now incorporating cannabinoids as the key ingredient in their products. Simultaneously, the usage of cannabis for its pleasure-inducing, mood-improving effects has also become prevalent. Water bong is one of the most popular way to consume dry herb. However, it is vital to ensure the cleanliness of your bong to eliminate health risks to some extent.
The Effects of a Dirty Bong
Just as you need to clean your eating utensils to eliminate germs and bacteria from entering your body, the same goes for cleaning your bong. If you own this historic equipment for smoking cannabis, its maintenance is also necessary. Glass bong or silicone bong is a smoking tool that primarily filters the smoke you inhale, cools it down to make it less harsh on your respiratory system, and add moisture to the smoke. However, if this utensil is dirty, there is a high chance that you will inhale the filth putting your health at risk.
Also, make sure you empty the water from your bong before keeping it away to prevent mold growth. Additionally, if you notice any colored culture accumulating in your bong, it can indicate mold. Smoking from a bong that is mold-infested is dangerous as you can inhale mold spores that are dangerous to your health.
Benefits of a Clean Bong
Other than being safe, a clean bong has its advantages. Apart from giving you a sense of peace with its cleanliness, it is beneficial in:
Filtering More Efficiently
Clean water holds more potential for filtering the trash in your smoke. Therefore, you should replace the water in your bong for a cleaner smoke.
Smoother Hits Offers Better Smoking Experience
Once the filth, odor, and trash leftover from the old cannabis and water are eliminated, you can experience a noticeable difference in the taste. It also brings clean hits from the bong.
How Often Does Your Bong Need Cleaning?
The frequency with which you should clean your best bong varies according to the kind of smoker you are. Depending on how often you smoke, you should clean your bong to prevent the resin build-up from overpowering the taste of your smoke. It also depends on the material of your bong like borosilicate glass or silicone. However, don’t underestimate how easy it is for your bong to get dirty. Daily smokers should clean their bongs every few days, while less frequent users can wash them once in a while. Meanwhile, bongs are just as easy to clean. Routine change of water and light cleaning can keep your bong in a top-notch position. Furthermore, deep-cleaning it once in a while to rid it of the resin build-up makes your bong as good as new.
When to Clean Your Bong?
If you’re an owner of this high-end water pipes, you should keep a lookout for some tell-tale signs that indicate that your bong requires a thorough cleaning. These are:
- Murky, pungent water that isn’t clear anymore
- High level of resin build-up in the bong
- Mold bloom on the resin build-up
- Dark stains on the inside of the bong
- Debris in the water chamber
Even for the best quality of water bong, you should also spend time to clean. If you see anything inside the glass bong that makes you cringe is a sign telling you it needs to be cleaned. Although it doesn’t sound like an easy task, cleaning a bong isn’t very hard.
Resources You’ll Need
To make your water bong look the same as the day you bought it, you’ll need a few things on hand. These include:
- Isopropyl alcohol, you can easily find in any drugstore by the name of rubbing alcohol.
- Salt
- Q-tips and cotton balls
- Kitchen napkins and cling film (to plug in openings)
- Hand towel (for drying)
- Pipe cleaners and straw cleaning brush (to reach areas that are hard to clean)
- Ziploc bags
- Elastic bands
How to Clean a Bong in 8 Simple Steps
Once you have mentally prepared yourself and assembled all the items you will require, you need to follow these simple steps to make your bong look brand-new all over again:
Step 1: Disassemble your bong
Take it apart piece by piece and rinse all the parts, particularly the downstem and bong bowl, using warm water. The hot water cleans the sticky, stubborn resin accumulating inside your bong. Avoid using boiling water as the high heat can lead to cracks or breakage of the smoke.
Step 2: Clean the insides with salt
Using any type of salt (preferably table salt), add a few tablespoons inside the bong to kill bacteria and clear the sticky material inside it because of its texture.
Step 3: Add alcohol
Pour in a balanced amount of alcohol. Ensure the salt-alcohol ratio to prevent a lot of salt from dissolving in it. With evident clean property, alcohol is a common bong cleaner.
Step 4: Close all the openings
Obstruct all the openings of your bong using kitchen napkins. Also, cover them with cling film and secure them using an elastic band to choke all the pathways that could allow leakage of the salt-alcohol mixture.
Step 5: Clean the stem and bowl
Place your bong’s stem and bowl in a Ziploc bag. Then, repeat the steps above to create the salt-alcohol mixture again. Lastly, seal the Ziploc bag and let these components soak in the mixture for an hour or so.
Step 6: Shake the bong
To remove the dirt and residue sticking on the walls of your bong and to eliminate the remaining resins. Then let the mixture sit in the bong for some time to allow it to remove all the dirt and contamination.
Step 7: Give attention to the finer details
Use a pipe brush or a straw brush to reach areas that aren’t easily accessible. Also, in patches where the residue is too stubborn, use a brush to rub off the contaminants from your bong.
Step 8: Remove and rinse
Throw away the mixture from inside the weed bong, and remove the bowl and stem from the Ziploc bag. Then, thoroughly rinse all the pieces with hot water and dish soap, and dry them.
Final Thoughts
To thoroughly enjoy smoking, and eliminate health risks, frequently cleaning your bong is essential. While there are many store products available that claim to deep-clean your water pipe bong, isopropyl and salt are cheap alternatives that are readily available.
