How a bong works
A bong is a water pipe. Smoke from the bowl travels down a stem into the water, bubbles up and collects in the tube until you inhale, and a small hole called the carb lets in fresh air to clear the last of it (Wikipedia). Most have 5 basic parts: a bowl, a downstem, a base, a tube and the carb, and they are made of glass, acrylic, wood, metal, silicone and other materials.
That leaves two real decisions: what the bong is made of, and what shape it is. Dab rigs look similar but heat concentrates on a nail instead of burning flower in a bowl (Health Canada); the dab rig vs bong comparison covers the differences.
Bong materials compared
Health Canada's advice is short: choose a pipe made of glass or ceramic, because plastic and other materials can contain harmful chemicals that may be inhaled when heated. Here is how the 5 common materials compare.
- Borosilicate glass. Most glass bongs are made of it because it stands up to repeated heating, Wikipedia notes. It expands about a third as much as ordinary soda-lime glass when heated, resists sudden temperature changes better than any other common glass and is harder to break when dropped, according to Wikipedia's borosilicate glass entry. Pros: it is one of the 2 materials Health Canada recommends, and the clear walls show when it needs a clean. Cons: it still breaks, and it can crack under rapid or uneven temperature changes. Thicker glass is generally more durable.
- Silicone. Hemper, a bong seller, describes food-grade silicone bongs as flexible, nearly indestructible and good for travel, and says platinum-cured silicone lasts longer than cheaper tin-cured silicone, which can shrink and tear. Silicone can hold on to odours and may not taste as clean as well-kept glass. It is also not glass or ceramic, so it falls outside Health Canada's advice. The glass vs silicone bong guide compares the two most popular materials side by side.
- Acrylic. Acrylic is a plastic, poly(methyl methacrylate), about half the weight of glass, and it usually breaks into large dull pieces rather than shattering. It is softer and scratches more easily than glass, begins to soften at 85°C to 165°C depending on the grade, and burns at 460°C, giving off carbon monoxide and formaldehyde (Wikipedia). Hemper calls acrylic the cheapest option and less heat resistant than borosilicate, and as a plastic it is the material Health Canada's warning names.
- Ceramic. Ceramic is Health Canada's other recommended material. Hemper notes that ceramic is opaque, so you cannot see the water or the build-up inside, and advises avoiding unglazed, porous clay, where resin can collect. Since you cannot judge it by eye, clean it on a schedule.
- Metal. Hemper describes stainless steel bongs, often fitted with an aluminium diffuser and a glass bowl, as nearly indestructible but heavier and pricier than glass, with no way to see the water level. Like silicone, metal is not one of the materials Health Canada recommends.
Common bong shapes
Shape changes how smoke moves through the water and how hard the piece is to clean.
- Beaker. A wide, cone-shaped base like a laboratory flask. Hemper calls it a budget-friendly classic whose wide, stable base resists tipping and holds a large water chamber, and says it usually comes with a basic diffuser downstem.
- Straight tube. A plain cylinder. Hemper describes quick, intense hits, and says the small water chamber gives less cooling and the shape tips over more easily, but it is one of the easiest bongs to clean.
- Percolator. Extra glass inside the chamber, such as a showerhead, tree, honeycomb or matrix design, forces smoke through many small openings to make more bubbles. Percolators can add some drag to the pull and make cleaning noticeably harder, and Hemper warns that the small holes can clog with resin.
- Recycler. An external tube loops smoke back through the water chamber before it reaches you. Hemper says the external tubes make cleaning a challenge and recyclers generally cost more.
What the water does, and what it doesn't
Sellers describe percolators and recyclers as giving a smoother, cooler draw. Smoother is not the same as safer. Water can lower the temperature of the smoke and help filter some harmful substances, Health Canada says, but that does not make pipe smoking safe, and research has found that water pipes can produce more second-hand smoke than tobacco cigarettes, with a higher risk indoors.
A small 1996 test summarized in the U.S. Justice Department's NCJRS library found that water pipes filtered out more THC than tar, so people may smoke more to get the effect they want. Wikipedia's bong entry, citing NORML-MAPS research, adds that an unfiltered joint gave the best ratio of tar to THC, with bongs faring worse.
Health Canada calls smoking the most common and the most harmful way to consume cannabis, and links it to bronchitis, lung infections, chronic cough and mucus build-up. If you do use a bong, take shallow puffs rather than deep inhalations and don't hold the smoke in: Canada's Lower-Risk Cannabis Use Guidelines say deep inhaling and breath-holding disproportionately increase the intake of toxic material into the respiratory system. The guide to how to smoke weed compares bongs with joints, pipes and vaporizers. For medical questions, talk to a doctor or pharmacist.
How to clean a bong
Residue spoils the taste, and Wikipedia's bong entry notes that regular cleaning gets rid of yeast, fungi and bacteria that can cause problems ranging from allergy symptoms to lung infections. If you use the bong regularly, give it a full clean every 2 days or so; if you only use it now and then, clean it after every use. Skip household cleaning products, which can contain chemicals that are harmful to breathe in, and follow any cleaning instructions from the maker. The basic method:
- Pour out the old water. Between cleans, Health Canada advises wiping water pipes down and switching out the water regularly.
- Take out the bowl and downstem and soak them in a separate container.
- Add rubbing alcohol and coarse salt to the base, about 1/4 cup of alcohol to 1 tablespoon of salt, plug the openings and swirl until the residue loosens. Uncooked rice can replace the salt, and baking soda with vinegar is another option.
- Wipe out what is left with a soft cloth, use cotton swabs in tight spots, then rinse every part until you can no longer smell alcohol.
- Let everything dry completely before you put it back together, which helps prevent bacterial growth.
Safety checks before you light it
Grinders need a different routine depending on whether they are metal or plastic; see how to clean a grinder. For the bong itself, run through these before the next session:
- Make sure the alcohol is gone. Isopropyl alcohol is flammable and its vapour is heavier than air, so it should be kept away from heat, sparks and open flame (Wikipedia). Rinse well and let the piece dry before you light a bowl.
- Avoid sudden temperature swings. Even borosilicate can crack under rapid or uneven temperature changes, so don't pour boiling water into a cold piece.
- Use your own mouthpiece. If you share a pipe, Health Canada suggests using a different mouthpiece to avoid spreading diseases or infections.
- Think about the people around you. Water pipes can produce a lot of second-hand smoke, and Health Canada notes the risk is higher indoors.
Buying a bong in Toronto
Pick the material first, then a shape you will actually keep clean; a simple glass beaker or straight tube is the easiest place to start. GasDank's accessories page shows what is on the menu. GasDank delivers same day across Toronto and the GTA, usually within 1 to 2 hours, and ships mail order across Canada. Customers must be 19 or older (21 in Quebec), with ID checked at the door.
