New To Hookah

[iroll919]

alright im pretty new to this and right now im just using a hookah i made myself i have noticed after everybowl that i smoke there is burned shisha stuck to the bottom of the foil when i take it off then there is still some unburned shisha left in the bottom of the bowl that is still like brand new and i am using the bottom of a pop can with holes poked in it for now as the bowl so it is not very deep at all

should the foil be touching the shisha while you are smoking?
should i add more coals i just have the cheap japanese quick lites for now and only use one at a time?
will adding more heat from more coals make the smoke thicker?

sorry this is kind of a long post but i want to get everything all tuned up right before i spend money on better shisha and then end up wasting it

and i did read the post for beginners btw before i posted this so nobody yells at me

[K4L30]

alright im pretty new to this and right now im just using a hookah i made myself i have noticed after everybowl that i smoke there is burned shisha stuck to the bottom of the foil when i take it off then there is still some unburned shisha left in the bottom of the bowl that is still like brand new and i am using the bottom of a pop can with holes poked in it for now as the bowl so it is not very deep at all

should the foil be touching the shisha while you are smoking?
should i add more coals i just have the cheap japanese quick lites for now and only use one at a time?
will adding more heat from more coals make the smoke thicker?

sorry this is kind of a long post but i want to get everything all tuned up right before i spend money on better shisha and then end up wasting it

and i did read the post for beginners btw before i posted this so nobody yells at me

No the foil isnt supposed to be touching the shisha. I usually use 1 /12 - 2 coals depending on the cut adding more heat will make the smoke thicker but adding too much will scorch your shisha. If I were you i would buy a real hookah rather than learning to smoke on a homeade one but thats just me. also if you want you could rremove the foil halfway through the session and turn your shisha so the wet stuff is on top. A little bit of a pain but a solution to one of your problems. Just do some experimenting and find out what works the best for you and your homeade hook. Good luck! Edited April 25, 2008 by K4L30

[mathuv]

first off, welcome to the forums it doesnt matter if there is some shisha stuck to the foil, it doesnt usually affect taste so don't worry about it. as for the unburned shisha, thats normal. if theres alot you might even try consider adding another coal after your first one's done, should smoke for about 30 more mins. also, how are your sessions going? any harshness/tickling in the back of your throat? are they flavorful? what shisha are you using? adding more heat might make the smoke thicker but it will also increase the chances of burning the shisha. try this, use 2 squares of jap coals, place them opposite each other, almost "hanging" off the sides of the bowl/pop can, if it gets too harsh just take one off .

[erufiku]

should the foil be touching the shisha while you are smoking? In my opinion, no. But for some brands it doesn't matter.
should i add more coals i just have the cheap japanese quick lites for now and only use one at a time? Depends, if you're not getting enough smoke add another coal. If it gets harsh then, move them to the very edge of the bowl. Still harsh? Take one off. Alternatively use a windcover, you can make one from foil.
will adding more heat from more coals make the smoke thicker? If you get vispy smoke it might. Careful on the heat management though.

As someone already said, splurge on a proper hookah... A QT is around 50$ right now and you usually get a few sample packs of shisha with it to experiment with.
Also, you wrote that you're using the bottom of a soda can for a bowl. I guess this is the key to your problems, the heat distribution on that thing must be terrible, and it's shallow. If you're not getting a proper hookah, at least get yourself a proper bowl. Glazed egyptians shouldn't run you more than $5 locally.

[mathuv]

should the foil be touching the shisha while you are smoking? In my opinion, no. But for some brands it doesn't matter.
should i add more coals i just have the cheap japanese quick lites for now and only use one at a time? Depends, if you're not getting enough smoke add another coal. If it gets harsh then, move them to the very edge of the bowl. Still harsh? Take one off. Alternatively use a windcover, you can make one from foil.
will adding more heat from more coals make the smoke thicker? If you get vispy smoke it might. Careful on the heat management though.

As someone already said, splurge on a proper hookah... A QT is around 50$ right now and you usually get a few sample packs of shisha with it to experiment with.
Also, you wrote that you're using the bottom of a soda can for a bowl. I guess this is the key to your problems, the heat distribution on that thing must be terrible, and it's shallow. If you're not getting a proper hookah, at least get yourself a proper bowl. Glazed egyptians shouldn't run you more than $5 locally.

yeah didnt think about that.. or you could like the inside of the can with tinfoil, shiny side up, i guess.