Finally: A Diffuser That Won't Kill You!

[stupidsongs2]

Prelude: For some bizarre reason, people have the philosophy that because a diffuser is submerged in water, it can be made of of materials that otherwise would not be able to be heated.

This philosophy is dangerous and is shortening your life.

If the material was submerged 100% of the time, it would be safe, however, fundamentally when you inhale, part of the diffuser is not submerged and is exposed to a level of heat that may release chemicals. There is a lot we don't know about plastics, why take the risk?

</end rant>

----


The hardest part of this was finding a material that satisfied the part of my rant earlier. Excessive aluminum has been found in the brains of Alzheimer's patients, so I'm staying clear of that. High levels of copper have been shown to lower testosterone levels, so that's out too. Brass is the only thing that I could find that would not corrode, has a long history of safe use, and is easily obtainable in screw-on form.

I drilled 1 hole in each side, and 3 on the bottom with my press using a 1/8” bit for hardened steel, sanded it down, and bent the sides of my downsteam so it would fit more snugly.

It works wonderful, smooths out the draw from the hookah, and is easily removable for cleaning.

Happy Smoking

- Jonathan
 

Edited October 12, 2015 by stupidsongs2

[SimplexCoda]

Prelude: For some bizarre reason, people have the philosophy that because a diffuser is submerged in water, it can be made of of materials that otherwise would not be able to be heated.

This philosophy is dangerous and is shortening your life.

If the material was submerged 100% of the time, it would be safe, however, fundamentally when you inhale, part of the diffuser is not submerged and is exposed to a level of heat that may release chemicals. There is a lot we don't know about plastics, why take the risk?

</end rant>

Ya so I dont know how short your down stem is, but mine is long enough to where its not going to be warm at all, in any sense of the word. Since plastic doesnt just release chemicals for the fun of it, it will be ok. Since they make plastic plates and eating untinsles i think it will be ok to have it on the bottom of stem that has no heat in the area, I think it should be ok. Also if you expose any of the diffuser when you take a hit then you dont have enough water in the base. Sweet nightly news-style scare tactics to try to sell it though.

[stupidsongs2]

Prelude: For some bizarre reason, people have the philosophy that because a diffuser is submerged in water, it can be made of of materials that otherwise would not be able to be heated.

This philosophy is dangerous and is shortening your life.

If the material was submerged 100% of the time, it would be safe, however, fundamentally when you inhale, part of the diffuser is not submerged and is exposed to a level of heat that may release chemicals. There is a lot we don't know about plastics, why take the risk?

</end rant>

Ya so I dont know how short your down stem is, but mine is long enough to where its not going to be warm at all, in any sense of the word. Since plastic doesnt just release chemicals for the fun of it, it will be ok. Since they make plastic plates and eating untinsles i think it will be ok to have it on the bottom of stem that has no heat in the area, I think it should be ok. Also if you expose any of the diffuser when you take a hit then you dont have enough water in the base. Sweet nightly news-style scare tactics to try to sell it though.

Have you measured the temperature on the outlet of the downstem? How do you know it doesn't get hot in the middle of a heavy draw? Many plastics do release chemicals just for the fun of it, and the issue is that people are using things are that not even remotely close to food safe when making diffusers. Also, try finding some plastic cups that'll accept hot drinks, most plastics just do not tolerate heat well. Every day we are finding out that plastic is not as safe as we once thought, just Google the Nalgene scare.

The diffuser is exposed to the heat because when you draw on it, it forces the water out from the inside, filling the chamber with hot air. The outlet for your pipe could be 20 feet underwater and this would still happen. I'm not trying to scare anyone, I'm trying to help people stop unintentionally poisoning themselves. But hey, no one is forcing you to listen, I'd just rather have my refined petrochemicals in my gas tank instead of my lungs.

[hday]

Who needs a drill press? A table vise, plumbers wrench, even pliers are good enough to hold it while drilling, if you are careful. It is nice that you'd offer them to people that wanted them though.

Also, you oughta thread it on to your stem.

EDIT:

Gah, and again with this hookah will kill you shit. Yes, it will. From lung cancer and emphysema, probably caused from 3 hour tobacco smoking sessions. A little plastic from a cut up ping pong ball isn't going to hurt you. Fuck, you could probably smoke the thing and it wouldn't kill you.

We all expose ourselves to chemicals anyway. Does anyone wear a respirator when cleaning the bathroom with bleach? Not me, and I'm not dead. Do we eat off plastic plates that have been in the dishwasher in scolding hot water?

I'm not saying you're capitalizing on fears of death, I just wish that more people would post cool hookahs they've made and less conversation about what's bad for you. Unless you've got some sort of study that has helpful information on smoking through copper or plastic, I don't want to hear about it. Edited July 22, 2008 by hday

[SimplexCoda]

Prelude: For some bizarre reason, people have the philosophy that because a diffuser is submerged in water, it can be made of of materials that otherwise would not be able to be heated.

This philosophy is dangerous and is shortening your life.

If the material was submerged 100% of the time, it would be safe, however, fundamentally when you inhale, part of the diffuser is not submerged and is exposed to a level of heat that may release chemicals. There is a lot we don't know about plastics, why take the risk?

</end rant>

Ya so I dont know how short your down stem is, but mine is long enough to where its not going to be warm at all, in any sense of the word. Since plastic doesnt just release chemicals for the fun of it, it will be ok. Since they make plastic plates and eating untinsles i think it will be ok to have it on the bottom of stem that has no heat in the area, I think it should be ok. Also if you expose any of the diffuser when you take a hit then you dont have enough water in the base. Sweet nightly news-style scare tactics to try to sell it though.

Have you measured the temperature on the outlet of the downstem? How do you know it doesn't get hot in the middle of a heavy draw? Many plastics do release chemicals just for the fun of it, and the issue is that people are using things are that not even remotely close to food safe when making diffusers. Also, try finding some plastic cups that'll accept hot drinks, most plastics just do not tolerate heat well. Every day we are finding out that plastic is not as safe as we once thought, just Google the Nalgene scare.

The diffuser is exposed to the heat because when you draw on it, it forces the water out from the inside, filling the chamber with hot air. The outlet for your pipe could be 20 feet underwater and this would still happen. I'm not trying to scare anyone, I'm trying to help people stop unintentionally poisoning themselves. But hey, no one is forcing you to listen, I'd just rather have my refined petrochemicals in my gas tank instead of my lungs.

Well, im not trying to be jacked about it. I mean its your way of making a few extra bucks, thats all good. All im saying that if the downstem is more than 10 inches, the smoke will cool to some decent degree before it gets there. I have been drinking hot coffee out of plastic cups for years when i go camping, im doin just fine. Thats all im sayin. I mean ya, it looks pretty sweet since its all brass and skrews on and stuff, im just sayin that i doubt that the plastic that is used in the normal diffuser is as harmful as you feel that they are. Thats all im tryin to get at.

[stupidsongs2]

Prelude: For some bizarre reason, people have the philosophy that because a diffuser is submerged in water, it can be made of of materials that otherwise would not be able to be heated.

This philosophy is dangerous and is shortening your life.

If the material was submerged 100% of the time, it would be safe, however, fundamentally when you inhale, part of the diffuser is not submerged and is exposed to a level of heat that may release chemicals. There is a lot we don't know about plastics, why take the risk?

</end rant>

Ya so I dont know how short your down stem is, but mine is long enough to where its not going to be warm at all, in any sense of the word. Since plastic doesnt just release chemicals for the fun of it, it will be ok. Since they make plastic plates and eating untinsles i think it will be ok to have it on the bottom of stem that has no heat in the area, I think it should be ok. Also if you expose any of the diffuser when you take a hit then you dont have enough water in the base. Sweet nightly news-style scare tactics to try to sell it though.

Have you measured the temperature on the outlet of the downstem? How do you know it doesn't get hot in the middle of a heavy draw? Many plastics do release chemicals just for the fun of it, and the issue is that people are using things are that not even remotely close to food safe when making diffusers. Also, try finding some plastic cups that'll accept hot drinks, most plastics just do not tolerate heat well. Every day we are finding out that plastic is not as safe as we once thought, just Google the Nalgene scare.

The diffuser is exposed to the heat because when you draw on it, it forces the water out from the inside, filling the chamber with hot air. The outlet for your pipe could be 20 feet underwater and this would still happen. I'm not trying to scare anyone, I'm trying to help people stop unintentionally poisoning themselves. But hey, no one is forcing you to listen, I'd just rather have my refined petrochemicals in my gas tank instead of my lungs.

Well, im not trying to be jacked about it. I mean its your way of making a few extra bucks, thats all good. All im saying that if the downstem is more than 10 inches, the smoke will cool to some decent degree before it gets there. I have been drinking hot coffee out of plastic cups for years when i go camping, im doin just fine. Thats all im sayin. I mean ya, it looks pretty sweet since its all brass and skrews on and stuff, im just sayin that i doubt that the plastic that is used in the normal diffuser is as harmful as you feel that they are. Thats all im tryin to get at.

Aw, sorry man, i didn't mean to come off like that. The little brass bits i use are about $3.50 each, this really is like a community service kinda thing, i wouldn't try and profit off safety. There would prbly be no problem with high temp plastics, a good rule of thumb would be if it's microwave safe, it shouldn't be too bad, as the plastic could at least withstand boiling water.

Anyway, it really depends on personal preference and one's own level of risk taking, debate helps others make informed decisions, and there is nothing wrong with strong options colliding.

[stupidsongs2]

Totally, brass is a very soft metal, you could prbly punch holes in it if you really wanted. Threading wouldn't work terrible well on my stem, it a little too thin, and a believe made of stainless steel, so a dye would be very hard to use on it. True, the tobacco will get you one day, but why hasten it by adding other chemicals? It's like driving without your seatbelt on, you CAN be safer, why not?

Who needs a drill press? A table vise, plumbers wrench, even pliers are good enough to hold it while drilling, if you are careful. It is nice that you'd offer them to people that wanted them though.

Also, you oughta thread it on to your stem.

EDIT:

Gah, and again with this hookah will kill you shit. Yes, it will. From lung cancer and emphysema, probably caused from 3 hour tobacco smoking sessions. A little plastic from a cut up ping pong ball isn't going to hurt you. Fuck, you could probably smoke the thing and it wouldn't kill you.

We all expose ourselves to chemicals anyway. Does anyone wear a respirator when cleaning the bathroom with bleach? Not me, and I'm not dead. Do we eat off plastic plates that have been in the dishwasher in scolding hot water?

I'm not saying you're capitalizing on fears of death, I just wish that more people would post cool hookahs they've made and less conversation about what's bad for you. Unless you've got some sort of study that has helpful information on smoking through copper or plastic, I don't want to hear about it.

[liquidglass]

You're not adding other chemicals from plastics....unless you have a 5 inch stem where the heat would get the chance to reach the diffuser. I agree with SC 10in or over and you're safe, which any hookah worth it's mettle is at least that big.


I have to disagree with you on one point, when you draw, you're actually pulling the water out from the outside, because it's in an airtight chamber. The smoke from the shisha flows down and out and up into your hose. It flows, it's not forced from the top down. Also it bubbles in relatively small bubbles with a diffuser, allowing more water to stay in the bottom of the stem than without a diffuser, so if anything a diffuser protects itself by only allowing some of the water to exit


As far as the heat goes, I actually had a friend put a temp sensor/wire on different parts of the stem (inside and out) to determine the temp change. and If I remember correctly by the time it got all the way down the temperature wasn't really that severe.

Plastic cups really aren't that bad either, like everyone mentioned above. You can put whatever you want in a plastic cup or bowl, if it's hot enough to melt the cup or bowl, you probably wont' be eating or drinking it, or touching it for that matter. Styrofoam would be a BIG difference.

Not to say I don't like your idea or even how it looks, it's all good with me and I don't think you're trying to gouge people, I just think that some of your assumptions are a little extreme.

[mhyson]

I know I'm revealing how little I know about hookahs, but what exactly does a diffuser do? What is it's purpose?

[ToncSTAR]

can someone tell me what a diffuser does?

and my downstem doesnt have the tread around it to screw that thing on, is this normal?