How Often Do You Clean?

[zymerholic]

I have been disassembling and completely scrubbing my hookah between each bowl. Is that overkill? Do you guys only scrub with soappy water when you change flavors? I don't mind cleaning it, but if I'm being OCD (as per usual) please tell me.

[mattarios2]

I have been disassembling and completely scrubbing my hookah between each bowl. Is that overkill? Do you guys only scrub with soappy water when you change flavors? I don't mind cleaning it, but if I'm being OCD (as per usual) please tell me.

nope i as well as many others on here clean their hookah after every session. I have been doing baking soda and lemon juice lately, but dawn or dish washer soap works just fine.

not overkill at all, just taking good care.

[Chiefin]

Depends on the type of bowl you're using. If it's an Egyptian style where the juices are able to physically drip into your stem, then you may want to clean after each use. I have a phunnel and running some cold water through the stem usually does the trick. I'd recommend rinsing out the base every time as well. After a handful of sessions I will take a brush to the inside, but there is usually not much that comes out. Look down your stem and you should be able to gauge whether or not it's necessary.

My advice would be, if maintaining the cleanliness is an issue, you should invest in a phunnel to keep the juices out of your pipe.

[Kapten Kanel]

I usually clean my hookahs after each session, rinsing the stem with hot water and using a brush at the same time and then filling the stem with some lemon-extract (?) and use the brush again and then some more water and THEN (finally xD) its really clean. The base i just fill with hot water a couple of times. When it comes to the bowl i just wash it a little with water and then dry it up with some paper, i dont want it to be too clean, i still want it to be "smoked in". As for the hose, well, i dont have an washable hose so...

[ryno]

I usually clean at the end of everyday, usually 3-4 bowls packed, with 2-3 sets of coals in each. Give it a good scrub with hot soapy water, use my brushes, and it keeps clean.

[mjdx88]

I normally clean mine after every session, with running hot water down the stem and filling the base up. Then hit the stem with a brush and then run some more hot water down it. Then dry, seems to do the trick every time.

-Mike

[Bulldog_916]

I thoroughly clean mine after every 6-8 sessions. Between sessions I use the brush in the stem. It works fine. No corrosion or anything.

[willbb123]

I rinse and change the water in mine after every bowl. I only clean when it starts to get bad. I don't recommend it... but I am a full time student and work 2 part time jobs, so i just don't have time to do a good clean every night.

EDIT: BTW I use a phunnel bowl. Edited August 21, 2008 by willbb123

[oolatec]

Every session/sitting... which may consist of a few bowls. I clean mine when I'm done for the day...

[mushrat]

I clean my personal hookah after every use, though I don't usually use soap.

The hookahs at my lounge I do the same way. Everyone gets a fresh hookah with fresh water and a clean bowl.

[Sonthert]

I would never use soap. I use cold water and brushes and my hookahs are plenty clean. If you are using a pipe with an open or common chamber bell, you might have to resort to doing something drastic. If you are using tubed bell hookahs, it shouldn't be an issue.

Also, whoever suggested that using a phunnel would keep your hookah cleaner...Brilliant suggestion! Good piece of thinking.

[zymerholic]

I would never use soap.

hmmmm, NO soap? I have been cleaning after every smoke with a bit of dish soap and the brush. No "off" flavors from the soap, yet. Any particular reason for the no soap? I'm a bit (a lot a bit) OCD so I clean the sh!t out of everything, but if there is a good reason not I'll stop.

[melanko]

I rinse everything with hot water after every session, but only do deep scrubbing after every few sessions. Works just fine.

[mattathayde]

my normal routine is scrub out the bowl to get all the black off the rim then rinse the stem a lot, brush it, rinse again. some times ill toss some lemon juice in there. i have a rotator so i rinse out the base well and wipe it out. ill rinse the hose every other use some times toss lemon juice in there if its smelly still.

id rather clean it smei well every time then just rinse and have to scrub the hell out of it later

o forgot, i also push a piece of paper towel down the stem when im dont to dry it out well and get out any remaining junk

and forgot also to say that this is what i do after a night, i wont do all this between bowls
-matt Edited August 23, 2008 by mattathayde

[modisess]

i rinse through all the parts with warm water after every smoke session... the bowl i'll give it a good scrubbing.. but i only clean my pipe with the cleaning brush after every 10 or 15 sessions.

[hookah hippie]

I clean my pipes out really well after about 4 bowls

[Pilgrim]

Huh? what is this "cleaning" you speak of?

[Codename067]

Huh? what is this "cleaning" you speak of?

You do not clean your hookah?

Tsk tsk tsk

As for me, every 2-3 smokes. We smoke a lot [4 bowls on 2 hookahs/smoke session] so its a bit annoying to clean after every bowl in this situation.

Major -all around- clean up, once a week.

[Wharbone]

I clean with hot water and brushes after every session (which is usually just one bowl).

[Pilgrim]

Yeah I clean my hookah every 2 smokes or so.. I was smoking a hookah with some guy at a party once, and it tasted terrible, but he didn't seem to notice(although he was a daily smoker and I imagined he at least had some experience). Because the top of his stem was full of dried up juice, I asked him how much he cleaned his hookah. About every 2-3 MONTHS. And he changed the water in the base just once a week, when it went "brownish".... That was just nasty

[freezerburn456]

at the hookah bar that i work at a few of the VIP arabic hookahs have never been thoroughly cleaned in the entire time we have had them. every few nights we will change the water and maybe swab out the stem. most of them have been so engrained with SB wildberry and wildberry mint that you can use no bowl and still get a really full flavor minus smoke.

as for my hookahs I only use soap and lemon juice when something bad has happened. my normal cleaning routine is to change out the base water every session, and run a brush through the stem every other day or so. this is able to work for me only because i have adopted a system of classifying my hookahs with flavors. i have 1 mint, 1 apple, 1 red fruit (strawberry, rasberry, x on the beach, passion kiss...), 1 light flavor (grapes and the such), 1 citrus (orange, guava, mango), and 1 flower hookah (marlett, jasmine, rose). i also use nearly the same system for my hoses, except that there are multiple hoses for each flavor group.

if you have enough hookahs and hoses then the flavor system is one of the best ways to ensure a good smoking experience each and every time.