newbie needs help getting flavor

[wester101]

Hi i am realitivly new to hookah and i don't seem to be getting a ton of flavor out of mine, any adivice?  How do i know if I have enough charcol?  If smoke is thin is there something i can do?  sorry about the bombarding of questions.  Thanks all

[pavlakos_politakos]

well it depends mostly on your brand and flavour.give some details like brand,flavour,charcoal brand,setup of hookah,etc.

[wester101]

I have a 3 house sublime hookah (30 inches i think) and peach / butterscoth/ from hookahhub (that is where i bought hookah).  I have al nakahla double apple, mango mallasis (sorry bout terrible spelling).  I don't mind buying better flavors if that will help but i do want to keep them at 50g i don't smoke a lot

[wester101]

sorry forgot charcol i don't know brand but it is a instant light type it came with hookah

[yashman19]

Well typically when you are getting thin smoke, try adding more heat. If you add too much heat, you will know because it will start to get harsh. If this happens, just take some heat off.
After a while, you'll figure out a good attack plan for your coals, and have it down with no problem. It just takes some practice.
For a typical bowl packing, sprinkle your ma'assel in, don't pack it down too tight or else your draw will suffer. Use foil or screen. If foil, place the shiny side down. Poke a bunch of evenly spaced holes over the entire bowl with something sharp like a push-pin. Then just keep the coals spread out over the bowl. When you clump the coals together, it gets one spot of the ma'assel really hot, while the rest of the bowl isn't doing anything.
So try keeping your coals spread out from each other, and whenever you ash them, rotate them around the bowl to a different location to make sure you get an even burn.
Like I said, it will take some practice to get it down, but you'll get it soon enough. Good luck mang.

[HookahCaterpillar]

Depending on the size of your bowl will tell you what type of coal is
best. The larger size bowls(like i use) works well with a 40mm three
kings and then they have three kings in a smaller size(32 mm i think
but dont quote me) Use one charcoal and poke plenty of tiny holes. Make
sure the coal is nice and glowing red, achieved by lightly blowing on
the charcoal until it gets real red. IF it gets harsh it can be because
of many things, too much heat and in that case i usually slide the coal
over to the edge so its hanging off the bowl a little or i will move it
to a different spot on the bowl then it was before. It could also be
because the tobacco is burnt up, if your foil is really hard and
charred looking and your shisha is all black then that means you are
done with your bowl nothing you can do except to re-pack. What i also
do if its a little harsh is blow through the hose and harsh smoke will
come out of the air valve and the bowl and alot of the time will rid of
the harshness. If the problem persists then blowing through the hose
isnt the way to fix it and go back to the other ways. Your hookah can
also be harsh/off tasting if the water is nasty or the actual hookah is
dirty. Sorry to ramble off a little.

  If smoke is too thin then that most likely means your coal isnt
hot enough, so blow on it some more or maybe light it a little more.
When you first put the charcoal on the hookah sometimes you have to
take really big draws at first to get it started then after that you
can hit it normal again.

[ataneja]

From my experience (limited compared to many on this site), Nakhla tends not to have as much flavor compared to some of the other brands (al amir, fumari, al waha, etc).  That might be some of the problem.  Try some other brands, and flavors.  Fumari mint is amazing!

[mushrat]

I guess we should assume no air leakage and the like?

[HookahEnthusiast]

yea there is always the possibility of improper set up as far as base and stem connection go...i would put my 2cents in but it looks like everyone thats posted above has done a pretty throrough job already

[MR Bubble]

Since you said you have a 3-hose machine, are your other two hoses plugged up, so you aren't drawing air through them and ruining whatever smoke you may be getting? Or, if you are smoking with others, ensuring they have their thumbs plugging their hoses when you are drawing?
MR Bubble

[Seandoo]

I always used to do the whole shiny side down thing too when I still used foil but never really understood why...

[HookahEnthusiast]

also..ive found that with any multiple hose machine sometimes it works best if the people smoking all draw at the same time...it provides for more air flow generating more smoke.....this is just in my case what i have found....i dont know with your paritcular instince if that would solve the problem of thin smoke or not....but do check your seals on your other hoses if there not all in use...

[Jonny Haze]

My advice is to try some other brands, this way you have a base for comparison.  Maybe the smoke and flavor from the brand you first tried isn't quite your style.

[Sonthert]

I disagree, work with what you have, try getting that working and then go from there. There's no sense in buying package after package of tobacco if there's an underlying problem.From what I hear you saying If the smoke and the flavor are weak, it is likely there are one or two possible problems, one air/smoke leaking or being constricted. Two, humidity effects. If the opposite is true, its hard to suck altogether, then respond to this and we can go through that line of logic.As for #1:Bubba is right, you can't smoke a 3 hose hookah by your self without plugging the other two hoses up. Instead of attaching the other two hoses, plug them with corks. Now aren;t you sorry you purchased a multiple hose hookah?Check the three main joints on the hookah to make sure they are tight, not loose or wobbly. They are:1. The head to the top of the hookah2. The shank to the jar3. The hose to the hose port.Make sure you have gaskets installed on all three of these joints, the largest goes between the shank and the jar, the smallest between the hose stem and the hose port.If the head is loose, make sure you have the middle sized rubber gasket on there and gently twist the head downwards onto the taper with the gasket. Don't put the gasket in the head and then put it on the taper.If the shank/jar or hose stem/hose port joints are loose, with the gaskets, apply electrical tape rotationally, like taping your knee when you sprain it, UNDER the gaskets until tight. If you add too much tape the items will not want to go together or are hard to push or may "pop" out or slip off. Check all three of your hoses. Suck air through each one. If air doesn't draw easily, they may be plugged or defective. With each hose separately, plug the hose stem end with your finger and draw through the hose head end. It should suck tight like sucking through a drinking straw you have your finger over. If it feels "Mushy" or you can hear air leaking, find where its coming from and repair it, if possible, using electrical tape. Make sure you use new tobacco each time. Watch the video on how to pack a bowl. Follow Yash's advice about charcoal.Humidity effects can reduce the amount of smoke and flavor coming from tobacco. Try keeping your tobacco open to the air for 24 hours and smokign again and see if it makes any difference. This is far more common in brands such as Al Waha, Nahkla, Fahkfahkina, and Tangiers; brands that have nicotine.

[wester101]

wow thanks for all your advice i will try more charcol, as far as all the seals and stuff go i got that all set. thanks again