Acclimation Issues With Tangiers By Sonthert

[mix_tape]

I had the tickle in my throat for a few of my bowls, I suspected it was a packing problem but I could totally be wrong.

[Hookie The Hookah]

I've felt a "tickle", but never anything that prevented me from continuing with the bowl. I think for the purpose of clarity a tickle should be called something harsher as to better describe a feeling that would make you want to stop smoking it entirely...

[Webbles]

Ive always found the tickle to be either Lack of tobacco or not enough heat, and no flavor or wierd flavor is the result of non-acclimation.

[4d1ct3d]

Ive always found the tickle to be either Lack of tobacco or not enough heat, and no flavor or wierd flavor is the result of non-acclimation.

I agree, my recent experiences with tangiers led to believe that. When I start low on heat I always have a tickle. Also, I've had better results using intire coals then when I break them up, unlike nakhla.

I've tryed Horchata, Pear and White Grape.

Pear is just amazing. Horchata is a subtle cinnamon-creamy flavor. White Grape however isn't very much according to my taste. Is it suppose to be really subtle flavor? Or is it just not acclimating right? When I oppened the package it had an intense bad smell. Now it smells good but really subtle. It tastes good but really really subtle. Is this normal for this flavor?

[Bulldog_916]

Ive always found the tickle to be either Lack of tobacco or not enough heat, and no flavor or wierd flavor is the result of non-acclimation.

I agree, my recent experiences with tangiers led to believe that. When I start low on heat I always have a tickle. Also, I've had better results using intire coals then when I break them up, unlike nakhla.

I've tryed Horchata, Pear and White Grape.

Pear is just amazing. Horchata is a subtle cinnamon-creamy flavor. White Grape however isn't very much according to my taste. Is it suppose to be really subtle flavor? Or is it just not acclimating right? When I oppened the package it had an intense bad smell. Now it smells good but really subtle. It tastes good but really really subtle. Is this normal for this flavor?

I like the flavor I mean, it isnt in your face or anything, but it's there. For that reason I smoke more of the Nakhla Mizo Grape flavor than the Tangiers White Grape. I've been having up and down sessions with the Tangiers grape. The Mizo has been more consistent and more tasty.

[mattarios2]

Update, I packed 40g in my mini, juices overflowed, i packed 35g and it seemed full, no leakage out the bowl, I got 10 min of GOOD cocoa flavor, then it disappeared. No tickle, burn or anything. I am finding that the lower the humidity is in my basement, and the colder the water is in the jar (I used water and like 20 cubes of ice) the more flavor I am getting.

I don't think acclimation is the issue for everyone definitely for some, (It was for me the last time i tried it, but 4/20 method seemed to have fix it) I think for some it could be high humidity?

More updates as I try more things out, 55% humidity yielded me NO flavor, 50% I got a little flavor and 44% (Which was last night, I ran the dehumidifier) I got the most flavor yet.

Can any tangiers veterans confirm good flavor in high humidity weather?

[Bulldog_916]

Most of the high-humidity days, I avoid smoking until later in the night. It just isnt comfortable to smoke when it's 99 and the humidity makes it feel like your skin has maple syrup all over it. I mean, it's still warm, but not nearly as much. The humidity could come down in the night because it just becomes dew when the overnight temp gets to it's lowest. So that water comes out of the air and the dew point goes back up in the day time. Maybe try an early morning session after the morning temp comes up a bit from the lowest temp.

Just a theory. Edited September 21, 2009 by Bulldog_916

[mattarios2]

Hmmm ... i'll give that a try Wednesday morning, if I manage to wake up early enough, heh.

Thanks man

[Ralleac]

I've felt a "tickle", but never anything that prevented me from continuing with the bowl. I think for the purpose of clarity a tickle should be called something harsher as to better describe a feeling that would make you want to stop smoking it entirely...

It gets pretty bad, and it isn't something I've ever experienced with any other shisha, Nakhla included. The throat irritation occurs when I exhale the smoke and makes me want to cough regardless of how much smoke I inhaled. Even a little makes my throat hurt. The pipe I am using also doesn't seem to change this one way or another.

So far I've tried:

-Packing a Tangiers phunnel bowl normally using the video with Eric and John as an example.
-Severely overpacking the phunnel until the foil kind of tents upward as suggested by an old thread done by EternalSoil.
-Underpacking the phunnel.
-Packing the tobacco into a large Egyptian bowl instead.
-Using less coal (less heat) by cutting Golden Canary's into halves and using 4 of them on a large phunnel.
-Using more coal (more heat) by adding between 2-4 entire coals on a large phunnel.
-Varying hole patterns like the 3 rings shown in Rayver's videos and the large holes all over the bowl as shown by Eric.

I'm really not sure what else to do. Once in a while I can smoke it for like ten minutes, but the smoke is usually just too irritating for me to put up with for long. Edited September 22, 2009 by Ralleac

[Sonthert]

Ralleac: That actually sounds like the tobacco is too damp for the current air. Did it acclimate? Does it smell right prior to smoking?

Sorry I've been out lately, I've had a respiratory infection and continuing browser problems.

Mattarios: I was thinking about first principles again. The relative humidity is high there, the dewpoint is fluctuating. If the Relative Humidity is high though, its going to slow drying of the tobacco and speed up dampening of the tobacco specifically. If the relative humidity is low, it will slow the dampening and speed drying. So, perhaps whats happening is the tobacco is drying out slowly due to the high Relative Humidity. Try smoking around 3PM or 4Pm if you can...see what happens. That would correspond to the time of the day when the tobacco is most in humidity shock if what I'm thinking is true. The time when the tobacco is closest to the air would be somewhere around 8am-10am. The tobacco didn't get dry enough...the humidity starts going back up, crossing the humidity level of the tobacco. If you're up to it, smoke at these two times. The tobacco will always be out of sync damp when the relative humidity is high. If I'm correct, we only need to shift the 4/20 2/22 acclimation period to the end of your smoking session, in drier air. The down word is it will smoke better when its drier because the humidity varies less in a magnitude sense. So the fluctuations should be smaller.

Also, what are you basing the Dewpoints on? The weather? A website or a personal thermometer/hygrometer? Generally, in a given day, as it gets cooler, the relative humidity goes up. THe absolute humidity 9dewpoint) stays pinned...but as the temperature goes down, the relative humidity goes up (since the capacity of air to hold moisture drops with temperature).

[Ralleac]

Ralleac: That actually sounds like the tobacco is too damp for the current air. Did it acclimate? Does it smell right prior to smoking?

I left the K-Cherry and Cactus Fruit open for 4 and sealed for 20. They both smell great, but I can try acclimating them again tomorrow to see if it changes anything. I haven't opened Passion Fruit or White Grape yet.

[Sonthert]

You opened them for the four hours during which you normally smoke?

[Sonthert]

How much tobacco, what type of bowl, what type and how much charcoal are you using also?

[Hookie The Hookah]

I've felt a "tickle", but never anything that prevented me from continuing with the bowl. I think for the purpose of clarity a tickle should be called something harsher as to better describe a feeling that would make you want to stop smoking it entirely...

It gets pretty bad, and it isn't something I've ever experienced with any other shisha, Nakhla included. The throat irritation occurs when I exhale the smoke and makes me want to cough regardless of how much smoke I inhaled. Even a little makes my throat hurt. The pipe I am using also doesn't seem to change this one way or another.

So far I've tried:

-Packing a Tangiers phunnel bowl normally using the video with Eric and John as an example.
-Severely overpacking the phunnel until the foil kind of tents upward as suggested by an old thread done by EternalSoil.
-Underpacking the phunnel.
-Packing the tobacco into a large Egyptian bowl instead.
-Using less coal (less heat) by cutting Golden Canary's into halves and using 4 of them on a large phunnel.
-Using more coal (more heat) by adding between 2-4 entire coals on a large phunnel.
-Varying hole patterns like the 3 rings shown in Rayver's videos and the large holes all over the bowl as shown by Eric.

I'm really not sure what else to do. Once in a while I can smoke it for like ten minutes, but the smoke is usually just too irritating for me to put up with for long.

Are you using the 4/20 method right now? Having done something similar to that method in the past I would, despite the tobacco smelling good to go, have very very harsh sessions when I opened the container after many hours closed and then immediately tried to smoke it. To resolve this issue I would let the packed bowls sit out for 30 minutes to an hour and that would make them smokable... Edited September 22, 2009 by Hookie The Hookah

[Sonthert]

Yeah, what this thread ostensible purpose is to figure out people's problems regarding tobacco that never acclimates. That being said, it is a good idea to leave it sit out for a little while before smoking..get the top of it acclimated.

[Ralleac]

You opened them for the four hours during which you normally smoke?

Yeah, between 8 p.m. to 12 a.m. I tried smoking the cactus fruit that night but it bothered me too much to really enjoy it. I have a large and medium phunnel. I've never really measured the amount of tobacco so I could be off, but if I had to guess I'd say close to 60-70 grams in the large and 50 or a little bit less in the medium. I'm currently using Golden Canary Japanese coals.

[Arcane]

You opened them for the four hours during which you normally smoke?

Yeah, between 8 p.m. to 12 a.m. I tried smoking the cactus fruit that night but it bothered me too much to really enjoy it. I have a large and medium phunnel. I've never really measured the amount of tobacco so I could be off, but if I had to guess I'd say close to 60-70 grams in the large and 50 or a little bit less in the medium. I'm currently using Golden Canary Japanese coals.

hmmmm....if properly packed, wouldn't a majority of large phunnels hold closer to 100g of tobacco? and the mediums around the 60-70 range?

if the smell is on point, i'd think it was more a packing issue than an acclimation issue. Edited September 23, 2009 by Arcane

[Hookie The Hookah]

You opened them for the four hours during which you normally smoke?

Yeah, between 8 p.m. to 12 a.m. I tried smoking the cactus fruit that night but it bothered me too much to really enjoy it. I have a large and medium phunnel. I've never really measured the amount of tobacco so I could be off, but if I had to guess I'd say close to 60-70 grams in the large and 50 or a little bit less in the medium. I'm currently using Golden Canary Japanese coals.

hmmmm....if properly packed, wouldn't a majority of large phunnels hold closer to 100g of tobacco? and the mediums around the 60-70 range?

if the smell is on point, i'd think it was more a packing issue than an acclimation issue.

Definitely lower, at least on the medium (which is all I've got). I used to use the super-overpack method and that would get me a solid 5 bowls from a 250g pack. Now it's more like 7...

[mattarios2]

So last night I tried 32g in my mini and good clouds, still no tickle, no burning or anything, but no flavor. I tried ice water, then switched to room temp water in the middle of the session and no change. I had a tiny bit of flavor from cocoa, none from white grape. I used 2 cocos, i tried non cracked, and 2 cracked in half. No luck.

I may keep lowering the amount of shisha until i hit the point where it is harsh, then add a few grams and see what happens. I am thinking maybe since the mini is much smaller, the tobacco gets squished easier, killing air flow? I do notice at the start of the session i get SOME flavor for a min or two, then it just disappears (and no tickle or burn so I don't believe I am overheating it) ... leads me to believe maybe the shisha is just getting squished. I am prob gonna try 25g within the next couple days ... it's just weird to see (with 25g) it at the line of the phunnel hole ... when everyone, and tutorials show how much shisha people stuff in their bowls.

[Ralleac]

You opened them for the four hours during which you normally smoke?

Yeah, between 8 p.m. to 12 a.m. I tried smoking the cactus fruit that night but it bothered me too much to really enjoy it. I have a large and medium phunnel. I've never really measured the amount of tobacco so I could be off, but if I had to guess I'd say close to 60-70 grams in the large and 50 or a little bit less in the medium. I'm currently using Golden Canary Japanese coals.

hmmmm....if properly packed, wouldn't a majority of large phunnels hold closer to 100g of tobacco? and the mediums around the 60-70 range?

if the smell is on point, i'd think it was more a packing issue than an acclimation issue.

Like I said, I never actually measured the tobacco so I am just guessing. The numbers I gave could easily be way off from what I have actually used. The throat irritation occurs whether the bowl is overflowing with shisha and juice, packed like I'd normally pack other shisha, or even underpacked.

[Hookie The Hookah]

So last night I tried 32g in my mini and good clouds, still no tickle, no burning or anything, but no flavor. I tried ice water, then switched to room temp water in the middle of the session and no change. I had a tiny bit of flavor from cocoa, none from white grape. I used 2 cocos, i tried non cracked, and 2 cracked in half. No luck.

I may keep lowering the amount of shisha until i hit the point where it is harsh, then add a few grams and see what happens. I am thinking maybe since the mini is much smaller, the tobacco gets squished easier, killing air flow? I do notice at the start of the session i get SOME flavor for a min or two, then it just disappears (and no tickle or burn so I don't believe I am overheating it) ... leads me to believe maybe the shisha is just getting squished. I am prob gonna try 25g within the next couple days ... it's just weird to see (with 25g) it at the line of the phunnel hole ... when everyone, and tutorials show how much shisha people stuff in their bowls.

Do you have any other phunnels?

[mattarios2]

nope, if i did I would have tried it. Most people have said the issue with the minis and tang is that heat management is a bitch. I have had no issues with heat management ... I think it's packed too tightly ... who knows these days

[newjacksm]

So last night I tried 32g in my mini and good clouds, still no tickle, no burning or anything, but no flavor. I tried ice water, then switched to room temp water in the middle of the session and no change. I had a tiny bit of flavor from cocoa, none from white grape. I used 2 cocos, i tried non cracked, and 2 cracked in half. No luck.

I may keep lowering the amount of shisha until i hit the point where it is harsh, then add a few grams and see what happens. I am thinking maybe since the mini is much smaller, the tobacco gets squished easier, killing air flow? I do notice at the start of the session i get SOME flavor for a min or two, then it just disappears (and no tickle or burn so I don't believe I am overheating it) ... leads me to believe maybe the shisha is just getting squished. I am prob gonna try 25g within the next couple days ... it's just weird to see (with 25g) it at the line of the phunnel hole ... when everyone, and tutorials show how much shisha people stuff in their bowls.

I am getting almost the same exact problem except my flavor last a little bit longer..

[mattarios2]

hmm ... lets see if we can find any similar variables ... what kind of coals do you use? where do you smoke? humidity in that area? When do you smoke?

I see you are in NY not too far from MA.

[newjacksm]

I usually smoke around 4 in the afternoon and later. I usually smoke in my room with the window wide open, the hookah is near the window. Long Island never see's days under 40% let alone in 40% area for humidity. It is usually very humid here compared to other places. 50-60 % is a good day. Edited September 23, 2009 by newjacksm