Question About Cracking Coals ...

[mattarios2]

Ok so my original belief was that when cutting coals in half it puts off less heat and spread over the surface of the bowl better than when not cracking.

But now that I think about it when testing it with tangiers ... wouldn't the smaller piece of coal give a more "defined" heat to a more specific area then when cracked?

I have packed the tangiers incredibly tight, loose, just dumped in the bowl directly from the tub, many different things. Every time it has good smoke, no tickle, but no flavor.

I am lead to believe cracking the cocos in half causes the heat to be more defined in a specific area yielding no flavor. When the coal is one big piece it is more heat but over a bigger surface area (the coal is bigger than when cracked in half.

No?

[liquidglass]

I'll have to disagree with you from my experience.

If you crack it in half, the bowl will have heat on two sides rather than just one side, which spreads the heat out evenly. On top of that the better airflow allows the coals to stay heated slightly more effectively so you'll have a more even heat.

If we suppose the whole coal is a 300 degree F all over (just for the example) then a 1/2 or 1/4th piece would give off the same temperature. So the size piece doesn't matter as much as it does to make sure the entire bowl has heat evenly over it.

[Zinite]

The halves should put off the same amount of heat, just over a smaller surface area.

[HKJON]

I get just the same results when cracking the coco's as with whole pieces. Maybe its your tobacco or your hookah needs cleaining. Also, try both methods with other tobacco brands as I would expect tangier's to be the more inconsistent of all tobaccos. Reason being, it is made in smaller batches than leading brands and perhaps Eric used more primitive manufacturing methods than a large factory.

[kdkhookah]

If you crack it in half, the bowl will have heat on two sides rather than just one side, which spreads the heat out evenly. On top of that the better airflow allows the coals to stay heated slightly more effectively so you'll have a more even heat.

The halves should put off the same amount of heat, just over a smaller surface area.

Both of these statements are how I have experienced the use of charcoal. I have found out that Tangiers requires a lot of heat tweaking until you get it right. Putting two full cocos on it will burn more tobacco in one area, whereas cutting them will disperse the heat evenly. You also have to keep in mind that cocos give off a lot more heat than other charcoals. I find that exoticas work really well with Tangiers, but due to their new crappy make, exotcas don't last as long as they used to. I would definitely recommend using coco halves, which will allow you to tweak the heat much easier.

[mattarios2]

but what I am saying is, since the coal is smaller, the heat is being sucked in onto the tobacco in a smaller surface area. So a smaller area gets heated with the same temp rather than a larger area being heated with the same temp.

Does that not make sense? lol

I crack my cocos for nak.

I just tried tang without cracking the coals and I got more flavor.

... odd ?

[joytron]

but what I am saying is, since the coal is smaller, the heat is being sucked in onto the tobacco in a smaller surface area. So a smaller area gets heated with the same temp rather than a larger area being heated with the same temp.

Does that not make sense? lol

I crack my cocos for nak.

I just tried tang without cracking the coals and I got more flavor.

... odd ?

you are jsut crazy.


I like cocos cut in half because they are longer in one direction, idk i just prefer rectengular coals and because 3 halves works better then two or three wholes. i kinda get what you are saying but it doesnt really make sense to me.

[redjako]

If you take your own theory of smaller pieces "focusing" more heat on one smaller location, theoretically burning that singular location, then the same argument would hold your NON halved-coals would burn a larger surface area on that larger specific location.


Do whatever works for you..on lucid, I'll use full coco's. On OG, I bust them in half, mainly because its easier to manage with coco Nara's (jesus they burn hot), as well as being able to use less then three full coals.

Medum phunnel I typically use 2.5 coals, adding the last .5 a half hour in for a hour session.

[kdkhookah]

Okay let me see if I can help you visualize the way I feel about it.

Say you are outside and it's really cold. You have one log that you set on fire and set in front of you. The front of your body is warm, but your back and sides wouldn't be. Okay now instead of lighting that one big log on fire, you cut it into three pieces and set each of them on fire. Now you set one in front of you and one on each side. Now more of your body is warmer than it would have been from just using the entire log.

Okay not the best scenario,which I'm sure there is some flaw to, but I can't think of another way of making it more visual. Two coals are going to heat up two sides of the bowl, whereas three or four pieces are going to heat just about the entire bowl. Plus, this is all specific to cocos. With exoticas I use pretty big pieces just because they don't burn anywhere as hot as cocos. But personally I say if you can get better results from not splitting coals then go for it. All that matters in the end is if you had an enjoyable session or not.

[joytron]

dont forget about radiant heat!

[mattarios2]

maybe i just packed the most recent bowl better, heh.

[mjdx88]

I see what matt is saying....i have been messing around with cracking my cocos in 1/2 and it just seems to produce less smoke and flavor even with a windcover.

[liquidglass]

maybe i just packed the most recent bowl better, heh.

Lol, you'd never guess how many times I was working on one "problem" and accidentally fixed another problem that made it all better.

I'm just hoping that everything works out for you man. I got what you were saying about the little piece of coal, but it wouldn't concentrate any more heat on any area just the same amount of heat on a smaller area, which I'm all for b/c if you have a lot of small heat sources rather than one large one you'll get an even smoke. Just my opinion though.

Whatever works for you sounds good to me.

[mattarios2]

yeah, makes sense. I think tonight I'm gonna nail it!

[Webbles]

Good luck matt!

[srawas89]

I have never believed in splitting coals....take 3kings for example, people always say to split it if you need like 1.5 coals. I say forget that and just lay a coal down like normal and than lie the 2nd coal at an angle on the 1st coal like this: --\. That is my opinion and it works awesome for me. However I do not know how that may work with tangiers as I have never tried tangiers.

Anyway good luck Mattarios if tangiers works for you sweet if not you found another way not to smoke tangiers. keep on goin brother I know you will make it

[mattarios2]

thanks fellas

[foibled again]

I have never believed in splitting coals....take 3kings for example, people always say to split it if you need like 1.5 coals. I say forget that and just lay a coal down like normal and than lie the 2nd coal at an angle on the 1st coal like this: --\. That is my opinion and it works awesome for me. However I do not know how that may work with tangiers as I have never tried tangiers.

I never split my coals either. I use 3 CH coals for a phunnel or vortex and get good results whether it's Tangiers, Nakhla, AF, or SB. I experimented with 2, 2.5, 2 split into 4 total, etc. but now I'm just too lazy to split them. Coal positioning is easier to manage than split coals IMO.

[Svaals]

I always cracked my Exotica Japanese-style coals, and it seemed to keep the bowl hotter that way. After smoking with CH coals today, I'm rethinking cracking them. I tried them both whole and cracked, and the bowl seemed to get a lot hotter with cracked coals, and the smoke seemed harsher. I think if you pack your tobacco tight enough, then the tobacco and the porcelain should conduct heat well enough without cracking the coals.

I am going to try using whole coals for a while to see where that gets me.

[Bulldog_916]

I think that cracking them works in certain circumstances. During drier weather, I find that it helps to get bigger clouds without burning. But on more humid days, I can add more heat and have it smoke better. It just sort of depends. Use the amount you need to get the job done for you.