Suggestions w/coal burning/bacco

[eyece]

I have a pretty big clay bowl and Im using Nahkla (Sp) bacco with two coals, and for some reason, my coals are only lasting at most an hour before they are all grey and the hookah gets really harsh and i need to break the coals up. I know the brand of my coals would help, but I threw the box out, they are quit lite tho. Any suggestions for a longer smoke? Im burning threw coals so fast.. The hookah starts to hit harsh every 10 minutes or so so i adjust the coals and as I do so there is less and less coals and its really killin the smoke session. Anyone got an suggestions or answers as to why my hookah is hitting harsh to often?? Its pretty new and I clean it after every bowl of bacco. Any help would be appreciated and happy smokin!
~eyece

[eyece]

I'd also like to add, since im pretty new, when the hookah hits really harsh I lift up the foil (which i dont know if im supposed to do) and nearly all the bacco is burned and sticking to the top, which i understand happens but the bacco underneath is burned pretty bad. Should I reduce the amount of coals to 1 or 1/2? I break the bacco up in my fingers and gently fill the bowl about 75% to the top and add the foil.

[SanguineSolitude]

if the coals are small black pucks that come in silver rolls, then most likely they are either 3kings or golden coals. either way they burn nearly the same and only burn for about an hour before being burned out. It sounds like you are using too many coals and not managing heat very well. It is also possible that you arent packing the bowl correctly. There are tons of variables but lets assume you are using a standard sized bowl and foil. the tobacco should be lightly placed in the bowl, a sort of sprinkling of it until the bowl is nearly full(it sometimes helps to lightly pat it down). put on your foil and this time poke fewer holes in it than normal. and small holes at that. like pinholes or mechanical pencil lead holes. I would reccomend placing one coal on to begin with. Heres a trick i have for making the coal last longer and making the most smoke with one coal. Take a second piece of foil and poke some holes in it (pen diameter holes). then place this piece of foil over the top of the bowl and the coal. this keeps in more heat than a single coal on its own but less than two.wait a second. are you saying the hookah gets harsh after and hour of smoking? if this is so thats because youve used up all the good tobacco and are starting to burn it. most sessions dont last much more than an hour if that long. how long are you expecting a bowl to last? as far as lifting up the foil, if you lift it up and the tobacco is actually all crispy and burnt, youve smoked too long. when you lift the foil the now black tobacco should still have a little bit of moisture in it. otherwise you are just sucking in burning tobacco.

[eyece]

Yea puck sized coals in silver packs, thats about right, an hour is what they are lasting. And its getting harsh 5-10 mins into smoking. I think I need to use less coal cuz its lasting an hour just getting harsh coal taste I think more often than it should. I'll try using less coal and your foil on the top trick. I saw a few things you can buy to cover the top and maybe I'll look into some of those. Thanks for the detailed post Thought I'll double check everything.
btw. do the natural burning coals last longer and burn at a higher temp than the 3kings / golden? I might look into some natural ones too! thanks tho
~eyece

[Sariél]

They might not be 3kings or golden. Diamante also makes quicklites in that packaging; I think a few others make them in that form also. I haven't tried them but Diamante fingers in the bag give me migraines. But an hour sounds about right (if not a little bitlonger than usual).I have found that if I put too much tobacco in the bowl, and it touches the foil, the smoke will turn harsh, and unsmokable. I leave a little over 1/8" space under the foil, and make sure the foil doesn't sag. If it does, I scrape the crusty bits into the trash and replace the foil.

[smokinshisha4life]

try putting the coal on the outside edges of the bowl, and move them around every once in a while. Use less coal and add more until you get the right smoke thickness. Try 1/2 a coal or less and add more until you have it where you like it.

[Sonthert]

Use less charcoal. If you smoke it easier, it will last longer.