Beginner's Guide - Cleaning Your Hookah

[magick777]

Mods - feel free to move under the existing Beginner's Guide thread or make sticky, as appropriate. Nothing here for old hands, it's a beginner's guide, like it says...

Much is made of the importance of keeping your pipe clean, and we've had many discussions about cleaning agents and cleaning methods, but we don't seem to have a beginner's guide to [b]what[/b] to clean and [b]how[/b] to clean it. So, since I was cleaning my pipes this afternoon, I thought I'd document the method I use, which cleans my pipes to a more than acceptable standard using nothing but warm water and elbow grease. Usual disclaimers apply, there's more than one way to do it, your mileage may vary, and I'm not responsible if you soak the cat in the process, but here's what works for me.
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[b][b]Put the pipe(s) in the bath, and if you have a shower hose, unscrew the shower head so you're left with just the hose. [/b]Disassemble all small parts. Remove bowl and hose grommets. Remove purge valve cap, being careful not to lose the ball bearing. Dump all these into a jug or cup, fill with hot water, set aside. Remove ash trays. Turn hot water on.[/b]

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[b]Wash down the outside of the pipe, removing dirt and ash. This will likely clean your ash trays in the process. Use a sponge if you need to.[/b]
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[b]Before disassembling the pipe, I like to flush water through the hose port until it squirts out of the purge valve, then block the purge valve so it's forced up the stem. We'll rinse these out in a minute, so, when we've finished playing with fountains...[/b]

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[b]Disassemble the pipes, rinse out the stems and bottles, use a sponge where needed.[/b]

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[/b][/b][b][b]Clean out the bottles thoroughly, using hot water and a bottle brush designed for the job. I normally have to brush the bottles out two or three times and rinse them out two or three times before all trace of odour or discolouration disappears.[/b][/b]

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[b]And do the same for the stems. Today was the first time the smaller pipe has seen a stem brush, and the amount of gunk it took out was quite something.[/b]

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[b]Then rinse the stems thoroughly, taking care to flush through the hose port and the purge valve. [/b]
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Now we're pretty much done with the cleaning, so refill your bottle to the desired level with clean, cold water. Fit the stem onto the vase (wet the grommet and gently twist the stem if it's a tight fit). Fit the tray onto the stem, reassemble the ball bearing and valve cap.[/b]

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[b]If you have a washable hose, flush it through with warm water. If you don't [u]know[/u] that your hose is washable, don't do it; it might cause your leather hose to split when it dries, and will rust the metal coil inside the hose unless it's constructed of suitable materials.[/b]

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[b]Finally, reassemble grommets, bowl and hose onto your pipe, and it's all ready to load up and smoke.[/b] [b]I can't claim that this removes all trace that a pipe has ever been used, but, my pipes are left with a barely perceptible, slightly sweet flavour that is infinitely preferable either to how they were before I started or to just about anything else I might use in the name of cleaning them. [/b]


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[thehelios]

Nice guide. I usually substitute the bathtub with my sink since that's the only place I have a hose. Brushes are the most important part IMO of cleaning a hookah since it's usually the one things most people don't use to clean their hookahs. It's crazy too see how nasty the water is when you rinse a stem out after brushing.

[HsK BATES]

also make sure to leave everything sit out and air dry before putting back together stem and vase.

[clickhea]

running lemon juice or vodka through the stem after the cleaning will fully remove any remaining odors.

[nate]

sometimes i'll also boil the base of my stem in a pot if i haven't cleaned it in a few uses. Generally i think the most important tip is to clean after every use.

[TheyCallMeDave]

Nice guid, magick. Can't tell you how many times I've been disgusted with my pipe after using a stem brush. But then I'm happy! Haha.

[Cp44]

thanks for the guide man!