The Triple H (hand-held Hookah)

[teox]

ive recently resorted to 3k for the portahookah. it fits fine under the tea ball and actually burns it perfectly without getting harsh. my only complaint is the occasional taste i get from it. but honestly its very minimal and i can deal with it. i might try the coconut fingers, where did you get them?

[tingjunkie]

i might try the coconut fingers, where did you get them?

Give ya three guesses! (Check my last post.) Last I checked, they don't sell them anymore. Came in a big box of over 200 coals. Black box with lots arabic...AS Designs of Indonesia is the brand, now that I'm looking at it. They are OK, but do have a bit of a smell. I've been thinking of switching brands.

[ufraysfan]

Well, yesterday I broke the glass base on my hookah (dropped it because I am an idiot), and I needed a replacement. So, I log on here and see these great instructions. I go out and spend 5 hours looking for parts (tea balls are a bitch to find, as stated previously in this thread), and I came home and assembled a hookah using these steps as a base. I didn't use epoxy for fear of fumes, etc, but it doesn't seem to matter because my design is pretty airtight. Instead of a tea ball, I'm using some small muffin pan thing, some tin foil, and a drain strainer for the top of the hookah. Anyhow, just wanted to thank you for your help in my quest to find a replacement hookah! :-)

[tingjunkie]

Well, yesterday I broke the glass base on my hookah (dropped it because I am an idiot), and I needed a replacement. So, I log on here and see these great instructions. I go out and spend 5 hours looking for parts (tea balls are a bitch to find, as stated previously in this thread), and I came home and assembled a hookah using these steps as a base. I didn't use epoxy for fear of fumes, etc, but it doesn't seem to matter because my design is pretty airtight. Instead of a tea ball, I'm using some small muffin pan thing, some tin foil, and a drain strainer for the top of the hookah. Anyhow, just wanted to thank you for your help in my quest to find a replacement hookah! :-)

I'm really glad to hear that my instructions worked for you! I'd love to see pics of the one you built if you get a chance to post a couple. I'm especially interested in seeing how you used a "muffin pan thing."

Sorry it took me so long to respond to the post... I've been rather busy switching jobs recently and have been slacking on the Hookah Forum lurking.

[hookahgod]

Great hookah ting! My first hookah was a handheld, me and my boys would sit around our highschool courtyard, the bottle full of juice and smoke when the guards weren't looking. Had a straw for a hose, so it looked more like drinking something wierd when they looked over. fun times.

as far as glue and toxicity goes, when i first started making mine, i used E6000, which turned out to have a big old warning on the back saying "heat will cause toxic gas emission". smoked from these for 2 years, never any probs. i don't use it anymore, but i think most warnings are drastically overstated. and don't worry two seconds about copper, thats what all you drinking water gets carried through!

[Claytron]

Thanks for the concern GT, and for taking the time to post the info.

However...
-The copper tubing is never heated, it's only the part which the cooled smoke passes through.
-Copper cookware is highly regarded by chefs as being some of the best cookware on earth... http://www.williams-sonoma.com/shop/ckw/ck...wmvlb/index.cfm

If I could fry eggs in a copper pan, and not worry, then I think letting smoke pass through copper pipe is ok. Who knows, maybe I willl switch to stainless tubing if I find some of the right size, but for now, I don't think the copper is a hazard.

Copper cookware is only copper on the OUTSIDE, and also pressed in between on other higher end cookware. Copper is an excellent heat conductor, hence they use it to wrap the outside of pots and pans. Food never comes into contact with the copper. I can't say whether sucking on a copper tube is bad for you or not. I personally don't like the taste of copper, so I wouldn't use it for that reason alone. Medical grade PVC tubing would probably be the best/safest choice.

[hookahgod]

Medical grade PVC tubing would probably be the best/safest choice.

One thing bout PVC - formaldehyde is created by it, it ends up inside the hose after it is made. first few hookah sessions have a distinct formaldehyde taste to them. do get a little more buzzed though. I still havn't found anything better though.

[jaker29902]

hmm havent tried it yet, but seems instead of epoxy you could just make the tube and such a tighter fit in the stopper, and then either shape the stopper to the bottle or vice-versa and make it so the stopper fits the bottle and you just have to wet it and puch it down to create an airtight seal, that way no nasty expoxy chemicals.

And seriously, sobe bottles dont work?

[michaela]

OK so i attempted to make mine with all the same stuff except i used the same clear tube as the hose and my funnel's stem is bigger than the aluminum tube that I'm using. I tried to smoke it and it was getting a little smoke but not much at all. I think it has to do with the airtight issue with the funnel and all. I'm going to attempt to solder the funnel on so it's sealed. Do you think this would work or would you just suggest going and getting some tube that is wider than the stem of the funnel? Any tips at all on any of this? I haven't put any epoxy on it yet because it seems pretty airtight with the exception of the funnel issue. Also, where do you guys put the foil, or more specifically how much foil do you use? Do you just wrap it around the lip of the funnel so it seals all the smoke into the funnel if the tea ball isn't a perfect fit?

[tingjunkie]

hmm havent tried it yet, but seems instead of epoxy you could just make the tube and such a tighter fit in the stopper, and then either shape the stopper to the bottle or vice-versa and make it so the stopper fits the bottle and you just have to wet it and puch it down to create an airtight seal, that way no nasty expoxy chemicals.

Getting the stem/tube airtight in the rubber stopper is actually pretty easy. That is not the problem. The question would be how to attach the funnel to the stem without epoxy, and then how to attach the tea ball to the funnel without epoxy.

Teox found a stem which the funnel fits snugly into without epoxy, then he didn't even permanently attach the tea ball to the funnel, but just kept it in place with foil during the sessions. These were good solutions, but I would still like to find a way to attach the tea ball to the funnel permanently without epoxy.

[tingjunkie]

OK so i attempted to make mine with all the same stuff except i used the same clear tube as the hose and my funnel's stem is bigger than the aluminum tube that I'm using. I tried to smoke it and it was getting a little smoke but not much at all. I think it has to do with the airtight issue with the funnel and all. I'm going to attempt to solder the funnel on so it's sealed. Do you think this would work or would you just suggest going and getting some tube that is wider than the stem of the funnel? Any tips at all on any of this? I haven't put any epoxy on it yet because it seems pretty airtight with the exception of the funnel issue. Also, where do you guys put the foil, or more specifically how much foil do you use? Do you just wrap it around the lip of the funnel so it seals all the smoke into the funnel if the tea ball isn't a perfect fit?

I don't have much experince with soldering myself, but I would worry about introducing more toxins into the design with that approach. I could be completely wrong, and it could be fine, but who knows? To be on the safe side, I would just try to find a stem with the right diameter. My local hobby shops had aluminum tubes of almost every diameter.

What kind of tea ball did you end up using? All mesh, or half mesh/half stainless? How did you attach it to the funnel?

As for foil, I just use one 3"-4" square of Reynolds Heavy Duty. Just place one edge of the foil right next to the hinge of the tea ball and form the rest tightly around the bowl and down the sides of the funnel. My tea ball fits perfectly inside the funnel, but if it didn't, I'm sure the foil would seal any gaps pretty well. That is how Teox's version works- it relies on the foil to form a seal between the ball and the funnel.

[michaela]

I've got an all mesh one because I've checked in upwards of 5 kitchen supply stores and this is all I could find. As for how I attached the tea ball to the funnel, my funnel has a little tab on it with a hole for hanging it and i just squeezed the little chain from the tea ball through the hole and it hangs onto the funnel now. I think I'm going to attempt to use epoxy to seal the funnel to the tube first and if that doesn't work then I'm just going to have to man up and go back and buy another $3 tube that the funnel fits snug in lol but I'm going to cheap out and use epoxy first because I already have some of that. Hopefully this solves my issue because I loaded a bowl the other day and it was smoking but very, very lightly. I could taste the shisha but I was hardly getting any smoke at all. I'll get back to you guys tomorrow on how it smokes with the epoxy seal on the funnel and tube because I left all my shisha and coals at my friends house and I'm too lazy to go out and get it tonight.

[tingjunkie]

Just make sure the epoxy is very heat resistant. I used JB Weld on mine.

Let's see some pics once it's complete!

[tingjunkie]

I've got an all mesh one because I've checked in upwards of 5 kitchen supply stores and this is all I could find.

I actually tracked down the exact tea ball I used for my hookah- it's the COPCO Ultimo Tea Ball 5cm 1/2 & 1/2 model. I just placed an order at this store for 3 more of them, since they are apparently so hard to find. I will update this post when I recieve them, just to make sure they are the right size.

[tj154906]

I've got an all mesh one because I've checked in upwards of 5 kitchen supply stores and this is all I could find.

I actually tracked down the exact tea ball I used for my hookah- it's the COPCO Ultimo Tea Ball 5cm 1/2 & 1/2 model. I just placed an order at this store for 3 more of them, since they are apparently so hard to find. I will update this post when I recieve them, just to make sure they are the right size.

I think I'm gonna give this a try. I'll probably end up ordering one of those tea balls from that site. Pretty cheap...

[tingjunkie]

I think I'm gonna give this a try. I'll probably end up ordering one of those tea balls from that site. Pretty cheap...

Just got the order last night. They are the exact same kind. More Tripple H's on the way!

[*HOT&SMOKING*]

I saw the vid. on this from youTube.... it totally rocks!!!

[Rani]

Yeah, but you can use bongs and crack pipes to smoke tobacco, but that still would make the ignorant public voice their uneducated opinion. Have you had any problems?

Okay, interjection here. Bongs and crack pipes fall under the legal terminology of "paraphernalia". Illegal and carry as heavy a penalty in most states as having the actual drugs on the premises. Wouldn't suggest anybody go there. Hookahs are clearly labeled as being exempt from the legal definition of paraphernalia. I don't see how even a homemade hookah could possibly fall into the paraphernalia category, but do you really want to get time off from work to try and explain that to some judge? Not this girl.....

'Rani

[poopooshaboo]

I just tried to make a HHH out of a tiny glass jar, a toilet paper roll, two empty plastic pens, and two empty blow-pens. And a LOT of duct tape. I just duct taped my phunnel to the top, and duct taped the blow pens as a downstem, etc. Needless to say, it didn't work so well. Or at all.



Oh yeah, and did I mention that I didnt have any coals, so I tried to smoke by keeping a butane torch lighter continually lighted? Then I lit three coals from my fireplace on the stove and tried those.

It was quite the escapade.

[tingjunkie]

I just tried to make a HHH out of a tiny glass jar, a toilet paper roll, two empty plastic pens, and two empty blow-pens. And a LOT of duct tape. I just duct taped my phunnel to the top, and duct taped the blow pens as a downstem, etc. Needless to say, it didn't work so well. Or at all.



Oh yeah, and did I mention that I didnt have any coals, so I tried to smoke by keeping a butane torch lighter continually lighted? Then I lit three coals from my fireplace on the stove and tried those.

It was quite the escapade.

I was going to reply with something witty, but nothing came out when I tried to type... I'm speechless. What the hell were you thinking? The glass jar was a good start, but then you just kept going downhill from there. And when I say 'downhill,' I mean that every single step from there on out was a bad call. Did you bother to take a pic of this Frankenstein monster?

(Don't take my ball-busting too hard, I'm just messing with you. Edited June 28, 2007 by tingjunkie

[poopooshaboo]

No, I didn't, I wish I had. I can remake it in like 5minutes and take a picture if you REALLY want though...

I thought it would be funny if I succeeded. I would have taken the phrase "household materials" (used quite a few times in this thread I believe) to another level.

The closest thing i got too smoke was that a few times when I pulled (and wasnt getting a mouthful of water) I could taste the after nine, but I think it was just after nine air.

The toilet paper roll was getting wetter and wetter, and though i had it mostly wrapped in duct tape, I don't think it would have lasted more than one session.

Hey, I tried.

[krazydesi]

question about the copper tubing sectino of hte hookah. You think its okay if i use this vinyl tubing i found in Home Depot. I mean it works best under 70 degrees fahrenheit. I mean does the copper section actually get hot at all? I wouldn't think so since it doesn't come in contact with the alumnimum. Please tell me if this vinyl tubing is usuable ... By that i mean like it won't melt due to heat or anything. thanks

[tingjunkie]

question about the copper tubing sectino of hte hookah. You think its okay if i use this vinyl tubing i found in Home Depot. I mean it works best under 70 degrees fahrenheit. I mean does the copper section actually get hot at all? I wouldn't think so since it doesn't come in contact with the alumnimum. Please tell me if this vinyl tubing is usuable ... By that i mean like it won't melt due to heat or anything. thanks

I found my tubing at the local hobby store- it was near the toys/models section. I think most big hobby stores should carry it.

As far as the vinyl goes- shouldn't be a problem as long as you don't let it touch the bowl/funnel. The bowl will get hot enough to possibly melt the vinyl if they are in prolonged contact. Other than that, it will only be carrying the cooled smoke.

[Hobocans]

Your design is actually pretty close to a hookah we sell on my Website, HoboHookah.com Here take a look:
[attachment=413:42363992...4c9b65e9.jpg]

Its really portable and pretty much fits on any body (everything from 2L soda bottles to 1.75l liquor bottles). Its pretty sweet to just take with you and then go buy a bottle of something, drink it down and that slam on your hookah. A bunch more pics can be found here.

Anyways, its pretty similar idea to Tingjunkie's model. Its really transportable and smokes really well. Oh, and its made of Stainless. I use to smoke a homemade one that was copper, but it really gets nasty after a while. Would not advise it.

[tingjunkie]

Hey Hobocans. Nifty product you got there. The fact that it fits on any bottle with a slim neck is mad cool! Does the system have a purge valve to clear stale smoke built in somewhere?

To be completely flat-out honest, I personally could not see spending $80 after shipping for it though. Are they selling well so far?

Good luck with the product launch, and welcome to the forum.