How To Smoke Weed From a Pipe for the First Time
Pipes have remained a popular option for smokers, as an easy-to-use option that can be designed in a million different ways.
While joints and blunts are a great way to light up alone or with friends, they can be tough to smoke and time-consuming to roll. Bongs and vaporizers are a great way to take a big hit, but they are large and need to be cleaned and maintained.
Pipes give you the best of both worlds, as a smaller device that can fit in your pocket, and still provide larger hits.
If it’s your first time smoking weed from a pipe, we recommend following these tips to get the most out of your first bowl.
The Parts of a Pipe
A pipe is made up of three main parts:
- Bowl
- Chamber
- Mouthpiece
The bowl is the open section along the side which is packed with weed. You’ll want to keep this upright to avoid spilling.
The chamber is the main body of the pipe, where the smoke gets pulled through. The longer chamber allows you to pull a cooler smoke and taste more flavors, while a shorter chamber allows you to take quick, hard hits.
The mouthpiece is usually the furthest point from the bowl, and often shaped to fit comfortably against your mouth. It’s important to find a mouthpiece that’s comfortable to you specifically.
Carburetor Holes
On some pipes, you may find a small hole along the side or at the end known as a carburetor hole.
Plugging this hole will cause the entire pull to come from your bowl, filling the chamber with smoke. Once the chamber is filled with smoke, taking your finger away from the hole will allow a boost of fresh air to clear the chamber.
You could also consider using a Steamroller Pipe, a style of large carburetor, which has an open end that’s closed by your finger to allow a mass airflow.
Materials for Cannabis Pipes
With the development and differences found in cannabis pipes, it’s important to find something you like. With so many material and color options, pipes also allow you to get something that represents you.
Glass: One of the most popular options for modern pipes is glass. Using clear and colored glass, these pipes can be seen with a variety of designs such as swirls and lines in endless colors.
Glass maintains a cooler temperature, giving a good opportunity to cool down your smoke and give a cooler flavor and smooth feel. These pipes are also easy to clean, as they can be scrubbed down and washed in hot soapy water.
Wood: Based on traditional tobacco pipes, pipes made of wood such as briar are long lasting.
Wood is completely customizable through carving, allowing you to have unique shapes and even full works of art. Wood pipes are also known to give a smooth woody flavor, which can be appealing for some.
Metal: With the idea of durability, metal pipes have continued to grow in popularity. These pipes are extremely hard to break, making them a great option to carry in your pocket.
Metal is known to get hot and hold a lot of heat, making it great for one or two hits, but not so ideal for continuous smoking.
Other Materials: Pipes have been made out of nearly every non-burning material out there. Materials such as clay have been used to craft everything from artwork to clay pots, and have been a great option for making your own pipe, too.
Stone pipes can sometimes be found, and are often seen as being beautiful natural figures.
Bamboo, which was more common within the Pacific Islands, have continued to grow in popularity with the growth of go-green movements.
Choosing a Pipe
With each one of the various material types, you can imagine that pipes are made in just about every shape, color, and design. It’s important to find a pipe that matches your personality and preferences.
One key focus is the bowl size. Small bowls are often focused on single hits, while the larger bowls are for multiple hits or being passed around.
Be sure to buy a pipe with a mouthpiece that is comfortable for you. We all have different mouth shapes, and smoking from your pipe should be enjoyable.
For a home bowl, consider something truly visually appealing. It’s true, you don’t necessarily want to buy a finely crafted bowl to take with you places and risk breaking, but for your at-home use and something that would be put away, consider something that matches your own style.
Smoking Your First Bowl
So, you’ve decided it’s time to pack and smoke your first bowl.
The first few times you pack a bowl, you’ll want to lay everything out on a table or counter. Over time, you will adjust certain factors to match preferences, such as how fine you grind your weed, or how big of a hit you take.
Weed
Before using any cannabis product, you want to ensure you’re starting with a quality bud.
Buying from a high quality service is the only real answer to know exactly what you’re buying. Cannabis is more than just a plant — growers now have extreme control over THC and CBD levels in today’s industry.
Want major health benefits without the psychedelic effects? Search for a high CBD low THC strain.
Want to get higher than the San Gabriel Mountains? Look for a strain high in THC with low CBD.
You can find a bud that matches your exact need with the right source.
Grinding Your Weed
Grinding your weed, or breaking it down into smaller pieces, is important for smoking. It creates a quick but steady burn.
When smoking from a pipe, you want to leave your grindings a bit larger. This will help avoid small pieces from falling into your chamber and being sucked up.
Many bowls have a small piece of meshing in the bottom of the bowl to avoid weed from falling into the chamber. If you don’t have meshing, consider using some stems or larger pieces of bud to keep your grindings away from the opening.
Packing a Bowl
It’s important to keep your bowl upright to avoid spillage. Start by gently filling your bowl with your ground weed, and gently push down to create a medium pack.
Fill it again and press it a little tighter. You can do this in multiple layers with the last layer being packed fairly flat and tight.
Since this is your first hit on a pipe, you may want to start out smoking a smaller bowl. You will be smoking more THC in a shorter amount of time, and shouldn’t be directly compared to a joint or blunt.
Packing a bowl often comes down to preference. A tighter packed bowl will burn slower and require a harder pull to smoke, while a lighter packed bowl will burn quickly and will be a great option for a one-hitter.
Take a practice pull to make sure you have the wanted resistance, and that no grindings will fall into your chamber when you go to light up. There’s not a whole lot worse than taking a hit and sucking chunks of weed down your throat.
Lighters
Lighters play a major role in smoking weed and shouldn’t be overlooked. THC is released at around 320 degrees Fahrenheit and begins to be destroyed at temperatures above 380 degrees Fahrenheit.
Your typical lighter burns at 3,590 degrees Fahrenheit. This is why when lighting your bowl, you don’t actually want the flame to touch the bud, but instead you want to hold the flame above the bud and allow your pull to drag the flame towards your bowl.
Torches on the other hand burn much hotter, around 4,610 degrees Fahrenheit. So, while a torch will light a bowl almost instantly, it will cause the destruction of a lot of your available THC.
The cherry found on a cigarette, joint, or bowl burns at around 900 degrees Fahrenheit. You aren’t actually smoking the bud lit by the cherry, but instead as you inhale it pulls this heat across the upcoming weed and begins to burn off its THC.
Lighting Your Bowl
Take a couple breaths before lighting your bowl, you want to pull the smoke directly into your lungs, which new smokers may find difficult or unnatural. These breaths will prepare you to take that breath.
If you have a carb, you’ll want to seal it off with your finger.
Grip your bowl with your non-dominant hand.
Seal the mouthpiece to your mouth.
Hold the flame just above the bowl.
Begin to inhale. As you reach the end of your breath, if you have a carb, lift your finger and allow the fresh air to clear the bowl.
Keep Practicing
While these steps create a great starting point for any new smoker, it takes time and practice to figure out your favorite way to pack a bowl, which all comes down to your personal preference.
Taking the time to learn each aspect of cannabis culture allows you to choose the best product, used in various ways, always finding the next best way to get your buzz.
