Things to Consider When Purchasing a Bong

Things to Consider When Purchasing a Bong

 

Have you been looking forward to buying your first bong? Well, consider this the sign for you to step up your game and enjoy the perks of using a high-quality bong. But before you get too excited, let us help you narrow down your search with this list of notable things to consider when purchasing a bong.

With this guide, you can quickly find the perfect pipe for you while guaranteed it has all the right features you need in it. We also included tips that will help you make your bong last and tricks to improve its attachments throughout your use.

Without further ado, here are the essential features to check before purchasing a bong.

Size Matters

When deciding which pipe to buy, you must keep in mind the size you need. Simply because a bigger size doesn’t always mean it’s necessary! That’s why to assist you in discovering which size best suits your needs, here are some questions you can ask yourself before purchasing:

Where Do You Plan to Keep It?

If you have a small amount of space in your home, then probably consider getting a smaller bong to compensate for the space it will consume. It’s best to keep in mind where you will store it so that you won’t have any problem where to keep it at home.

What Chamber Size Makes You the Most Comfortable?

Another size factor you should take note of is the chamber size. To give you an idea, here are the popular bong sizes you should consider.

There are many sizing aspects to think about when purchasing a new bong.

Height: This will have an impact on your choice as the taller the bong the more smoke capacity it will have and this is something to think about. The height may also affect how you can physically manage to item and storage may also be an issue.

Capacity: We are referring to the internal capacity that the bong has and how much smoke it can hold, this is something to take in to consideration as everyone has different sized lung capacities so please be aware of this when choosing your next bong.

Weight: This is an issue that everyone is not aware of, some bongs can be quite heavy when filled with water, in combination with a thick glass beaker and could potentially be a problem for some users.

Mouth Size : There are many different mouthpiece sizes when it comes to bongs and that is a good thing as everyone has a different sized mouth so you will always be able to find the right product for yourself.

Shape: Bongs come in many shapes and some of the most popular shapes are the straight cylinder, beakers and bubble. Choosing the correct one for you will come down to personal choice and the main different between the shapes is how much water they can hold and the smoke capacity.

Thickness

Besides its sizing, you should also take into account the thickness of your bong. Having a pipe made out of thicker glass can save you a lot of money in the long run because it won’t easily break. However, if you are careful with your bong, having the average thickness would be fine for you.

So, whatever your situation is, ask about how thick the glass is. The average bongs are usually 4-5 mm thick for starters, while thicker ones have 7-9 mm of thickness.

The thicker the bong does not mean a better bong, generally a thinner European made bong will be stronger than a thicker bong sourced from China. This comes down to the quality of the raw product (borosilicate) and the craftsmanship and the final annealing process.

The last pint in regards to the thickness is the additional weight that the bong will be, a 9mm thick 40cm tall beaker will be substantially heavier than a 5mm thick version.

Percolators

Another feature to find in your next bong would be percolators. In case you don’t know, percolators are responsible for providing you with smoother and better puffs. You don’t have to worry about unexpected coughing while using your bong, thanks to these percolators.

So, if you think having a percolator is a must-have for you, then check if the bong has one. Consider it as a little extra to help you fly away from toxins throughout your sessions.

The main function of a percolator is to break the smoke down in to smaller bubbles which creates more surface area and allows the smoke to cool down as much as possible and this is why you end up with a smoother end product.

There are many different types of percolators such as Honeycomb, Tree/Arm, UFO, Spiral, Frit, inline, gridded and many. You can read more about them in our “Different Styles of Bong Percolators” guide.

How Easy Can You Clean It?

Since you would constantly use your bong, it’s also vital to check how easily you can clean it. If it requires deep cleaning and some complex process of removing its gunk, it may not be the best one for newbies.

Things that can make the cleaning process harder and more tedious are percolators, ice pinches/notches and if there are water chambers that have no direct access and the ash and resin must be removed via the percolator and this can be a nightmare as there can be many intricate parts to the percolators.

The easiest bongs to clean are ones that have no percolators or ice pinches/notches. There are no obstacles to get in the way of your brush and cleaning solution.

Ice notches/pinches are a small obstacle, although they can be an annoying one. They simply are in the way of your brush and can be an issue if you are looking to get your glass looking spotless.

Percolators will cause the most problems when cleaning as they require attention to detail, once you get the hang of them and understand their workings, things will become much easier. There are levels to percolators and how difficult they are to clean. The single honeycomb perc is simple yet effective and is easy to clean, on the other hand when you have two or three levels of the more complex percs such as a three level tree arm perc you will have your work cut out.

Attachments and Sizing

Our last but not least feature would be its attachments. If you’re someone who wants to add some extras to your bong, then ensure you pick the one with the exact measurements (in mm) as your joint. Having the exact sizes would result in a perfectly placed attachment you have nothing to worry about later on.

There are many attachments available for glass bongs.

Ash Catchers (Pre-Coolers) : To help keep your bong cleaner for longer all while helping to cool the smoke down further for a smoother experience.

Adaptors: There are many different sizes and styles of glass adaptors and they are used for a host of reasons. The main reason they are used is to allow different sized parts to be used together, an example of this would be to use an adaptor so that you can use a 14mm bowl/cone in an 18mm stem.

Bangers & Nails : There are many different types of concentrate attachments, nails will generally be made of titanium and bangers will generally be made from quartz. Quartz bangers are the most popular concentrate accessory available.

You need to make sure when ordering products together that you choose the correct sizes so that they will fit together. There are many different sizes available and you can learn more about attachment sizes here on our “Glass Grinding Sizes Guide”.

The most common sized glass joints are 18mm and 14mm and the less common sizes are 10mm and 29mm. You will also need to be aware of if the joint is either male or female, if your waterpipe has a female joint you will need a male accessory to ensure that they fit together.

Takeaway

To recap, the things you need to consider when purchasing a bong are the following: sizing, thickness, percolators, ease of cleaning, and attachments. With these features in mind, you will have the perfect bong that suits your taste and preferences.