Archive for the ‘Hookah Tips’ Category

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July 12th, 2010

Glass Acessories For Hookah

For a long time glass has been a material that has been used for a myriad purposes.  It’s possible colors and forms are practically limitless.  The only restraining factor is durability.  This is why glass products have often been ones of indulgence.

In regards to hookah, glass products are exactly that.  They are mostly a superfluous addition to the experience similar in purpose to the velvet hose covers that many seem to enjoy but far more expensive and, in my opinion, much more appealing.

Personally I own two glass mouth tips for my washable hoses and a glass mini funnel bowl.  These Items are made by a glass blower and designed not only for aesthetic quality but also for maximum durability.  If the glass is not treated properly with slow cooling periods then the glass can become brittle and the piece will be quite fragile.  I love the pieces that I have.  They add very little to the smoking experience beyond a feeling of indulgence and decadence.  I bought these back when I had a regular pay check and could afford such luxuries but I don’t regret it.  The bowl is the only piece that I feel adds something more to the hookah than just something shiny.  I bought the bowl because it was a funnel style bowl designed to use a minuscule amount of tobacco.  The design of this bowl is great.  It’s draw is wonderful, the heat properties of the thick glass are great and it uses less coal and tobacco than the smallest standard Egyptian bowl I have.  It only uses approximately 8-15 grams of tobacco depending on the density at which you pack and the wetness of the tobacco to begin with.  Remember, grams are a measure of weight not volume.  This bowl alone was worth buying for it’s function along with the visual addition to the hookah.

There is another side to this though.  Some people want to produce glass bowls or other accessories because they know they sell well and have a high profit margin.  They don’t care much about the artisan craft of glass blowing or the quality of the product and will get mass produced glass pieces from less than masterful hands or factories that do not take the time to make sure that the pieces heat and cool properly made from less than optimal materials.  This can easily result in a fragile piece that will not be with you for very long.  The best glass to use for anything other than show pieces that are nto meant to be touched is borosilicate glass.  Borosilicate glass is strong, very resistant to shock/impact and highly heat resistant.  You probably have some in your house right now.  It’s commonly called Pyrex and it’s something you want to look for if you are in the market for anything made out of glass but especially hookah accessories.

We see poor quality glass used in hookah vases quite a bit.  There are some higher quality vases out there but the majority on the market are fairly cheap and not made to the highest standard.  I have had two large glass vases crack on me at this point.  Both cracks were in different places and were obviously from improper heat treating.  I am extremely careful with my glass and they were not fractures.  They were weak spots.  This is why some smaller hookahs have been moving toward acrylic.  It’s not as visually appealing but it’s more durable for a hookah that is more likely to be transported on a regular basis like the mini Mya Saray.  I am really hoping that an artisan glass blower will make some high quality glass vases that are durable and beautiful.  While I am always reluctant to spend extra money, at this point it will be better for me to spend a little more and get something that will last longer rather than having to buy multiple cheap bases in the same length of time.  Hookahs are kind of useless without a vase.

If you have the extra money to spend then I almost always suggest getting new tobacco or more coals.  If you want to look classy and have a one of a kind piece that will add a great aesthetic quality to your hookah experience then I suggest looking into glass mouth pieces.

If you REALLY want to spend as much money on the hookah hobby as you possibly can there are some amazing shops that sell all glass hookahs that are top to bottom borosilicate glass.  The only part that is not glass is the hose and that is tipped in glass on both ends.  These are beautiful but VERY expensive.  The average hookah smoker will never and should never buy one.  As far as I am concerned these are for the very affluent and everyone else should save their money.

If you are interested in high quality glass pieces then I suggest checking out http://www.crownhookahs.com and taking a look at their wide assortment of styles and products.  That is the shop where I got my pieces and they are great people with great products that they stand behind and are very proud of.

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July 7th, 2010

Avoiding Hookah Sickness A.K.A Nicotine Sickness

Anyone who has every experienced a nicotine overdose while smoking hookah can tell you, it is not a pleasant experience.  I am writing this to try and help everyone reading to avoid this night ruining occurrence in their own lives.

Nicotine overdose cause a handful of nasty symptoms.  The most common of which is increased blood pressure.  Anytime you smoke your blood pressure will rise but if it gets too high it can produce head aches and a feeling of pressure in the the chest.  This is because your heart has been excited by the nicotine and it working overtime.  Your blood vessels have also constricted at this point which only adds to the problem.

The next level of nicotine overdose is nausea and cold sweats.  This is where things get really nasty.  I’ll admit that back when I started smoking hookah I made myself sick a few times by smoking too much and I know lots of people that have done this as well.  This should be the final stage you ever reach because if you are feeling sick in any way STOP SMOKING.

Now we enter the meat of the article.  Way to prevent hookah sickness.

  1. Stay hydrated: Many of the problems associated with nicotine and smoking are made much worse if you are dehydrated.
  2. Eat something: Nicotine has far less of an effect on the body if you are well fed.  Don’t stuff yourself but make sure you are not hungry.  It’s a good idea to have snacks available while smoking.
  3. Pace yourself: If you are new to smoking don’t hoover the hose and smoke as rapidly as possible.  The hookah isn’t going anywhere and it’s not like a cigarette that keeps burning away if you don’t smoke it.  Take breaths every
  4. Start low: Here I am talking about nicotine.  Different tobaccos have different nicotine levels.  If you are new to smoking stick to thing like Social Smoke and other low nicotine tobaccos.  If it’s a modern style the chances are it’s lower in nicotine than something like Nakhla.
  5. Give yourself time in between bowls: You don;t have to constantly be smoking to enjoy hookah.  It’s supposed to  be relaxed and relaxing.
  6. Don’t smoke more than one bowl a day to start: After years of smoking hookah and cigars I still get a headache if I smoke three bowls in the course of a day.  I usually smoke stronger tobacco so this is understandable but it’s still unpleasant.  If you just started, stick to one bowl until your tolerance builds.  It may never build up so just enjoy the bowl instead of already planning on packing another right after.
  7. DO NOT exercise directly before or after smoking: This will raise your blood pressure more and can make the effects of nicotine come on sooner and harsher.

All in all the basics are eat, drink water, slow down and relax.  Hookah is supposed to be chill so you should do everything you can to make sure it is.  Help your friends out with these tips as well.

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June 6th, 2010

Belgium Natural Disc Charcoal For Hookah

I have heard a few good things about the Belgian Natural Disc Charcoal so I was very interested in getting my hands on some.  These are a 40 mm disc shape that is similar to the disc quick lights that many people are used to.  These have no starter on them and thus need to be lit light other natural coals.

I have been splitting these in half by scoring them with a knife and snapping them along that line.  They are a little fragile.  No where near as dense as exotica sticks.  They can crumble if too much pressure is applied but it’s not a big deal.  These will leave some black dust on your hands but it’s not bad.  Better than a lot of other coals.

The time it takes to light these is a little longer than my other natural coals on a gas stove but it’s nothing to scoff at.

The important part of this review is how they smoke and how long they last.  The heat they produce is a little low by my standards and it took me one and a half coals to get really good smoke on my mini funnel bowl.

They ash very little and the ash sticks to the coals but it’s not a problem.  It’s just a little different.

They last a while but I’ll admit that I did not time them.  I’ll come back with a time at a later point but you can rest assured that they last a good amount of time.

These are packages similar to the average quick light coal.  They come in sleeves that make them easy to transport and easy to just throw in a bag and go if you are heading to a party or out for some smoking amongst nature.

All in all I am giving these a thumbs up.  I have only smoked with them a few times at this point and I don’t think I can give a fair number rating at this point.  I wish they were a little more dense and did not break so easily but it’s not going to turn me off of them by any means.  The cost is a little high but they are far from the most expensive charcoals on the market.

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April 22nd, 2010

Hookah Tobacco and Age

This is a subject that I see brought up quite a bit.  Many people wonder about the shelf life of hookah tobacco and whether or not it can expire, go bad or spoil in any way.  I have been smoking quite some time now and I feel that i can finally answer this question well.

Yes.  Hookah tobacco can go bad.  If you are dealing with extremely classic tobacco that has no additional preservatives or any added glycerin then you need to aware of a few things.  Firstly is mold.  Mold loves wet, dark places with lot of nutrition.  Molasses or honey soaked leaves that usually sits in less than air tight containers at room temperature is an almost perfect environment for mold growth.  I don’t suggest freezing or refrigerating your tobacco as that can draw moisture out of it and make it useless to you.  What I do suggest is enjoying it regularly and not buying more than you can logically enjoy before there is a risk of it going bad.  I also suggest sealing up your tobacco in tightly sealed containers (like cheap rubbermaid) or ziploc bags.  Ideally both.  The ziploc will provide excellent protection from outside sources of contamination and the plastic containers will make them easier to handle, less likely to leak and much easier to stack/store.

For more modern tobacco there is less to be concerned about.  Glycerin is a very good preservative and there is often citric acid added to the mix as well to aid in preservation further.  The major problem here is one that is less likely to happen with classic tobacco.  Loss of flavor or spoiled flavors.  I had some Al Fakher Golden Strawberry recently that I have had for a long time.  The flavor was great when i first got it.  One of the better strawberry flavors I have tried.  Just a few days ago I smoked it again after a long time.  The flavors were off and really unpleasant.  It tasted like old fruit and had a musty (not moldy) flavor that was really off putting.  I dumped the bowl and packed something else.  This can happen because of the natural flavors that many tobacco companies make use of.  They are not indestructible and can break down over time.  just like they would if still in the fruit.

Chemical flavors are a little more stable (usually) but they can fade over time just like the natural ones.  Hookah tobacco by it’s nature needs to have flavors that vaporize and volatilize easily so that they come across when smoking.  Sadly this also means that the oils and flavorings can fade away over time if not sealed very well

All this being said, I have some flavors that have lasted for years and still taste great.

My advice for all forms of tobacco are the same.  Seal it up well, keep it out of light, keep it from being too hot and only buy what you can logically smoke in a relatively short amount of time.  tobacco can last for a long time but there is rarely a reason to buy more then can be smoked within a year.

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