Hookah smoking

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I was recently in the Middle East, and spent some very relaxing evenings in Cafés with a Hookah and a few cups of tea, very nice.

So, I bought myself a Hookah, just a small one with one pipe, not a big fancy three pipe job, and some flavoured tobacco (Apple, Strawberry and Mixed Fruits), and of course, some coals.

It's not dissimilar to this one



Now, I need to know how to use the thing

Does the tobacco go into the clay bowl that the coals sit on? Or does it sit under the tinfoil that the coals rest on?

I know about the water in the part at the bottom, and have seen some sites even suggesting putting ice in the water too.

I haven't fired it up yet because I just have no real idea what I'm doing.

It's a very relaxing way to smoke though, highly recommended.

btw, I've never smoked a "bong", so have no previous experience of preparing anything to smoke in this fashion.

OldGoat

Try here. http://www.southsmoke.com/hookahsetup.cfm

It seems to me that your tobacco gets packed into the bowl and the coal sits on top of that on a hotplate/tinfoil. I think the important thing is that the tobbaco is not to burn.
From the above linked site:

The Flavored Tobacco is never supposed to burn. The Honey, Molasses, and Glycerin that are mixed with the Flavored Tobacco are the substances that are being evaporated and smoked.
[/quote

On a side note I have a friend who flavours the water in addition to the tobacco - and even uses cider in it! However I can't vouch for any difference ti makes as I only used on two occasions.

Wonder if I could put a torn up cigar butt in it? Hummmmm. /Breaks out the tinfoil and plastic bottles...

BeerNut

OldGoat wrote: »

Wonder if I could put a torn up cigar butt in it? Hummmmm. /Breaks out the tinfoil and plastic bottles...

Cigar Bongs: It's come to this

I'm a big fan of the sheesha from trips to the middle east. The reason I've never bothered with my own is the coal: a boy with a bucket of hot coals who goes around replenishing the pipes is the one bit I've not figured out how to do at home.

OldGoat

BeerNut wrote: »

Cigar Bongs: It's come to this

Don't knock it, those cigars cost about €3 an inch.

miltonkrest

i'd love to try a hookah but find it too daunting a prospect

MediaTank

Des wrote: »

Now, I need to know how to use the thing

Does the tobacco go into the clay bowl that the coals sit on? Or does it sit under the tinfoil that the coals rest on?

I know about the water in the part at the bottom, and have seen some sites even suggesting putting ice in the water too.

You need lots of tinfoil, and don't use huge amounts of tobacco. The tobacco does go into the bowl - you can leave it pretty loose, then cover with tine foil. You then perforate the tin foil with a pin or needle. Next it's best to wrap anoter lay of tin foil around the edge to stop the coals from falling out. Only fill with water so that the down pipe is barley submerged, and yes add ice if you want a very cool smoke - works very well with mint tobacco.

Lastly, you need shisha charcoal - it's not recommended to use anything else. The easiest way to ignite it is on your cooker - do this while you are preparing the pipe and tobacco. Small coals work best and should be placed on the edge of the foil, not the middle, as the tobacco may burn.

abusingelves

Went to college with some Arabs and a few Persians, so had a fair bit of exposure to the sheesha.
It takes a fair bit of trial and error to get used to setting everything up correctly, and getting it to smoke well, but that's half the fun isn't it.

From the top down.

Charcoal: I find that the lumpwood is the best, just the regular bar-b-q stuff, not the impregnated with petrol stuff, make sure its well burned off before using it though. Move the charcoal around, and find the best way for it to smoke. If it gets too hot, a quick puff through the pipe can help cool it and slow the burn.

Tinfoil: you can get the 'special stuff' but mainly i use the catering stuff.
Pinholes should be uniformly distributed.
Tobacco should be fairly loose in the bowl, and ensure that it is well broken up, and that you don't put in any stems.
The bowls come in two main types, ceramic and terracotta. the terracotta ones are cheaper i think and i prefer them.
Terracotta bowls can pick up flavours, and as such some people keep a different one for individual flavours. Purists will have individual pipes for different flavours.

Taller pipes are indeed better, but your miniature will do nicely.

Submerge the downpipe an inch or two, but ensure sufficient airspace above the water, as this is your smoke reservoir. The water should be Ice cold, I usually add ice. You must change the water after every use, and clean and dry the pipe, including a quick brush to the inards of the downpipe.
The air valve has a small ball bearing which can stick from time to time, causing it not to smoke well. I have very little experience of this, but from what i understand, if you lose this ball bearing, the pipe will not work without it, I think it makes up a one way valve.

Hoses are usually interchangeable between pipes, and always inspect the connection between the hose and the pipe for air leaks if things are not going well.

Etiquette.
Pipes are always placed on the floor, never on a table.
Always pass the hose with your right hand.
When passing the hose, point the base of the hose towards the person, not the tip.
And that's pretty much it.

biko

Brings back memories of afternoons in Istanbul, smoking hookah, drinking tea and playing backgammon

BeerNut

biko wrote: »

drinking tea

The Turkish ban on alcohol sales in nargile bars is nice in its own way, but I preferred Egypt where you could have a beer and a smoke at the same time.

Hank Scorpio

Pretty fancy bong you got there

Hamiltonion

Concerning the coal, burning the tobacco is your main problem here. Don't drag too hard and break up the coal into 3 or 4 pieces for a more even heat distribution. Also, if using shisha coal its very important to 'spark' it. Hold a gas lighter to it until it begins to glow all over, then let it burn until you stop seeing little yellow flashes. This is sulphur burning off, you do not want to smoke sulphur!

You should use tongs to hold the coal as you light and spark it, I always just get it lit, leave it on the balcony for 5 minutes, make sure its not still sparking then smoke up!

silverhare

I love the shisha and have amassed a small collection over the past decade.

I agree wholeheartedly with everything abusingelves has written with one exception.

I find that lumpwood charcoal burns to ash too quickly and clogs the foil.
The best charcoals IMO are those made from the wood of Lemon or Olive (or any other dense hardwood) trees. Failing that, the easy light (sparky, sulphurous) stuff works fine but can impair the flavour if used before the sparking is finished.

Welcome to to the shisha owners club

wuben

hi guys i was looking to buy one of these bongs.....I'm not smoker but i tried it while on hols (sorry didn't get one while there) and very nice and relaxing.....prob is i no nothing about them can i buy them in ireland?and tobacco? and also just out of curiosity is this type of smoking better (cleaner) than your norm cigarettes? i don't want to open can worms with that question just curious that's all cheers

BeerNut

Sorry, can't help with your questions, wuben. I just wanted to add in that I spotted a shisha bar in Dublin, on the Millennium walkway just down from the Last Supper photo. Not been in yet though.

evil-yoda

BeerNut wrote: »

Sorry, can't help with your questions, wuben. I just wanted to add in that I spotted a shisha bar in Dublin, on the Millennium walkway just down from the Last Supper photo. Not been in yet though.

I've been there, its the tea garden, they do shishas as well. they're a bit pricey, but worth it. I've started to go there with my friends to hang out, smoke the shisha, drink tea.

crushproof

BeerNut wrote: »

The Turkish ban on alcohol sales in nargile bars is nice in its own way, but I preferred Egypt where you could have a beer and a smoke at the same time.

We found a great shisha place in Istanbul, still to this day the best I've ever been to...and the owner served beer
Will have to check out the Tea Garden, any where else in Dublin?
Also, what's the law surrounding it here in terms of the smoking ban etc? Plenty of shisha bars in Canada, apparently they use some sort of toned down tobacco?!

the_syco

Anyone know where to get the tobacco for these? Got one in the Dam... but wasn't using tobacco at the time :P

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the_syco wrote: »

Anyone know where to get the tobacco for these? Got one in the Dam... but wasn't using tobacco at the time :P

Right, I bought one of these in Bahrain just after Xmas, but I've since given up smoking altogether, and that means pipe, cigars and the hookah also - no more nicotine, it leads back to the cigs

anyway, I have a few unpoened boxes of flavoured tobacco, from memory I have Apple and Mixed Fruit, and an opened pack of Strawberry - if you want them, you can have them, PM me your address and I'll post them to you.

OldGoat

Des wrote: »

I've since given up smoking altogether, and that means pipe, cigars and th...

Read the charter, this forum is for smo...:D
Glad that worked out for ya Des. I'll miss seeing you in the smoking areas of Beers with the rest of the usuals.

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I still go outside tbh, it does get very warm and stuffy staying inside all the time on nights out I find, it's not exactly a drawback, but it's a kind of claustrophobic feeling not getting outside into the air every half hour or so.

Weird

the_syco

Des wrote: »

I still go outside tbh, it does get very warm and stuffy staying inside all the time on nights out I find, it's not exactly a drawback, but it's a kind of claustrophobic feeling not getting outside into the air every half hour or so.

Weird

Not weird at all. When I gave up smoking briefly, I still went outside; too stuffy in the clubs, esp during the winter months.

=-=

So the mods don't warn us for talking about not smoking, I made a thread about it here: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=75485688

14murphy

Anyone know where I can purchase a Hookah pipe in Dublin ?

maxpower

i got one for under €50 delivered form a German site a year or so ago, other-wise Ebay is your best bet. there are some nice ones available out their. you can also get the non tobacco herbal smoke and the charcoal when buying on ebay. very few places in Ireland still sell any of the items you need since the head-shops closed down.

cin0

I think it is changing a bit.. There are still few places in Ireland where you can buy hookah pipes, shisha, herbal molasses.. Depend where you live but I've seen few in Dublin.. Or you can always buy online in Ireland directly from online store or on eBay (ship from IE)..

the_syco

14murphy wrote: »

Anyone know where I can purchase a Hookah pipe in Dublin ?

If you're still looking, the pound shop on Talbot Street had a few in the shop window there last week.

CombatCow

You can get tobacco free Shisha from here, iv used them a few times and got my hookah pipe here too. This is the stuff used in the tea garden in dublin and Amirs Delights on Ormond Quay in Dublin ( the Italian quarter actually ) because its tobacco free it can be used indoors.

The quick light charcoals are ok to begin with but if you like the hookah and want to invest later you can get natural coconut charcoal which has no chemical odor etc...

I can recommend some tobacco free shisha and brands from that site if anyone is interested.

CC