Bongs have been around for literally centuries. Smoking a bong for the first time can be confusing, but it gets easier once you know what you’re doing.Commonly known as water bongs, these water pipes are a common way to smoke legal herbs and tobacco, as well as essential oils and concentrates.

In its most basic form, the bong consists of a cylinder tube with water at the bottom. A hole above water level accommodates a stem (downstem) and a bowl at the end of stem. As the herbs in the bowl burns out, it will produce smoke which is then sucked down the stem under the water. There it cools and bubbles up the chamber and then into your lungs. Because the smoke is whipped up during the filtration through water, bongs produce a thicker smoke which is quite pleasant. Now a days a variety of handcrafted bongs are available in market.

A lot of smokers prefer using a bong because the water removes harsh irritants from the smoke. Also ice can be placed in the neck of bong to cool and smooth the smoke. The use of a bong’s bowl allows for a precise amount of plant matter to be used, meaning little waste. In order to smoke anything out of a bong, you need to fill it up with water and pack the bowl with your herb. After that you need to light the bowl and fill the smoke chamber with smoke which you can inhale.

Usage of bongs in a few steps

1. Fill the bong with water. Bottled or tap water will work. The exact amount of water you should pour in will vary depending on the size of the bong. Usually half of the water tank filled with water is fine, such as water level no more than 1 inch above the tip of the down stem will be perfect.
2. If you are using bongs with an ice holder, it is good to add a few cubes of ice as well.
3. Grind up your herbs and keep it ready for packing into bowl.
4. Take the bowl out of the bong and pack it with crushed herbs or tobacco. Packing it too tight and over the top edge is not recommended as you will not get the air through it.
5. Put the downstem back in the bong and hold the bong securely in your hand.
6. Get into a comfortable position. Make sure that the area you’re sitting in is free of any flammable objects.
7. Place your mouth over the mouthpiece, forming a seal. Your lips should be inside the mouthpiece.
8. Light your herbs and inhale slowly as you are lighting the bowl. You are just using your inhale to draw the smoke up into the smoke chamber. As you are inhaling, you should start to see the bong getting cloudy as it gets fills with smoke.
9. Pull the bowl out of the stem and inhale the smoke in the chamber. When you are inhaling the smoke, inhale deeply so it goes into your lungs. Immediately after the smoke gets into your mouth exhale it as it is really not good to keep the smoke in your lungs.
10. If you are done with the bong, pour away the water and clean the bowl properly for next use.