The Dangers of Dirty Bong Water

Everything You Should Know About Dirty Bong Water

If you’re a smoker, you’re probably already acquainted with the effectiveness of a glass bong or dab rig. You can hardly imagine enjoying your smoke session without this magnificent invention, and rightly so.

Water filtration is necessary for protecting our overall health as we engage in smoking. It helps clean the smoke by removing the harmful compounds, providing a safer and more efficient overall smoking experience.

However, few people change their bong water regularly, and even fewer know the health effects of such negligence (think mold in your bong plus so much more). Of course, dirty bong water paired with a dirty bong can also compromise the taste of your dry herbs, ruining your smoke session.

Below we take a look at what happens when you don’t clean your water bongs or dab rigs and fail to change your bong water.

The Dangers of Not Cleaning Your Bong

Bong water that remains unchanged for some time can be likened to stagnant water or water that sits in a single place and doesn’t move or flow. Such water is the perfect breeding ground for parasites, bacteria, insects, and even mold.

A bong containing dirty bong water provides the perfect conditions for bacteria to thrive. Such conditions include:

• Water or a moist environment
• Nutrients provided by leftover plant resins of the smoked herb
• Surface area necessary for growth

These conditions allow the growth of harmful pathogens, like mold in your bong. These pathogens are known to lead to the development of respiratory diseases.

It doesn’t take long for these pathogens to infiltrate your glass bong and grow, either. After a single day of not cleaning your bong, a biofilm will develop on the surface of the water. Biofilm is essentially the evidence of microscopic organisms thriving in your bong water.

Smoking with dirty bong water introduces these difficult-to-treat organisms and pathogens directly into your lungs. These microbes are not just a nuisance — they’re a health risk. Research states that at least 80% of diseases that affect vital organs are caused by microbes that grow from a biofilm.

Below are a few examples of these pathogens:

• Streptococcus
• Aspergillus
• Escherichia coli
• Pseudomonas Aeruginosa
• Flavobacterium
• Black Mildew
• Aspergillus

So, how often should you change your water to avoid mold in your bong? What about learning how to clean mold out of a bong?

How Often Should I Change My Bong Water?

It takes a little under 24 hours for a biofilm to form on stagnant water, so you should change dirty bong water just as regularly. In other words, change your bong water daily. This helps ensure that you’ve gotten rid of whatever pathogens may have started to grow in the water.

How to Clean a Bong

When changing your bong water, thoroughly clean the bong or dab rig before adding clean, fresh water into it. Below are a few simple steps on how to clean mold out of a bong:

1. Pour out the dirty water and thoroughly rinse your bong or dab rig with clean water several times.
2. Be sure to use hot water while rinsing out your bong. Pay careful attention to the bowl and downstem as you clean out the dirty bong water.
3. Remove the bowl and place it aside. Next, remove the downstem and place it in a plastic bag.
4. Add salt and rubbing alcohol to your bowl. Use an old, soft brush to scrub the insides of the bowl. Pour out the dirty mixture and add fresh alcohol and salt. After plugging the openings, shake the mixture and let it sit inside the bowl to help get rid of stubborn stains.
5. Add salt and alcohol to the bong. After plugging the openings, shake the mixture to help remove any dirt and residue left by the dirty bong water.
6. Add salt and alcohol to the plastic bag containing the downstem and shake. The salt does the scrubbing and helps to get rid of stains and dirt.
7. If there are stains, let the mixture sit for a while before emptying the bag.
8. After you’re sure that the bong, bowl, and downstem are clean, pour out the mixture from each.
9. Rinse each piece several times with warm water until clean.
10. Once you’re done rinsing, let each piece air dry before reassembling.
11. Once it’s dry, add clean, fresh water and enjoy!

If these steps don't work on your glass bong or dab oil rig and there’s still mold in your bong, it's a sign that you need to use a glass bong cleaner for a deeper clean.

Below are some of the top signs that you need to change your dirty bong water:

• You detect a bad odor or foul smell.
• You notice water discoloration. If your bong water is black, pink, grey, green, or white, you need to change it. This discoloration signifies the growth of mildew, mold, or bacteria.
• You see plant resin build-up.
• You see floating particles in your bong water.

Neglecting your glass water pipes or bong water is a serious health risk. You’re likely to develop possibly untreatable respiratory diseases when smoking with a dirty bong. The cleaning process is simple and only takes a few minutes. If you need further assistance or have questions about cleaning your bong, contact the superior customer service team at KING’s Pipe and we can help you with the process.