Bong

See also: Bong (disambiguation)

A bong, also commonly known as a water pipe, is a smoking device, generally used to obtain a larger 'hit' from smokable psychoactive drugs such as cannabis than a more commonly used methods such as a joint or spliff. The construction of a bong and its principle of action is similar to that of the hookah, which is also called "water pipe." The most important feature of a bong is the way the smoke is drawn though a water chamber before being inhaled by the user. The main reason for this is that THC (the main psychoactive compound found in good weed) is not soluble in water while almost all the nasty chemicals contained in substances like tobacco are.By bubbling the smoke through water most of the harmful chemicals are removed leaving a high concentration of vaporised THC.The result is a much more mellow and less harmful experience for the user.Because of the amount of toxic chemicals contained in substances such as tobacco the water contained in the bong becomes saturated very quickly so frequent changing of the water is advised.

Some people wrongly use alcohol based drinks in their bongs thinking this will improve the strength of the smoke. THC is soluble in alcohol so much of it gets lost when its bubbled through the alcohol resulting in a much weaker smoke.

Etymology

The word bong is an adaptation of the Thai word baung (Template:Lang-th /bɔːŋ/), a cylindrical wooden tube, pipe, or container cut from bamboo, and which also refers to the bong used for smoking. Bongs have been in use, primarily by the Hmong, in Laos and Thailand, for centuries. One of the earliest recorded uses of the word in Western literature dates to a piece in the January 1971 issue of the Marijuana Review. An even earlier reference, the McFarland Thai-English Dictionary, published in 1944 describes one of the meanings of bong in the Thai language as, "a bamboo waterpipe for smoking kancha, tree, hashish, or the hemp-plant."

Operation

Diagram of a bong in operation.

To use a bong, the base of the bong pipe is filled with water or other liquids. While alcoholic beverages or oils can be used in a bong, both of these substances filter out some of the THC when the bong is used for smoking marijuana, because THC is fat-soluble and, to a lesser extent, alcohol-soluble. THC is only very slightly water-soluble, which makes water a good choice of fluid for filling a bong. The substance to be smoked is packed into the cone piece and ignited.

The user places his/her lips inside the mouthpiece, forming a seal, and inhales, causing the flame to be drawn toward the substance. An inhalation is known as a "hit", "pull" or "rip." As the user inhales, the flame is drawn towards the substance, igniting it, and the smoke which is produced travels through a hollow pipe that is attached to the bottom of the bowl. The pipe enters via an airtight stem into a vessel containing water (or whatever other liquid is used). The smoke rises through the water, which cools the smoke, and then the smoke is trapped in the air chamber above the water. At the side or back of the bong, above the water level, there is usually a small air hole called a "carburetor", "carb", "choke", "shotgun" or "shottie". The user of the bong covers the carb with a finger until the material in the bowl has burnt away, then uncovers and pulls all the smoke from the bong into their lungs (called "clearing" the bong). Not all bongs use a carb, however. Many high end models have a removable bowl piece which works the same as a carb. These are usually known as "pull-stem" or "slide" bongs, and usually glass bongs that sometimes have glass-on-glass connections have this arrangement.

A diagram of a carburetor hole bong. Note the hole on the left.

Comparison with other smoking methods

A variety of pipes and bongs for sale. In countries where marijuana is illegal, retailers often specify their use for tobacco in an attempt to circumvent laws against selling drug paraphernalia.

Bong advocates claim that the cooling of the smoke helps to reduce the chance of burning the mouth, airways, and lungs. The water can trap some heavier particles and the more water-soluble molecules, preventing them from entering the smoker's airways. While smokers tend to believe that bongs are less damaging than other smoking methods, a 2000 NORML-MAPS study found that "water pipes filter out more psychoactive THC than they do other tars, thereby requiring users to smoke more to reach their desired effect". Smoke from cannabis supplied by the NIDA was drawn through a number of smoking devices and analyzed. A smoking machine, adjusted to mimic the puff length of cannabis smokers, drew smoke through a standard bong, a small portable bong with a folding stem, a bong with a motorized paddle that thoroughly mixes the smoke with the water, and two different types of vaporizers.

However, MAPS reviewed a study that examined the effects and composition of water-filtered and non-filtered cannabis and tobacco smoke. It found that when alveolar macrophages, an important component in the lungs' immune system, were exposed to unfiltered smoke, there was a marked reduction in the macrophages' ability to fight bacteria, whereas there was no such reduction in those exposed to water-filtered smoke. It also found that there is substantial epidemiological evidence among tobacco smokers that those who smoke through water-pipes, as opposed to cigarettes, cigars, and regular pipes, have lower incidences of carcinoma. "It appears that water filtration can be effective in removing components from cannabis smoke that are known toxicants... The effectiveness of toxicant removal is related to the smoke's water contact area. Specially designed water pipes, incorporating particulate filters and gas-dispersion frits, would likely be most effective in this regard; the gas-dispersion frit serves to break up the smoke into very fine bubbles, thereby increasing its water-contact area." This study suggests that a bong's smoke is less harmful than unfiltered smoke.

Variations

A bong may be constructed from any air- and water-tight vessel by adding a bowl and stem apparatus (a slide); there are reports of such things as videogame controllers being used as bongs.

Salvia and bongs

Many people use bongs to smoke the Mexican mint Salvia Divinorum in an attempt to get a bigger 'hit'. The main problem with this is that Salvia Divinorum IS soluable in water so most of the psychoactive ingredient (Salvorin A) is filtered out resulting in a much weaker hit.

See also

• Operation Pipe Dreams

References

External links

• US Patent number:, Water pipe or bong William V. Erickson et al