A bong is a type of water pipe used for cannabis smoking. Smoke is cooled, resulting in a softer, less jarring hit. Modern bongs have a tube that rises from the base. The base has a slanted hole to fit a downstem and store water. Smoke enters the downstem through a bowl and travels through a cool sip of water to the base, where it enters the tube and exits the mouthpiece into the smoker’s lungs. The mouthpiece does not go into the mouth but rather over the lips.
Bongs come from areas where cannabis consumption customs predate the invention of tobacco, although they are sometimes advertised as being “For tobacco use only.”
The origins of the bong
While some sources place the origin of Bong in China or perhaps parts of Northern Africa, others place it in Thailand or Laos. Whatever its origin, historians generally concur that the bong is hundreds or perhaps thousands of years old and that it first gained popularity in the West due to the cultural interchange that followed the Vietnam War. Many blog entries cite a 1971 issue of Marijuana Review as the first time the phrase “bong” appeared in Western literature, while others recall older trip authors.
Advantages of smoking a bong
The main use of bongs is to filter water or cool smoke; some even go so far as to include ice cubes or speciality components like frozen glycerine coils. Others claim that because of the volume of smoke in a bong rip, bong hits make them feel higher than a conventional pipe or joint.
People employ percolators because the filtration effect increases with the water’s surface area. Large bong rips are softened with percolators or diffusers, which expand the water’s surface area by producing tiny bubbles. A person can take more smoke in one breath by making the smoke less taxing on the lungs. Whether the water in a bong screens out toxins, carcinogenic, and irritants from smoking is still up for debate.
What distinguishes the bong from the water pipe?
Water pipes known as bongs have a vertical design and a mouthpiece that crosses your lips. Water pipes known as bubblers have a mouthpiece that fits between the lips. As a result, we only think of them as pipes and separate them from bongs. Only a few water pipes are bongs, but all pipes are bongs.
Do bongs and dab rigs have similar functions?
Dab rigs use a water filter for cannabis use, similar to bongs. The two vary in that a bong burns flower in a bowl-shaped piece, whereas a dab rig employs a nail, or bang, to vaporise oil or dabs. Dab rigs also frequently include fewer chambers and percolators, which allows the vapour to go along Dr. Seuss-like routes before reaching your mouth.
It should be noted that any funnel can be used for concentration vaporisation by substituting a nail or banger for the bowl portion. However, dab rigs are advised as bongs are not designed to ingest concentrates.
