Bong Hygiene
Jenna Horth
I’m writing to you about bong hygiene, admittedly as a former nasty bong user. I’m not ashamed to admit it, because I know I’m not the only one out here not cleaning their bong daily. We would clean it maybe once or twice a week, but use it a few times a day. My husband and I got sick over the winter and both ended up with a cough that just would never fully go away. We thought we must have long Covid, or some other super virus our kids brought home from school.
Then I came across an article online about what can grow in your bong water and it scared the heck out of me! We started cleaning it daily and OUR COUGHS WENT AWAY. So gross to think about actually, but I’m sharing shamelessly because I know I’m not alone in this!! I feel like it would be a disservice to not pass along this reminder that we all need to clean our bongs daily.
Every bong user knows that nasty bong smell, but do you know what causes it? Cannabis particles in sitting water can grow bacteria, yeast, fungi and other microbes. The environment is literally perfect for growing bacteria and it starts growing right after you use the bong. The bacteria can adhere to the sides of your bong and form a biofilm that you can see. The thought of filtering my cannabis through moldy water was enough for me to make a change in my bong care.
I found this little list of pathogens found in bong water from WeedMe’s website:
E. Coli: There are various strains of e. coli, and while some of them might not be of harm, these little bacterias are in their prime when swimming around dirty bong water. If exposed, this can lead to severe respiratory issues.
Aspergillus: While aspergillus is a natural bacteria that grows on cannabis plants, it transforms into mycotoxins when ignited and burned. These mycotoxins can sit in your bong water and multiply, resulting in intense chest pain and harsh coughs.
Flavobacterium: This is another bacteria found in water with no movement, which can increase your risk of serious respiratory infections.
Streptococcus: This is perhaps the scariest of them all. Streptococcus is a genus of bacteria that can lead to a diagnosis like strep throat, scarlet fever and pneumonia.
Pseudomonas Aeruginosa: This is the most common germ responsible for bacteria-caused illnesses. It can breed in damp and wet areas like hot tubs, swimming pools, and, you guessed it, bong water, which can cause symptoms like fever, shortness of breath, chest pain, exhaustion and confusion.
How to clean your bong
I recommend changing the water daily at a minimum, but ideally just dump the water out after each use. It forces you to give it a rinse and refill it for next time. If you rinse it often, resin won’t build up as quickly and it stays cleaner longer. If I notice a small build up starting, I use dish soap with really hot water from the tap and most of it will quickly come off.
Every other day or so I will use 91% rubbing alcohol with about a tablespoon of coarse salt. You only need enough alcohol to swish around the bowl. This will leave your bong disinfected and sparkling clean, and it only takes a couple mins! I almost never soak anything.
There are lots of other bong cleaners on the market, especially for people who don’t like the strong smell of rubbing alcohol. Some options that we carry in store are Randy’s Orange Label Citrus Cleaner perfect for cleaning your ceramic, glass, wood, acrylic and metal pieces as well as Orange Chronic Cleaner.
Okay now go clean your dang bong!!