How To Clean A Hookah Bowl in 3 Steps

Learn How To Clean A Hookah Bowl in 3 Steps

Today we are going to discuss how to clean a Hookah Bowl in 3 steps! Generally speaking, cleaning a hookah bowl is simple & can be done in various ways. You definitely want to learn this skill if you are determined to keep your hookah bowl in pristine condition & your shisha smoke sessions on par. Overtime shisha buildup & residue will start to accumulate in & around the edges of the clay bowl. This occurs because glycerin & juices from shisha tobacco & hookah molasses warm up enough to the point where they burn & stick onto the inner walls of your narguile bowl. This molasses buildup is normal  and often occurs regardless even if you tend clean your bowl after every smoke session. However, if you tend to clean a hookah bowl afterwards every use, the amount of residue will obviously be less & your hookah smoke will always be flavourful & thick. Before cleaning a . hookah bowl, ensure that it has cooled down to room temperature to avoid burning your hands & damaging the bowl.  Below are a few methods & steps to clean a hookah bowl

3 Steps To Clean a Hookah Bowl

1. Soap & Water Method
2. Soak Method
3. Knife Scrub Method

1- Soap & Water Method:

Generally speaking this is the most common method or step to clean a hookah bowl. After allowing your bowl to cool down, simply rinse your bowl with water and scrub using a sponge using dish cleaner soap. Most people will use a regular dish sponge but we recommend using a metal foam or stainless steel sponge. Scrubbing out your hookah bowl with soap & water will allow it stay clean for your future sessions and will maintain the build up to a reasonable extent. We have to emphasize on allowing the hookah bowl to cool down in order to avoid fractures from forming onto to the clay bowl. Do not rush this part as we have seen it happen before.

2- Soak Method:

Another method some hookah smokers use to remove build up is the soak method. Some individual use vinegar to soak and clean a hookah bowl while others use lemon juice but today we are going to stick to water as our main ingredient. After using your shisha bowl, allow it to cool down completely. When the bowl is completely cooled down just grab a bowl or pot filled with hot water and soak it in. You can keep the bowl soaked in water for a couple of hours or overnight and this will help the build up of juices and shisha tobacco to fall off easier when scrubbing with a sponge afterwards. This will also help remove most of the build up. This step would be recommended if you haven't cleaned your hookah bowl in a while.

3- Knife Scrub Method:

Now if you are really a clean freak and want your bowl to look fresh all the time you can use the knife scrub method. Simply use the tip of of your knife and carefully scrub off the residue from your shisha tobacco. Doing this will remove most of the overtime juice residue & tobacco build up but it may also remove some of the paint or gloss of your bowl. I have rarely used this method as it takes quite some time and i know that when using the bowl again the build up will reoccur. Be cautious using the knife method as you can cut yourself if you are not careful enough (common sense). If you have never cleaned your hookah bowl this method would be recommended if the first two steps didn't work for you. 

Conclusion:

Hookah bowls will generally build up glycerine juices and shisha tobacco residue with use over-time. Keeping your hookah bowl clean is important for health & sanitary factors while allowing you to get the best shisha flavours every time you smoke. I hope the above steps & methods help with maintaining your hookah bowl while improving your hookah sessions. If you read our How To Clean a Hookah Bowl blog post and feel that it is time for a new hookah bowl, feel free check out our Hookah Bowl Collection.