Cake, Water Cleaning and a Mistake

[jvnshr]

I clean the pipes that I smoked just before hitting the bed everyday. I remove the stem, run a pipe cleaner through it, then fold the cleaner in half and wipe down the bowl with it. Once in a while, when I decide it is the time, I deep clean my pipes using 95% ethanol (grain alcohol). I dip the pipe cleaner into ethanol, run it through the stem few times, then use few pipe cleaners dipped into ethanol to wipe down the bowl. I also use a shank brush when required. I don't grow a thick layer of cake, to be honest that's what I was thinking.

So the other day I decided to give the water cleaning method (offered by @jpmcwjr) a go. I removed the stem of the pipe and run warm water through the bowl. Lots and lots of gunk started coming out of the shank, I used a pipe reamer and more came out. Here comes my mistake, I started scraping the walls of the bowl until I reached the briar. You can't even imagine how much cake I removed from the bowl. All the time, I was thinking that I had a very thin layer of carbon deposits. I applied the same technique to all of my briar pipes, They are all clean and fresh as new right now.

Cut to the chase, I am smoking one of the pipes right now and it smokes hotter than before. Same pipe, same tobacco, same packing method, same lighter however the smoke is not as cool as before. Lesson learned. Oh, want to hear another mistake? I washed my stems with warm water as well. My acrylic stems are as good as new, but apparently vulcanite doesn't love warm water.

So my question to the ones that use water cleaning method; do I need to wash my pipe again after smoking it? Do you just run warm water through the pipe for a few seconds and not touch the bowl?

 

[STP]

I’ve bounced around with the water cleaning technique. I find that it works best if done right after smoking when the bowl goop is still warm/wet. I then clean the bowl with a rolled up paper towel and run a pipe cleaner through it.

 

[jerseysam]

I turn the water up high to get it hot, cut it back to a small stream, and fill up the bowl and let drain out the stem 2-3 times. I do this with the stem on in most pipes. I pipe-clean the stem/mortise and fold over and wipe out the bowl. Set to dry and pipe is good. I should note, when done with the smoke I dump the ashes and use a rolled up paper towel piece to whipe down the bowl (before water flush).

Sometime hot water gets on the outside of the pipe....but it's never caused me any noticeable wax/color issues. I do not hold or wash the entire pipe under water, just run the water through the bowl and out the stem. Vulcanite will oxidize with heat...with a small stream I don't worry about running through the pipe....but I don't use hot water to soak the outside of Vulcanite. Acrylic....no issue.

If you had tons of gunk come out....it sounds like you had a lot of loose cake. I have the proverbial thin hard carbon on my pipes and water does not harm it. If you also had that much cake....it stands to reason that your draw is probably much more open on a 'cleaned' pipe with a greater amount of burning tobacco......that may be why it seems hotter.

 

[jvnshr]

it stands to reason that your draw is probably much more open on a 'cleaned' pipe with a greater amount of burning tobacco......that may be why it seems hotter.

Thanks for your thorough explanation @jerseysam. I am a slow smoker and honestly speaking I didn't feel any difference in draw.

 

[Grangerous]

I’m not one for cake either. I second the paper towel method. I do so immediately after every bowl and do so until it comes out white. I have a nice, smooth carbon layer. Pipe cleaner until shank is very clean. Rarely must I clean with spirits.

Of course, I then let it swim in Granger. I think ? I’m the only one.

 

[jerseysam]

Thanks for your thorough explanation @jerseysam. I am a slow smoker and honestly speaking I didn't feel any difference in draw.

I'm a lowly aro and lat smoker, so always take what I say with a grain of salt "Draw" may be a bit loose in how I used it, but if you really had a lot of debris come out of your pipe....then by logic you opened up the bowls capacity by a good bit (equal to volume that you scrambled out). So your same cadence is going to pull air through a now wider chamber and more (than the caked up) ember. In my first go round with pipes I let thicker/loose cake form and it would be a noticeable difference when I reamed it back (in term of smoke I was pulling through).

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

I water cleanse after every smoke most of the time, 90% plus. 30 second to a minute with warm water. I don't take the stem out. I rarely have to ream, I'd call it more of an occasional touch up. I don't feel clean say all these days.

 

[scloyd]

I rinse with warm to hot, not scalding hot water with the stem still attached. I then wipe out the bowl with a paper towel and run a couple of pipe cleaners through the stem. That's it...simple.

 

[PipeIT]

I’m not understanding the reasoning for running water through a pipe?

I assume, you have a layer of cake that you want to maintain, so always stay on top of it, never letting it get to thick, and ream it down when needed.

Anything else, just run a cleaner through the steam and shank.

Now you have a clean pipe, what am I missing here?

To me, water and wood don’t equal a good combination, so I would never feel comfortable running water through an expensive pipe.

Hmm ?

 

[Pallidan]

I just use a wet paper towel to clean out the bowl

 

[Pallidan]

I’m not understanding the reasoning for running water through a pipe?

I assume, you have a layer of cake that you want to maintain, so always stay on top of it, never letting it get to thick, and ream it down when needed.

Anything else, just run a cleaner through the steam and shank.

Now you have a clean pipe, what am I missing here?

To me, water and wood don’t equal a good combination, so I would never feel comfortable running water through an expensive pipe.

Hmm ?

Agree

 

[PipeIT]

I just use a wet paper towel to clean out the bowl

Well, to me it gets back to the Caker Layer Thickness, if maintained with a reamer, or scraping it out carefully, wiping with a wet anything in the chamber seems odd...

Me no wipe anything wet inside da chamber!

A dry chamber is a happy chamber!

P.S. With the Holidays around the corner ‘Happy Chamber’, sounds like a new pipe holiday!

 

[Chasing Embers]

I disassemble a pipe after each smoke, wipe the chamber with a paper towel, swab the mortise with Q-tips, run a pipe cleaner through the stem and draft hole, reassemble and often wax. Never needed a reamer on a newly purchased pipe, and have never had one go sour.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Me no wipe anything wet inside da chamber!

On meers and cobs I use unscented baby wipes in the chamber to remove all buildup, but never a briar.

 

[jeff540]

My daily pipes have whittled down to just 3 or 4 because I love the hot water method. To be honest, I'm smoking the same pipe almost daily (1/4 bent Bjorne Viking with acrylic stem) because it's so easy to clean, dries fast and is ready to go again after just an overnight rest.

I try yo stay away from vulcanite as much as possible, but I have a few nice pipes that use it. Don't run hot water through those stems, but I do through the pipes.

All pipes get stem removed, cleaned separately, breath and towel dry, then reattach the stem. I takes about 45 seconds per pipe, and I'm only using pipe cleaners in between bowls now.

 

[bent1]

I use a paper towel in the bowl, qtip mortice & pipe cleaner stem & draft hole. Then alcohol Qtip bowl & mortice, then alcohol in stem. Keeps it fresh, drama free.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I use a paper towel in the bowl, qtip mortice & pipe cleaner stem & draft hole. Then alcohol Qtip bowl & mortice, then alcohol in stem. Keeps it fresh, drama free.

Be careful with alcohol in acrylic, it sometimes causes crazing.

 

[PipeIT]

On meers and cobs I use unscented baby wipes in the chamber to remove all buildup, but never a briar.

Honey, can you hand me some Baby Wipes? What for? Johnny is sound asleep he doesn’t need his butt wiped... LOL

 

[bent1]

I use a wadded paper towel in the bowl, qtip in the mortice & pipe cleaner through the stem & draft hole. Then I follow up with an alcohol moistened Qtip wiped in the bowl, then another in the mortice, then an alcohol moistened pipe cleaner through the stem. Keeps it fresh.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Honey, can you hand me some Baby Wipes? What for? Johnny is sound asleep he doesn’t need his butt wiped... LOL

Baby product are great for repurposing. Micro bottle brushes clean airways and mortises better than bristle pipe cleaners, and lanolin is great for cork rings in a gourd calabash. I always have the wipes on hand for estate cleanups.