Should I clean a new unused pipe prior to smoking? If so, how? I feel weird putting a stem in my mouth without first cleaning it somehow. I am somewhat of a germaphobe...
Cleaning a brand new pipe?
- Thread starter outsider80
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First off, welcome to the forum outsider80. On a brand new pipe, I always clean the stem with Everclear, just like I would an estate pipe. You have no way of knowing how many different hands and poss. mouths, have touched that stem before it got to you, so treat it like its already dirty. As far as the bowl is concerned, I don't mess with new briar, I simply run a pipe cleaner through the draft hole to remove any possible dust or even wood particles and leave it at that. Also, I pack my first bowl all the way to the top, just like every other bowl. I don't buy into the whole....pack the first few bowls only halfway, the next few bowls 3/4 etc. routine, if that's your bag....cool, but I don't see the sense in it! Just my .02
I just remove the stem,swab the insides with a pipe cleaner dipped in alcohol and wipe the button with damp paper towel. If the bowl smells a little off, i just swab the tobacco chamber with rum soaked cotton balls and let dry prior to smoking. Welcome to the forums.
Welcome to the forums. This is a pretty common question, and you've had some solid replies up top.
In general, treat it like any other device that you're going to purchase and then put in your mouth. Cleaning and sanitizing a new pipe is pretty simple.
1) Remove the stem from the shank and do a quick surface clean of the exterior of the stem with Everclear, or high test alcohol, of your choice.
2) Do a quick wipe of the chamber with a paper towel. If you really want to be cautious then take a pipe cleaner and fold it in half dip it in your alcohol, and do a quick rub down of the walls and bottom of the chamber. Be sure not to get any alcohol on the finished surface of the rim or exterior of the bowl as it can remove or discolour the finish. You can let it air dry, or torch the bowl to remove the alcohol.
3) Replace the stem and run a cleaner dipped in the same alcohol from the button (where your mouth goes) all the way down to the bowl. Do this a couple times.
4) Let the pipe rest for 24 hours for the alcohol to evaporate.
Welcome to the hobby. May you enjoy pipe smoking for a long, long time.
-- Pat
In general, treat it like any other device that you're going to purchase and then put in your mouth. Cleaning and sanitizing a new pipe is pretty simple.
1) Remove the stem from the shank and do a quick surface clean of the exterior of the stem with Everclear, or high test alcohol, of your choice.
2) Do a quick wipe of the chamber with a paper towel. If you really want to be cautious then take a pipe cleaner and fold it in half dip it in your alcohol, and do a quick rub down of the walls and bottom of the chamber. Be sure not to get any alcohol on the finished surface of the rim or exterior of the bowl as it can remove or discolour the finish. You can let it air dry, or torch the bowl to remove the alcohol.
3) Replace the stem and run a cleaner dipped in the same alcohol from the button (where your mouth goes) all the way down to the bowl. Do this a couple times.
4) Let the pipe rest for 24 hours for the alcohol to evaporate.
Welcome to the hobby. May you enjoy pipe smoking for a long, long time.
-- Pat
Really? That's not very helpful.
"I feel weird putting a stem in my mouth without first cleaning it somehow."
So clean it then is the simple answer. What you choose to clean it with depends on how 'dirty' you think it is but generally pure alcohol is the preferred option.
Welcome to the forum by the way :
:
Regards,
Jay.
So clean it then is the simple answer. What you choose to clean it with depends on how 'dirty' you think it is but generally pure alcohol is the preferred option.
Welcome to the forum by the way :
:Regards,
Jay.
You could also just rinse it out with hot water, outside of stem as well. Towel dry and light up, after running a pipe cleaner through the airway. No alcohol residue or odor, no waiting. The briar will not absorb water unless left for some long time.
After breaking in about 250 pipes, I can report no diseases contracted. I rarely clean a pipe except to run 2-3 cleaners through it during the smoke. If it tastes foul, which is very rare, I remove the stem and clean with a strong alcoholic beverage.
If I was the worrying kind I'd be more concerned with the content of the smoke I was sucking into my mouth. Do you have any idea tobacco how tobacco is treated during growing and processing? Fertilizers, critter crap, insects and insect parts, human handling, unclean equipment, etc. The pipe and it's cleanliness should be the least of your worries. Barring teeth marks on a new pipe I wouldn't give it a thought. Of course I wouldn't purchase a "new" pipe which shows signs of being "road tested" as it were.
Mucho sound advice here. I do clean a new pipe these days, but in days of yore, I just loaded them up and puffed away.
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