Confessions of a Germaphobe

[teamkazam]

Am I doing anything wrong? After I smoke a pipe, I let it cool down. Then I clean thoroughly with alcohol (everclear.). I take a soft pipe cleaner wet with alcohol to the stem, another bristle to the stem chamber of the pipe, wipe out the smoking chamber with a dry paper towel (sometimes use a little alcohol soaked q-tip to the bottom of the bowl if it got really wet during the smoke) and often put a light buff on it from a bench buffer in the garage. I do this every time... My pipe rack holds 24 pipes and they all look like they were in a display case at your local tobacco shop.
Is this too much cleaning? Am I harming my pipes by sanitizing after every smoke?

 

[spartan]

I wouldn't do the bristle cleaners after every smoke. Could slowly chip away the insides bit by bit... but if you're rotating 24 pipes... ignore that.
I don't think anything you're doing is "harming" the pipe, but the alcohol soaked q-tip in the chamber sounds like a no no. Although I don't have a solid reason to back that up. I just soak up as much moisture as I can, sanitize stem and shank, and move on.

 

[cajunguy]

It reads like you take exceptional care of your pipes. I agree with Spartan about the bristle cleaners though: they are a bit aggressive to use after every use. Alcohol on a fluffy cleaner is enough to give the draft a good washing between smokes. I wouldn't want you to risk weakening the interior.
But again, like the post above me states, you're rotating a lot of pipes, and they are still in display condition. So you're definitely doing it right!

 

[romeowood]

I follow a similar regime, team, and prefer always-fresh, like-new pipes to overly-anointed ones, let's say. The bristles in cleaners aren't rough enough to scar the inside of your stems or shanks, although exercise caution about the occasional bent end of a cleaner, the little metal wire can leave minute gouges. Basically, treat them the way you want, and enjoy the smokes they give you.

 

[dragonslayer]

I would avoid cleaning the bowl with any alcohol unless you have a serious ghosting problem. Then maybe a quick swab or if it's bad use the salt method. You run the risk of damaging the finish on the top of the bowl by using alcohol which will remove the finish. If the tobacco is properly dry it should just fall out with a clean ash. If it’s wet a dry q-tip would be enough. You don’t want to ruin the cake and the alcohol will break it down.

 

[cortezattic]

After a smoke I scrub the draft hole and stem with a couple of dry pipe cleaners and let the pipe rest for a day.

I think cleaning with alcohol after every smoke deprives the wood of any "seasoning" it might otherwise acquire.

Formerly, I used cotton balls to give the chamber an alcohol soak, but I stopped that without any ill effects.

Now, I only swab the shank and stem with an alcohol-soaked pipe cleaner when the pipe flavor seems "off".

 

[numbersix]

I know some puffers have an obsession about clean pipes, most of us recommend keeping the pipes clean.
That said, I'm with Cortez on this. Alcohol after each smoke is too much and can harm the pipe, adversely affect the pipe's seasoning, and other issues, IMO. Some actually don't use alcohol for cleaning at all or use very small amounts and very infrequently.
Personally, I use high-proof alcohol, sparingly, on my "thorough cleanings" (every 12-15 smokes or so, on average) -- and I always just dip a clean pipe cleaner 1/2" deep in alcohol for the stem, followed by clean dry ones; the stummel gets a scrub with a shank brush similarly dipped, followed by bristle cleaner, dry cleaners.
Oh and I never use alcohol on meerschaum stummels; I would assume it's also bad for clay pipes.

Well put.
FWIW I did however see a video (from a well-known pipe shop, I think it was smoking pipes) that recommended dipping the pipe cleaner in alcohol *every* time you clean your pipe ( by this they meant after each use).
I am not so sure doing so will do any real harm, though I prolly wouldn't do it during the break-in period.

 

[mkelaw]

Alcohol after each use is, in my opinion, not only unnecessary but also potentially harmful. Alcohol will dry out the briar and it may affect the fit of the tenon in the mortise. I'm not just speculating on this. I've alcohol-cleaned hundreds and hundreds of estates for re-sale and about one in ten times, when done the tenon is a bit loose in the mortise. If you clean after each use, a doubled over pipe cleaner with no alcohol will remove almost all of whatever has been deposited in that smoke. Use high test alcohol for a deep cleaning when the pipe doesn't taste as good as it should
I recommend the use of bristle cleaners for this. I have a list of Urban Pipe Legends that I intend to address at length one of these days. The Bristle Pipe Cleaner issue is on the list. Briar is very hard and dense. The little plastic bristles have no chance of etching them or removing material. After all, when you put one through the airway, those bristles aren't standing up - they're flattened backwards into the soft part of the cleaner. They clearly do a much better job. To remove stuff from the airway, there must be some friction. Try taking a pipe that hasn't been thoroughly cleaned for awhile and, using non-bristle cleaners and alcohol, clean till the cleaner comes out with nothing on it. Then use a bristle cleaner with alcohol. It will come out brown.

 

[spartan]

2 years of cleaning with 91 percent isop alcohol and I have not had my pipes damaged.
Although I agree it's really not necessary...I will have to dissagree that it harms the pipe. A regular light alcohol cleaning isn't going to do a darn thing.

 

[cigrmaster]

I personally will take mkelaw's advice. He has been restoring pipes for a long time and his experience is what I will listen to. I myself only use Everclear for deep cleanings and would never use it after every bowl. I can keep my pipes very clean using bristle cleaners after each smoke. I will usually go 10-12 bowls or so before a deep cleaning. If you think about it alcohol dries wood, using it all the time cannot be a good thing.

 

[teufelhund]

I haven't really done much cleaning with alcohol... Maybe once a month I just try to get them as dry as possible. If I notice some ghosting I set that one aside to be cleaned. As far as the rough cleaners I guess it depends on the pipe. I have a POS brylon that I swear would survive a nuclear holocaust that I abuse just for the novelty of it. Smokes pretty good besides getting too hot and I don't worry about it so it's a nice one to throw in the glove box. It'll probably out live us all... Be very afraid...

 

[numbersix]

@mkelaw @rothnh
Good advice - the over drying aspect makes a lot of sense.

 

[crazypipe]

All i can say is ,that i have not cleaned a pipe in so long i can't remember.I will use a pipe cleaner but that's about it. ::

 

[teamkazam]

I love this forum! What a great place to improve the smoking experience. I will certainly heed the experienced advise. Thanks everyone!

 

[mso489]

While commending your pristine cleaning of your pipes, I would only remind people who are new to pipe

smoking that you can do fine with much less ardent cleaning than this. You want the bowl cleaned out

and the airway cleared with a pipe cleaner, and other procedures from time to time. But most briar does

well with a few basic procedures. The rest is at the discretion and pleasure of the smoker. I do like to

buff off my pipe with a soft cloth while it is still warm from smoking. At the same time, I value some evidence

of wear on a pipe. It is pleasant to have a pipe show some patina. Not neglect, just some development and

character.

 

[nsfisher]

Overthinking and overcleaning. Smoke your pipe, run a cleaner tru the stem to the bowl and set it aside untill you smoke it next time.

 

[romeowood]

Interesting theory on the alcohol drying the wood out. I have *kind of* experienced this while overzealously retorting an estate. My experience has been that the 2-3 drops of alcohol used in daily cleaning are sufficient to loosen the surface tars, perhaps even suspending them in solution long enough to soak into the briar even more, at best. The coloring evident on the tanshells, and the sweet and well-seasoned smoke I get from dedicated pipes, confirms this, so I'm happy enough with my little ritual. My cobs, on the other hand, receive a regimen of calculated neglect, and tend to get skankier than the chick that hangs out at the gas station pretty quickly. Just depends on what I feel like smoking, I reckon.