Hahaha!!
Yes your majesty, we have called onto thee to guide us in your infinite wisdom! How does one clean a meerschaum?
Meerschaum routine cleaning
- Thread starter alialansari
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Yes your majesty, we have called onto thee to guide us in your infinite wisdom! How does one clean a meerschaum?
How exactly do you carry out the hot water flush?
How hot does the water have to be?
Should the stem be attached or not?
Kitchen roll for the bowl, soft long pipe cleaners. I never take my pipes apart and only clean them with a pipe cleaner when necessary. I find these 'Woodsroad Universal Pipe Keys' to be invaluable for unblocking bowls, stems, shanks and your ears due to crap build up, they also prevent idiots from breaking ambers stems.
Not boiling hot of course. Most people say "warm water flush"
I keep mine together, and just let the water run from bowl through the stem, for only about a minute or two. Sometimes you can see crap run out the stem. Keeps pipes fresh. Run a Pipe cleaner through stem and swab bowl afterwards.
1. I never use liquids to clean them. When routinely cleaned there's no need.
2. Meerschaum stems on the modern pipes never make contact with the meerschaum itself so there's no wear on the material. Any pipe can be disassembled when warm though.
3. All true.
I have a similar meer from mid to late 1800s. I would assume water is okay for cleaning the amber stem, but not alcohol? It is a solid Amber stem, not the crushed and reconstituted Amber.
I have always just used a pipe cleaner in the bowl and stem also. Bristle Cleaner for the bowl to knock off any cake that forms in a short smoke with them.
I hadn't thought of the Warm Water Flush to clean them out. Do you know if it takes a ghost flavor away in a meer if flushed?
I hadn't thought of the Warm Water Flush to clean them out. Do you know if it takes a ghost flavor away in a meer if flushed?
Careful using those on meerschaum, as they can score up the chamber.
My experience after much reading.
1. you may clean your Meer with alcohol. Favourably 99%. No problems there.
2. since meerschaum draws liquid like a sponge, please stay away from water. The meer block absorbs water and becomes softer.
3. caring for the outside of the bowl. A wet cloth, or alcohol can be used to take the grime off the outside of the meer. Use sparingly, and make sure the pipe is nice and dry before use.
4. Waxing your Meer. Bees wax is cheap, and will color your Meer. Melt beeswax in a small bowl. Plug both ends of the meer with cork and rest the whole pipe in the wax. Alternatively you may paint the wax on your Meer. Once wax has been absorbed a heat gun will melt off the excess.
Hand Buff with a clean cloth when.
1. you may clean your Meer with alcohol. Favourably 99%. No problems there.
2. since meerschaum draws liquid like a sponge, please stay away from water. The meer block absorbs water and becomes softer.
3. caring for the outside of the bowl. A wet cloth, or alcohol can be used to take the grime off the outside of the meer. Use sparingly, and make sure the pipe is nice and dry before use.
4. Waxing your Meer. Bees wax is cheap, and will color your Meer. Melt beeswax in a small bowl. Plug both ends of the meer with cork and rest the whole pipe in the wax. Alternatively you may paint the wax on your Meer. Once wax has been absorbed a heat gun will melt off the excess.
Hand Buff with a clean cloth when.
That seems to be a contradiction. Both are liquid. Perhaps alcohol will evaporate faster, there is that.
I've been cleaning mine with soap and water for years. I do this, because sometimes I smoke an aromatic in mine and I like to scrub out the scent with warm water and dish soap.
If you don't soak the pipe for a long period of time, there is no problem. Nothing happens. I do this with an intricately carved I. Baglan meerschaum and a fairly plain IMP meerschaum. Both seem to come from fairly high quality block.
I use water and a shank brush with soap. I am careful to not gouge into the meerschaum. The process takes maybe 1-2 minutes tops. This is not enough time to cause any damage, in my experience.
Perhaps non-block meerschaum may have troubles? Hard to say.
That one's a myth. The wax is just there to protect the soft material. The act of smoking colors it whether it's waxed or not.
I know that the whole waxing/coloring debate is exhausting. But why does the coloring become more pronounced once a pipe is rewaxed?
Water does the same thing, and very quickly. Then it dries pretty quickly and the color that was brought out fades.
My experience with some reading and a lot of smoking contradicts what you write
I do not use alcohol on Meers. Period.
Water in my preferred liquid for cleaning a Meer. No alcohol at all.
Hot water and dish detergent works well with a sponge or cloth.
As Duane said, wax doesn't color. And in general, it's a monumental waste of time.