Moisture and Briar

[James8855]

If you don’t clean your briar pipe after you finish smoking it, would the briar get damage by the moisture?

 

[Chasing Embers]

If you don’t clean your briar pipe after you finish smoking it, would the briar get damage by the moisture?

Briar isn't very absorbent, too dense. The moisture will just dry.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

If you don’t clean your briar pipe after you finish smoking it, would the briar get damage by the moisture?

No, but if this is done often, you'll get a very nasty tasting pipe to smoke.

 

[Country Bladesmith]

It won’t be damaged, but I like to clean mine out with a paper towel right after smoking them, and it’s easier to do when the tar is still warm in my opinion. After it cools, less crud comes off. But some people prefer to let that build up into a cake anyway.

 

[anotherbob]

if you keep smoking it wet it will certainly damage the pipe. But it seems like it's a number of factors coming together. Every smoker I've know that smokes their pipe wet many many many times seem to get cracks and other damage. But just letting the wet sit in the pipe won't hurt it in any significant way.

 

[craig61a]

If you smoke it 15x a day for several years without doing any kind of cleaning, then you might have an issue.

I’ve had estates that were probably smoked like that and the bottom of the bowl is kinda raggedy because someone went mental with a pick.

 

[jpmcwjr]

If you don’t clean your briar pipe after you finish smoking it, would the briar get damage by the moisture?

If you simply remover the ash and dottle, it'll dry in a few hours in the desert, or quite a while in the Deep South during summer.

 

[lawdawg]

I very rarely smoke the same pipe twice in the same day, and that seems to be plenty of time to let them dry out. IMO a few days is ideal. You can certainly smoke your pipe more often than that, but in my subjective experience, giving them some rest helps to keep them tasting good and smoking dry. I also stick a pipe cleaner into the stem when I'm done with a smoke and let it stay there for a while as the pipe cools and whatever moisture is in the airway condenses. That way, the cleaner absorbs most of it, and then I take the cleaner out maybe 30 minutes later and put the pipe away.

 

[bullet08]

Moisture and heat are perfect place for things to grow. But I haven't seen anything growing in my pipes. Maybe it's because I take my pipe apart right after the smoke and clean it. Then let it sit overnight to dry before putting it away. Some members run water through the pipe to clean.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Water rinse, yes, more and more of us do. But unless you leave a glob of anything damp in the chamber, nothing will grow there. The heat from smoking will generally kill anything that might grow. If dottle is left in a moist environment over time trouble will manifest.

 

[Epip Oc'Cabot]

The moisture will not hurt the pipe. So no worries. The issue, however, is if YOU will enjoy the pipe long term with the moisture. That will depend on a lot of factors....a) how frequently you smoke that pipe (does it have enough time to dry out), b) does the “flavor” of the pipe (and future bowls of tobacco) decrease for YOU due to the moisture (some folks like the change in flavor, some do not).

The good thing is.... you can leave it and see how it goes.... and if you do not LIKE the results, you can change/revert back to the previous enjoyment by cleaning the pipe and then trying a different approach next time.

In a nutshell.... it is all about what gives you the greatest benefit to effort expended ratio.... that will be your sweet spot.

 

[Old School 3319]

I have a Dr Grabow grand duke that i smoke multiple bowls a day some times back to back. After each bowl I run a pipe cleaner thru and a paper towel in the bowl. Once or twice a week i change out the paper towel for a 3m green scratch pad. I am not nice to my pipes but they hold up well

 

[ray47]

Would this work

 

[BROBS]

Would this work View attachment 39964

that's to hold Dr. Grabow's Grand Duke.

I like how they show a young guy on there like he's wearing them.