Wind

[Drew72]

Is it normal for windy conditions to potentially decrease smoking time by up to half? My favorite outside spot is often windy, and I’m getting just 25 minutes, or so. I understand that wind causes the tobacco to burn more quickly. But I feel cheated... I love the 45-50 minutes the typical bowl lasts. That is perfect time for me. 25 minutes doesn’t quite get me to that zen state. Things are just starting to get good at that point

thanks
Drew

 

[olkofri]

Depends on the wind speed, ambient humidity, your own puff rate... but I'd say yes, it speeds up combustion. Are you using a windcap? Have you tried a cut with a slower combustion rate, i.e. flakes?

One advantage I've seen to this is that "at least the damn pipe will stay lit!" I sometimes place my pipe in the car's A/C stream to fan the cherry and keep it from going out.

 

[alaskanpiper]

Yes. A wind cap will help, but it will still burn faster.

 

[diamondback]

Definitely. The wind can (will) smoke your pipe for ya, unfortunately.

 

[Epip Oc'Cabot]

In the wind, simply cover the top of the bowl lightly with your palm.... not sealed tight.... but lightly covered to restrict the wind... a little like a carburetor. It becomes second nature after a bit.

 

[seanv]

Wind is your enemy

 

[jpmcwjr]

If just sitting, it's easy enough to slap a match book or any small flat object over the bowl. That'll cut down wind invasion more than a wind cap.

 

[Rebub24]

Wind will absolutely increase the burn rate of tobacco in your pipe. You also have to be careful about this because increased wind will cause your pipe to burn hot which will increase the risk of causing a burnout

 

[bullet08]

my front porch gets windy now and then, but i haven't seen that much difference in burn time. i typically put two fingers over the chamber to prevent ashes from blowing away. i only smoke outside and haven't had burn out yet from the wind.

 

[Worknman]

I hate smoking when its windy to the point I often check the wind speed before even bothering to go outside. I look for it to be no more than 8-10 mph, ideally 5mph or less. Like you said the bowl burns fast and I always seem to get a little more tongue bite than usual. Not to mention difficulty with lighting and what not.

 

[peregrinus]

Is it normal for windy conditions to potentially decrease smoking time by up to half? My favorite outside spot is often windy, and I’m getting just 25 minutes, or so.

I also smoke outdoors often.
Just like a bellows in a forge, the wind is supplying added oxygen and this increases burn rate and, as a consequence, temperature. As mentioned, your thumb, palm or something preferably nonflammable will choke off oxygen and consequently dampen the fire.
Also, there are some tobaccos that work better than others under windy conditions. Flake, coin, plug and rope style tobaccos are great outdoors because their inherent density helps to slow things down a bit.

 

[snoopy311]

I too live in a windy area and also find that smoking in windy conditions will shorten the length of time a pipe will last. Especially if your reading something interesting and not paying attention to your pipe. I agree that a wind cap will help keep the burning rate a bit slower.

 

[warren]

I do what I can to keep the turbulence from crossing the top of the bowl, wind cap, fingers cupped to force the flow up and away, whatever it takes as long as I can continue my work. Sometimes I simply put the pipe, lit, into my jacket pocket for minute white using both hands on the camera.

 

[Sonorisis]

I see a stack in your future. Always wanted an excuse to get a Castello stack. There ya' go!

 

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

Wind also takes away a LOT of flavor in my experience. Wind speed is a main factor in whether or not I smoke a pipe that morning /evening.

 

[anotherbob]

sometimes the wind gets more of the smoke then you can.

 

[solideogloria86]

Wind caps are pretty cheap and pretty effective. It may take some experimenting with blend/pipe combos to find a good experience but it's definitely worth a shot.

 

[Idahojoe]

Like many of you, my wife simply won't allow me to smoke in the house. I usually smoke in my gazebo (which has heavy curtains and a propane heater). However, when the wind blows hard enough, it becomes problematic.
When this occurs, I just set up a lawn chair and small table in my shop and smoke away. If you don't have a shop, a garage would do nicely.
A guys gotta smoke....

 

[Lowcountry_Piper]

Like many of you, my wife simply won't allow me to smoke in the house. I usually smoke in my gazebo (which has heavy curtains and a propane heater). However, when the wind blows hard enough, it becomes problematic.
When this occurs, I just set up a lawn chair and small table in my shop and smoke away. If you don't have a shop, a garage would do nicely.
A guys gotta smoke....

Love it Joe. My wife actually invited me to smoke in the house. I told her that we did not want the house to smell like an ashtray. My main reason for this is my garage is my sanctuary. She is now noticing that the garage smells quite wonderful. Not sure how much longer this plan will work!

 

[Drew72]

A wind cap it is, as I don't see getting any indoor space to smoke. I live in Illinois, so the chances to smoke from now until March, or so, will likely be rare. I guess I am somewhat partially protected from myself given my two vices are motorcycles and pipes and weather conditions here shave a good 3-4 months of the year off from being able to enjoyably partake in either.

Cheers. Thanks for the feedback
Drew