How to Get the Best Smoke from Your Hookah

So you just discovered the joy of Hookah and you wish to get the best smoke for your money. This is a very simple guide that explains a few tips for the new smoker. Let's begin shall we?

Step 1: Get some good tunes playing with some good people. It is my opinion that hookah should be a relaxing social experience. It will greatly increase your enjoyment to chill out and smoke with some good friends and easy going music.

Step 2: Fill the base with with water about 1-2 inches above the stem that sticks into the bowl. I suggest adding some Ice as well. This will generally supply you with a cooler and thicker smoke. You can also use juice or other beverages to add a different flavor to your smoke. However, it should be noted that certain juices will not mix well with certain shisha (the flavored tobacco) so mix at your own risk. If you wish to use soda, make sure the soda is flat because the carbination will cause to many bubbles and it will get into your hose. Milk is not recommended because of the many bubbles that form and may get into your tube.

Step 3: The next step is packing you bowl. You want to pack the bowl to the top while making it semi-loose. A tightly packed bowl will not distribute heat evenly, but beware of underpacking the bowl. Under packing will cause the shisha to char.

Step 4: Place your foil over your bowl with the shiny side face down. Make the foil as smooth as possible and avoid wrinkles if you can. Use a toothpick (or something similar in size) to poke small holes through out the foil. Big holes will cause the shisha to over heat to quickly. 20-30 holes evenly spaced should do the trick. Don't worry about ashes from the coal getting in the bowl, very little will and what does get in will stay at the top of the shisha. So you won't be smoking it.

Step 5: Put the hose in the slot. Do NOT wash your hose unless you have one specifically made for washing. Washing a hose that isn't made to be washed can damage it. A quick hard blow into the hose before placing it in the hookah should clear out the debris that may be left inside.

Step 6: Lighting the coal. DO NOT USE COALS FOR BBQingOR ANY COALS NOT MADE SPECIFICALLY FOR HOOKAH SMOKING. Using a coal not made for hookah smoking is EXTREMELY toxic. Smoking carbon monoxide will severely mess up a good time. Most veteran hookah smokers will suggest natural hookah coals as the best choice for your smoke. However, don't let that turn you off from the insta-lights, sometimes their handy to have. Insta-lights will heat up in a few seconds, blow on it until the bottom is bright red. Natural coals require roughly 5 minutes to fully heat up.

Step 7: Place the coal on the foil. I hope you all have enough common sense to use tongs for this as the coal WILL BE HOT (be sure to use the tongs that come with the hookah). It will take a few pulls and a short amount of time for the shisha to heat up before you can truely start hitting it. Depending on the size of the bowl you may want 2 coals. Make sure to rotate the coal around the bowl roughly every 10-15 minutes to avoid burning the shisha.

That's pretty much it as far as set up goes. You should have thick white smoke to show you set up the hookah correctly. Make sure the hookah is airtight. You should be able to get the smoke without pulling hard, it should be relatively easy to get the smoke. If you taste a burning it may be because: the holes in the foil are to big, the shisha in the bowl needs to be mixed around or replaced, or the coal has been sitting in one spot for to long. Always clean your hookah right after smoking. Warm water should do the trick, but every 2-3 smoking sessions use a mixture of warm water, baking soda, and lemon juice. This will help keep the hookah fresh and avoid any flavors/smells from lingering. As stated before do NOT wash your hose unless it is the washable kind.

For anyone looking to purchase their own Hookah or Hookah accessories I would suggest www.hookah-shisha.com/ They have a large selection as well as fair pricing. I hope this guide was beneficial to your smoking experience. Have a great time!