Know Your Buddy Better - Facts About Bongs

Bongs come in all shapes and sizes and no doubt you’ve got your favourites - red, green, tall or portable. We’ve got them all at ICE Headshop and want to share some cool facts about glass and plastic (acrylic) bongs to get you better acquainted. Whether you’re building your collection or looking for your first and aren’t sure what you want, take a look at our bong range and give us a shout if you’ve got a question we can help with. In the meantime...

Bong basics

A bong is made up of a few essentials: - The bowl - The downstream (narrow tube from the bowl to the base) - The base (normally round) - The tube (or ‘pipe’)

Types of bongs

The main type of bong you’ll come across is the water bong, which passes smoke through water and then flows through the low pressure of the tube for inhalation. Depending on the design, they’re great at filtering smoke and are one of the most popular ways to smoke. Within water pipes, you can get glass, plastic, ceramic, multi-chamber, percolators and many more. For beginners, a single chamber plastic water bong is ideal. With multi-chamber bongs, the smoke is filtered more than once. The water can be hot or cold, filtered or unfiltered, but generally cold water has smoother results.

How bongs got their name

You can name your bong whatever you like, we don’t judge, but the term bong has an origin story not many know. ‘Bong’ comes from the Thai word ‘baung’ for a cylindrical wooden tube cut from bamboo. Bongs have been used in Thailand for centuries, along with Africa, so it’s not a surprise their original name as stuck.

Epic designs

Bongs aren’t just straight, you can get bongs that looks like Yoda, guns, aliens and even gas mask bongs. The novelty is real! Having something a bit different is fun and makes your collection stand apart from the rest. We think the more creative the better but at the end of the day, it’s all in the functionality - all our bongs put performance first.

Cleaning a bong

Like most things, bongs do need cleaning but see it as a chance to chill in front of the TV. The best way to keep bongs clean is to wipe them down weekly to avoid mould, using filtered water. For extra results, use warm water and flush it clean with some alcohol or salt water-mix. After it’s soaked, use a pipe brush to get in all the hard to reach spots and leave to dry. Viola! Got a top bong fact you want to share or an interesting name for yours at home? Leave us a comment below… and don’t forget to check us out on Facebook for the latest updates and industry news. We do not condone the use of bongs with illegal herbs. Our bongs are sold only for use with legal herbs. Check the law where you are.