Hookah Smoking Tricks

• Try putting ice in the glass base of your hookah and get the water ice cold before smoking. This makes for a smoother more enjoyable smoking experience.

• While some people smoke the hookah like one would smoke a cigar, others inhale the smoke. Neither way is more correct than the other - personal preference is what hookahs are all about!

• When you first start smoking your hookah, try placing the charcoal on the outside of the bowl and working it around the edges of the bowl. The center of the bowl should be the last place your charcoal is placed.

• Because of it's consistency, shisha tends to clump up. Before you pack the bowl, crumble it up in your fingers to spread it out throughout the bowl.

• Once you get the bowl packed, take a square of aluminum foil from one of our hookah foil packs. Wrap the foil over the top so that the surface is tight. Use a toothpick or another small pointed implement to poke a bunch of tiny holes in the foil. Place the charcoal on the foil once the charcoal has thoroughly heated up and is covered by a fine layer of ash. Letting the coal burn some before placing it on the bowl will help prevent contamination by charcoal flavor.

• When you place the foil tightly over the hookah bowl, make sure the shiny side is facing down so it will retain more heat from the charcoal.

• It's good to always blow out the smoke that collects in the glass base every once in a while so the smoke does not become stale. This gets rid of some of the harsh flavor from the stale smoke, and is said to help remove a layer of carbon monoxide that is said to collect just above the water.

• Take a piece of charcoal and split it into 2 pieces or 4 pieces and put them on the corners of your bowl to get a nice even burn. The more coals you use the more smoke you will get and the less coals you use the less smoke you will get. (note: don't use too much coal though because you start to get a harsh taste).

• When packing your hookah bowl line the inside of the bowl with foil and then punch through the holes on the inside of the bowl. The foil lining prevents flavor from soaking into the clay bowl (not necessary for metal or glazed bowls).

• If the smoke gets too "ashy or harsh" then possible take off some coal. If you're not getting enough smoke then add some coal.
  

• Break up your shisha and lightly place it in your bowl to ensure proper air flow through the bowl. This is the most common mistake when people first start smoking; it does not heat the shisha properly and makes it difficult to draw through your hookah. Also try loading strong flavors (like mint,) on the bottom, and the flavor on top will "pick-up" the flavor below. (You can really notice a subtle, pleasant change in flavor over the course of your smoking session when you load your bowl like this.)