Why Do People Put Ice in Bongs?

The simple answer is that ripping hits from a bong with ice cubes in its downstem offers immensely smooth and enjoyable smoking sessions. That being said, there's more to it than just plopping a couple of ice cubes into your pipe's water chamber to make an ice bong.

In this blog, MJ Arsenal will give you a rundown of how an ice catcher bong works, the possible effects and benefits of adding ice to your bong, the best types of ice to use, and some best-use tips to consider. Discover a new way to make your next smoking session a more enjoyable experience, and read on below.

How Putting Ice in a Bong with Ice Catchers Works

While you can take advantage of placing ice in your bong water for even cooler smoke, many water pipe models - such as MJ Arsenal's - have little notches in portions of the downstem just above the water chamber. These are called "ice notches," and they're used to hold ice cubes so they don't drop into the water chamber. This ensures they don't melt faster in the water.

More importantly, the ice notches serve another important purpose: to suspend ice cubes in the middle of the downstem to act as a filter while smoke passes up from the water chamber to the mouthpiece. The hot smoke immediately drops in temperature as it passes around the ice, producing cooler hits that are smoother and easier to draw in.

Cool rips also mean you'll be able to draw in even more smoke, ensuring your smoke session is filled with blissful clouds of smoke swirling throughout the room. Overall, putting ice in a bong makes smoking cannabis just that much more enjoyable.

Important Warning for Using Ice Bongs

We want to also be responsible and let you know that there are some risks in using ice in a bong. In particular, some reports have shown that regular use of ice bongs results in users developing bronchitis and other serious lung issues.

Part of this is because using ice in order to produce filtered smoke can lead to you inhaling tiny but sharp ice particles, damaging your lungs. You could minimize the potential for this by using only melting ice or by dunking your ice in room-temperature water, getting rid of excess frost crystals on the surface.

In addition, we advise you to enjoy ice bongs less frequently. That'll reduce the chances of any long-term respiratory problems while still enjoying the smooth, delicious experience of those frosty rips.

Benefits of Using A Bong With Ice

Now that you know how it works, let's get into the fun stuff: how using ice in a bong helps make your smoking sessions even better. On top of transforming smoke sessions on a humid or hot summer afternoon, using a bong with ice in it simply makes the overall smoking experience easier and more enjoyable. Here are some of the many benefits and ways it does just that:

Cool Smoke

If you add ice to your bong, it quickly reduces the temperature of your bong rips. This produces smoother hits, allowing you to easily draw in more of your smoke.

Better Flavor

On top of serving a smoother hit, using an ice cube in your bong also helps maintain your smoke's flavors for even further enjoyment. This is because the lower temperature of the smoke keeps the terpenes — the chemicals from your flower that produce its scent and taste — from burning away.

Less Discomfort

As we mentioned, using an ice bong will reduce the temperature of your rips, so they are smoother and easier to enjoy. This means there is the added benefit of reducing any irritation in your throat or lungs when you inhale smoke from it.

More Smoke

What comes from less irritation and smoother hits? Ice bongs allow smokers to make big rips, thus enjoying bigger hits that will keep them in bliss for much longer. This means ice bongs are an especially good experience for 420 aficionados.

Fun Smoke Show

Finally, another significant benefit is that your smoke is more aesthetically pleasing if you use a glass water bong. Because it quickly drops the temperature of the smoke, the ice bong produces a cloud of white vapor that quickly rises up the downstem as you inhale. This creates an attractive and fun effect whenever you spark up with an ice catcher bong.

Best Tips To Take When Using An Ice Bong

To help make sure your experience putting ice in a bong even better, here are several solid tips to try out:

• Use filtered or purified water - For both the ice cubes you use, and the water you put in the chamber, the purity of the water you use in them ensures you get fewer contaminants affecting the flavor profile and smoothness of your smoke.
• Place a minimal amount of ice - There's only so much space in a downstem. Putting too much ice will overfill it and make it almost impossible for you to inhale any smoke, as there is no room for airflow.
• Use a glass bong - These are easier to clean and to see through when you inhale your cooled smoke. One of the best kinds of materials is borosilicate glass, a type of glass that is durable, heat resistant, and easy to clean.
• Keep your bong clean - The less residue and buildup inside your bong, the better hits you'll get, with or without ice in it, and when using an ice bong, you'll want to make sure it is as clean as possible for ice pure hits.
• Use well-shaped ice trays - Not all bongs can simply fit a regular ice cube in them. However, numerous types of ice trays can easily produce ice in shapes that can fit.
• Try flavoring your ice - A fun twist to your smoking session, use natural fruit juices and other ingredients to produce ice cubes for your bong. As they melt, they'll release additional flavor and aromas for you to enjoy throughout your smoke session.

Find A Premium Ice Bong Or Dab Rig From MJ Arsenal

Putting ice in a bong can be a game-changing experience for your smoke sessions. However, you should make sure you have the right kind of ice bong. Consider our range of ice catcher bongs, such as our Cache and Saturn models. They each have unique designs and color choices, but more importantly, they each have at least one optimally sized ice notch to hold up a well-sized cube for your next ice bong experience.