Hookah (Water Pipe)

[Kiviuq]

Im lazy so im not going to post any wiki links or anything so you can look the Hookah up for yourself on google.

I own two hookahs and have been smoking them for about 3 yrs. If you do buy one you should definitely look into properly setting it up on a forum such as hookahpro.com, hookahforum.com, hookahdomain.com

You can smoke either washed or unwashed tobacco with flavored molasses, they come in a large variety of flavors. You can also buy herbal molasses which contains no tobacco, no nicotene and no tar. Another note on the tobacco is that washed = less nicotene and unwashed = high nicotene.

Smoking the Hookah, nargileh, shisha is highly enjoyable. I find my self using it almost everyday for 30-60min a session, and when im out and about I use my e-cig. In terms of comparing the two, for me the decision comes down to convenience and ease of use going to the e-cig and awesome flavor and relaxation going to the hookah.

Again there is controversy over the health aspect for this form of smoking. Not much tests have been done even though its been prevalent for quite a while, even in the states. Most people swear its not even close to cigarettes and they cite several reasons why this is the case.

One of the best herbal shishas is called Salaam and if youre looking for profound flavor, huge clouds, no nicotene, and no tar in a smoke check this stuff out. For tobacco choices Al Fakher is a popular company of washed tobacco and Nakhla is popular for unwashed. These tobaccos are produced in the middle east and if youre wary of this fact, you can get american made shisha tobacco which is usually slightly more expensive but very popular as well; good companies to look for are starbuzz, tangiers, fantasia...you can find reviews for flavors and companies on the forums I mentioned above.

[Kiviuq]

Oh and some good US vendors are, Buy Hookahs, Hookah Parts & Shisha Tobacco - Hookah-Shisha Central, Nazar Hookah, Quality Hookahs, Shisha, Nargile, Charcoal, Accessories!, Minnesota Hookah, www.hookahjohn.com, www.saharasmoke.com....there are more but this should be a start. You're best bet is to look at the aforementioned forums and they have vendor reviews, shisha reviews, pipe reviews, coal reviews etc.

[leaford]

And then there's the e-Hookah coming soon from RoyalSmoker! RoyalSmokers Healthy Smoke factory in Shenzhen

[incineradma]

I just looked at the e-hookah and it looks so cool!!! I want one I want one I want one I wonder how much they cost. I wonder how big they are! OH IT LOOKS SO COOL! Guess no one knows a general time frame it's expected to be on sale?

[cekte]

They were listed at $58 USD & change, a day or two previously. I am not sure if this was a typo, but it was published on the site, and they were available in their cart system.

Also Keep in mind CT is considered wholesale pricing as well. Going by average aprox % retail costs/mark-up/etc, I would say you can expect roughly around $150-200 USD. (?)

I believe Janty has one around the bend as well. I am unsure if they are the same model or of any time frame of release, yet. According to the small thumbnail preview of their Hookah on their sites, it looks to be a different make/design possibly.

[BARENETTED]

Hey Kiv,

As a little girl (many years ago) I remember watching my Father's Aunt and My Grandfather smoking the narguila. When there were others around, they passed it aroung and shared it. Years later, when they all passed away and I got some 'street smarts' - I began to wonder about what was in that thing. I remember asking My Mother what was in it and she told me it was 'charcoal'???

[Kiviuq]

Yea, you use charcoals to cook/heat the tobacco/herbal molasses in a clay bowl, the coals are heated till red hot then placed on top. As for tests as to whether one is inhaling toxins from coals it would depend on the coal you use, and I think I read somewhere that they were minor, I mean if you were really inhaling a huge amount of chemical/toxin you would expect to emit from the coal than you would probably feel it my guess is. IMO hookah is not nearly as addictive depending on the tobacco you use as cigarettes etc. nor does it feel as harmful - as my athletic ability is not harmed from hookah use where as when I used to smoke cigs I couldnt perform athletically nearly as well. When I say athletically I really mean lung wise cardio oriented exercise.

If your narguila smoking family members were into traditional smoking I think they probably smoked unwashed plain tobacco which is far worse for you than the tobacco on the market these days. But again no one can really say for sure including my self until some real testing is done on all the tobacco/coals/pipes etc.

[Myra]

mmm hookah. Smoke this once every other week with some of my friends at a little hookah bar in downtown. Good food, goo hookah, good drinks. what a great way to relax ^_^ Rose cappucino is one of my fav blends....

[DCrist721]

The toxins that are formed and deposited on your meat when fat drips on hot coals in a BBQ grill are more harmful then anything emited by actual coals. Especially in the small amount that you would be getting since coals produce very little smoke.

And the tobacco itself is already being vaporized with a hookah, so there's no smoke there.

So basically if you got some kind of heating element, like one of those electric grill starters, and attached it to the coal dish you would have a cheap e-hookah. You can get a small hookah for around $15-$20 on ebay. Here is an electric bbq starter for $15-
Amazon.com: Char-Broil 2984810 Electric Charcoal Starter Wand: Patio, Lawn & Garden
I bet you could even bend the metal so more of the actual heating element is over the tobacco. So for $30-$35 you could make your own smokeless e-hookah

[frogbmth]

Funny thing you posted this, I was reading about making an electric hookah last night

Electric Hookah - Hookah Forum