How to Clean Your Hookah Base? Hookah Smoke Shop

How to Clean Your Hookah Base?

Welcome back to another instalment of our "Hookah How To" series, where we provide essential tips for maximizing your hookah experience. Today, we'll delve into the crucial aspect of maintaining and cleaning your hookah base to ensure optimal sessions and longevity for your equipment.

Why Clean Your Hookah Base?

Some might wonder why bother cleaning the hookah base at all. Despite using only water in the base ideally, regular usage combined with water can lead to unpleasant odours, flavors, and even germs. Signs indicating the need for cleaning include foul smells, discolored water, a thin film inside the base, water stains, and, worst-case scenario, mould. Any of these signs warrant immediate attention to maintain hygiene and preserve your hookah's performance.

Cleaning Methods:

In our experience, there are two primary cleaning methods: routine cleaning and deep cleaning. The choice between them depends on the level of grime present in the hookah base.

Routine Cleaning:

For routine cleaning, begin by emptying the base of any remaining water after each session. Rinse the base thoroughly with warm water, ensuring all residue is removed. Use a long-handled brush to scrub the interior gently, focusing on areas with buildup. Once clean, allow the base to air dry completely before reassembly.

Deep Cleaning:

For more stubborn buildup or odors, a deep cleaning is necessary. Start by filling the base with a mixture of warm water and mild dish soap. Let it sit for several hours to loosen any grime. After soaking, use the long-handled brush to scrub the interior thoroughly. For tough stains or residue, add a tablespoon of baking soda to the mixture before scrubbing. Rinse the base thoroughly with warm water to remove all soap residue. Finally, allow the base to air dry completely before use.

Important Note:

Regardless of the cleaning method used, avoid subjecting the glass to extreme temperature changes to prevent cracking or breakage. Always handle glassware with care and avoid sudden temperature shocks.

By following these simple cleaning methods, you can ensure a clean, hygienic hookah base for optimal smoking sessions every time. Happy smoking!

 

Routine Cleaning

Routine cleaning involves simple steps that don't require any harsh cleaning agents. It's essentially about using a bit of soap, a gentle brush, and a quick rinse to ensure any immediate residue or particles are washed away. This type of cleaning is essential after every hookah session to prevent the buildup of more stubborn dirt or mold, which can pose health risks and affect the quality of your smoke.

For routine cleaning, you'll only need a few basic supplies:

• A hookah base cleaning brush
• Access to running water, like a kitchen sink or bathtub
• Liquid dish soap or lemon juice

While it's recommended to clean your hookah after every use, some may find it acceptable to clean it after every 2 or 3 sessions, depending on personal preferences. However, it's crucial not to wait any longer than that, and never leave water in the base overnight, as it can lead to more significant cleanliness issues.

 

Routine Cleaning Base Cleaning Guide

Here's a step-by-step guide for routine cleaning of your hookah base:

1. Empty out the used base water and give it a preliminary rinse with warm water.
2. Add a couple of drops of mild liquid dish soap (any brand will work) or some lemon juice into the base.
3. Fill the base about halfway up with warm water and cover the top opening with your hand. Hold the base firmly and give it a light shake to ensure the soap or lemon juice covers every part of the inside.
4. Insert a base cleaning brush into the glass base and spin it a few times in each direction to lightly scrub the interior.
5. Pour out the water and thoroughly rinse the base, ensuring all soap or lemon juice is removed. Even a small amount left behind can affect the flavor of your next session.
6. The entire routine cleaning process shouldn’t take more than 4-5 minutes and will help extend the life of your hookah base. It will also reduce the frequency of deep cleaning sessions.

By following these simple steps, you can keep your hookah base clean and ready for enjoyable smoking sessions.

All in all, this routine cleaning process shouldn’t take more than 4-5 minutes and will help prolong the life of your hookah base. It will also help make it so you don’t have to “deep clean” your hookah base as often.

Deep Cleaning

Now, let's delve into the process of deep cleaning your hookah base. Unlike routine cleaning, deep cleaning is a more intensive procedure that involves the use of stronger solutions such as alcohol-based solvents or specialized cleaning products.

Deep cleaning is necessary when more severe forms of dirt or filth are present in your base, such as mold growth, the appearance of a film along the interior, or hard water stains.

It's important to note the distinction between hard water stains and mold or film buildup. Hard water stains are caused by mineral deposits in the water supply and may require deeper cleaning to remove. While they are not harmful and won't affect the smoking experience, they do necessitate specific cleaning methods.

The frequency of deep cleaning depends on various factors. As a general recommendation, it's advisable to perform a deep cleaning of your hookah base once a month, regardless of whether any warning signs are present. This regular maintenance helps keep your base in optimal condition. However, if you notice any severe warning signs like mold or film buildup, immediate deep cleaning is necessary.

There are numerous products available for deep cleaning your hookah base, but we'll focus on the ones we personally use and recommend.

 

Bling Cleaning Solution

Bling cleaning solution is a product that many of us here at Hookah-Shisha use regularly and love. It is a non-toxic, alcohol-based cleaning solution that contains cleaning “crystals.” This product acts as a disinfectant, deodorizer, and “scrubbing” solution all in one and leaves your hookah base sparkling clean.

The pineapple scented alcohol solution will disinfect your base, getting rid of any unwanted bacteria while also getting rid of any funky smells that may be leftover after numerous sessions. The “crystals” act as an abrasive material that “scrubs” your base clean of any residue or grime that has formed inside the base.

 

How to Use Bling Hookah Cleaning Solution

1. If you have not already done so, empty out any used water that may be in your base.
   
   
2. Take your bottle of Bling and shake it to make sure the alcohol solution and cleaning crystals are evenly dispersed throughout the solution.
   
   
3. Squeeze an equal amount of cleaning solution and crystals into your base. The amount needed will ultimately depend on how dirty the base is, so just use your best judgment and adjust as necessary. I personally use about ¼ to a ⅓ of a bottle.
   
   
4. Cover the opening on the top of the base with your hand. With your other hand, get a good grip on the neck of the base, or place it on the bottom of the base, whichever way you feel more comfortable.
   
   
5. Take care to have a good hold on the base as you wouldn’t want to accidentally drop it, shake the base vigorously. This will allow the cleaning solution and crystals to be dispersed evenly and clean every nook and cranny of the base.
   
   
6. Empty out the cleaning solution and rinse your base thoroughly with warm water. Make sure to fully rinse out all of the cleaning solution to prevent any adverse effects on flavor when you go to smoke the hookah.
   
   
7. After rinsing your base out, inspect it thoroughly to make sure any mold, dirt, or residue has been completely cleaned away. Typically speaking, one pass with the Bling! solution is all you would need, however, if you notice any remaining dirt, mold, or residue, repeat these steps as necessary.

OxiClean

OxiClean is a product that originally gained popularity as a laundry cleaner, however, over the years the hookah community found it to be an excellent way to really deep clean your hookah base. This method does take a little while longer to complete, however, it is extremely effective and is more “hands-off” than some of the other cleaning methods.

Before we get into “how” to use OxiClean to clean your hookah base, we need to talk about which specific OxiClean you need to buy. There are a variety of different OxiClean products on the market, all in different forms that have different purposes and can contain various perfumes, dyes, or chemicals.

There is one, and only one, type of OxiClean that you should be using with your hookah and that is OxiClean Versatile “Free.” This version of OxiClean comes in powder form and is free of chlorine, free of dyes, and free of perfumes.

It is basically just the cleaning solution without any of the “smell good” chemicals that are perfectly fine in laundry, but not so good for your hookah. You can find this product in a moderately sized tub that contains a green lid. I repeat: this is the only form of OxiClean you should use on your hookah base.

How to Clean a Hookah Base with OxiClean

1. Empty out any used base water and give your base a preliminary rinse with warm water.
   
   
2. Open up your OxiClean and you should see a plastic “scoop” inside the tub. Use anywhere between ¼ of the scoop to ½ of a scoop of OxiClean powder in your empty base. The amount you use will really depend on just how dirty your base is.
   
   
3. Now that the OxiClean powder is in the base, fill your base about ¾ full with warm water.
   
   
4. Cover the opening of the base with one hand, grasp the base with your other hand and shake it lightly once or twice. This will allow the OxiClean cleaning powder to fully and evenly mix with the water. If you overfill your base with water, it is possible the liquid may “bubble over '' and make a small mess. It won’t hurt anything but can be annoying to have to clean up.
   
   
5. Once the solution is mixed, let your base sit for 30 minutes to an hour. This allows the OxiClean solution to sit and fully “eat away” at all of the germs, dirt, and grime that may be in your base. You will see that the liquid in your base is quickly forming small bubbles. This means that the solution is WORKING and is totally normal.
   
   
6. After the time has elapsed and the solution has had time to work, empty your base into your sink or bathtub.
   
   
7. Insert a base cleaning brush into the base and spin the brush several times in each direction. This will remove any leftover residue that the OxiClean didn’t get or that may be clinging on.
   
   
8. Rinse thoroughly with warm water making sure that ALL of the cleaning solution is rinsed out of the base. You may have to rinse the base several times before all of the cleaning solution is gone.