There are tons of methods out there for cleaning your water pipe or glass piece. Unfortunately, one of the most common is one of the most harmful to not only your piece, but to you as well. Rubbing alcohol and salt are two ingredients you should stay away from because they are toxic, harsh and abrasive.
Luckily, we’ve got an easy way for you to clean your water pipe in just one minute—no shaking required! You can reuse this formula over and over again, saving you more than just time and effort.
First, let’s take a closer look at why we should avoid alcohol and salt for cleaning your glass pieces.
Cleaning with alcohol leaves toxic residue behind.
Rubbing alcohol, or Isopropyl alcohol, is extremely toxic to the environment. It is made up entirely of VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds), which emit toxic fumes into the environment. It’s even illegal to pour it down the sink in some states as it’s considered hazardous waste.
Besides that though, breathing in these fumes can be extremely harmful to your lungs as well. Alcohol is simply too harsh to be used on something you’ll put a flame to and inhale directly into your lungs.
Cleaning with salts is abrasive on your water pipe.
Salt has been used in conjunction with a whole mess of household chemicals to clean pipes for years. The idea is that when shaken around inside the pipe, the salt will knock built-up resin off the sides. Very nice idea in theory, but it’s not really that easy. It comes down to a lot of shaking for very minimal cleaning.
Not only is it ineffective at cleaning your water pipe, but it can actually damage it. Abrasive salt has a sandpaper-like effect. Over time, it can degrade your water pipe and create scratches and grooves. Unwanted resin can seep into the scratched grooves, making your precious glass incredibly hard to clean the next round. Over time, bacteria and even mold can build in these tiny grooves. Yuck! Opt for a liquid cleaner instead that will be gentle with your piece, no matter the material.
So, how am I supposed to clean my glass pieces, you may be asking? For a deep clean that’s easy and requires zero shaking, we love the Resolution Gel water pipe cleaner. Resolution Gel has only 3% VOC, compared to Isopropyl Alcohol's 100% VOC (the toxic fumes we don’t like). This means it’s friendly to the environment and your health.
The best part about this cleaner is that it’s reusable—after letting it soak in your pipe, empty it right back into the container to use it next time. Not only will you save effort, you’ll save some pennies, too.
How to Use Resolution Gel
You will need:
- Resolution Gel Res Caps (recommended to cover openings in water pipe for easy shaking)
- Your dirty water pipe
- Paper towel to dry
Before you start, make sure to empty out and disassemble your water pipe by removing the bowl piece and downstem. If you find mold in water pipe it is important to clean your water pipe right away. Also keep in mind that you cannot clean a plastic water pipe with Resolution gel, so stick to glass!
1. Shake Resolution Gel to activate.
Shake your Resolution Gel bag for about 5 seconds to activate the all-natural clay based formula. Open the top of the pouch and get ready for some good cleaning.
2. Add gel to your dirty water pipe.![An icon of a bong water pipe is shown with hashes around the top to show it's shaking. The slashes inside the bong are light green, and there is a number 2 in the same light green to the right.]()
Pour between 2-4 ounces of Resolution Gel water pipe cleaning kit inside your dirty water pipe. You only need to use enough gel to coat any spots that are visibly covered by resin. Let the gel sit in the water pipe for about 20-30 seconds while you shake and swirl. Make sure the gel hits every part inside your dirty piece.
Place the downstem and bowl piece into the pouch directly and let sit for 30 seconds as well. You can swirl the pouch but not much is needed.
Pro Water Pipe Cleaner Tip:We recommend you use the res caps to cover both ends of the water pipe so you can shake without getting any solution or dirty water pipe grime on your fingers.
3. Rinse thoroughly with warm water.
Remove the downstem and bowl attachment from the pouch. Then, pour the solution from your water pipe back into the pouch. Rinse your water pipe, downstem, and bowl piece off in running warm water.
And there you have it! A perfectly clean water pipe with no scratches from abrasive salts, and no harmful toxins. Watch this video to see the Resolutioncolo Bong & Pipe cleaner in action!
