Noob questions

[Matty_Vegas]

1st of all big thanks to a fine BOTL from Madusa, Ny for the flawless trade.
and thanks as well to anothe BOTL in Florida for all your help.

How do I disinfect the pipes??? They have been smoked previously....

what the heck is a pipe sweetner and what do I do with it???

where is there a good general resource for maintenance..cleaning and general tips for pipe smoking???

 

[tkoepp]

Matty, I don't know too many in here that smoke a pipe, (I'm sure there are, but I don't know of) But I'm sure if you send Loren a PM he can answer many of your questions

 

[psyktek]

1st of all big thanks to a fine BOTL from Madusa, Ny for the flawless trade.
and thanks as well to anothe BOTL in Florida for all your help.

How do I disinfect the pipes??? They have been smoked previously....

what the heck is a pipe sweetner and what do I do with it???

where is there a good general resource for maintenance..cleaning and general tips for pipe smoking???

1. Everclear or 151 proof rum. Soak the first inch or so of a bristle pipe cleaner and run it thru the stem until it comes out nearly unchanged in color.

2. Same for the shank (the part of the bowl that the stem goes in to). Double the cleaner and repeat as above. However, don't expect to get it to come out clean at some point; if the pipe(s) are old, there will always be some brown stain on the cleaner. You may also be able to get a small bristle brush at your local pipe shop (if you have one available) and do the same, rinsing the brush under running water after each scrubbing.

3. If the bowl smells strongly of prior tobacco, you can fill the bowl with kosher, not table, salt an dampen it with the Everclear/rum and leave overnight. You just want the salt damp, not soaking wet. That should clear up any "ghosts". If the cake in the bowl is thicher than a dime, you will likely want to ream it out. There are tools for this. Don't use a sharp knife to try to do this. If you dont' have access to a shop, you can take some coarse/medium sandpaper and use that to reduce the cake.

Lastly, www.aspipes.org

Welcome to the world of piping!! :thumbs: