What is a Percolator Bong

Percolator Bong Intro

Bongs are a staple of smoker culture and have always rated high because of their cool, strong hits. Coming in all sorts of different shapes, sizes, colors, and different gadgets, attachments, and setups to provide a personalized, smooth hit every time, bongs have been featured as the ‘go-to’ party piece in pop culture for decades. For those ambitious, some might even say ‘expert’, smokers, there is a particular variety of bong that is equally dangerous and exciting to hit.

Introducing, the Percolator Bong! These powerful beauties are able to consistently deliver some of the strongest AND smoothest hits of any way to smoke. These are bongs with one or more of a variety of percolators (percs). For those very reasons, you will definitely catch the stoniest of the stoners packing some percolator-level heat. With so much love, there are zillions of different percolator bongs and different pros and cons to each style as well as different materials such as glass, plastic, or silicone. Before taking your wallet out and scouring the internet for the best deals around, take the time to research a little further below to find what kind of percolator bong best suits you!

Bong Percolator Types

Percolator bongs are a diverse bunch. You have to know what you’re looking for and do a little research to find one that matches both your desired performance as well as cater to your own personal tastes. Whether you choose a glass, silicone, or plastic bong you still need to read up about the different types of percolators that your new percolator bong can utilize. There are a ton of different types of percolators available on the market (honeycomb, tree, inline, matric, turbine, fritted disc, showerhead, spiral, etc) and it is recommended that you research what the pros of each type are. We will briefly touch on some of the different percolator types here.

To start, a honeycomb percolator looks just like it says – it resembles a honeycomb. Basically, you get an efficient smoking process with cooler hits. Being a popular perc option, we will go into further detail on honeycombs later. Another type are the tree percolators. These, too, resemble their name. The rods that help diffuse the smoke contain slits and resemble tree limbs. These percs are excellent diffusers. Another type of perc are the inline percolators. Inline percs are simply horizontal tubes fitted with slits to help diffuse the smoke. Simple and effective, inline percs are often used with other types for optimal smokage. Matrix percolators are typically located in the center of your percolator bongs and are left with plenty of space surrounding them. In other words, they’re really pretty. Turbine percolators, on the other hand, are more about their function even if they’re still pretty to look at. Fritted disc percs are considered to be the most powerful of all percolators. You have a ton of holes and more opportunities to produce smoke than a honeycomb but beware – they’re a nightmare to clean as a result. Showerhead percs use tubes to connect with the rest of the main chamber and bong (resembling a showerhead). These pieces are often used with another percolator and slits to produce a good smoking experience. Last on our list, we have the spiral perc. These percs, sometimes called coil percs, take the smoke all the way through and down the spiral that gives you a long, cool smoke. They’re simple, elegant, and fun to use.

Each of these types of percolators has their advantages and it is all based on what your personal preferences are. At the end of the day, you should be considering what your favorite aspects of smoking from a bong are, what are your least favorite, and pick the percolator bong that will allow you to control the negatives, promote the positives, and bring you the best smoke of your life.

Double Percolator Bong

Double percolator bongs are going to give you an ultra-smooth, intense smoking sensation that will keep you entertained for as long as you need. By doubling the percolator capacity, you are essentially doubling the cooling and smoothing effect of the perc. This is important if you find yourself enjoying the intensity of smoking a bong but you don’t like the harsh, powerful nature of the hits. While adding another percolator is going to back-up the smoking process (it will slow down, however, not enough to prevent a good hit) you are going to love just how clean each hit will be.

Basically, you’re doubling down on the percolation that you know and love. Double percolator bongs are going to be a little more costly (especially depending on the types of percs used and how intricate they are) but will deliver an experience unlike any other.

Honeycomb Percolator Bong

Honeycomb percolator bongs are pretty popular types of perc bongs. This is because the honeycomb is an efficient design when you want to diffuse smoke, and when you’re watching someone smoke a honeycomb bong the smoke passes beautifully through the chambers and it is truly mesmerizing. As mentioned before, these kinds of bongs are excellent smoke diffusers and are extremely efficient – meaning you won’t impede the smoking process as much for the same, or more, diffusing power. Honeycombs can sometimes run a little more than other, simpler types of percolators but they are almost all certainly worth the money. The wonderful, cool smoking process of a percolator bong will make you happy you decided to make this your purchase.

Best Percolator Bongs

The best percolator bong, at the end of the day, is a matter of opinion and the one you can actually smoke out of! It is important to do your research and make sure you have a good grasp on what the different perc setups will offer you. That being said, there is a percolator bong for everyone! Whether you prefer to have a long, drawn out hit (for the more patient in us) than you may be in the neighborhood for a spiral or double perc bong. That way, you can ensure your hits are not rushed and you’re enjoying every minute of it. Or, maybe you prefer to have the coolest hits (temperature wise). That way you might prefer a fritted disc or a honeycomb perc because than you would have more holes to diffuse and cool the smoke through. Maybe you simply want something elegant looking and fun to gaze at? Try you hand at a tree or matrix perc bong. Biggest concern performance? You might be needing a turbine perc to satisfy your performance craving. All in all, percolators are not going to be a one-size-fits-all type of addition to your smoking experience. While their duties are (generally) similar, they all serve a specific function or appeal to a particular taste.

Bong vs Percolator Bong

This is all pretty straight forward – either you’re smoking a bong with or without a percolator. As we have spent a good deal of time dissecting the different types of percolators and their benefits, you know that a perc bong is going to focus on providing a smoother, cooler hit than a regular bong. That doesn’t inherently make them better, though. Some people enjoy the rougher, more natural hits to a regular bong or don’t like their hits to go through additional processing. Some people want the effect of the bong without the ‘kick’. Neither choice is right or wrong, just a matter of preference.

Downstem vs Percolator

Your downstem and your percolator are definitely not the same. A downstem is a component of any normal bong. Downstems sit inside the main water chamber and allow for the exchange of air initially into the bong (originally, this was the only thing you found on a bong). Percolators, as discussed above, diffuse the smoke and attempt to cool the hit. You can have a bong without a percolator but you cannot have a water pipe without a downstem.

Dab Rig vs Percolator Bong

A dab rig compared to a percolator bong is a different beast, although you can, technically, use a percolator bong as a dab rig. Dab rigs are predominantly meant for the consumption of ‘dabs’ and ‘oil’ while a percolator bong is more commonly associated with dry herb. While, again, you can cross their functions you would have distinct advantages and disadvantages to both. Most of this is based on your preference for a refined herb product or a more natural one.

Percolator Bong vs Vape Pen

Vape pens and percolator bongs, like dab rigs and perc bongs, are entirely different beasts as well. Particularly, you are still burning the herb, or dab, in a percolator bong whereas a vape pens is undergoing the process of vaporizing herb content to be consumed. There are preferences to both. Some individuals enjoy the more basic, smoking act of using a perc bong over a vape pen. Some individuals, for personal preferences or health reasons, choose to avoid smoking any product. Moreover, vape pens are often more compact than a perc bong and the mobility and ease of use is another preferential factor.

How to Clean a Percolator Bong

Cleaning a percolator bong is around the same as cleaning any other ordinary bong. Most importantly, decide for yourself what sorts of cleaners or solutions you want to use. It is recommended you find something non-toxic and more effective than soap and water to make sure you are truly cleaning up every bit of mess. Because of the percolators, this process does become a little trickier. To ensure that you are properly reaching and cleaning the percs, make sure that you fill the bottom of the bong with solution and begin to let it take effect. Then, shake it a few times, cover the top, and allow the solution to slip into and through the percolator so that the inside slits and holes are truly being cleaned. Allow the solution to pass all the way through and repeat the process a few times to ensure all resin and residuals are properly cleaned.

As with anything in life, don’t wait until the last minute! The more intricate your percolators the more difficult and time-consuming the entire cleaning process will be. Make sure you clean your percolator bong regularly (as you should with all of your pieces). If you are particularly using glass, do not risk washing anything in the dishwasher. This can completely destroy your bong.

Percolator Bongs for Sale

Have a look at our percolator bongs for sale. The most important part is that you know what you are looking for and how to get what you want from your smoking experience. The best quality bong in the world will still disappoint if you don’t purchase the one that will do what you want it to do. That being said, you can find percolator bongs at your local smoke shops as well as on nyvapeshop.com where shipping within the US is always free!