A lot of doubts always arise in connection with the purchase of a hookah, and they concern basically all aspects.
The choice of models, designs and colors is overwhelming, it can even make your head spin, and that’s just the beginning!
No less important is the proper flow of smoke, richness of flavor, ease of lighting or durability.
All this boils down to a basic question – how much should we pay for a water pipe to meet our expectations?
What is the actual difference between a hookah for 400 – 500 zlotys and one for which you have to pay more than a thousand?
The term water pipe is commonly understood as a body with a vase, which, after all, are not directly responsible for the production of smoke and flavor – their task is to transport the smoke from the bowl through the water in the vase, then the hose and mouthpiece, all the way to the mouth.
It is worth choosing a model with large-diameter transport tubes and hoses with a high throughput.
This translates to effortless inhaling and creating huge clouds of pleasantly thick smoke.
So what is the biggest contributor to smoke production?
It is, of course, the crown on the king’s head as well as the king himself, namely the bowl and tobacco.
If we add a hookah bowl that’s adequate to our style of smoking to a hookah priced at several hundred zlotys, we can enjoy the quality of smoking normally provided by a water pipe for 1500 zlotys.
The question is then, what makes the pipes of such manufacturers as Alpha Hookah, Blade Hookah, Karma, Wookah and the like so popular?
And the answer to that is their designs, the perfect fit of the components and the longevity.
The price of a hookah reflects the quality of the materials used.
With regular use, a cheap water pipe will last a year at most, which pales in comparison to many years of use that a high-end product provides.
Maintenance and installation of such a hookah are much faster and less labor-intensive.
Threaded connections in cheaper models of water pipes are not so perfectly fitted and manufactured, and as a result, there can be problems with the tubes twisting into each other, and tarnish often appears on them.
Press-fit connections often develop leaks due to lack of perfect adhesion.
There is also the issue of design.
Hookah companies of the budget class do not invest in innovation and design development, hence their products usually lack much panache, however, personal taste is not a matter that is up for debate.
As for the fit of the components, well, once you manage to assemble the whole pipe and it is tight, there will be no noticeable difference when smoking compared to a more expensive hookah.
However, longevity is a feature that cannot be achieved on the cheap.
On the surface, water pipes from any shelf are no different, basically each has stainless steel metal parts, and the vast majority have glass vases.
It is important to remember that there are many grades of stainless steel and glass, so products aren’t comparable, and the more expensive it is the more durable it is.
If the steel part is scratched or cleaned with aggressive chemicals, the structure weakens, which in the long run contributes to visible corrosion in inferior steel.
It will also become deformed and abraded at threaded joints, causing hookah assembly problems and even leaks.
As for glass elements, the cost of their production is kept to a minimum, the manufacturing process is very fast, so that the accuracy of the workmanship suffers.
Often there are inclusions in the form of air bubbles, reducing the mechanical strength of the glass, as well as unsightly-looking surface irregularities.
One of the most serious problems that often afflicts users of cheaper pipes is the detachment of the thread connecting the vase to the body, sometimes along with part of the jug. This is due to the use of low-quality glass or cheap glue to attach the thread to the vase, and its improper or too loose application.
Before buying a hookah, it is worth considering how often we will use it, and if a lot, how long it would serve us.
It may be worth investing in a high quality water pipe that will please the eye with its unusual design and elegant finish.
It is very likely that the purchase of a more expensive model will eliminate the problems that discourage us from indulging in the passion of hookah smoking, taking away the pleasure of smoking, such as complicated assembly and cleaning, or the difficulty of lighting up and maintaining the right temperature.
Although at first glance hookahs look similar, it is worth looking at the higher end, learn the benefits of investing more money, and in the long run you will gain more pleasure and enjoyment from smoking.