Regardless of if you’re just hopping on the cannabis train or if you’re already a pro, there are a bunch of different and fun ways to consume cannabis. Whereas CBD and THC both offer the smoker different sensations (THC is more of a “stoned” feeling and CBD is more of a relaxant) and can be smoked in a variety of ways.
While joints are the traditional form of smoking weed (and probably the most common), there are plenty of other ways to smoke cannabis, some of which are more potent than others, resulting in a stronger and longer-lasting high. We’re going to stay away from edibles here and focus strictly on different ways to smoke marijuana. Consuming cannabis edibles are a great alternative however, especially for people looking to reap some health benefits without the smoke.
Here are some alternative ways to smoking joints that you might want to consider.
Vaporizer
A vaporizer (or a vape pen/vape) is regarded as one of the healthiest ways to ingest marijuana. Vaporizers result in smokers inhaling pure vapor of the marijuana and none of the smoke or debris that comes from the plant.
Originally, vape pens were introduced as an alternative to cigarettes and were intended to help tobacco smokers quit smoking. It didn’t take long for the cannabis culture to take advantage of vapes science and apply it to marijuana. Vaporizing reduces the temperature at which cannabinoids (the chemical compounds of marijuana, both THC and CBD) change from solid to gas.
Because vaporizers heat up the cannabis at a lower temperature, it preserves many of the ingredients inside the compound which would otherwise get burned off. Vaping keeps all the good stuff of the magical plant and essentially gets you high only from the smoke. You can relate the high to the feeling of being in a hot box and not smoking.
Consider that a regular butane lighter burns joints at almost 3,500ºF and cannabinoids only need to be heated at 284ºF to activate as a gas. So, vaporizers give you a healthier high (less heat on your lungs) without burning the valuable THC and CBD. Zamnesia wrote an excellent guide on vaping temperatures, so if you want to know more check it out.
Bong
Bongs are good ways to get you really stoned, or to ingest a lot of CBD, really fast. Bongs are typically made out of glass, ceramic, plastic, metal, and bamboo. The science behind bongs is that the smoke makes contact with water and then travels to your lungs. The cannabis chemicals take in moisture which results in a much higher high or a bigger hit. This is helpful when smoking stronger forms of cannabis, like or wax.
Careful, you might get coughy. Very coughy. And also, try not to ingest any of the bong water.
Pipe
Pipes come in a variety of styles and forms and can really do the trick to get your body a lot of cannabis in not a lot of time. Pipes come in the form of bowls and wooden pipes. Pipes are like mini versions of bongs without water. You simply fill the end with cannabis and light it resulting in the smoke to travel down a hollow tube (or pipe) and you can easily inhale it into your lungs. If you don’t have a pipe on hand, you can use an apple in a pinch by drilling a decent-sized hole into the apple and another one drilled into the top.
Pipes are smart because they are easy to carry around and very easy to use. Just ensure that your cannabis is finely grounded up before use. Some pipes have a hole on the side, known as a “choke.” If that’s the case, be sure to put your hand over it while lighting and then release it right before inhaling for an added kick.
Dabbing
Dabbing is arguably the most potent form of smoking. Dabbing uses the solidified hash oil and it’s smoked out of a pipe. The oil looks like hardened wax and instead of using a lighter, to dab you’re expected to use a torch lighter. Because you heat the oil so hot, dabbing is essentially flash heated cannabis and it goes right to your head.
Bubblers
Bubblers are essentially a mix of a pipe and a bong, maybe even the best of the two worlds. They’re tiny enough to transport and fit in your pocket, and strong enough to get you good and stoned like a bong. Bubblers are traditionally made from glass and have a rounded chamber at the bottom to generate smoke from water.
Water bottle
Plastic water bottles can be recycled into a pretty cool smoking tool. Poke a hole into one side of the bottle, place some aluminum foil on the moute piece (shaped like a bowl), poke a few holes into the aluminum foil, and you’ve got yourself a fully functioning makeshift smoking apparatus.
Soda can
Soda cans are great DIY options for smokers. Simply bend the can in half and gently poke some holes into the newly-made crease and one big one into the side of the can. Put your weed in the crease, light it on fire, and inhale through the can’s mouthpiece.
Your high might be boosted by residual sugar and you can get a bit of a taste of some of the can’s former components. Pepsi-infused weed, ayone?
Corn husks
Corn husks are a pretty cool and ingenious way to smoke. You might get a small applause afterwards for ingenuity. Since corn husks are all-natural, this is often considered the healthiest form of smoking cannabis. Once dried, corn husks are very fibrous meaning they can be tightly rolled into a joint while holding on to all the contents, no problem. You’d roll the husk the same way you would with regular papers and the all-natural feel of the husk will give you a slightly altered buzz.
You’re already smoking something right from the ground, you might as well get as Earthly as possible. If you’re going to go big, go real big.
So there you have it folks, easy to follow alternatives to smoking joints. You should understand that each different form of smoking can give off a different high so be weary. Bongs for example, hit a lot harder than hauling a joint and you can’t really gauge how much cannabis you want to intake. Joints are pretty easy to decide how much you want to inhale but when it comes to bongs and pipes, it’s a bit harder to control how much of a hit you’re taking.
You should also be wary about smoking out of soda cans (or straight up aluminum) as you will be decreasing some of cannabis’ all-natural effect by smoking in tiny chemical metal bits.