How Do You Clean a Glass Steamroller Pipe?

Image source: Reddit

Steamrollers are one of the best dry pipes that will easily become your favorite. Aside from being simple to use, it’s a pipe that will give that punch-in-the-face kind of effect even on a small sesh. If you have a steamroller that’s been building up resin due to the love you’re giving it, it’s time to make it shiny clean.

What do I need to clean my steamroller?

For cleaning, you will need:

• 95% or stronger isopropyl alcohol
• Kosher or coarse salt
• A Ziploc bag that can fit in your steamroller
• Pipe cleaners
• Q-tips

These are the basics materials. Others use bong cleaners such as Grunge Off to take out the gunk. However, if you got these lying around and you need to clean your steamroller now, these will do.

How do you clean a steamroller pipe?

Warning: Don’t follow the torching method part because that will burn resin and cause it to stick to the glass. Not to mention the heat stress is going to weaken the glass.

Once you’ve got all the materials ready, it’s time to clean your steamroller.

1. Let your steamroller cool down to room temperature before cleaning.
2. Place your steam roller inside the Ziploc bag.
3. Pour enough alcohol to submerge your steamroller fully.
4. Add a generous amount of salt, just enough to help scrub the pipe.
5. Seal the Ziploc bag and hold the steamroller firmly with your hand.
6. Shake the steam roller for 5-15 minutes. The iso-salt solution should reach inside the steamroller. Keep shaking until you remove all the residue.
7. If there’s still some resin left, soak the steamroller for 2 hours or overnight.
8. Shake again after soaking. Remove from the bag and rinse out the cleaning solution under running water.
9. Use pipe cleaners or Q-tips to clean the bowl and the inside of the steamroller. Be careful not to bend the pipe cleaners or use too much force to prevent chipping the glass.
10. If there’s a clog on the bowl, pick the resin carefully using either a small needle or a straightened paperclip. Repeat the soaking process until you unclog the steamroller.
11. Once everything is perfectly clean, rinse the steamroller thoroughly with warm water until you remove all the alcohol.
12. Let the steam roller dry before using.

Ziploc bags will save you a world of trouble, especially if you’ve got a Grav Labs Helix Boro Glass Steamroller Pipe.

Things to consider:

Don’t use acetone when cleaning your favorite steamroller. It’s a harsh chemical and does not evaporate completely like alcohol. It stays on the glass pipe, so you’ll be inhaling a bit of acetone when you use your steamroller.

Use a Ziploc bag, especially if you have a Helix steamroller. If you have a massive steamroller pipe like the one in the video, get Ziploc Big Bags. Not only will it contain the mess, but it will help you use less alcohol than you would use if you don’t have a bag.

If your steamroller comes with removable parts like the GRAV Massive 18-inch Steamroller Pipe, put those parts in a separate Ziploc bag. This will prevent them from crashing to each other and breaking while you shake the bag.

Don’t boil your steamroller. Some are recommending that you boil your steamroller, especially if it’s clogged. It can work because the boiling water is going to soften and melt down the resin. However, your steamroller won’t be able to handle the stress. No matter how good and thick the borosilicate glass used for your steam roller is, it’s no match for repeated heating and cooling. You’re also going to ruin a good pot in the process, and your house is going to smell like resin for days.

Don’t torch stuck-on resin. No matter how thick your resin is, using a torch is a bad idea. You’ll be introducing uneven shocks of temperature to your steamroller, which can cause thermal stress. Just like what you’ll see in the video, the guy cased a crack on his glass because he torched it too much.

Cleaning a steamroller is easy. If you haven’t had one yet, or wish to have another steamroller in your smoking arsenal, don’t forget to browse through our collection. We’ve got a range of steamrollers of various shapes and sizes. Click here now and choose which one will be suitable for those hard hits that you’re looking for.

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