How to Pack a Bowl?

There are many ways to consume marijuana. One is to smoke it from a bowl. But if you are smoking from a bowl, you must pack it correctly. You must eliminate all stems and seeds. You must make sure your pack is not too tight.

This article will discuss how to pack a bowl so you can enjoy the best smoke possible.

Why Smoke from a Bowl? 

Smoking from a bowl has its share of benefits as follows:

• A cleaner smoke: When comparing a bowl to joints, bowls offer cleaner smoke. When you inhale a joint, you are also inhaling the rolling paper which may contain chemicals. When you smoke a bowl, you are only inhaling the weed. 
• More control over dosage: Smoking from a bowl involves holding a lighter over the bowl and inhaling as you go. When you don’t want more, move the lighter away and stop inhaling. This method gives you optimal control over how much you consume. 

Note that smoking weed can lead to respiratory issues no matter how you smoke it. If you have respiratory problems, you may prefer to take your cannabis as an edible or supplement. 

Why It’s Important to Know How to Pack a Bowl

It’s important to understand how to pack a bowl. Here are the consequences of packing a bowl incorrectly:

• You smoke stems and seeds: Part of the bowl packing process involves eliminating stems and seeds. Stems and seeds have little to no THC content so they will make your bowl less potent. They can also cause unwanted side effects like headaches and sore throats. 
• You pack the bowl too tightly: If you pack too tightly, it will clog the hole making it difficult for you to get a hit. 

How to Pack a Bowl

What You Will Need:

• Cannabis that is not too sticky
• A grinder with medium-sized holes (if the holes are too small or large, the grind will be too fine or too coarse.)
• A pipe or bong with a bowl
• A hemp wick or lighter: Either will work, but a hemp wick is cleaner and will eliminate the butane taste. 

Hand-packing vs. Grinding

At this point, you may be thinking, a grinder? Can’t I just break up weed with my hands?

Hand-packing is a time-honored method that is preferred by some as it does not run the risk of eliminating trichomes that add to the weed’s potency and may get caught in the grinder during the grinding process. 

However, grinders are faster and more efficient. And if you use a kief screen, you can reclaim the kief lost during the grinding process. 

Grinding also increases the surface area of the weed so more can fit into a bowl. It will also allow more of the flame to burn the weed, so you get a more generous hit. 

Grinders are especially recommended if you are packing a large pipe or a bowl for a vaporizer. 

Steps to Take

Here are the steps that spell out how to pack a bowl.

Grind the Weed

Take a big nugget of weed and break it into 2-3 smaller pieces. Push it into the grinder teeth. Close the grinder and give the handle several turns in each direction until it offers little to no resistance. 

Be careful not to grind the weed too finely as that may clog the bowl. If clogging occurs, you will need to dump the weed and repack the bowl. 

Load the Bowl

Place the larger pieces of weed on the bottom of the bowl. Sprinkle the more finely cut cannabis on top. Then gently push the weed into the bowl being careful not to pack it too tightly. 

If your bowl has a screen or built-in filter, it will help prevent clogs allowing you to do a tighter pack. However, you always want to make sure you don’t pack too tightly. 

Smoke Your Bowl

It’s not just about how to pack your bowl correctly. There’s a science to smoking your bowl as well. Hold your lighter or hemp wick to one side of the corner of the bowl. Hold the flame there for no more than a second or two. Let the embers do the rest. 

How to Smoke a Bong

The instructions on how to pack a bowl will also come in handy if you are smoking from a bong. But smoking a bong requires a few extra steps as follows:

• Fill your bong with fresh water by pouring it directly into the mouthpiece. The end of the down stem should be submerged about 2-3 cm. 
• Grind up your weed following the directions above. 
• Put a screen in the bowl if it doesn’t have a filter. 
• Pack the bowl loosely. You may find it easier to remove the bowl from the bong to pack it, but you can also pack it directly into the bong. 
• Take the bong in your dominant hand and hold it firmly around the base. (Note, some people will sit and hold the bong with their thighs while smoking.)
• Use your finger to cover the carb hole. If you don’t cover the hole you will be sucking air. 
• Put your mouth to the bong applying light pressure so it forms a seal. Pucker your lips as if you are kissing. Use a match, lighter, or hemp wick to light the bowl near the edge and inhale. 

Now that you know how to pack a bowl, you can enjoy your weed efficiently. What packing tips do you have to share?