Pros and Cons of Percolator Bongs - Are They Worth It?
Bongs come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, but some of the smoothest ones to hit will have a component known as a percolator.
Percolators are a built-in piece of a bong providing an extra layer of filtration for a smoother feeling hit.
There are pros and cons to having a bong with a percolator, but if a smooth hit is at the top of your priority list, you may want to consider getting some glassware with a percolator or two.
Pros of Percolator Bongs
Most bong users will agree a percolator is beneficial to the overall experience of their sessions.
There are more positive aspects than negative ones when it comes to percolators and they’re a great way to step up your enjoyment of your accessories.
1. Extra Filtration
Percolators offer an extra layer of filtration to your bong. This makes for smoother, better tasting hits and the more percolators your bong has, the better it gets.
One of the core points of choosing a bong over a joint is smooth filtration. Of course, they give stronger hits than a joint, but they’re also cleaner overall to use because of the multiple filtration points in their design.
2. Smoother Hits
Everyone loves a hit that doesn’t burn or scratch the back of your throat and this becomes easier to achieve with a percolator in a bong.
The extra bubbling provided by a percolator helps cut out some of the nastiness of a hit and makes the smoke much easier on the throat.
3. A Better High
With the smoothness of a hit from a bong with a percolator, you’ll be able to take larger hits, so your high will feel more intense than it would while using another bong.
Hitting a bong with a percolator feels cleaner too, so you’ll get a less grimy feeling high when using one.
4. Fewer Toxins
The extra filtration points provided by a percolator bong strip away some of the nasty toxins you want to avoid when smoking.
Much like an ash catcher bowl piece, you’ll have another spot in your bong that collects some of the resins before the smoke hits your lungs, creating a cleaner cloud of smoke.
Cons of Percolator Bongs
While percolator bongs have a ton of positive aspects, there are some downsides to using one.
The cons to using a percolator bong shouldn’t deter anyone from getting one, but they are something to keep in mind.
1. Cost
If you’re trying to keep costs down when choosing a new bong to purchase, picking out a percolator bong likely isn’t the way to go.
They’re more intricate and typically higher quality than other bongs, which increases the cost.
You can find cheaper options with percolators, but the glass quality might be lower overall.
2. Cleaning Difficulty
Cleaning a straightforward bong without any attachments is fairly simple, but with the small holes in a percolator bong it becomes tricky.
It can be a bit difficult getting bong cleaner to shake out all of the bits of built-up resin and since percolators sit in the neck area of a bong, you’ll have to be very careful when shaking out the fluid to not make a huge mess.
3. Time and Setup
If you want a simple and quick bong setup, percolator bongs might not be the way to go.
You’ll have to change the water more often since there isn’t a ton of water going in a percolator and it’ll get dirty quickly.
If you have multiple percolators, getting the right amount of water in each one will also take some focus to move through each section and balance correctly.
4. Too Many Percolators
There absolutely can be too much of a good thing and having too many percolators designed into a bong creates this scenario.
Some larger percolator bongs can have three or four percolators which aesthetically looks very interesting, but functionally it is difficult to use.
While inhaling, sometimes you’ll notice the water levels in each percolator aren’t the same and are harder to pull from.
5 Main Types of Percolator Bongs
If you’ve decided to get a percolator bong, you’ll want to know all of the different types of percolators so you can pick the best one for your needs.
There are a handful of different types and styles, so you can get hyper-specific with the look and feel you want.
1. Honeycomb Perc
Just like the name implies, honeycomb percs are shaped like honeycomb with small holes laid within a disk to create bubbling.
Honeycomb percolators are great for stacking multiple percs because they’re usually smaller and easy to design with two or more on top of each other. They also create a great cooling system for smooth hits.
2. Tree Perc
Tree percolators look similar to a tree with branches hanging down. Vertical tube shapes are designed with slits in the bottom to create bubbling action from multiple spots similar to a diffused downstem.
3. Inline Perc
Inline percolators wrap around the entire width of the neck of the bong and have slits horizontally laid along the edges. They’re typically used in thicker, wider bongs.
One benefit of these is their width which ensures you don’t lose airflow as some other percolators can cause. They’re also usually easier to clean and setup too.
4. Matrix Perc
Matrix percs have a flashy look, but they’re also great for creating multiple directions for smoke to filter through. They have both horizontal and vertical slits built in, so smoke can travel in all directions.
They’re typically located right at the base, which helps filter the smoke to shoot straight through the chamber smoothly.
5. Showerhead Perc
Showerhead percolators are some of the most commonly seen percs and are a great choice.
They’re designed to create a ton of small filtration points just like a showerhead does by having many spots for water to come out.
These percolators are a great option for maximizing the filtration and bubbling you’ll get out of your bong.
Are Percolator Bongs Better?
Percolator bongs aren’t necessarily always better or worse than a bong without one. Like most things in life, it does come down to preferences.
If your goal is to have the smoothest, cleanest tasting hits, then percolator bongs are absolutely a better option than almost any other bong available.
On the flip side, if simplicity is what you desire, then picking out a percolator bong will create a giant headache for you and you won’t want to use it.
They are a great tool, but without the effort to use them correctly and take care of them, a percolator bong becomes less desirable.
FAQ
Are more percs better?
Yes and no. More percolators create more filtration points which are great, but they also make a bong harder to clean and setup correctly.
Does a percolator get you higher?
A percolator won’t necessarily get you higher, but it will make it easier to take larger hits which will get you higher.