Warm water, higher % of molecules in gas phase...

Longbones

Well-Known Member
I've spent so much time looking through forums for people's personal experiences that I almost forgot to apply some basic chemistry to my search for better diffusion.

For those without a Chem background:

Water exists in equilibrium; H2O(l) --> H2O(g), with a very small Keq value (small % of water is in the gas phase).

However, the 'saturation fraction' (wikipedia's terminology) of water in air is an exponential curve which increases with temperature. I.e. there is more water in the gas phase for a given sample of water in a closed space at higher temperatures.

So, it seems to me that for those who have problems with dry vapor (me, me, a thousand times me) it would be better to put hot/warm water in a bubbler than cold. That way there would be more gaseous water in the chamber, which you would inhale, and would moisten the vapor.

I've only done this once, but I think once I go back to vaping (I'm on a break now) I'll try to stick to warm water and see how it treats me.

Now, this is kind of counterintuitive (the reason bongs are so popular among tokers is that they COOL the smoke), but seems reasonable.

Anyone else done this? Share your experiences, please :)
 
Longbones,

stickstones

Vapor concierge
lwien started a thread a while ago about using hot water for filtration. He loved it and got some good feedback on it. Surprised this hasn't become more popular, with me as well.
 

Longbones

Well-Known Member
Awesome, should have known one of you clever chaps had thought of this already. Do you still do this, lwien?

I think this combined with really good diffusion may be the answer to my irritation problems (as well as more moderation and self control than I currently exhibit...hey, no one's perfect ;) ).

I suppose there's not much point for this thread anymore, though...
 
Longbones,

lwien

Well-Known Member
^^ Guess we shouldn't breath when we're taking a very warm shower or when we're in a wet sauna (steam bath).

The only time that I can see this being a problem is if you leave the same water in your bong/bubbler for a week.
 
lwien,
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t-dub

Vapor Sloth
A drop or 2 of colloidal silver in the water should take care of the problem :) or even a small piece of silver in the bottom of the diffuser I would think . . .
 
t-dub,

elevation

Well-Known Member
This thread really saved me. I love my Magic Flight Launch Box but always had throat irritation using this vaporizer..even using the WPA. But the hot water smoothens out the vapor for me and makes my issues disappear.

I have now found my perfect method for vaping and probably will never go back.
 

WatTyler

Revolting Peasant
Anyone want to explain to me the principles of vapor capacity of air, and whether the capacity for water vapor or cannabis vapor are mutually exclusive?

I'm just wondering if thick vapor (as we understand 'vapor' on FC) can hold less water vapor than normal air? And further more, if the vaporstream was saturated it in fact actually looses 'vapor' (both water and cannabis) as it is cooled on it's journey away from the vape.

Of course it might be that the air vapor capacity for water vapor is in addition to it's capacity for MJ vapor, or that the vapor capacity for air far exceeds that added by the MJ vapor and still has plenty of room for water vapor.

Or maybe, as the MJ vapor condenses sooner it is replaced by water vapor- they will have different dew points.

Anyone have the facts? It's not my field and it's going to be tricky to research such a question I think- any discussion of vapor capacity of air I can find only refers to water vapor capacity. Anecdotally, due to this warm water experience, it does seem that there's extra room in the vapor stream for water vapor. So could ultra thick MJ vapor negate this?
 
WatTyler,
I use hot water in the bottom of my bong and still put a few ice cubes in the top of the tube. It seems to deliver nice cool moist vapor that is pretty easy on the lungs. Definitely on board with this technique.
 
vaperussia,

Wisdom_Karp

Member
I'm just wondering though, sorry if this is a noob question, but can you lose any of the good parts of the vapour in the water?
 
Wisdom_Karp,

weedemon

enthusiast
I'm just wondering though, sorry if this is a noob question, but can you lose any of the good parts of the vapour in the water?


yes by adding water into the mix you absolutely do lose a fractional amount of the actives to the water. this is how it smooths off the hits. i think the trade off is definitely worth it!
 
weedemon,

Wisdom_Karp

Member
yes by adding water into the mix you absolutely do lose a fractional amount of the actives to the water. this is how it smooths off the hits. i think the trade off is definitely worth it!
Fair enough. I mean, until very recently, I was smoking through a bong, so it can't be worse than that. Time to McGuiver myself a hot water extension to my vape :D.
 
Wisdom_Karp,

weedemon

enthusiast
oh, sorry i was referring to any water filtration at all. not just warm filtration :)
 
weedemon,

chipe

Well-Known Member
The only good part about having warm water would be some sort of therapeutic effect if you had congestion in your respiratory system (like a really shitty version of this). Don't put boiling water in your bongs, it weakens the glass!

Trying to get a smoother hit? As vapor is pulled through water, the molecules bash into each other. The vapor transfers its heat energy to the water molecules through heat convection. Heat convection, and heat transfer in general, are subject to the magical forces of the universe that we call "equilibrium" and "Newton's Law of Cooling," which states "The rate of heat loss of a body is proportional to the temperature difference between the body and its surroundings."If you purposefully make your water warm, your vapor will cool down significantly less. Is the extra H2O in the vapor really worth that?

Also, raising the temperature of the water might make it a better solvent for everything that's in your vapor, meaning you aren't getting as high and you have a decreased overall therapeutic effect due to the water-soluble terpenes.

There could be some sort of benefit that I'm overlooking, though. I guess I'm just not a water person. I'm sure there's been debates on water vs. no water here....
 
chipe,

Titamius

Developing Connoisseur & Vaporist
I've never tried this, but will soon. On another note I believe this is a valid question.
Is it possible for the water to be hot enough to destroy any actives that are in the vapor, or is that not possible since the actives are extracted from the bud without combustion?
 
Titamius,

Puffers

Micro-Climate Mastermind
The only good part about having warm water would be some sort of therapeutic effect if you had congestion in your respiratory system (like a really shitty version of this). Don't put boiling water in your bongs, it weakens the glass!

Trying to get a smoother hit? As vapor is pulled through water, the molecules bash into each other. The vapor transfers its heat energy to the water molecules through heat convection. Heat convection, and heat transfer in general, are subject to the magical forces of the universe that we call "equilibrium" and "Newton's Law of Cooling," which states "The rate of heat loss of a body is proportional to the temperature difference between the body and its surroundings."If you purposefully make your water warm, your vapor will cool down significantly less. Is the extra H2O in the vapor really worth that?

Also, raising the temperature of the water might make it a better solvent for everything that's in your vapor, meaning you aren't getting as high and you have a decreased overall therapeutic effect due to the water-soluble terpenes.

There could be some sort of benefit that I'm overlooking, though. I guess I'm just not a water person. I'm sure there's been debates on water vs. no water here....

If the terpenes are water soluble they're gonna be lost regardless if the water is warm or cold
 
Puffers,

lwien

Well-Known Member
DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT use boiling hot water. It WILL hurt your lungs. Just use hot water from the tap.
 
lwien,

djonkoman

Well-Known Member
I've never tried this, but will soon. On another note I believe this is a valid question.
Is it possible for the water to be hot enough to destroy any actives that are in the vapor, or is that not possible since the actives are extracted from the bud without combustion?
the boiling point of water is 100 degrees, so it will never get hotter as that. if you put in hot tapwater it's even less. so that's well below the vaping point(and the combustion/destruction temps are higher as vaping temp)

I tried warm water last week since I was having a sore throat. it is indeed smoother, but the air(well, vapor/air mixture) is also more heavy. so if I'm sick or having a cold I can ee myself doing it again, but not if my throat is all right
 
djonkoman,

Roger D

Vapor Wizard
No no no, hot tap water is dirty cause stored at a temperature promoting bacteria grow. Just ordered a glass bong, totally gonna try the warm water thing. Wondering what temperature would be the best

Some people here put juice or other stuff like that instead of water and drinking it after ?
 
Roger D,

Drxx

Member
Also, raising the temperature of the water might make it a better solvent for everything that's in your vapor, meaning you aren't getting as high and you have a decreased overall therapeutic effect due to the water-soluble terpenes.

Well, remember that gases and vapors behave differently in high temperatures when compared to solids or other liquids. The solubility of most gases/vapors decrease in warm temperatures. Water is not a great solvent for THC in the first place, so by increasing the temperature it might very well benefit the user by maximizing the yield. I couldn't find too much on water-soluble terpenes that are normally found in marijuana, though. So that final statement you made may very well be correct. Care to expand on that a bit so we can further educate ourselves? :D
 

Titamius

Developing Connoisseur & Vaporist
Some people here put juice or other stuff like that instead of water and drinking it after ?
I did this a couple times combusting a few years back (minus drinking it) and from what I remember it did slightly flavour the smoke, but I wouldnt do it again simply because I don't want sugar in my bong. I'm sure it would be fine though as long as you rinsed it out well. I've drank vapor water before so I really do wonder how vapor juice would be, I might just give it a go in the near future. I can't help but think that bacteria/mold would be a problem if it was done frequently though.
 
Titamius,
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