Quartz Care and Maintenance

[FlyingLow]

Are you that person whose bangers last YEARS? Your input is welcomed here!!!!


Let us discuss maintenance and cleaning. What do you do after your dab?
No one wants to spend much time or great effort after a fat dab...


For me, beginning to use a temp meter (I picked up a DabRite) was a game changer. No more fear of chazzing or having to rub burn marks off with elbow grease. I admit I have not used my Dnail but once since I got a temp gun.

After a dab, my routine has evolved a bit. Instead of jumping in to scrub with an ISO qtip, I remove the banger from my joint (this is critical) and drop my ruby into an ISO jar. When the temps drop into the mid 200s, I squirt just a few mL of ISO into the banger and watch it boil. No scrubbing necessary, just dump the ISO and qtip to dry.

I do say it is critical to remove the banger from your glass, for if your banger temp is too high or if you squirt too much ISO, the ISO will boil up and drop down the neck of your banger.


This is what has been the least effort for me. Biut the number one thing that has helped me is not burning the glass with too hot dabs.

I would love to hear other peoples routines, and would especially like to hear from those with slurper sets. I've avoided them simply because it looks like a lot of work to keep clean, but I would love to hear otherwise.

 

[Ramahs]

I just swab with a q-tip with iso after each dab. That keeps it pretty clean.
If there is any residue once I'm done, after a session, then I just torch the banger till it turns red and any stains just disappear and it leaves me with a like-new, crystal-clear banger.

 

[CrazyDiamond]

Currently using an insert with my deep dish along with two pearls....I leave the insert in for the duration of my session since I found that removing the insert and dropping into iso was just too tedious. After a dab, I will q-tip with iso. When I'm done with the session, I will remove the insert and drop it and the pearls in iso and leave it till the next session. Occasionally during the session, I will take a q-tip with iso and start at the top of the banger and going round and round and then into the insert; that keeps the walls of the banger clean in case any oil splashes up. AT the end of the session, after dropping the insert, I give the banger a quick q-tip/iso swirl.

@Ramahs heating the banger till red hot will shorten the life of your quartz.

 

[Ramahs]

@Ramahs heating the banger till red hot will shorten the life of your quartz.

I don't doubt that. But the couple of ~$40 bangers that I have, for which I have been treated that way for at least a couple of years now, have had no issue. If bangers at that price level last me years, then I think I've gotten my money's worth.

 

[FlyingLow]

While it seems to meet your immediate needs, it is destructive [over time and repeated torch cleanings] and far from "best practices" that I hope to cover in this thread.

I would certainly not recommend a torch cleaning method to anyone looking to maintain their quartz in perfect condition.

 

[invertedisdead]

Since I dab off sapphire, I can’t do ISO q tips as it could shock my insert, so I just dry mop and whenever needed I deep clean my quartz in simple green: crystal. Clean in ISO first to remove any condensed oils, then you can just re-use the same SG over and over again. When it gets too dirty you can pour it through a coffee filter to pull out the carbonized char and use the same SG again. I’ve been using the same pint for like 2 or 3 years. I clean my sapphires one it as well. Usually just keep a spare setup soaking so it’s as simple as swapping when I want fresh quartz / sapphire.

 

[lazylathe]

Just started down this rabbit hole with a super cheap banger but so far it still looks brand new!

Cold starts with a torch and whatever is left, I use a small square of paper towel and my dab tool to mop up the excess. I allow it to cool q bit and then dip a qtip in iso and give it a good few scrubs. All done off the rig as @FlyingLow said, the iso will creep down the neck and drip into your rig.

Once in a while a shatter will turn it brown and I have to torch it clean but I never need to get it red hot. I move the flame all over to evenly heat it and it works well!

My last super cheap banger chazzed after a few dabs...it was garbage but more expensive than my $15 one I have now!

Will be interesting to see how I have to adapt to cleaning my 710 coils setup with insert. A while new kettle of fish to fry!

 

[FlyingLow]

How are you all cleaning terp pearls, gems, etc?

My ruby pearls don't always clean with a simple iso soak...

 

[710yota]

I've been using the old simple green on a mug warmer for deep cleaning all my concentrate gear for a while now. For my pearls I put them in a small glass wax jar to keep them together while they soak and easier to scoop out.

 

[Zoticus]

How are you all cleaning terp pearls, gems, etc?

My ruby pearls don't always clean with a simple iso soak...

Product Page | Ryan Kuhns

www.kuhnsglass.com

 

[WelshBrok]

I just dry q tip and then after session put banger on stand and fill with DC Crystal clear and put a cap on it.

 

[RustyOldNail]

Since I dab off sapphire, I can’t do ISO q tips as it could shock my insert, so I just dry mop and whenever needed I deep clean my quartz in simple green: crystal. Clean in ISO first to remove any condensed oils, then you can just re-use the same SG over and over again. When it gets too dirty you can pour it through a coffee filter to pull out the carbonized char and use the same SG again. I’ve been using the same pint for like 2 or 3 years. I clean my sapphires one it as well. Usually just keep a spare setup soaking so it’s as simple as swapping when I want fresh quartz / sapphire.

EXACTLY!

 

[bizwaxzion]

How are you all cleaning terp pearls, gems, etc?

My ruby pearls don't always clean with a simple iso soak...

Old wax container with simple green. I drop them in when the banger get's cleaned and then clean them all up when I'm out of fresh ones. ISO doesn't do shit for cleaning up baked carbon.

 

[Boreus]

I drop my pearls in a container of iso where they sit until I decide to fish it out or I run out of them and need to. Swab my banger out with a q tip, if there's still stuff left, a q tip with iso will usually takes care of it.
I'm almost always cold starting dabs, that seems to help a lot.

 

[derosavapore]

For cold starts, like the rio, that I use a lot, remove your still hot banger, just dip the cotton of your tip into your rio for a bit of water.
Then let the water boil in remaining heat after dry cleaning. Works well in quartz, no extras needed. Maybe dip it in front of to avoid
accidents.
After about 10-15dabs its time for iso/DCC.
Pearls are not for me, not in any material. They are great in function but I don't like to clean them all the time.

 

[FlyingLow]

IMO pearls are essential... I can spread all my material out across the most area of quartz while it is at the perfect temp for the largest rip.