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You may have noticed silicone pipes and water pipes are becoming more and more common. More shops are carrying them, but why? Is it just a fad, or is silicone really an improvement over glass? The answer depends on what you want. Learn more about silicone vs glass bongs today.
Silicone vs Glass Bongs: Pros
When you think about it, all a water pipe needs is a base that holds water with a tube into the water, so silicone can function just as well as glass in that respect, and silicone pieces have some real benefits. The biggest is durability. Silicone is close to unbreakable. If you are someone who breaks any piece you so much as look at, a silicone water pipe might be perfect for you. You can drop it, pack it anywhere, and even fold it up, and it will simply flop back into shape. That pliability and durability make it wildly portable. If you want a water pipe you can take camping, look no further than a silicone piece. You can throw it in your bag and go without worrying about packing carefully around it. This is the reason many collectors keep one silicone piece around: it travels where glass cannot. Silicone is also non-polar, so resin is less likely to stick to it than to glass, which can make routine cleaning easier, though there are other cleaning issues we will cover below.
Silicone vs Glass Bongs: Cons
While silicone pieces have their benefits, there are drawbacks that keep silicone from ever fully taking over a glass cabinet. First, and perhaps least important in the grand scheme, a silicone piece will never be as beautiful as a sparkling, clean glass piece. Working with silicone just is not the same artform as working with glass. Aesthetics aside, there are other trade-offs. Some people notice an unpleasant taste with silicone pieces. High-quality, food-grade silicone is a stable material, but taste preference is real, and many users simply prefer the neutral flavor of clean borosilicate glass.
Another place silicone falls short of glass is in the percolators it can support. Silicone does not lend itself to some of the complicated percolators we enjoy in glass pieces. Even if those percolators could be achieved in silicone, you would not be able to see them. Some makers get around this with hybrid pieces that pair a glass percolator with a silicone base and mouthpiece, though those hybrids are far from unbreakable. Another issue with not being able to see inside the piece is that it is hard to tell when it needs cleaning, and hard to tell when it is actually clean. That means you could leave residue behind along with whatever cleaning product you used. So with silicone, be extra careful not to leave solvent in the piece after cleaning. Rinse thoroughly (five or more times) and let it sit for at least an hour, if not longer, before use after cleaning.
There is also the question of flavor over the long run. Clean borosilicate is non-porous, so it does not hold onto taste between sessions. Silicone can pick up and hold flavors over time, especially if it is not cleaned thoroughly, which is another reason some users keep silicone for travel and reach for glass at home. If flavor neutrality is your priority, that difference is worth weighing.
So silicone probably will not run the glass market out of business, but it improves on glass in a few categories. If you have butterfingers or just need a durable water pipe you can pack up and take with you, silicone might be perfect for you. Plenty of glass collectors still want a silicone piece in the mix for exactly that reason, then switch back to a thick borosilicate piece when they are home and want the cleanest possible draw and the best percolation.
