Newbie with Wet Smoke Issues

[Dixie Dandy]

I started smoking pipes about three months ago, and I have learned alot from this forum and other internet recourses. My first pipe was a smaller, estate GBD straight billiard I purchased from a local tobacco shop. I have been smoking a local blend similar to Lane 1Q, which I store in a plastic Oxo brand "pop top" container (holds two ounces perfectly).

A couple weeks ago I added an estate Group 5 Comoy straight billiard pipe to my rotation. My first smoke with the pipe ended up with an extremaly boggy mess at the bottom of the bowl. I thought maybe I got a "dud" of an estate pipe, so the next day I went back to my tried and true GBD. That smoke, too, ended with a boggy mess at the bottom of the bowl.

I don't really know what is causing this. I typically allow the tobacco to sit out for 30 minutes on a sheet of printer paper to dry, and this has seemed to work fine for me in the past. I began to wonder if my tobacco might be absorbing more moisture in storage since I was getting low (maybe humidity is getting trapped in the Oxo container), so today I allowed my tobacco to dry for four hours between two sheets of paper. I still ended up with a wet smoke.

The strange thing is I never really hear any gurgling sound while smoking. Today, about every ten minutes I pushed a pipe cleaner in the stem to absorb any moisture. This didn't seem to help.

I don't know why all of a sudden both of my pipes are smoking wet. I haven't changed my tobacco nor my techniques.

My theories are:
-Since I am getting low on tobacco, there is alot of air in my storage container which is causing a more humid condition
-It's been rainy these last couple of weeks, and since I smoke in my garage, maybe the humidity in the air is causing this.

Can anybody maybe give me insight as to what is causing this?

 

[Harlock999]

The rain/humidity theory is what I was thinking as I read your post.
In the summer months, the heat and humidity can play havoc with my smokes, and I'll even postpone smoking for awhile, until the weather cooperates.
I've heard that cobs are good for outdoor smoking and humid conditions...

 

[Richard Burley]

In my experience, it's from packing the bowl too tight. I know better, but it's something I've fought for decades, the tendency to want to "get more in to make it last longer," kind of a subconscious nicotine greed on my part. Another thing it might be is that you're holding the pipe in your mouth more. This tends to make me drool, compared to holding the pipe in hand. That'll be two cents, please.

 

[monbla256]

I started smoking pipes about three months ago, and I have learned alot from this forum and other internet recourses. My first pipe was a smaller, estate GBD straight billiard I purchased from a local tobacco shop. I have been smoking a local blend similar to Lane 1Q, which I store in a plastic Oxo brand "pop top" container (holds two ounces perfectly).

A couple weeks ago I added an estate Group 5 Comoy straight billiard pipe to my rotation. My first smoke with the pipe ended up with an extremaly boggy mess at the bottom of the bowl. I thought maybe I got a "dud" of an estate pipe, so the next day I went back to my tried and true GBD. That smoke, too, ended with a boggy mess at the bottom of the bowl.

I don't really know what is causing this. I typically allow the tobacco to sit out for 30 minutes on a sheet of printer paper to dry, and this has seemed to work fine for me in the past. I began to wonder if my tobacco might be absorbing more moisture in storage since I was getting low (maybe humidity is getting trapped in the Oxo container), so today I allowed my tobacco to dry for four hours between two sheets of paper. I still ended up with a wet smoke.

The strange thing is I never really hear any gurgling sound while smoking. Today, about every ten minutes I pushed a pipe cleaner in the stem to absorb any moisture. This didn't seem to help.

I don't know why all of a sudden both of my pipes are smoking wet. I haven't changed my tobacco nor my techniques.

My theories are:
-Since I am getting low on tobacco, there is alot of air in my storage container which is causing a more humid condition
-It's been rainy these last couple of weeks, and since I smoke in my garage, maybe the humidity in the air is causing this.

Can anybody maybe give me insight as to what is causing this?

Lane 1Q has been the main American Aromatic sold at multiple of pipe shops across this country under all sorts of blend names. Being primarily Golden Cavendish and fire cured Burley with a HEAVY level of PG and flavorings it has and always will smoke wet. I like many folks starting pipe smoking started with some. Smells good, tastes "good" (VERY, VERY sweet to my palate now ) so it works well to get one into pipe smoking. I NEVER could get it to smoke dry, back when I strted over 40 years ago, nor when I tried some of the "#1 House Blend" at the B&M i have started going to recently. I had a suspision it was Lane 1Q when I put it in my pipe from the sticky feel from the PG it's soaked in and sure knew it when I put fire to it !! "Fraid it may be the nature of the beast as they say as far as your 'baccy just keep alot of cleaners handy and I'm sure it will work out! Or you could try some nice English/Balkan/ Orientals

 

[jlong]

I too get wet smoke a couple pipe shop aromatics I enjoy. One of them could very well be Lane 1Q. I have a couple straight billards dedicated to them and run a cleaner through them while smoking. Maybe one or two times per smoke. Could very well be my smoking style as I tend to get aggressive with the cherry stuff. But, whatever works.

 

[Dixie Dandy]

If it is indeed the particular blend, why would it not smoke wet before? I used to be able to smoke the entire bowl of this blend down to ash.

The more and more I think about it, the wet weather seems to be the most likely culprit. It has been unseasonably warm and humid, and we received close to 6 inches of rain in the last 5 days.

I guess best way to try out this hypothesis would be to smoke indoors, but I'm not sure if my wife would let me try it out in the house!

 

[s.ireland]

If it is indeed the particular blend, why would it not smoke wet before? I used to be able to smoke the entire bowl of this blend down to ash.

The more and more I think about it, the wet weather seems to be the most likely culprit. It has been unseasonably warm and humid, and we received close to 6 inches of rain in the last 5 days.

I guess best way to try out this hypothesis would be to smoke indoors, but I'm not sure if my wife would let me try it out in the house!

Better to ask for forgiveness than for permission 8)

 

[Kyle Weiss]

Better to ask for forgiveness than for permission 8)

Oh, wisdom, how thee speaks through the darkness... :lol:

8)

 

[monbla256]

If it is indeed the particular blend, why would it not smoke wet before? I used to be able to smoke the entire bowl of this blend down to ash.

The more and more I think about it, the wet weather seems to be the most likely culprit. It has been unseasonably warm and humid, and we received close to 6 inches of rain in the last 5 days.

I guess best way to try out this hypothesis would be to smoke indoors, but I'm not sure if my wife would let me try it out in the house!

Are you just a "boarder" there? Isn't it as much "your" house as "hers" ? Your environment possibly has something to do with it, though not as much as you may think. I still think it is the type of tobacco you are smoking. Just keep a packet of cleaners handy, use as needed and enjoy your smoke

 

[idbowman]

Your environment possibly has something to do with it, though not as much as you may think. I still think it is the type of tobacco you are smoking. Just keep a packet of cleaners handy, use as needed and enjoy your smoke

I agree...1Q tends to go goopy in the mid-to-late bowl. I think if you'd had dry smokes before, you'd probably been lucky. Have you tried lightening way up on the packing, just to see if it affects things at all? I used to smoke aromatics a lot (I still do, just not as much), and my approach was to always pack super light, and then go a bit heavier on the next bowl. If it stayed pretty dry, I'd go heavier the next time around, until I found the sweet spot.

My brother used to put the first pinch of a goopy blend in, pack it, then char it before packing the rest of the bowl. He said it worked for him, but I can't say I've ever tried it (I'm guessing there would be some flavor ramifications as well).

 

[dshpipes]

If it is indeed the particular blend, why would it not smoke wet before? I used to be able to smoke the entire bowl of this blend down to ash.

The more and more I think about it, the wet weather seems to be the most likely culprit. It has been unseasonably warm and humid, and we received close to 6 inches of rain in the last 5 days.

I guess best way to try out this hypothesis would be to smoke indoors, but I'm not sure if my wife would let me try it out in the house!

Are you just a "boarder" there? Isn't it as much "your" house as "hers" ? Your environment possibly has something to do with it, though not as much as you may think. I still think it is the type of tobacco you are smoking. Just keep a packet of cleaners handy, use as needed and enjoy your smoke

While I agree with you here, you've got to remember that it is hers as well as yours so there needs to be a mutual respect of each other's desires, IMO. I took the "well it's my apartment too" approach recently to smoking in my apartment and it really messed up relations with my room mate for a few days. Once I changed my attitude and approached them with some compromises, they've been much more comfortable with me smoking in the apartment and I've been comfortable with the compromises that we've reached. And now, everyone's happy!

Can anybody maybe give me insight as to what is causing this?

Based on what you're saying, I think the weather is probably having a major effect here. Even though your tobacco is being dried, it might actually be absorbing moisture if it's very humid after those rainy days.

I would have said it has to do with the engineering of the pipes that you're smoking, but if you've never experienced this before, then I'd have a hard time making that argument.

 

[Zanaspus]

Having bought lots of estates, some well-engineered, some not, I can tell you that the ones that are less than perfect will smoke "boggy" for quite a while. You have two options:

1) Sell it and be done with it.

2) Smoke it. I find that most wet smokers (and I've bought a few) will calm down significantly and some will even become good smokers if you're just patient enough to build cake at the bottom of the bowl.

Most people aren't so patient which is why you can fin many factory engineered pipes on Ebuy. Just my thoughts.

 

[ITSETTLE]

I have experienced the wet smokers and my advice is to smoke through it. Take your time, use plenty of pipe cleaners, and over time this issue will go away.

 

[Smoker99]

Several reasons for a wet smoke. Packing too tightly, puffing too rapidly, tortuous airway ie, poorly engineered pipe, poorly cured briar, or wet tobacco. All the drying in the world isn't going to help 1Q or similar blends. They are loaded with PG. Dry it for a week, and it is going to smoke the same.