Wet Dottle
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- Feb 27, 2008
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Bacteria and viruses can be very resistant. Some have survived the blast of Saturn V rockets, some have lived in the vacuum of space for extended periods of time.
The problem I find with used pipes is not so much the bacteria, but the residue of other people's body fluids left in them. They'll be there after the alcohol and salt treatment, even if you soak the entire pipe in alcohol. Maybe you can boil the pipe, or ream and sand everything to virgin wood, but I don't know if that's possible after the pipe is used for a while. Wood is porous and retains more than you think (it's not like the stainless steel of silverware, like some have suggested).
I'm not trying to offend anyone, just explaining my point of view. I think the used pipe market was a great invention and has kept a lot of people in the business, as well as provinding pipe smokers with more affordable pipes...
The problem I find with used pipes is not so much the bacteria, but the residue of other people's body fluids left in them. They'll be there after the alcohol and salt treatment, even if you soak the entire pipe in alcohol. Maybe you can boil the pipe, or ream and sand everything to virgin wood, but I don't know if that's possible after the pipe is used for a while. Wood is porous and retains more than you think (it's not like the stainless steel of silverware, like some have suggested).
I'm not trying to offend anyone, just explaining my point of view. I think the used pipe market was a great invention and has kept a lot of people in the business, as well as provinding pipe smokers with more affordable pipes...
