Simple Ways to Clean a Clogged Pipe Screen (and Weed Pipes Too)

Saffron

Editor

posted on 16 years ago — updated on 1 second ago

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Pipe screens give you a cleaner smoking experience, but they eventually clog with ash and resin. Instead of buying new screens, you can clean the old ones by burning out residue or soaking them with a simple cleaning solution. We’ll walk you through the best ways to remove buildup from your pipe screens, plus we’ll even cover how to clean out your weed pipe!

Things You Should Know

Blow into the screen to break apart loose pieces of ash and dirt.
Hold the screen over a lighter using a pair of tweezers to burn out old residue.
Soak the screen in a solution of rubbing alcohol and table salt for 10–15 minutes to remove stubborn resin.

Burning Residue off a Pipe Screen

Hold the screen over a lighter with a pair of tweezers. Hold your pipe over a sink and gently pull the pipe screen out from the bowl with a pair of tweezers. Light a flame underneath the screen with a lighter or match. Slowly move the flame around to different parts of the screen to burn all the residue out. Using a lighter to burn off residue works best on mesh pipe screens. If the screen catches on fire, put out the lighter or match and let the screen burn out. Alternatively, drop it in your sink and immediately run water over it. Be careful not to burn the same spot for longer than 5 seconds since you could damage the screen. If you notice large holes or breaks in the screen, then replace it instead of cleaning it.

Let the screen cool for 1 minute. Remove or extinguish the flame and continue holding the screen with the tweezers. After a minute or so, hold the back of your hand close to the screen to check if it's still hot. If it feels cool, then it’s safe to handle the screen. Alternatively, set the screen on a heat-safe dish to let it cool down.

Blow on the screen to clear loose residue. Pinch the edges of the screen between your fingers and hold it over your sink. Gently blow on the screen to remove any loose ashes or residue that’s still caught inside. Once it’s clean, put the screen back in your pipe. Use an air blower or a can of compressed air if there’s stubborn residue stuck on the screen. If there’s residue that won’t blow out of the screen, try gently scrubbing it off with a pipe cleaning brush.

Soaking Pipe Screens in Alcohol

Mix salt and rubbing alcohol in a container. Fill a bowl or small container with enough rubbing alcohol to submerge the screen. Stir about 1 teaspoon (5.6 g) of salt into the alcohol to help clean the screen more. Salt and alcohol work great for cleaning mesh and glass pipe screens that are clogged with stubborn residue. Salt acts as an abrasive to scrub the gunk off of your pipe screen.

Soak the pipe screen for 10–15 minutes. Place your screen into the alcohol solution and stir it around. Leave the screen for at least 10 minutes so the stuck-on resin and ash have time to soften.

Wipe the residue off with a paper towel. Pull the screen out of the alcohol solution and gently clean off the loose resin with your paper towel. Once you clean off all the resin, rinse the screen off with clean water, dry it off, and put it back into your pipe. If you’re not able to remove the resin with the paper towel, then scrub it gently with a pipe cleaning brush.

How to Clean a Weed Pipe

Put your pipe in a plastic bag with rubbing alcohol and salt. Set your pipe inside a resealable plastic bag and pour in rubbing alcohol until it’s completely submerged. Add in 1 teaspoon (5.6 g) of table salt to the bag. Seal the bag and give it a quick shake. Salt acts as an abrasive, so shaking the bag can help loosen the hardened residue inside of your pipe. Alternatively, try using a dedicated pipe cleaning solution that’s made to break down resin in weed pipes.

Soak your pipe in the solution for at least 30 minutes. Let your pipe sit in the alcohol and salt so the resin can loosen up. If your pipe is really dirty or coated with residue, leave it in the bag overnight. Give the bag a shake every now and then to help break apart the resin even more.

Wash residue off the pipe with dish soap and a pipe cleaning brush. Take your pipe out and run it under warm water to rinse off the resin that’s stuck on the surface. If the resin is still sticky, mix a few drops of dish soap into a bowl of warm water. Scrub your pipe with a brush and give it a final rinse with warm water. Leave your pipe to dry on a piece of paper towel before you use it again.

Try soaking your pipe in boiling water for stubborn resin. Set your pipe inside of a small pot and fill it up with warm water. Set the pot on your stove over high heat and bring the water to a boil. Let the water boil for 15 minutes before removing your pipe and rinsing it off with warm water. Avoid rinsing your pipe with cold water because the change in temperature could cause the pipe to break.