What Is a Gravity Bong – And How Do You Make One?

Despite the legendary stories surrounding weed use in the 1960s and 1970s, today’s marijuana strains are significantly stronger. Even as late as 1995, the average THC level of samples seized by the DEA was just 4%. By 2014, that number had risen to 12%. Today, it is normal to find a strain with a THC content of 25% or more. Also, it’s believed that the THC to CBD ratio has changed from around 14:1 in 1995 to 80:1 in 2014.

In other words, people from past generations had to come up with some creative ways to get stoned. This search led to some pretty cool innovations, such as the iconic ‘gravity bong.’ It is quick, cheap, and easy to make. Better yet, it gets you very high, very fast — as I can personally attest!

Gravity Bong – Ultimate Guide

The homemade gravity bong was the secret weapon of many users in the days before marijuana became super strong. It is a method of consuming weed that involves the use of one or two plastic bottles. You use them to funnel the smoke through water before inhaling it. All you have to do is to submerge a small container with a bowl of cannabis on top in a larger plastic bottle or bucket filled with water.

You can purchase a glass gravity bong or a vortex gravity bong if you have the cash to spare. These expensive versions work much better than the plastic version. Even so, you could save yourself money by learning how to make a gravity bong. We show you how to do it below!

What Is a Gravity Bong?

Experienced users know how to make a gravity bong with a socket from a wrench set. It involves screwing a hole in a bottle lid and attaching the tool to it. Alternatively, find a tool that offers a good fit on a bottle’s mouth.

Make sure the socket is large enough for weed to fit inside. When you do it right, you should get extremely high and conserve cannabis in the bargain. In case you were wondering, here is how to do it.

• Pick a suitable socket. The best sizes range from 12mm to 15mm in diameter.
• Test the fit by placing the socket in the mouth of the bottle.
• Wrap duct tape around the sides of the socket to create a tight seal.
• Place fitted metal gauze into the socket to create a ‘bowl’ for your herb.
• Cut a hole in the bottom of the bottle. Make sure the hole isn’t too large. Otherwise, the water will flow out too quickly.
• Place the bottle in a larger container, which you then fill with water.
• Load the socket and place in the mouth of bottle. Get ready to enjoy it!

In this guide, we are going to show you how to make two other types of gravity bongs.

Bucket Bong

Photo credit: wikipedia

The legendary bucket bong involves the use of two plastic bottles. You need to cut a big bottle into two pieces to use the bottom half. You also require a smaller bottle cut up to use the top half. The key is that the bottom part of the container is larger than the top half.

When using the bucket gravity bong, make sure you fill the bottom half with water. Use the top half as your mouthpiece and bowl. When you think about it, the name given to the bucket bong makes little sense! Gravity doesn’t play a significant role in how it operates.

When you force the top half into a bucket of water and light the weed, smoke gets vacuumed into the bottle when you bring it out of the water. It is easier to smoke a weed bucket bong than its waterfall counterpart. The pressure in it forces all the smoke out of the bottle so that you can inhale it quickly.

Waterfall Bong

Photo credit: wikipedia.org

The waterfall gravity bong is easier to make than the bucket bong because you only need a single plastic bottle. It is aptly named because it uses gravity to function. Like its bucket counterpart, the waterfall bong has the mouthpiece and bowl on top. You cut a hole near the bottom. When it is time for a session, fill the bottle with water, and plug the hole at the bottom with your finger.

Next, you place the cap with the weed bowl on top. Remove your finger and let gravity pull the water from the bong in a process akin to how a waterfall operates, hence the name. When you remove your finger from the hole, make sure you spark the lighter above the bowl. The smoke will replace the water inside the bottle. You will need a decent lung capacity to breathe in all that lovely weed vapor.

How to Make a Bucket Bong

Learning how to make a bucket bong is pretty straightforward. The sizes of the bottles used are up to you. It is possible to make a 5-gallon bucket bong, although we don’t recommend trying to clear it all at once! You can also make this type of gravity bong with a bucket; use it instead of the larger bottle.

What Materials Do I Need?

Along with your plastic bottles and/or bucket, other required materials include:

• Aluminum foil
• A poking device
• A sharp knife
• At least a gram of weed

Here is a quick and easy step-by-step guide:

1. Cut the bottom off the smaller bottle. Bear in mind that the less you cut off, the bigger the hit (so try to remove no more than a couple of inches).
2. Cut the top off the bigger bottle and fill with water. Alternatively, fill a bucket with water.
3. Carve a hole in the bottle cap with scissors or a knife and create a bowl with the foil.
4. Poke holes in the foil so that the smoke can travel into the bottle.

How to Smoke Bucket Bongs

1. Place the weed of your choice onto the foil-wrapped cap, but don’t screw on the cap yet.
2. Fill the bottom half with water, making sure it doesn’t go all the way to the top. Otherwise, you risk overflow when you submerge the top half.
3. Submerge the top part of the bottle down to the neck in water.
4. Carefully screw the cap on to the bottle.
5. Make sure you have your lighter’s flame above the bowl when you’re pulling the top part out of the water. If you pull the bottle too far out, the trapped smoke will get out.
6. Remove the cap and use the mouthpiece to inhale the smoke. Push the top part into the water right down to its neck as the pressure ensures the smoke quickly travels to the lungs.

How to Make a Waterfall Bong

When learning how to make a waterfall bong, you will quickly realize that it is easier than a bucket bong.

What Materials Do I Need?

Aside from a single plastic bottle, you only need the following:

• Aluminum foil
• Scissors
• Weed
• That’s it!

Here is a brief step-by-step guide:

1. Use the scissors to cut a hole in the cap and use the foil to create a bowl.
2. Make sure you poke holes in the foil so the smoke gets into the bottle.
3. Punch a hole at the bottom small enough for your finger to cover it.

How to Smoke a Waterfall Bong

Smoking from a waterfall bong is a great experience and is even simpler than smoking from a bucket bong.

1. Keep the cap off and fill the bowl with weed you have ground up.
2. Use your finger to cover the hole at the bottom and fill the bottle with water right to its neck. It is a good idea to have a friend to help you, or else you should do it over the sink.
3. Add the cap and light the weed. Remove your finger from the hole at the bottom and take care to keep the flame away from the plastic. Stop lighting the marijuana once there is enough smoke in the bottle.
4. After the water has emptied, remove the cap and inhale the smoke.

Glass Bong vs. Gravity Bong

Should you choose a glass bong instead of its gravity equivalent? Or perhaps you can split the difference and purchase a glass gravity bong? A diamond glass bong is more durable, but a gravity bong gets you higher faster. Advantages of the gravity bong include:

• You will get stoned in around three hits. Remember, you’re inhaling the contents of a full bowl of cannabis in a single go.
• It enables you to take in enormous amounts of smoke.
• It is cheap and easy to make.
• As you get stoned faster, it should save you weed.

My most memorable weed story involves an almighty bucket bong session. The problem is that I was a relative newbie who didn’t yet understand the power of the bong. After tackling a couple of bong sessions, my experienced friend began yelling: “You’re Superman; you’re gonna save the world!” Since we were all getting pretty high, it made some weird sort of sense at the time.

What happened next will live long in the memory (or not as it happens). I began ripping the bong every chance I could. Before I knew it, I had gone as far as ten ‘buckets.’ The outcome was predictable; I passed out on the sofa. When I came to, my friends were making prank phone calls; fun times!

The benefits of a glass bong include durability (you’ll need to throw away your gravity bong after a session), and more controlled hits. Beginners are better off using a glass bong. Experienced smokers should try the bucket or waterfall bong options.

Final Conclusion: Gravity Bong

Apart from the cost of marijuana, creating a gravity bong for weed smoking is free, and you can create it yourself. We’re assuming that you have a couple of plastic bottles to spare! It is extremely easy for newbies, although we believe the kind of hit it produces may overwhelm neophytes. This is especially the case if you use a high THC strain.

Smoking from a gravity bong is an experience that everyone should try at some point during their cannabis-using lives. Remember, you are ripping an entire bowl in a matter of seconds. It will blitz your senses and get you as high as you’ve been in your whole life. It is also a lot of fun, especially when there are several friends involved. Make sure you have a place to sleep!

On the downside, taking hits from a plastic bottle can be harsh on the lungs and coughing fits are common if you’re not used to the experience. You can circumnavigate these issues by being sensible with the amount of weed you put in the bowl. Start slowly and work your way up; you may even get to become Superman!