Cleaning A (Glass) Bong In The Dishwasher

Cleaning a bong in the dishwasher seems like a good idea. But can you put a bong in the dishwasher, is it safe, and does it work? Fortunately we have a whole lot of experienced stoners at Bongify who could answer this question for us. We tried it for ourselves, and share our experience below.

Bong in dishwasher - is it safe?

Is it safe to clean your bong in the dishwasher? That depends mostly on the material of which your bong is made. Read more about the different materials in the rest of the article.

And is it possible? Could your dishwasher actually clean your dirty bong? You might know that hot water and soap often work well to clean a dirty bong, but don't get it completely clean. So just throwing it in the dishwasher does not guarantee success. Treat it with some bong cleaner, alcohol or benzine before putting it in the dishwasher to increase effectiveness.

Cleaning a glass bong in a dishwasher

Cleaning a glass bong in the dishwasher is possible; in theory. Although most bongs are strong enough not to break when being cleaned in the dishwasher, you can never be sure that it actually holds up and doesn't break. Especially the bowls, downstems and connector pieces and sockets would easily break, whereas these are the weak points of most bongs. It's definitely not a good idea to clean a tree percolator bong in the dishwasher. 

To clean glass bongs in dishwashers more effectively, you can spray some detergent or bong cleaner in your pipe to help remove the stubborn bits of dirt or resin.

Cleaning a silicone bong in a dishwasher

Silicone bongs are often advertised to be dishwasher safe, meaning that they won't break when cleaned in the dishwasher. But that doesn't mean that it's safe for the dishwasher. The resin could still clog the pipes and damage the machine after cleaning it often. Just like glass bongs, you can spray or rub the inside of silicone bongs with bong cleaner before putting it in the washer to make sure it's properly clean.

Cleaning an acrylic / plastic bong in the dishwasher

Plastic or acrylic bongs are often simple and do not have any fragile percolators in them. Downstems and bowls are often made of metal and therefore not very prone to breaking. Although not all acrylic bongs are made of high quality materials, they can normally be cleaned in the dishwasher without any issues. But do you really want to put something that dirty in the dishwasher, where you clean the plates you eat from?

Bong in dishwasher: conclusion

So, is it a good idea to clean a bong in the dishwasher? It can work, but we don't use this bong cleaning method. It is much more effective and safer to get a good bong cleaner and a brush, and to clean it with some warm or hot water. But hey, who are we to judge? If you want to run the risk of damaging your glass bong in the dishwasher to spend less time cleaning it, that's up to you. We don't recommend cleaning your bong in the dishwasher, but it can work.