If you weren’t shopping online before 2020, you are now. Most of us got used to never leaving our house and if you’re reading this article, then we already know why.
And yes – you can buy a piece from an online bong store, shipping methods are modern enough to keep your precious new bong safe during its journey to you.
But before you can check your tracking number six times a day, you have to find a place to order from first. Learn how to suss out a glassware website, red flags to look for, and other tips for ordering bongs online, below.
Know the Product
Before you put anything in your cart, you need to know what you’re looking for. What kind of bong do you want? If you’re just looking for a run-of-the-mill water pipe, that’s going to be a different shopping process than if you wanted something artisan-made and hand-blown.
You’ll also want to know the different parts of a bong, so you can make sure it comes with everything you need and that everything got shipped with it when you receive it.
Every bong should come with the body (cleary), a bowl, a downstem, and some sort of rubber piece to protect the bowl from being glass on glass.
It’s traditional to have some sort of pinch or hole where the neck of the bong and the base meet so that if you put ice in it to cool down the smoke, the ice doesn’t fall into the base and over-fill it.
More complex models may have a splashguard, an inline, a tree percolator, and or a diffused downstem. You can Google each term to learn what it adds to the experience and if you’re willing to pay for that feature.
Product & Company Reviews
While most sites will have some sort of review feature on their website, it’s best if these reviews are “powered” by a third party. While it’s still possible for a company to give itself fake reviews with this software, it’s less likely.
If there’s not a review feature, or there aren’t many reviews, you can also check the Better Business Bureau (BBB) site for any actions taken against the company. This is the agency that people go to if they suspect fraud or have had a very negative interaction with a business.
Smaller businesses are less likely to be listed on the BBB, but it’s always worth taking the 10 seconds to check. If there are issues listed, it’s not necessarily the end of the world, but you want to consider other sources. The BBB also “grades” businesses, and generally, B or better is considered safe to buy from.
Prices
Let’s get down to the nickels and dimes of it, what should you pay for a bong? Well, it depends on size, quality, and features. Generally, you’re going to spend anything from$60 – $200 on a water pipe.
And while plastic is cheaper, we recommend staying away from plastic bongs. While they may say that the plastic is heat resistant, we’re clean (dirty) hippies at heart and would rather not take that risk. Glass can be heated to an insane temperature safely, so stick to the good old glass when you’re shopping.
Another thing that will affect the price is the size of the bong. Who is going to be using it? If you like to smoke alone in your room, you can get by with a little guy. But if this is going to be the center of your coffee table for friends and roommates, it’s worth it to get a bigger model.
And just like fashion, some bong brands are more expensive than others. Like clothes, these brand names don’t always correlate to quality, but it’s up to you if you want to have the best bong brands in your collection or not.
The more work that went into the piece, the more it’s going to cost. There are some mind-blowing bongs out there, that truly belong in a museum. These pieces are an investment and are generally sold at specialty shops, but some artists do list their work online.
If you can’t afford one of these right now but hope to someday, follow the artist on their social media to watch their talent grow and keep track of them until you can make the investment.
Shipping Safety and Labelling
When you’re ordering certain purchases online where you have to be above 18 to buy it, you don’t necessarily want a box on your front porch that says BONG INSIDE. Most online bong companies know this and offer discreet shipping.
While you’re not doing anything wrong, if this is a feature that’s important to you, double-check the site’s FAQ or product listing to see if they offer discreet shipping.
Your business is your business, not your neighbors, and not your mail persons!
Also, since you’re shipping something fragile, look to see if they have insured shipping. If it breaks in transit will they replace it? Some stores offer package insurance, which is usually a ripoff, but worth it if you want to rip off a bong that comes in one piece.
Finding the Right Online Bong Store for Your Needs
What you want in a bong is different than what Sally from down the street wants, and that’s ok. It’s great to get online bong store recommendations from your friends, but now you have the tips and tricks to find the right store for your unique needs.
We hope you found this guide useful and wish you luck on your online shopping journey. For more helpful life tips, bookmark our blog – we won’t disappoint you!