Difference between a hookah and a bong

[Shinna Minna Ma]

Chalk this up to my naivete, but what is the difference between a hookah and a bong?

--SMM

[Kalhoun]

We always called a multi-participant device a hookah. Multiple hoses coming off the center unit. A bong is a one-man operation.

[New Beginning]

And a bong typically dose not have any sort of hose (one solid piece apart from the bowl).

[Squink]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hookah

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bong

[Ol'Gaffer]

Also, any store which sells smoking accessories will not sell you a bong...they will, however, happily sell you a water pipe.

[Diogenes the Cynic]

Bongs (http://s199.photobucket.com/albums/aa140/zamer1/?action=view&current=bongs.jpg)
Hookahs (http://schmoffly.files.wordpress.com/2008/04/hookah-sale.jpg)

For a bong, you draw the smoke right from the top of the tube and only one person smokes at a time. For a hookah you have one or more hoses (usually more) tapping into the chamber and as many people can smoke at one time as there are hoses.

[Santo Rugger]

Generally speaking, a bong has the bowl in the bottom on the side (and you inhale from the top), and is lit with a lighter. A hookah has the bowl on top and is kept lit with charcoal (and you inhale with a hose or [usually] hoses).

Also, perhaps more significantly, a bong is usually used for pot while a hookah is usually used for flavored tobacco.

ETA: A bong is also cleared after each hit, while a hookah cycles the smoke continuously.

[Uncle Brother Walker]

"Miss, if you call it a bong one more time, I'm going to have to ask you to leave the store."

-said to a friend of mine during some pre-holiday shopping. She shut up right quick and her hubby did the rest of the talking and closed the deal on the 'water pipe' purchase.

[madmonk28]

Also, a bong has a carburetor; usually a small hole that the smoker covers while lighting the weed and then releases to allow the smoke to rush in one big moment. A hookah does not have a carburetor. ETA: I see someone else also said this upthread.

[Santo Rugger]

And, to be more precise, sometimes the bowl covers the carburetor and its stem is pulled in order to release the carb.

[Kalhoun]

Generally speaking, a bong has the bowl in the bottom on the side (and you inhale from the top), and is lit with a lighter. A hookah has the bowl on top and is kept lit with charcoal (and you inhale with a hose or [usually] hoses).

Also, perhaps more significantly, a bong is usually used for pot while a hookah is usually used for flavored tobacco.

ETA: A bong is also cleared after each hit, while a hookah cycles the smoke continuously.

The coals may be traditional, but I've smoked many a hookah and never used coals.

Oh...and yeah...it was definitely flavored tobacco. Definitely.;)

[Santo Rugger]

The coals may be traditional, but I've smoked many a hookah and never used coals.

Oh...and yeah...it was definitely flavored tobacco. Definitely.;)To be fair, you were actually using a hookah shaped bong. :p

But, on a serious note, if I were smoking pot with a hookah (which I wouldn't), I wouldn't use coals, either. It'd be a waste.