Smoking weed has many health benefits, so it is no surprise you would love to start using it. From relaxing, pain relief, inspiration, and improved focus, you look to gain these and more benefits by smoking weed properly. If this is your first time using Sativa strains, cannabis plants and other forms of marijuana strains, here is how to smoke weed for beginners without negative side effects.
1. Smoke a Joint
A joint is also called a spliff, and it is a rolled cannabis cigarette. It is the most traditional, cheap, and easy method of smoking pot. Now, if it is your first time smoking weed, you can start by rolling a joint, or you can also buy from legal cannabis sellers who can sell ready-to-smoke rolls.
If you’d rather prepare the joint yourself, it is easy to find inexpensive rolling papers. Buying rolling papers is your safest bet as a beginner. Some users can also use beedies or tobacco leaf rolling papers, but these could contaminate your pot with tobacco, hence a negative outcome and risk of nicotine addiction.
When you are ready to roll your joint, here are the items you need.
- a grinder
- rolling papers
- a rolling tray
- a crutch or filter
- chopsticks or a pen
- your cannabis strain
The first step is grinding your cannabis plant, so it burns easily, and so you can also use a little amount with every joint. Then, if you don’t have a pre-made crutch, you can roll a thick paper to form a mouthpiece and boost airflow as you smoke. A cruth serves as the filter to mitigate the risk of burning your lips as you smoke weed.
The next step includes loading your weed. So, lay your rolling paper on the rolling tray, making sure the adhesive is on the opposite side of you. Next, position the crutch where you want the filter to be, and sprinkle your pot evenly on the paper. Once you have spread your weed, start rolling the paper using your thumbs and index fingers. You will need to roll carefully and slowly so you can pack the bud properly into a cylinder shape so it can burn evenly. When you get to the end of the rolling paper, prepare the adhesive by licking or wetting it, then start sealing from the mouthpiece to the other end of your joint.
At this point, you can also decide to add more bud, but ensure it is not so tightly packed that it reduces the necessary airflow. Once your joint is even, twist the end of the rolling paper to seal all the bud content inside. You are now ready to use the joint and inhale the smoke through your mouthpiece or filter.
According to weed experts, you will need to smoke around 0.32g in each joint to avoid a marijuana overdose. As a beginner, you will also need to start slow, so, if you feel like you’re getting too high very fast, it is prudent to stop smoking for a few minutes.
2. Smoke Weed from a Pipe
A pipe is a smoking device that features a bowl or receptacle, a long stem, and a mouthpiece from where you inhale your smoke. You can get several types of pipes, including a one-hitter, a bubbler, a chillum, and a chalice.
When new to the cannabis culture but don’t want the hassle of rolling a joint, you can turn to a pipe which makes it easier to enjoy a smoke even on the go. A pipe is compact so that you can carry it with you, and it is best to use a pipe that does not contaminate your weed flavour. Glass pipes are most common, though you can find others made with clay, metal, and bamboo, among other materials.
Before adding any strain to a glass pipe, also called a bowl, ensure the pipe is clean to maintain good flavour and guarantee your good health. You can use pure isopropyl alcohol to clean your pipe.
You will also need ground cannabis strains and a lighter to get smoking. Please note, some pipes have a hole on the side, and if yours does, you will need to cover it when lighting your bud and releasing it as you inhale so you can get as much smoke as possible.
Add your strain to the bowl when your pipe is clean and ready. When ready to inhale, simply pull the air through your mouthpiece, which attracts smoke from the burning bud through the stem. When smoking, start slow, so you don’t inhale too much smoke, or even worse, burnt flower from the bowl.
3. Smoke Weed from a Bong
A bong is another reusable filtration device you can use to smoke weed properly as a beginner. A bong is similar to a pipe, but as a filtration device, features a water chamber where your smoke passes through before you inhale it. You can use several types of bongs to smoke recreational marijuana properly, including a classical bong, a gravity bong, and a waterfall bong (also called a hookah).
As a beginner, you will love the ability to cool your smoke, unlike when using a pipe. In addition, you can also add ice cubes into the bong for a truly comfortable smoking experience. Apart from cooling the smoke, the water chamber also filters resin and other elements so you can enjoy a clean hit.
However, a bong is one of the devices you will need to be careful with when smoking bud, as you can end up with a stronger hit than you can handle as a new user. In addition, while your smoking will be without the usual cannabis smell, a bong also guarantees you consume higher amounts of THC, which can guarantee a high faster than other methods.
You will also need to ensure your bong is clean throughout since the water chamber is a good breeding area for mould and bacteria. Also, when smoking cannabis Sativa using the bong, you will need to briefly remove the bowl and stem to clear the smoke chamber.
When using a bong for the first time, you will only need to add clean water to the chamber, then install the bowl and the stem. Next, add your finely ground strain to the bowl, and with the mouthpiece on your lips, start burning the bud. You will see the smoke passing through the bubbling water and, when you inhale it, remove the bowl and stem to clear the smoke chamber.
4. Smoke Weed by Spotting
Now that you’ve gotten cannabis legally and would want to try out a new smoking method, why not try spotting? The method includes rolling a small amount of your best hybrid strains between two hot knives to produce clean smoke.
The method is also known as the two hot knives method and can be a great way to start smoking as a beginner who doesn’t have pipes, bongs, or even rolling paper. Prepare to consume weed by heating two knives over a gas or electric cooktop. When red hot, place your small, rolled bud between the knives and consume the resulting smoke through your nose or mouth.
5. Smoke Weed from a Vaporizer
If you head over to a legal recreational marijuana dispensary where you obtain weed legally, chances are you will also find them selling a vape pen or vaporizer. This device is healthier than most since it allows you to smoke weed without combustion. In addition, the device extracts active elements of cannabis at very low temperatures to avoid producing carbon monoxide or tar.
A vape pen is your best device if you need to take medical marijuana with high THC content known to treat chronic pain and other conditions. Smoking marijuana medically requires the consumed cannabis to have high cannabinoid content for it to be effective, which is why heating your bud at these low temperatures works. In addition, vaporization does not destroy cannabinoids, so you get all the desired effects of medical marijuana.
As a beginner, you will enjoy using vape pens since not only do you avoid the smoke elements that destroy your lungs and also lead to addiction, but you also get to preserve the smoked weed for using it another time.
Additionally, as you are new to smoking, you might have seen people coughing uncontrollably after smoking pot. A vaporizer helps you smoke legalized weed without coughing if you dread this consequence.
6. Smoke Weed from Dab Rigs
When you have a reliable recreational marijuana dispensary, you will find the best marijuana strains processed into wax, budder, shatter, and hash. Wondering how to smoke weed for beginners if it is in these forms? That is where oil or dab rigs come in.
They are specially designed pipes used to dab or smoke hash, wax, budder, or shatter forms of weed. The process is also called dabbing. Unlike a bong or pipe, a hash rig has a water chamber plus a quartz bucket. The quartz bucket is covered with a directional cap that directs airflow and disperses the hash to the hot areas of the quartz nail or banger.
When smoking weed in this form, you will use a butane blowtorch to heat the pipe. When the weed heats in the bowl, it will produce the strongest smoke for you to inhale. However, this method can produce the strongest hits, which could overwhelm you as a beginner. Ideally, you can try other methods we’ve mentioned here before dabbing.
7. Smoke Weed using a Water Bottle
When starting your weed-smoking journey, you also don’t have to buy the most expensive smoking devices to enjoy your first hits. The water bottle you have lying around is a great place to start. You can transform it into a pipe or a gravity bong. Here is how you can use it for smoking weed high in cannabinoids that your body needs.
DIY a weed pipe
Looking to buy your best glass pipes, but the budget is limiting? You can use a water bottle to make a DIY pipe you can reuse before saving enough for a pipe. Here is what you will need;
- a plastic water bottle
- aluminum foil
- scissors
- a toothpick
- weed
Using your sharp pair of scissors, cut a loonie-size hole on the lower side of your clean water bottle. This hole will work as the bowl from which you burn your weed. Once the hole is ready, get a piece of aluminum foil and mould it into a bowl shape in the middle of the hole you just created. When satisfied the bowl can hold, use a toothpick to make small holes to encourage air circulation.
Now that your bottle pipe is ready, hold the bottle with the bowl facing up. Then, place your bud on the bowl. Place the rim of the bottle on your lips before lighting up the weed. Once you light the bud, you will notice the smoke filling your bottle, waiting for you to inhale it. You can go ahead and enjoy a healthy smoke with a device you can also use several more times.
DIY gravity bong
A gravity weed bong works when you pull the smoke down the bottle once you light up your weed. And, as you know, bongs require water to filter out unwanted elements in the smoke, as well as to cool it down for comfortable smoking. To get going, you will need;
- a large clean water bottle
- aluminum foil
- a toothpick
- water
- a knife or pair of scissors
- a smaller water bottle with a cap
Cut the top part of the larger bottle using the knife or scissors, ensuring the sides do not fold inwards. When you get a clean cut, fill the container halfway with water. Then, cut off the bottom part of the smaller bottle, also ensuring the sides do not fold in, and place it inside the bigger container with the water.
Cut a hole on the cap of the smaller bottle, then line it with the aluminum foil to form a bowl shape. When done, use the toothpick to make five to six holes that allow airflow when smoking. When the lid is ready with the aluminum foil and the holes, place it on the rim of the smaller bottle, ready to start smoking.
Now, place your ground weed on the aluminum and light it up. You will notice smoke forming in the smaller bottle container. After a few seconds, slightly lift the smaller bottle to empty the space for more smoke, and when you get enough, you can remove the lid and inhale the smoke as you again submerge the bottle into the water to push the smoke up.
8. Smoke Weed From a Soda Can
Wondering how to smoke weed for beginners without the most perfect devices? If you have a used soda can lying around, why not transform it into a reusable device in these few steps?
- Bend the can in the middle.
- Use a nail or pin to make holes on the creased part to get the needed airflow for safe smoking.
- Make another hole on the side that you can cover with your finger or thumb as you smoke.
- Remove the tab off your soda can.
- You may use a lighter to heat the crease and the hole you created on the side. The science here is to vaporize chemicals used when making and painting the bottle so you can enjoy a clean hit.
- Place your ground weed on the creased part and your mouth on the can’s mouthpiece. Also, place your thumb or finger on the hole.
- Light up the weed and take in the resulting smoke. You can release the covered hole on the side as you inhale.
While this method is easy to get you started at home, you will also need to prevent burning your fingers when heating your weed. Unfortunately, it is not the safest method as your weed will also get contaminated by aluminum.
Frequently Asked Questions on How to Smoke Weed for Beginners
a) Can I smoke the weed without coughing?
As a beginner, you will likely go into a coughing fit after taking your first hit. But, if you use a vape, you will mitigate this unwanted coughing since you will not inhale the smoke. If you want a smoother smoke, try our AAAA grade flower.
b) Can I smoke the weed without it smelling?
Worried about upsetting your roommates or neighbours? If you don’t want your flower to smell when smoking, you can also use a vape pen to ensure the weed is stored properly before consumption. Other than that, keep your room ventilated and wash your hands and clothes after a hit.
c) Are there side effects to look out for when smoking weed for the first time?
When you smoke weed the first time, you can expect to experience a high even when you take it in small amounts. This high can result in total relaxation and sleep if you take Indica strains or new-found energy when taking Sativa strains.
d) Is smoking weed legal?
Now that more states and countries are looking to legalize marijuana, you can keep up with your area laws to ensure it is legal to smoke pot from home. Then, ensure you buy the weed from a licensed seller and that you are of age to smoke weed.
e) How can I stop smoking pot?
You can use CBD products such as CBD oil, CBD edibles, and CBD drinkables when you want to stop smoking weed. Looking to try them out? Head here to see the different CBD products that can help you stay off marijuana for a while.