subject: How To Relight A Pipe [print this page] One of the nice things about pipes is that they provide a long-lasting smoke. In fact, sometimes this smoke lasts long enough that the smoker would prefer to put it out and to finish it at a later time. Pipes can oftentimes be left to go out on their own and, when they are, one must go through the lighting process again when they wish to finish it. The process is largely the same as the first light with a few steps removed.
Pipe smokers usually make use of a few different tools when packing their pipe. These will come into play when one relights their pipe. The most often-used three tools are a tamping tool, an aerator and a pipe cleaner. The aerator may have to be used to relight the pipe. The tamping tool may come into play, as well. One will find out whether the tobacco needs to be repacked as soon as they relight the pipe.
Relight the pipe by holding the flame above the tobacco and puffing it into the bowl. Remember to light the entire bowl evenly so that no spot is burning hotter than another. Also avoid puffing too hard. One does not want the pipe to be burning too hot as it will have a significant effect on the flavor of the tobacco. If the burn is uneven, use the tamping tool to aerate the tobacco a bit and to even out the ember.
If one has a pipe lighter, one likely has all the tools they need to properly light and relight a pipe. The tamping tool is used before smoking, the aerator during and the cleaner after. The aerator is the simplest of these tools. One simply pokes holes in the tobacco to increase the airflow if the draw is hard or the burn uneven. The cleaning tool is used to remove all the tar, ash and debris from the pipe after one is finished with their smoke. Good lighters have all three tools included.
Most pipe lighters come with the appropriate tools for aerating, tamping and cleaning the pipe. These tools usually fold back into the lighter when not in use. These tool-equipped lighters are available in fluid-filled types as well as in the more popular butane models. If one is serious about their pipe, they need to have one of these lighters on hand or a tool kit with the same implements. The lighter devices are, of course, more convenient.
