Why should I use hemp wick?

 

The versatility of hemp never fails to amaze most of us, especially when the US was prohibited from growing it over a hundred years ago.  Today, as the Farm Bill attempts to right that particular wrong, we see numerous applications for hemp as a material in textiles, agriculture, medicine, and building materials.  While the cannabis industry continues to surge forward, hemp is a popular partner, having found many uses for cannabis users in various forms – packaging, CBD, rolling papers, and now wick.  If you haven’t heard of hemp wick yet its popularity is growing quickly.

How many times have you attempted to light a pipe or chillum and burned your finger or worse, your brows?  Don’t even get us started on the torch lighters that are like weapons when aimed at the wrong target.  Enter hemp wick.  Smart hemp advocates have found yet another new use for hemp by twisting the fibers and coating in beeswax which make for an excellent way to light anything.  Many lighters that are used for lighting smokeables are filled with butane – a type of ignitable fuel – that produces a blue flame indicating it is hotter than a normal flame. Medical experts purport that this gas can have both short-term and long-term effects on overall health.

Over time, exposure to butane can lead to unwanted consequences like suffocation, drowsiness, and narcosis. When we have so much information at our fingertips about health and wellness when it comes to consuming cannabis, it makes sense to consider healthier alternatives.  Fuel containing lighters also pose the risk of destroying the cannabinoids and terpenes of the herb being consumed, which is bad news for Missouri’s medical marijuana patients.

Hemp wicks are easy to use because of their compact design and flexibility. You can easily manipulate by hand into any form you need. Some hemp wicks can burn quickly, so practice to get the right length of the wick you’ll need.  Users can wrap hemp wick around their lighter so they’ll have it on hand right when they need it. Keeping the two together allows one to have everything they need conveniently in one hand.  Experts recommend taking a strand and wrapping it tightly around a lighter, starting at the base and twisting it around the lighter until the top is reached. The beeswax coating will keep the wick in place and it’ll be easy to place the end into the flame when lighting a bowl or water pipe. Smart designers have even begun offering “sleeves” that fit around a common Bic lighter to hold your length of wick where it’s most convenient.

    

Since hemp wick burns slowly at a low temperature, the marijuana effect it creates is both cleaner and less harsh to the lungs. Because there is no butane or potassium chlorate being inhaled, users are likely to not feel uncomfortable during smoking sessions. Also, since it burns at a low temperature, it reduces the probability of cannabinoids being destroyed.

Have you tried hemp wick for your use when smoking?  What has your experience been?