The Carto Assassin - Dark juices killing cartos

**AdariousMistdancer** · 05-19-2012, 08:05 PM

This is now the 5th carto in as many days I've tried with this juice. The same thing every time. Initial fill fine ... one or two refills of 4 or 5 drops per normal (like I would with any clear liquid), and then the cotton mushrooms and after a pull or two goes black on top, not absorbing anything more without it going straight through the air hole. It's done this on both 2.0ohm and 3.0s consistently. This is a white chocolate flavor, it's not nearly as dark as a coffee flavor. Cartos aren't cheap if you start going through 1 a day, so what's the deal?

I've also tried this same stuff on an atty, although I'm fairly sure the Joye atty I got was garbage, as all flavors tasted nasty and burnt from the getgo at any voltage between 3 and 4. Then I tried a CE2 tank, and it worked for 1.6m and then stopped wicking entirely. This is currently the only bottle I have left so this is getting frustrating to say the least.

Further, considering that all the juices I get are 30/70 vg/pg, what difference is it that the darkness makes? Clear liquids such as blackberry work outstanding so I fail to see the cause of the dark menace?

**Uncle Willie** · 05-19-2012, 08:14 PM

Dark liquids commonly clog a carto quickly .. just the nature of the beast .. sediment

**AttyPops** · 05-19-2012, 08:42 PM

A..M..dancer... Sure it isn't too thick?

OK. So this rest is pure conjecture just for fun. Let's kick it around.

Caramel is burnt sugar (well, caramelization reaction sugar... I think... very fascinating stuff for something that starts out as a fairly pure chemical in crystal form.). Then add milk/cream. You have caramel. Now... a lot of flavor recipes have a caramel flavor in them.

Supposedly, this is not made from sugar, but from individual flavor molecules. However, the process of making caramel basically breaks the sugar down and makes "flavor chemicals". lol. So, since I'm neither a chemist nor a flavor maker, I can't tell you what goes into "caramel flavoring". (nor caramel color, for that matter). However, if you buy a caramel flavor from many vendors IT IS WEAK. Pretty much diluted with either PG or VG. Bet that, unless some flavor vendor has pulled a rabbit out of a hat, at least some of the problem molecules that would cause real caramel to gunk a coil must be present in the caramel flavorings... because it's necessary to even approach the taste of caramel.

OF course, this doesn't account for all "dark" flavor chemicals. And I also note that EM is clear (but is also rumored to gunk stuff up).

OTOH, the DIY key lime that I'm vaping right now is tart, and not a problem so far. I'm on day two with the same carto.

So EM is probably less of an offender than caramel. And there are other offenders... supposedly most of them are darker in color for some reason.

Of course, you'll never really know what's in your juice from vendor X anyway, and how much is caramel, EM or other. "Artificial Flavoring" is all you'll get for ingredients.

So... sweet juice = gunk juice. EM may be a bit better (and is clear)... but will still clog.

**Uncle Willie** · 05-19-2012, 08:58 PM

I've had liquid with so much sediment that after less than a day, you could push the gunk thru the carto hole with a paperclip ..

**Caelius Felix** · 05-19-2012, 09:07 PM

If you've found a juice you like, you may have to live with changing out cartos daily. I do. At maybe $1.35 apiece (standard size Boges from CCV, free postage), you're still way ahead of what the tobacco habit was probably costing you.

**AdariousMistdancer** · 05-19-2012, 09:20 PM

I think I'd rather just swear off dark juices entirely. I'd switch now if I had anything else. One of the most recent ones of note I wish I had another bottle of now, is Springvapor's (Nik's) Blackberry Breeze; crystal clear and great. There are a couple of dull yellow shaded ones I don't mind, but no more brown or black .. or for that matter chocolate anything. The other 2 are BWBrew cola which is awesome, and Orange Dream from SVapor.

I never considered what Atty said, and it does make sense ... the burnt-sugar look is precisely how the top of the carto looks when it takes a dump. I'm planning to try doing DIY soon as well, so we'll see how that goes.

Still have another 5 days to make it .. hopefully the larger ce2 tank handles it after this carto takes a dump. I have to drip straight into it as the wicks failed after one tank of the same stuff.

Thanks

**AttyPops** · 05-19-2012, 10:39 PM

If it's a CE2 I think you can clean them........but I use atomizers mostly, so IDK. I happen to be using up my 1-year old single box of cartos at the moment. Show you how often (NOT!) I use them.

I use atomizers and drip. I recommend having a spare atty around, if nothing else, to sample juice. There's also a thread about "Why does anyone even bother dripping anymore since cartos are soooo cool." or some such nonsense. Always OK to ask a question, particularly when that uninformed about dripping.

I know I know. Bad me talking about another thread behind it's back.

**EricHill78** · 05-19-2012, 10:41 PM

In theory wouldnt a bottom feeder rectify the situation? U can clean an atty alot easier when it gets gunked up.

**Geiseric** · 05-19-2012, 10:46 PM

Ce2s are very easy to clean. Pull off the tube, spread the wicks out horizontally, and run a hand torch over the wicks until they glow white. To clean the inside part that you cant get to with a torch, I dry burn them. May be a bad idea, seems some people think so. Hasn't caused me any problems. Ce2s only die for me when the coil breaks off, which is pretty rare.