Cartridge filler materials

[Kate]

Please could folk give their opinions, links and advice about what makes good cartridge fillers.

I have read some posts about wadding, toy stuffing and fish tank filter all being used successfully but haven't seen a compilation of ideas and products that have been tested and work.

Just a thought from me. Please be careful to use something that doesn't have potentially dangerous chemicals that might react with eliquid, I'm thinking mainly of flame retardant.

Here's Terraphon's video on how to restuff cartridges

How to re-stuff EVO e-cigarette cartridges

New video - Re-stuffing M-401 carts: up close and personal




Please don't tell us about experiments with novel materials here, just tried and tested fillers.

If you want to read more about cartridge fillers you can find threads here - e-cigarette-forum.com • The place for electronic cigarette reviews, news and chat - Threads Tagged with filler

Thanks.

[jennydotz]

Kate, I'm glad you mentioned flame retardant materials. Lots of folks have recommended polyester batting from Wal-Mart. I noticed some brands specified "flame retardant", so I worried about that. If A brand is NOT marked as FR, is it safe to assume that it is chemically untreated material? I guess I could try to burn it and find out, but does polyester even really burn anyway?

Then I wondered what they are really using in pre-packaged carts anyway? They could be flame retardant scraps from the sister factory, we'll never know. hope I'm not messing up the intentions of your thread, but this is the first mention of this topic I have seen.

[Sun Vaporer]

This Works --Walmart--cost 7 dollars and that bag will last me a year--Sun

[smokingclam]

I'm using the same brand as Sun except in a quilters batting. BTW Sun does yours say flammable on the package? Mine does on the bottom. Never noticed this before though I haven't had any problems with it.

[Sun Vaporer]

Originally Posted by smokingclam

I'm using the same brand as Sun except in a quilters batting. BTW Sun does yours say flammable on the package? Mine does on the bottom. Never noticed this before though I haven't had any problems with it.

Clam--just like any other material, polyester will burn at a high enough heat. I have burned this and the original cores only to get the same results. I certainly do not want any flame retardent chemical in my core if you know what I mean!! Sun

[smokingclam]

I agree but after reading the label it got me wondering about this stuff. Right from the warming label.....
Hazardous gases released by the burning fiber can be incapaccitating or fatal to human beings if inhaled in sufficient quantities!

You can be damned sure I will be keeping my cartridges well juiced from now on.

[Lika]

Kate, I'm glad you brought this up. First of all, I'm not totally satisfied with any of the materials recommended as cart material replacement in the forums. Heck, I'm not even happy with the original material in our carts. Whatever that material is...

That's why I've taken it upon myself to design a completely new dispensing system that could be used to replace all of these wicks/fillers in various cart models. The exception to the rule would be those that have the atomizer and wick contained in one component. This new system will be extremely sanitary, fire proof, melt proof, fray proof, etc. It will be somewhat expensive to manufacture compared to what we're used to in OEM cart fillers but it should last a very long time and of course be reusable via a simple rinse with warm water.

I can't really go into much more detail yet because at this point it's just on paper. Within the next few weeks I should be ready for a few 'beta' testers. Btw, what's a beta tester called when it comes to testing hardware as opposed to software? Guinea pigs? Don't fret though - there should be no safety issues to concern anyone with.

If it all works out to what my schematics suggest this new system could even convert the most devout drippers back to using carts. Wouldn't it just be heaven to have a happy medium between cart topping and dripping via a built in mechanism without all the hassle? Not to mention less stress on the atomizer while holding liquid that is dispensed consistently till the last drop.

[Sun Vaporer]

Originally Posted by Lika

First of all, I'm not totally satisfied with any of the materials recommended as cart material replacement in the forums. Heck, I'm not even happy with the original material in our carts. Whatever that material is...

That's why I've taken it upon myself to design a completely new dispensing system that could be used to replace all of these wicks/fillers in various cart models. The exception to the rule would be those that have the atomizer and wick contained in one component. This new system will be extremely sanitary, fire proof, melt proof, fray proof, etc. It will be somewhat expensive to manufacture compared to what we're used to in OEM cart fillers but it should last a very long time and of course be reusable via a simple rinse with warm water.

I can't really go into much more detail yet because at this point it's just on paper. Within the next few weeks I should be ready for a few 'beta' testers. Btw, what's a beta tester called when it comes to testing hardware as opposed to software? Guinea pigs? Don't fret though - there should be no safety issues to concern anyone with.

If it all works out to what my schematics suggest this new system could even convert the most devout drippers back to using carts. Wouldn't it just be heaven to have a happy medium between cart topping and dripping via a built in mechanism without all the hassle? Not to mention less stress on the atomizer while holding liquid that is dispensed consistently till the laest drop.

Glad to hear you are working on a new cores. In the meantime there is no need for our members to waste 69 cents rpiece for cores that are made out of 100% polyester.

Here is a quote from the Ruyan patent application about the original cores:

"The atomization is constantly supplied by the one hundred percent polyester fiber core that has been filled with the specially formulated liquid that wicks the wire mesh bridge"

So there is no need for us to speculate on what the core is made out of. If it is 100% polyester--you are using the same as the original. If it does not work for you either you have packed it too tight or to loose.

I look foward to seeing some alternatives to this method and Lika sounds like they are on to something---Thanks--Sun

[strayling]

I've mentioned this in a couple of other threads, but I guess once more won't hurt. I went to the local fabric store and bought the smallest amount of the thinnest grade polyester batting they had (BTW, be sure to check the material - some batting has cotton mixed in). Anyway, I got 1/8 of a yard from a roll; it cost the princely sum of 40 cents and there's enough to make hundreds of refills.

Like Sun said, the trick is to get the packing density right. The first one I tried, I packed it too tightly and it soaked up a bunch of juice but wouldn't let go of it onto the atomiser mesh. Matching the density of filler in a per-stuffed cart seems to be the way to go.

[jennydotz]

Originally Posted by smokingclam

BTW Sun does yours say flammable on the package? Mine does on the bottom. Never noticed this before though I haven't had any problems with it.

I would think flammable would be better, that means you can be sure it's not treated with some chemical. I just looked at mine and it says "meets the flammability requirements of the California Bureau of blablabla. . ." Wonder what that means?