I'm quite aware that going on record with this may ruffle some feathers, but it needs to be said.
I'm saying this here in the blog space for now, although I have several posts in the TFA Flavoring thread describing and/or essentially encouraging Citric Acid use which I cannot "undo". So I will probably end up posting in the thread about this too since there are new DIYers coming onboard all the time and others who might also be inclined to try it because of my or other folks' positive discussion of it.
I have stopped using 10% Citric Acid ("CA") solution in my mixes. My wife and I have both found over the last month or so that it causes the flavor of our DIY liquid to start "going flat" in a relatively short period of time.
I know the 10% solution is accurate because I prepared it myself. 1/4tsp of food-grade, kosher, non-GMO pure Citric Acid crystals per 10ml PG. The solution was not used at all until the crystals were completely dissolved.
You may be thinking, "Well, he probably just put too much in the mix".
2-3 drops in a 50ml bottle is what I've been using. A very small amount.
My wife noticed a few weeks ago that a bottle of Snowy Days I mixed up for her seemed to be losing its flavor after a few days. She had even replaced the coil on her tank trying to see if that was the problem, but it just kept getting worse. She didn't say anything about it until I mentioned that the bottle of DK Vanilla Coconut I had mixed up was losing more of its flavor as the week and a half or so of that bottle's life went on. (I go through liquid a lot faster than she does).
When I emptied my bottle of DK Vanilla Coconut and mixed my next one up, I decided to try leaving the CA out when I mixed up the next bottle. I had been thinking about this and remembered the older, long-running threads on ECF about adding things such as ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar), Malic Acid, Lemon Juice, Distilled Vinegar, etc. where everybody was all excited about how they made liquids taste better, "pop", reduce undesirable notes in tobacco liquids, and "steep" faster. You know... the magic ingredient-type stories. I also remembered that by the end of "the vinegar thread", many of the original posters posted in the thread (or elsewhere on the forums) that they had found that these acidic additives were killing the flavor of their liquids and they had stopped using them.
When I mentioned this to my wife and she told me she was noticing the same thing, I mixed her up another bottle of Snowy Days and left out the CA. She has been on this bottle of Snowy Days for 2-3 weeks now (it's almost gone). It still has the good flavor. I haven't used CA in my DK Vanilla Coconut or any other liquids I've mixed for myself in the last few weeks, and I am not tasting a flavor drop anymore either.
I don't doubt that Citric Acid kills or inhibits any bacteria growth in e-liquid. However my wife and I both keep our liquids "put away" out of sunlight. Mine stays in my "vape kit" or in a cabinet unless I'm filling my tank, and my wife keeps hers in a cabinet unless she's filling up too. So they don't really get exposed to any significant amount of light.
A 50ml bottle of liquid doesn't last me long enough for bacteria growth to become a problem anyway.
If you're noticing the flavor of your DIY liquid going flat in a relatively short amount of time, and you're putting Citric Acid solution in it -- try leaving the CA out next time you mix and see if it helps. "YMMV", but as for me and my wife, we are done adding Citric Acid to our DIY liquids.
Mix on!
I'm saying this here in the blog space for now, although I have several posts in the TFA Flavoring thread describing and/or essentially encouraging Citric Acid use which I cannot "undo". So I will probably end up posting in the thread about this too since there are new DIYers coming onboard all the time and others who might also be inclined to try it because of my or other folks' positive discussion of it.
I have stopped using 10% Citric Acid ("CA") solution in my mixes. My wife and I have both found over the last month or so that it causes the flavor of our DIY liquid to start "going flat" in a relatively short period of time.
I know the 10% solution is accurate because I prepared it myself. 1/4tsp of food-grade, kosher, non-GMO pure Citric Acid crystals per 10ml PG. The solution was not used at all until the crystals were completely dissolved.
You may be thinking, "Well, he probably just put too much in the mix".
2-3 drops in a 50ml bottle is what I've been using. A very small amount.
My wife noticed a few weeks ago that a bottle of Snowy Days I mixed up for her seemed to be losing its flavor after a few days. She had even replaced the coil on her tank trying to see if that was the problem, but it just kept getting worse. She didn't say anything about it until I mentioned that the bottle of DK Vanilla Coconut I had mixed up was losing more of its flavor as the week and a half or so of that bottle's life went on. (I go through liquid a lot faster than she does).
When I emptied my bottle of DK Vanilla Coconut and mixed my next one up, I decided to try leaving the CA out when I mixed up the next bottle. I had been thinking about this and remembered the older, long-running threads on ECF about adding things such as ACV (Apple Cider Vinegar), Malic Acid, Lemon Juice, Distilled Vinegar, etc. where everybody was all excited about how they made liquids taste better, "pop", reduce undesirable notes in tobacco liquids, and "steep" faster. You know... the magic ingredient-type stories. I also remembered that by the end of "the vinegar thread", many of the original posters posted in the thread (or elsewhere on the forums) that they had found that these acidic additives were killing the flavor of their liquids and they had stopped using them.
When I mentioned this to my wife and she told me she was noticing the same thing, I mixed her up another bottle of Snowy Days and left out the CA. She has been on this bottle of Snowy Days for 2-3 weeks now (it's almost gone). It still has the good flavor. I haven't used CA in my DK Vanilla Coconut or any other liquids I've mixed for myself in the last few weeks, and I am not tasting a flavor drop anymore either.
I don't doubt that Citric Acid kills or inhibits any bacteria growth in e-liquid. However my wife and I both keep our liquids "put away" out of sunlight. Mine stays in my "vape kit" or in a cabinet unless I'm filling my tank, and my wife keeps hers in a cabinet unless she's filling up too. So they don't really get exposed to any significant amount of light.
A 50ml bottle of liquid doesn't last me long enough for bacteria growth to become a problem anyway.
If you're noticing the flavor of your DIY liquid going flat in a relatively short amount of time, and you're putting Citric Acid solution in it -- try leaving the CA out next time you mix and see if it helps. "YMMV", but as for me and my wife, we are done adding Citric Acid to our DIY liquids.
Mix on!
