CARE AND FEEDING OF YOUR T.M.C.
(Tensioned Contact Micro/Macro/Mini Coil)
by MacTechVpr
Recycling Ceramic Weave T.M.C.'s
Kanger and other clearomizers threaded with Nextel XC-132 ceramic wicks will offer an outstanding durability compared to silica and other synthetics. However, like any other permeable thing in the physical universe, the wick will get dirty. Pigments and flavorings clump up in juice and more so with the application of heat. Think reduction on the stove. These particles eventually accumulate in any wick as you might see in a wet sponge with time and then the coil must be replaced, rebuilt or rethreaded with wick media. However, with t.m.c.'s it's possible to actually clean your wick effectively. It's claimed for things like silica and Eko but in practice that's another matter. You can torch Nextel at 1,800º F but that's not practical installed in a coil assembly. With a t.m.c. ceramic coil you can prolong its uniform performance over the life of the coil assembly with routine cleaning.
First if you operate one or two tanks, it's still a good idea to have a few back-ups available. Why? Because what I'm going to describe is a rotation. These wicks will last a good time, if you don't stress them to their limit and wash them regularly. To do that, you need some simple steps. As soon as you start to detect any slight variation in juice color, flavor or change in draw…swap out the wick. Break open a new one, or a cleaned coil, and send the used wick to recycling…
Routine Cleaning
1. Soak coil assemblies in a small cup of hot tap or microwaved water.
The water doesn't have to be distilled, filtered, etc. just clean unless you prefer it. The soaking will loosen gunked pigments from within the wick fibers and most will exude from the wick interior and exterior. How long? Depends on how dirty. If you cycle frequently like every few days, a couple of hours will do. It will take longer as the wick sees more use.
For best results you can remove the top cap from the coil assembly and rinse the top wick separately under running tap water. Run it gently between fingers to remove as much sediment as possible. Then top wick, base and chimney may go into the hot soak. No further disassembly is required.
2. Withdraw from the soak and allow to dry.
Typically after a few hours, or more. If you're desperate you can take a hair dryer to it but the fibers are tight, some moisture will remain. It takes time. That's why a rotation from your back-up works. As few as 2-3 may be enough to support a pair of tanks. More is better and makes life simpler.
3. Pulse the coil on your VV/VW device.
You will need to burn off pigments affixed to the coil itself before reuse.
On your variable (e.g. Vamo, Provari, etc) install your Protank base with cleaned coil in place. Set your variable at a low voltage, i.e. 3.2-3.3V to start. Begin pulsing (dry burn) the coil with short bursts of about 1-2 seconds. The wick may steam off a little. Soon after a few pulses the coil itself will start to glow. This will cook off all of the remaining moisture and all or most of the caramelized sediments which adhere to the surface. Increase power slightly to no more than 3.5-3.7V and sustain for 2-3 seconds per pulse. Within usually about 7-10 pulses at least one or two turns of the coil should begin to glow. When the coil glows red-orange-red end-to-end, you're done!
A small fine (soft) nylon brush aids removing any dried sediments which may remain on the surface of the coil. Simply blowing most off may help. Or you may rinse the coil and leave it to dry again. Some may prefer this as it may eliminate most of the taste of the dry burn itself. This pretty much results in a coil that performs virtually as well as a new one.
Congratulations! You are ready to refill and vape.
However, if the coil doesn't glow uniformly as explained above or your resistance dropped below the normal rated wire resistance for your coil, there may be a problem with the coil. This may affect coil performance.
Use an alternate if available. See the forthcoming...
ADVANCED CLEANING AND TWEAKING OF T.M.C. COILS
(Tensioned Contact Micro/Macro/Mini Coil)
by MacTechVpr
Recycling Ceramic Weave T.M.C.'s
Kanger and other clearomizers threaded with Nextel XC-132 ceramic wicks will offer an outstanding durability compared to silica and other synthetics. However, like any other permeable thing in the physical universe, the wick will get dirty. Pigments and flavorings clump up in juice and more so with the application of heat. Think reduction on the stove. These particles eventually accumulate in any wick as you might see in a wet sponge with time and then the coil must be replaced, rebuilt or rethreaded with wick media. However, with t.m.c.'s it's possible to actually clean your wick effectively. It's claimed for things like silica and Eko but in practice that's another matter. You can torch Nextel at 1,800º F but that's not practical installed in a coil assembly. With a t.m.c. ceramic coil you can prolong its uniform performance over the life of the coil assembly with routine cleaning.
First if you operate one or two tanks, it's still a good idea to have a few back-ups available. Why? Because what I'm going to describe is a rotation. These wicks will last a good time, if you don't stress them to their limit and wash them regularly. To do that, you need some simple steps. As soon as you start to detect any slight variation in juice color, flavor or change in draw…swap out the wick. Break open a new one, or a cleaned coil, and send the used wick to recycling…
Routine Cleaning
1. Soak coil assemblies in a small cup of hot tap or microwaved water.
The water doesn't have to be distilled, filtered, etc. just clean unless you prefer it. The soaking will loosen gunked pigments from within the wick fibers and most will exude from the wick interior and exterior. How long? Depends on how dirty. If you cycle frequently like every few days, a couple of hours will do. It will take longer as the wick sees more use.
For best results you can remove the top cap from the coil assembly and rinse the top wick separately under running tap water. Run it gently between fingers to remove as much sediment as possible. Then top wick, base and chimney may go into the hot soak. No further disassembly is required.
2. Withdraw from the soak and allow to dry.
Typically after a few hours, or more. If you're desperate you can take a hair dryer to it but the fibers are tight, some moisture will remain. It takes time. That's why a rotation from your back-up works. As few as 2-3 may be enough to support a pair of tanks. More is better and makes life simpler.
3. Pulse the coil on your VV/VW device.
You will need to burn off pigments affixed to the coil itself before reuse.
On your variable (e.g. Vamo, Provari, etc) install your Protank base with cleaned coil in place. Set your variable at a low voltage, i.e. 3.2-3.3V to start. Begin pulsing (dry burn) the coil with short bursts of about 1-2 seconds. The wick may steam off a little. Soon after a few pulses the coil itself will start to glow. This will cook off all of the remaining moisture and all or most of the caramelized sediments which adhere to the surface. Increase power slightly to no more than 3.5-3.7V and sustain for 2-3 seconds per pulse. Within usually about 7-10 pulses at least one or two turns of the coil should begin to glow. When the coil glows red-orange-red end-to-end, you're done!
A small fine (soft) nylon brush aids removing any dried sediments which may remain on the surface of the coil. Simply blowing most off may help. Or you may rinse the coil and leave it to dry again. Some may prefer this as it may eliminate most of the taste of the dry burn itself. This pretty much results in a coil that performs virtually as well as a new one.
Congratulations! You are ready to refill and vape.
However, if the coil doesn't glow uniformly as explained above or your resistance dropped below the normal rated wire resistance for your coil, there may be a problem with the coil. This may affect coil performance.
Use an alternate if available. See the forthcoming...
ADVANCED CLEANING AND TWEAKING OF T.M.C. COILS
