Mixing By Weight - Ordering Supplies Stage

[SacredNut]

Hello ECF!

I've decided to start making my own ejuice and have already ordered most of the basic supplies: PG/VG/Gloves/Pipettes/LB-501 scale. After hours of nicotine research, I decided to go with Vaperstek nicotine. I'll be grabbing a 100mg 240mL (Nicotine/PG) bottle for my first purchase. I will be making two 120mL batches at a time. Looking at the ejuice recipes that I'm most interested in, each 120mL bottle would use 3.6mL of Nicotine. This will equate to using 7.2mL of Nicotine per mixing day. One 120mL bottle will be for me while the other for my wife. We probably each go through this sized bottle in about a week to ten days. I'm trying to figure out what would be the best storage method for decanting out the 240mL of nicotine. My current thoughts include purchasing 8-1oz cobalt glass bottles. 7 would be filled with nic and placed in the freezer. The 8th, would be filled and be kept in a desk drawer (74 degrees), for the 4-6 weeks of use. When the bottle becomes near empty, I would relocate one 1oz/30mL nic bottle from the freezer to the fridge to await its turn in my mixing by weight. Having 8 small bottles of nic in the freezer seems like it would take up more space than needed (such as 1 4oz, 1 2oz, and 2 1oz) but would reduce the additional opening/closing of bottles to decant further.

I would to love to hear any comments or thoughts on my upcoming adventure.

 

[ValevGK]

I am curious of comments that will come too! I just bought 100mg/ml nic and will use it soon, so.... your idea is welcome for me!

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[SacredNut]

A little math...

When it comes time to make a batch, I will be making two 120mL bottles. Based on the recipes I have bookmarked and will try first, each 120mL bottle will call for 3.6mL of 100mg nicotine. This totals to 7.2mL of nicotine per mixing day.

If the bottle of nicotine that I will be leaving out is 30mL (1oz), I will be opening this bottle 4 times to take out a total of 28.8mL needed for 4 mixing days. There of course will be an additional "opening/exposure to air" when I first fill the 30mL bottle and a 6th when I need to get the last 1.2mL out.

I envision that my mixing days will be 7-10 days apart.

In summary, this would mean that each 30mL bottle of nicotine that goes into a 1oz amber glass bottle, that I take out of the freezer and leave in a cool dark place, would be exposed to air, 5 times over the course of 5 mixing days which would total 35-50 days. (This is not including the original filling)

 

[JCinFLA]

I'd personally just break down the 240mL of nic into no smaller than (4) 60mL/2oz. bottles, if that. Since you'll be using 7.2mL of it every week-10 days...that 60mL will nearly be used up in just 2 - 2 1/2 months' time. Not going to hurt it at all, opening it up to take out what you need for mixing sessions during that time. Keep just 1 working bottle in the refrigerator if you want to, and just take it out to come to room temp. before using it each time. Keep your others in the freezer until you need the next one.

I use 3.5mL of my 100mg/mL nic base for each 50mL bottle of eliquid I make, and I usually make enough at a time for 2-3 weeks. I don't even refrigerate my working bottle of nic between sessions...and it's still clear as a bell each time I use it. It's just kept in my mixing case (in the dark) with my flavorings. Been doing it that way for more than a year. I just keep my other bottles in my deep freezer.

 

[JCinFLA]

@SacredNut - By the way, since you live in Sanford, you might want to check out getting your flavorings and some other DIY supplies from Wizard Labs. They're located in Altamonte Springs. You can place an order online & pay for it, and choose the option to Pick Up your order. Sure saves a bunch on S/H from them and/or when compared to ordering from elsewhere that has to ship it to you!

Edited to add: Also, I don't know where you'd planned to get your Amber Glass Boston Round Bottles from, but GlassBottleOutlet.com is located in Sebring, FL. They have by far the best price on those bottles...even with the Polycone Liner in the cap. Might want to check them out and order enough for not only your first 240mL of nic base, but more for when you get comfortable with DIY and want to buy nic by the liter. Ordering more nic, and bottles, at a time...saves a bunch on S/H, too. It's a whole lot more cost efficient in the longrun.

 

[SacredNut]

Thank you for your comments!

So with using 60mL bottles, I would need to open each one 9 times to empty it out across the 2-3 month life of each bottle. As this is and will be my first time, I guess my thought was the lesser amount of times opening would be better, but it sounds like 9 wont make much of a difference compared to 5. Having 3 bottles in the freezer as opposed to 7 also sounds much tidier.

Summed up, (3) 60mL bottles would stay in the freezer and 1 would be in the fridge until a day before my next mixing day followed by returning it to the fridge.

In preparation for this, I bought thermometers for the kitchen fridge and freezer. After just checking, their at 34 and -8 degrees Fahrenheit. Does this all sound about right?

 

[JCinFLA]

Yep, no problem at all! However, you don't need your working 60mL bottle of nic to stay out a whole day ahead of making some eliquids. It won't hurt it, but it won't take but maybe 2-3 hours or so to come to room temp. once out of the frig.

Your frig. is even at a colder temp. than mine was when I first started DIY and kept my working bottle of nic base in it between sessions. Never had anything but clear nic come out then either. Later, I just kept it even out of the frig. and still noticed no change in color nor taste in my eliquids.

 

[JCinFLA]

I kept forgetting to add this, too, to my posts above. If I were you, I would definitely not make 120mL batches of recipes...until I'd first made several much smaller ones (10mL at most maybe) to see if I even liked them. Making smaller ones first also allows you to "tweak" them to your own tastes, taking notes as you go, to get them exactly to your liking. THEN, use those notes on any changes you made to the small amounts...to make your adjusted/tweaked larger batches.

 

[SacredNut]

I was originally looking at specialtybottle.com for the Glass Boston Round Bottles. Looks like (8) 2 oz Cobalt Blue Boston Round Glass Bottle with Black Cap with shipping would total $14.01. GlassBottleOutlet totals $12.37 (with shipping) for (8) 2 oz. Cobalt Blue Boston Round with Black Cone Cap and actually describes it with a "poly cone cap". Specialtybottle has no mention of this. Thanks for the info on this. Does $12.37 for (8) 2oz sound about right?

Using my Amazon Prime membership, I bought the following already:
Essential Depot Propylene Glycol 1 Quart ($10.95)
Essential Depot Glycerin Vegetable Kosher USP - 1 Gallon ($23.97)
Nitrile Exam Gloves - Medical Grade, Powder Free, Latex Rubber Free, Disposable, Non Sterile, Food Safe, Indigo (purple) color, Convenient Dispenser Pack of 100, Size Large ($9.95)
American Weigh Scales LB-501 Digital Kitchen Scale ($29.99)
Teenitor® 2ml Plastic Liquid Transfer Pipettes, Pasteur Dropper, Essential Oil Eye Dropper Pack of 200 ($7.99)
(Totaling $85.65)

The only thing I still need to purchase is the nicotine and glass bottles.
The Vaperstek 100mg 240mL will cost $40 (includes shipping).

 

[SacredNut]

I kept forgetting to add this, too, to my posts above. If I were you, I would definitely not make 120mL batches of recipes...until I'd first made several much smaller ones (10mL at most maybe) to see if I even liked them. Making smaller ones first also allows you to "tweak" them to your own tastes, taking notes as you go, to get them exactly to your liking. THEN, use those notes on any changes you made to the small amounts...to make your adjusted/tweaked larger batches.

That's great advice. I think I will test/sample with smaller 10mL batches. Maybe even 7mL would be best so I could fill each of our aspire cleito tanks (3.5mL) full for testing. (I don't drip so this will have to do)

 

[SacredNut]

That's great advice. I think I will test/sample with smaller 10mL batches. Maybe even 7mL would be best so I could fill each of our aspire cleito tanks (3.5mL) full for testing. (I don't drip so this will have to do)

My brain immediately goes to the thought of how this "testing" will add another "opening/exposure to air". I wonder if I'm overthinking this aspect. As you mentioned before, each bottle will be used up within 3 months and will be closed 99.99% of the time.

Should the PG and VG bottles that I mentioned above be stored in any special way other than in the original bottles and left in a cabinet?

 

[oplholik]

I don't worry about exposure to air. I break down my nic in 120mm bottles. The one I am working on is in the cabinet, from that, I fill a 30ml bottle for easier use, and no matter how many times I take it out for use, I haven't seen or noticed any ill effects from exposure.

 

[Sugar_and_Spice]

That's great advice. I think I will test/sample with smaller 10mL batches. Maybe even 7mL would be best so I could fill each of our aspire cleito tanks (3.5mL) full for testing. (I don't drip so this will have to do)

Do you have some recipe in mind that are shake and vape. What types of flavors are you planning on using? I ask because some flavors have alcohol in them and need to breathe/steep first before vaping.

I would take a drop on my finger to test taste before committing a factory coil to it.



eta also take a look here for easy to mix for shake and vapes.

Recipes for Dummies

 

[ValevGK]

I bought my 100mg/ml nic from VapingZone. 2l for 119$ without shiping. Another option was from Nicvape, but the price was 150$ for same quantity.

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[JCinFLA]

About the bottles - Yes, that looks about right, but if the cobalt blue bottles are more than the amber ones...I'd just get the amber ones. That's what many of us use, and they work just as well at keeping light out. Besides, in your frig. and/or freezer...the only time light gets into them is when you open them! Most will also put their bottles of nic in the freezer in a layer of bubblewrap and then in a small box to help prevent against accidental breakage. So...NO light gets in then.

About your supplies you ordered, looks like you're going to be well stocked. I personally buy my PG and VG by the gallon jugs from Bulk Apothecary. VG costs $13.40 and PG costs $18.52, without a discount + about $12.50 S/H. When they have a sale...it's about 10-15% off of that.

You'll have enough gloves for a long time, as well as pipettes. Many of us even wash and reuse the pipettes in warm water and dish liquid, and reuse them! i don't use gloves myself, but when I first started DIY I used 1 on the hand I was holding the nic bottle with.

I mix by volume (with a few syringes and blunt needle tips), so I don't know about that scale. Seems like I've seen that one recommended lots of times though.

As far as overthinking nic exposure while making samples, etc....yep, that may be the case. I do lots and lots of sample mixes, as well as 30mL, 50mL, 100mL batches and sometimes as many as (7) 50mL bottles at 1 time when making eliquids for myself and a neighbor. No problem with the nic exposure to air yet!

PG and VG are fine kept just in a cool place without exposure to direct sunlight. I don't refrigerate mine, nor does anyone else I've seen post on here. I'm sure some may, but I've not run across them yet.

 

[SacredNut]

Do you have some recipe in mind that are shake and vape. What types of flavors are you planning on using? I ask because some flavors have alcohol in them and need to breathe/steep first before vaping.

I would take a drop on my finger to test taste before committing a factory coil to it.



eta also take a look here for easy to mix for shake and vapes.

Recipes for Dummies

For the first batches, I wanted to start with something that had high reviews/ratings using [Insert Common Ejuice Recipe Website Name Here]

Specifically, recipes I found called Ella's Shortbread Biscuit and Kreed's Kustard will be my first ones. I have not ordered the flavorings yet.

The recipes contain the following flavors, respectively:

Acetyl Pyrazine 5% (TPA)
Biscuit (INAWERA)
Sugar Cookie (CAP)
Vanilla Custard v1 (CAP)
Vanilla Shisha (INAWERA)

Cotton Candy (10% EM/Ethyl Maltol) (TPA)
French Vanilla (CAP)
New York Cheesecake (CAP)
Vanilla Custard v1 (CAP)

 

[JCinFLA]

The Vaperstek 100mg 240mL will cost $40 (includes shipping)

Wow! That's some expensive nic base, but...I have heard that it's very good. I've bought/used Nude Nicotine, Wizard Labs, RTS Vapes, and My Freedom Smokes nic bases. I like all of the 1st 3 equally well, and decided on RTS Vapes for my last 2L of nic for my freezer "stash". Paid $45/Liter for them.

Maybe even 7mL would be best so I could fill each of our aspire cleito tanks (3.5mL) full for testing. (I don't drip so this will have to do)

I agree with Sugar_and_Spice above about it...I wouldn't fill a tank with a sample batch until you've tested it to see if you even like it. If you'll send me a PM...with your name and address...I'll send you a few free JoyeTech Mega atomizers and drip tips to fit them, for test vaping your samples. They're really easy to use and can be reused over and over again. I just happen to have 150+ of them I got really cheap!

 

[Sugar_and_Spice]

For the first batches, I wanted to start with something that had high reviews/ratings using e-liquid-recipes (dot) com.

Specifically, Ella's Shortbread Biscuit and Kreed's Kustard will be my first ones. I have not ordered the flavorings yet.

Just don't want you to be disappointed if your first batches don't turn out like you had hoped.

Mine was just a suggestion so at least taste a drop before committing a coil. And I would smell each flavor first to see if alcohol is present. If so, I can't stress enough allowing it to breathe and steep before trying to vape it. I can tell you just by the name of Kustard it will need to steep.

 

[JCinFLA]

@SacredNut - You'll want to go back to your post with the name of that site in it...and edit it back out. Moderators frown on overriding the filters that prevent certain websites from being posted on here. That's why it didn't show up in the first place.

 

[SacredNut]

@JCinFLA - I'll have to check out Bulk Apothecary when the time comes to reorder and I'll switch to Amber Glass to save a little as well. I like the bubble wrap and small box idea too. I should have these handy as my vape mail starts to come in.

I read forum after forum across the net about good nicotine and it seemed to always circle back to VT as being most preferred. It definitely is a little more expensive than its competitors, but I wanted to start with one that had a good reputation. At 16.6 cents per mL, each 120mL batch/bottle would only be using 60 cents of nicotine (3.6mL) so it didn't sound too pricey in the long run. Once I decided to get the gallon of VG instead of a 250mL container, I realized I would be saving $2 (per batch/bottle) with that decision. This is all in the direction of heading away from the current spending of $10-14 per 120mL bottle of pre-made that only lasts 7-10 days.

Thanks for the offer by the way, expect a PM momentarily!