The "dangers" of silica wicks

[stevegmu]

I would be far more worried about using cotton wicks, than silica wicks. Most people price shop and just don't realize how toxic cotton balls and yarn can be, when liquid is saturated in them and inhaled.
As far as silica wicks breaking down, I wash them once, re-use, then toss out. I'm not going to try to stretch the life out of a product that is cheap and designed to be disposable.

 

[damthisisfun]

I would be far more worried about using cotton wicks, than silica wicks. Most people price shop and just don't realize how toxic cotton balls and yarn can be, when liquid is saturated in them and inhaled.
As far as silica wicks breaking down, I wash them once, re-use, then toss out. I'm not going to try to stretch the life out of a product that is cheap and designed to be disposable.

Cotton is toxic???? I been using cotton for about 6 months now - please elaborate why cotton is toxic?

 

[stevegmu]

Cotton is toxic???? I been using cotton for about 6 months now - please elaborate why cotton is toxic?

There have been many studies on the toxicity of cotton. Pesticides and chemicals used in processing are what is dangerous they don't just boil out, either. Many cotton balls themselves are made form cotton byproduct that I would never soak something in and vape. Cotton is the most toxic crop in existence.

You really don't want to know what breathing in cotton smoke can do to your lungs- say from dry hits, over time.

I would post links and studies, but It would be a waste of time. If it is cheap and works well for wicks, it must be safe.

If I were to use cotton wicks, I'd only use organic grown, unprocessed cotton.

 

[damthisisfun]

There have been many studies on the toxicity of cotton. Pesticides and chemicals used in processing are what is dangerous they don't just boil out, either. Many cotton balls themselves are made form cotton byproduct that I would never soak something in and vape. Cotton is the most toxic crop in existence.

You really don't want to know what breathing in cotton smoke can do to your lungs- say from dry hits, over time.

I would post links and studies, but It would be a waste of time. If it is cheap and works well for wicks, it must be safe.

If I were to use cotton wicks, I'd only use organic grown, unprocessed cotton.

I use unbleached cotton balls. Considering the various things around us - clothing for instance - are made from cotton- am sure the cotton used to make such things is not organic - also am pretty sure we breathe the fibers from such materials - all day every day - would that not be a bigger cause of alarm then vaping with cotton wicks?

 

[stevegmu]

I use unbleached cotton balls. Considering the various things around us - clothing for instance - are made from cotton- am sure the cotton used to make such things is not organic - also am pretty sure we breathe the fibers from such materials - all day every day - would that not be a bigger cause of alarm then vaping with cotton wicks?

Who says people aren't getting sick from cotton shirts?

There is a difference between wearing something and soaking it in liquid and inhaling the vapor produced from the liquid.

Have you researched what standard cotton balls are made out of and how they are made and processed?

 

[tenshi]

I don't think there's any danger from using silica wicks, but I sure wouldn't give any credit to a person on an ecig forum claiming to be a 'scientist'. The word 'scientist' is such an ambiguous term for a profession much like 'technician'. But, I digress, since 'science' is the 2013 buzzword that makes people feel smart, anyone with an internet connection and Google can be one.

k, just so I won't be so ambiguous to you. I'm a protein purification scientist to be exact with a doctorate in both chemistry and law. You are incorrect in your assumption that people use the word "science" to feel smart. I don't believe any of us scientists here have said anything to make us feel smart. Personally, I know that education and intelligence does not necessarily go hand in hand.

The whole point is that there is a heavy political burden surrounding ecigs and it is a difficult one to overcome. Both the media and FDA like to put fear and paranoia in us so we will not vape. So I believe, if those of us who live and study science can find the time to step forward and care enough to explain anywhere it is available (whether it be here in ECF or face to face with people in public) what we know to help people understand what is safe and what is not, then we can move forward as a vaping community.

 

[rbeckys8]

I guess you can fear anything is you try hard enough!

 

[damthisisfun]

Who says people aren't getting sick from cotton shirts?

There is a difference between wearing something and soaking it in liquid and inhaling the vapor produced from the liquid.

Have you researched what standard cotton balls are made out of and how they are made and processed?

What Are Cotton Balls Made of?
Answer
Cotton Balls are made of natural cotton fibers shaped into round balls which are typically white in color. The natural cotton fiber is got from a plant; however cotton balls are used as bandage to stop bleeding from small wounds like injection sites. It is also used for applying and removing make-up and mostly cotton balls is used for medical purposes in hospitals.

 

[xtwosm0kesx]

There have been many studies on the toxicity of cotton. Pesticides and chemicals used in processing are what is dangerous they don't just boil out, either. Many cotton balls themselves are made form cotton byproduct that I would never soak something in and vape. Cotton is the most toxic crop in existence.

You really don't want to know what breathing in cotton smoke can do to your lungs- say from dry hits, over time.

I would post links and studies, but It would be a waste of time. If it is cheap and works well for wicks, it must be safe.

If I were to use cotton wicks, I'd only use organic grown, unprocessed cotton.

Better go Vegan and quit eating processed foods while you're at it:

"Moreover, some 60 percent of a cotton crop, by weight, enters the food chain in the form of cottonseed oil which is used widely in processed foods, and as cottonseed feed for cows, ending up in meat and dairy products. The pesticide residues from these cottonseeds concentrate in the fatty tissues of these animals, and in turn are passed on in meat and dairy products to consumers."

Use organic cotton, no pesticides (supposedly), problem solved.

 

[damthisisfun]

And stop breathing while one is starving:

"The air most people breathe has become polluted with a complicated mixture of cancer-causing substances," said Kurt Straif, head of the IARC department that evaluates carcinogens. He said the agency now considers pollution to be "the most important environmental carcinogen," ahead of second-hand cigarette and cigar smoke.
IARC had previously deemed some of the components in air pollution such as diesel fumes to be carcinogens, but this is the first time it has classified air pollution in its entirety as cancer causing.

WHO agency: Air pollution causes cancer

 

[stevegmu]

Must be safe, if there are worse things. As I stated, posting links to studies would be a waste of time here and I was correct.

 

[Zippoz]

There have been many studies on the toxicity of cotton. Pesticides and chemicals used in processing are what is dangerous they don't just boil out, either. Many cotton balls themselves are made form cotton byproduct that I would never soak something in and vape. Cotton is the most toxic crop in existence.

You really don't want to know what breathing in cotton smoke can do to your lungs- say from dry hits, over time.

I would post links and studies, but It would be a waste of time. If it is cheap and works well for wicks, it must be safe.

If I were to use cotton wicks, I'd only use organic grown, unprocessed cotton.

Why would these not boil out?

 

[nevuh]

So have any real facts been posted or is this fourteen pages of hear say and no data?

 

[stevegmu]

Why would these not boil out?

They do, but not the way most people boil them. It takes a good 4-5 boils, changing the water between boils to rid the cotton balls from pesticide and processing residues. Organic, unbleached 100% cotton balls seem to be OK. Personally, I'm getting organic unprocessed cotton bolls after I acquire a rebuildable.

 

[thymetraveler]

I also would like to see further research into this topic.
The year I quit, I gave e cig starter kits to my close friends.

 

[tenshi]

I also would like to see further research into this topic.
The year I quit, I gave e cig starter kits to my close friends.

Nice. I try to do the same. Please follow CASAA because they have several studies regarding ecig safety. Plenty of research available. Congrats on quitting analogs.

 

[WarHawk-AVG]

Hi, folks. Occupational health and safety professional here.

I post a lot of questions about vaping here, because as you can see, I'm new. I don't know anything about vaping.

One thing I do know, however, is occupational health and safety, which is the field from which the scientific background comes that has deduced the dangers of inhaling silica into the lungs. So I thought I'd give a little back to the community and post what I know.

1) The primary health hazard of silica is silicosis. This is a disease that will probably kill you. I am not saying silica wicks cause silicosis. Your lungs contain macrophages. Tiny police in your lungs that trap particles and intruders, and try to expel them through your lungs natural elevator system. However, when macrophages get their hands on silica crystals, they lodge themselves in the wall of the lung, and can't let go. The macrophages die, and you're left with scars. Over the course of many years, the scars caused by the crystals make lung function decline, resulting in the diagnosis of silicosis. Silicosis is not reversible and there is no cure. Again, I am not saying that silica wicks cause silicosis.

2) There's two types of silica in regards to causing silicosis. Crystalline silica is the material that causes this disease. Amorphous silica does not. Someone mentioned the health effects of "glass silica" entering the lungs. If these wicks are indeed made from glass, they are by nature *not* crystalline silica. Glass is an amorphous material.

3) A reader thought that silica was the cause of some lung issues they were experiencing after vaping for a month or so. Unlikely. Silicosis takes many, many (10 - 30) years to develop. There is no instant effect.

4) Most occupational exposures to silica that result in silicosis are from sawing or drilling things like concrete that contains silica, working with certain types of insulation etc. These occupations are 5 days a week of MASSIVE amounts of crystalline silica hanging in the air. This is not to make light of the inherent dangers of crystalline silica, just to give you a comparison of what people who really do get the disease are exposed to.

5) Someone mentioned that putting a cotton or cloth pad between you and the wick might save you from the perceived danger of the silica wick. No. You need what is referred to as a P100 filter to contain the tiny particles that crystalline silica would produce.

6) I don't know if the silica wicks are amorphous or crystalline. This is something I'd need to find out.

Nice...can you give us a report on the dangers of TAR and Carbon Monoxide please?

Then of course there is this

Occupational exposure to crystalline silica often occurs as part of common workplace operations involving cutting, sawing, drilling, and crushing of concrete, brick, block, rock, and stone products (such as in construction work). Operations using sand products (such as glass manufacturing, foundries, and sand blasting) can result in worker inhalation of small (respirable) crystalline silica particles from the air. These types of exposures can lead to the development of disabling and sometimes fatal lung diseases, including silicosis and lung cancer. Processes historically associated with high rates of silicosis include sandblasting, sand-casting foundry operations, mining, tunneling, cement cutting and demolition, masonry work, and granite cutting

https://www.osha.gov/dsg/topics/silicacrystalline/

so wrapping a metal coil around a silica string and heating the coil to below the vaporization/melting point of silica...I think we are ok...unless people are pulverizing their wicks and breathing the dust in...

 

[Steamix]

Ekowool

Click on 'special offer for e-smokers'...

 

[specter9mm]

Saw this thread a little while ago and decided to do some research. There are so many forms of silica, we would actually need to ask a manufacturer what method they use to make silica wick. It is most likely that they are making "fibrous orthorhombic
oI12, Ibam, No.72[43] 1.97 like SiS2 consisting of edge sharing chains, melts at ~1700 K" copied from wikipedia. While this IS a crystaline form of silica, it is NOT powder producing. on the off chance that a hair from a silica wick does get inhaled while vaping, which is unlikely, it is not small enough to nest itself, and will most likely be carried out of the lungs in mucus via the cilia. I am not worried, especially given the volume of exposure the government allows construction workers to be around.

Also copied from wikipedia.

"Silica ingested orally is essentially nontoxic, with an LD50 of 5000 mg/kg.[3] On the other hand, inhaling finely divided crystalline silica dust can lead to silicosis, bronchitis, or cancer, as the dust becomes lodged in the lungs and continuously irritates them, reducing lung capacities.[24] Prior to new rules issued in 2013 OSHA allowed 100 micrograms a cubic meter of air. The new regulations reduce the amount to 50 µg/m3 down from 100 µg/m3. The exposure limit for the construction industry is also set at 50 µg/m3 down from 250 µg/m3.[25]"

 

[WidowsSon]

...unless people are pulverizing their wicks and breathing the dust in...

Actually this is my preferred method of dripping.

I use my 32 inch concrete cutter to slice me off a 2 inch piece of wick which is then dipped into my favorite juice. I then place it between two pieces of concrete (poured myself using carbon silica instead of rock.. much stronger) and pulverize it using my jack4000 pulverizer.

I find it to be a much more consistant vape, although a little dusty. The wife hates when I drip late at night. I might also mention that I have a severe case of carpal tunnel syndrome in the area/region of my body, arms and legs. Noone ever talks about vaping and carpal tunnel, but it's a reality.

NOTE: I don't want to trivialize the matter, just seems like the conclusion here has concluded.. thanks for the post OP, I found it interesting, question everything! Vape Safe!