Battery Maintenence

[Downgraded286]

I've had a number of batteries that now refuse to work, due to a wire coming loose. Currently my favorite battery is pretty much dead because the black wire came loose from the soldering, and no longer makes contact with the inside of the case. I don't have a soldering iron (and probably don't have the hands) to properly re-solder it, so, what are my options? My first thought is to strip the wire a little, and employ a small piece of electrical tape to stick it down to the case so it makes contact again.

Secondly, yet unrelated... I've heard so many do's and dont's about cleaning my coils, some of them conflicting, I don't know what to do. My method thus far has been to rinse them under warm water a number of times, let them dry for a while, and dry-burn them a little, just until it starts to glow red. Still, it seems after doing this once they begin to burn out rapidly. The coils I use are of this variety:

Bottom coil tank Heads from Smok Tech

 

[Eitje]

The tape might be a short term option but when your budget allows, I'd replace it. You risk a potential short with the wire coming loose again.
How they come loose in the 1st place?

Your cleaning method seems okay. Dry burning doesn't require them to be glowing red though. A little less should do the trick too. The whole idea is that some stuck gunk still burns free. Flush once more are doing so.
Coil cleaning has it's limits and it also depends how long and frequent you've been using that coil between cleans.

 

[suprtrkr]

I wouldn't take the risk with the batteries, myself. That's dangerous. You could take it to an electronics repair shop where a technician can properly re-solder it for you. But-- I assume here you are using eGo type batteries-- the price of the repair will be about three times the cost of a new battery. If they're eGos, they're disposable. Regarding the coils, soak then in pure grain alcohol or vodka over night-- or a week, you can't hurt them by soaking-- and allow to air dry completely before reuse. Using a hair dryer or hot air gun will speed the drying process. They can also be washed/soaked in hot soapy water, but the PGA does a better job of solving the juice gunk out of the wick. Don't try to use the coil to dry the wick: you're right, that burns them out. Maybe not every time, but often enough so that it's just not worth doing.

 

[Downgraded286]

Well, the battery is an eGo type battery, but a better one. It's a VV/VW Ballistixx model. I have no idea how it came loose, it just quit working one day.

I'm not comfortable using stuff like vodka, but I have other things available. I have rubbing alcohol, white vinegar and apple cider vinegar. I find soaking for a week or even a full day a little excessive though? Surely soaking for a few hours at most and a good rinse should remove most of the gunk?

 

[BrotherBob]

Some brick and mortar vape shops will resolder your battery for free ( my local shop offered one time) or for a nominal fee. Could telephone around as price shop.

 

[bwh79]

I'm not comfortable using stuff like vodka, but I have other things available. I have rubbing alcohol, white vinegar and apple cider vinegar. I find soaking for a week or even a full day a little excessive though? Surely soaking for a few hours at most and a good rinse should remove most of the gunk?

It's just alcohol and water, and even the cheap stuff is usually distilled to a pretty high purity. But unlike isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol, the ethanol in vodka (or PGA/everclear) is safe for human consumption. Either one should evaporate clean, but I would only ever use ethanol on my wicks, just in case it's not completely dry before you use it again. Isopropyl is reserved for glass and metal parts that won't soak it up.

A week might be a little excessive, yes, but like suprtrkr said, you can't hurt them by soaking too long, and the longer you soak, the more time it has to work. Overnight is probably a good call. Whether or not to rinse is up to you but note that alcohol will evaporate clean while there's all sorts of nasty stuff in tap water (chlorine, minerals, etc.) that you probably don't want to be vaping, should any get left behind. If you're going to rinse with water, you might want to get some distilled water from the grocery store. It'll take longer to dry that way, too, since the alcohol evaporates faster than the water would.

 

[daviedog]

If you know where the wire goes, soldering is your best fix. An iron will run about 12 bucks at Rat Shack. (15 watter).
Or you can use Kapton tape. Conductive, static temp to 500f . All Spec about 3usd a roll. I wouldn't bother with 'electrical' tape at the bigbox.
Learn to do simple repairs, it will make you feel big.
If you have a warranty, disregard above. Send it back..

 

[suprtrkr]

Well, the battery is an eGo type battery, but a better one. It's a VV/VW Ballistixx model. I have no idea how it came loose, it just quit working one day.

I'm not comfortable using stuff like vodka, but I have other things available. I have rubbing alcohol, white vinegar and apple cider vinegar. I find soaking for a week or even a full day a little excessive though? Surely soaking for a few hours at most and a good rinse should remove most of the gunk?

I really wouldn't recommend rubbing alcohol as it is poisonous to humans when ingested. OK, it's not likely you'd get enough to harm yourself, but why take the risk? Try vinegar if that makes you feel better. Rather than suggesting you let it soak for a week, I meant to say you can't hurt it by soaking. Back in the day when I was using pre-made coils, I would swap them once a week. And yes, I let it soak from the time I took it out until the night before I was going to swap. Then I would take it out of the alcohol and let it air dry on a paper towel overnight. Worked fine.

 

[Downgraded286]

Guess I'll try soaking in vinegar for a while then. I'm keeping one of my old juice bottles to soak the coils in...