Brand new to vaping/ecigs - Analog smoker for 29 years

[Mercurial_One1]

After the typical 2,233,999 attempts at quitting smoking, I finally decided to try one of those new-fangled "e-cigs" I'd heard so much about. I had absolutely no idea what they were or how they worked, up to and including not knowing they even contained nicotine. Finally, on a lark, I grabbed a Blu. . . and was instantly hooked.

I posted on FB and got lots of warm responses from friends that I didn't even know vaped. Suggestions, websites, etc. Went from being instantly hooked to instantly confused. The lingo! The technology! What on EARTH is this foreign language??? lol I still don't know but I'm spending endless fascinated hours exploring and I was thrilled that there's actually a *community*. . . can't wait to become part of it.

I finally settled on: Bundle - 510 ONE Box Set with all the Trimmings

It shipped Friday so I should get it early next week. I have no idea how to use it or if I chose wisely. Or what to do next. Or... lol

Looking forward to learning from you guys.

 

[power685]

Wish you Big success in kicking the habit. And congested on this intriguing hobbie !

 

[RKAznam]

Welcome! Been entirely off analogs (cigarettes) for little over a month now from 25 years and I must say I feel great! Been trying all those lovely juices (e-liquids) out there. Money well spent as long as I keep off analogs!

*Keep on vaping*

 

[Ahoy]

Hey there! firstly Welcome to the family!

It's a huge lifestyle change and trust me, this community has got your back for sure. Everyone is here for the same reason and we all understand the troubles and whatnot.

As for your purchase, I have heard of aqua before but haven't personally tried one, a lot of people start with "cig-a-likes" which are ecigs that resemble cigarettes. These "cig-a-likes" have a basic 510 thread connection and normally are 2 piece consisting of a cartomizer and a battery (usually 150-250mah [mah determines the length of the battery before the next charge] the higher the mah, the longer the battery will last between charges). They are ok to start with but after a while you might want something more! Which is totally normal, this develops into a habit of sorts after a while and you will suffer from that dreaded window shopping disease us vapers have. The next step for you after you try out your new kit and at some point want something a little more, would be to invest in an ego-style battery or something greater! Check out these sites I have listed below to get started, obviously there are many many more out there but these will get you started. Any questions, feel free to ask.

fasttech.com(china supplier, extremely cheap but a lot of products are knock-offs, and slow shipping due to customs)
madvapes.com(fast shipping, decently cheap prices and great customer service)
ecblends.com(big selection of ejuice, decently fast shipping and ok customer service from my experience)
smartvapes.com(ok shipping, great customer service)

Hopefully these help you get started if you want to view the more advanced ecigs and other juices.

 

[McVaip]

Congratulations on ordering your first "vapemail", I am sure that you will wait anxiously as I did for mine to arrive. This is only my one week anniversary as I just got started too, but what a week! I have loved every minute of it and haven't even looked at my stinkies.

Welcome to the group and good luck......

 

[klynnn]

Welcome, You may want to check this out since your in the Atlanta area. Home Page

 

[Satans_Hellhound]

As McVaip said ... WELCOME to the "Mad House" I'm SURE your gonna love it here .. But a word of warning ..................

Surfin the sites listed above (ESPECIALLY fast-tech) will cause a SERIOUS DRAIN on your Wallet ..... Remember Christmas when you were young & yer Mum asked you around September time "what do want fer Christmas" ... you then spent the following 3 months looking at EVERYTHING you could think of that you MIGHT WANT .....................

well, its the VERY same feeling when you "Window Shop" on those sites .... its OOhhh I like that & WOW I Want one of those & OMG I just GOTTA get one of these!!!!!

SERIOUSLY you'll be like a kid in a candy store ....... & you know what ......................... that feeling NEVER STOPS !!!!!! .....

YER GONNA LOVE IT ..............................................

Have Fun & STAY SAFE

Keith

 

[vapo jam]

congratulations! hopefully it sticks. one thing i'd highly recommend - try to find a b&m store near you so that you can meet, talk to, and get advice from other vapers in person. did a quick google search, and this place looks pretty promising as far as the products and service (although i have no idea how big atlanta is...)

https://www.vaperite.com/

it can definitely be overwhelming trying to find your way through the hundreds of products currently on the market, and having somewhere to go where someone can show you the ropes will tremendously increase your chances of sticking with it.

 

[Iusedtoanalog]

Hi Mercurial. Welcome to the ECF. Congratulations on your decision to make the switch. So the kit you have linked to does in fact contain everything you will need to get started. You will have way more ready to use than I personally started with.

Keep in mind that this is a less efficient way to obtain your nicotine. Not that its a bad thing, but it takes longer to get into our system than smoking. Many of the chemicals added to tobacco cigarettes are put there to increase the speed of delivery, as well as to aid in the absorption of nicotine. Initially you may find you want to vape more than you smoked, both in duration and frequency. This is completely normal.

Liquid. The normal range for liquid use is between 2-4ml of liquid per day. Some use much more, some use much less. You will have to gauge this one out for yourself fairly quickly due to the fact you will have 20ml of liquid on hand, in addition to the liquid that is pre-filled in your cartomizers. I would advise you to begin shopping or flavors as we speak, to get an idea of what liquids sound interesting to you and where to get them from. Liquid is so very integral in your own experience in vaping that only you will know which ones will scratch that itch for you. Begin just as you have, with a few smaller sized bottles of liquid, with a variance on what you think you will enjoy, until you find some you like, then order those in larger quantities.

Cartomizers. You have 10 on their way to you. I personally get from 4-10 days use from a single cartomizer, keeping it wet with liquid will extend its lifecycle. You will know when it begins to dry out by the flavor and amount of vapor output. The flavor generally begins to get weak to non existent as the liquid begins to get used up. If you allow the cartomizer to get too dry it will scorch the filler material and will taste really bad. If this happens it will need to be retired from use(toss) and replaced with a fresh one that is filled. Your 510 batteries where intended for standard resistance(SR=2.5-3Ω) cartomizers. Avoid low resistance cartomizers(LR=<2.5Ω), that will keep your batteries within their safe range of output and allow them to live as long as possible. As far as places to get spares, yes there are many(see forum supplier tab above) vendors who sell the empty 5packs of brand name cartomizers for around $7. When you do make an order for spare cartos, or liquid, get a simple drip tip, this will allow you to keep a watchful eye on your cartomizer filler without having to dork around with those little rubber endcaps, and it is more comfortable to use than the abrupt edges of the carto.

Spare parts. Every vaper should have a reliable backup battery and charger at minimum. If you look around you can find many places that offer spare parts like batteries and chargers. There is not much worse than being down to your last working battery, and having your only charger not charge that last working battery.......

I hope that most of this makes sense, and helps you answer some of the questions you had. Welcome to the family. Good Luck. Happy Vaping.

 

[SASmith]

Welcome to the ECF Family and congrats on your choice to quit smoking, you are going to like it here......all the help and support that you will ever need.

 

[Mercurial_One1]

The thing that will save me, for the time being anyway, is that I'm simply clueless. I don't know what does what.. or goes with what. When I placed the order, I did it on the phone because I had no way of knowing what parts I needed and/or if a kit needed something additional.

For the record, I may be new to vaping but not to dealing with customer service reps... and the woman (Ruth) I dealt with at Aqua was *amazing*. She helped me through the process, educated me as much as she could, gave me a discount and my order shipped the next day. If their products are as good as their customer service, they'll have my business for a long time.

Okay... spill it. What's the SECOND thing you bought after your initial purchase? What did you just haaaave to have to upgrade?

 

[Mercurial_One1]

Thank you for such a comprehensive answer. . .I'm sure I'm not the first newbie to feel completely out of their depth but wow, this seems like a complicated hobby. I like it. lol

My hope is that once I get my hands on something other than a Blu disposable, the terminology and concepts will start making sense. At that point I'm probably in trouble with all the available options out there. As the become comprehensible, they'll become irresistible!