Carto-Tanks Tips and Tricks

[caspur]

Hey everyone. I have my fair share of different cartomizer-tank mods as I'm sure lots of people do. I've found myself using the smaller-cheaper tank systems exclusively with boge cartomizers.

I have a BUNCH of different Mom and Pop Mini-Sub Tanks that I use with a variety of my favorite on/off flavors.

I use my Stainless Steel Lil' Mama tank with my everyday juice.

I've experimented with a lot of different tricks trying to keep these cartomizers as WET as possible all the time, however, am still searching for some tips.

I've tried punching a variety of hole sizes, as well as different numbers of holes. Regardless of what I do, it seems that the tank-system is so tightly-sealed, that there is barely ANY draw through the holes of the cartomizer.

Now, I have discovered some techniques that will completely FILL / FLOOD (not over-flood, but REALLY WET) a cartomizer within a tank immediately. For example, if it seems like the cartomizer is dry at the top, rather than dropping a couple of drops of juice, I'll pull out the top-cap / grommet out of the tank, and than push it back in. It seems that this forceful motion ALWAYS pushes liquid through the holes of the cartomizer.

For tanks that have fill-ports, I've noticed that by unplugging the screw, putting my finger over the cartomizer threaded-end, and inhaling super hard draws juice through the tank and into the cartomizer.

However, whatever I do, it dosen't ever seem to last. Later in the day (Even if i don't vape much), from what I can see, the cartomizer has dried once again at the top.

I'm really OCD about my cartromizers, and I won't vape them unless the top is at least a little wet / slushy looking.


ANYWAY... what I wanted to see was if anybody else has experienced this, or if anyone uses any similar methods to quickly fill one of their cartomizers from their surrounding-tank system.

Also, am I simply being paranoid? Even though the TOP of a cartomizer appears dry, is the filler surrounding the heating coil still wet?


ps. This is another random observation, but has anybody noticed that some boge cartomizers become unaligned? meaning somehow the fibers / coil cover the hole almost completely? this drives me CRAZY. I do use paperclips to clean out the cartomizer-hole when it floods, but I don't think I've ever caught the filler or anything.

 

[Bmays]

I'm really OCD about my cartromizers, and I won't vape them unless the top is at least a little wet / slushy looking.

I couldnt agree more as I am the same way. I have found though for me, the cartos seem to work their best when in between full and empty. In that, while i see the slushy look, i get less vapor and taste. About 5 or so hits later it starts to shine until i get all OCD again

I too drip a few drops in there to "help out the tank" for fear of it running dry and wiping out the carto. These tanks are a vast improvement in my opinion, but have a little way to go yet to get the kinks ironed out.

 

[Charlz]

Liquid will always find it's equilibrium. So it does not need to be so wet. It be the same inside as out, usually. So a damp top isn't as important as if it were outside a tank. When they are completely filled, they do not seem to vape as well as if they are about 75% or less. Just my personal observations. A lot of people have been drilling carb holes in the tank. Mom an Pop has tanks with vent screws an there are various threads on the tank mod subforum that talks about vent holes. Those that use them say it's an easy way to overcome the suction/pressure issues.

 

[caspur]

Liquid will always find it's equilibrium. So it does not need to be so wet. It be the same inside as out, usually. So a damp top isn't as important as if it were outside a tank. When they are completely filled, they do not seem to vape as well as if they are about 75% or less. Just my personal observations. A lot of people have been drilling carb holes in the tank. Mom an Pop has tanks with vent screws an there are various threads on the tank mod subforum that talks about vent holes. Those that use them say it's an easy way to overcome the suction/pressure issues.

Thanks for both your replies. I'm interested in these 'carb holes' you speak of. I'll start scanning the forums, but, are you saying that people drill MORE holes into the polycarbonate tubing? Unless they are literally microscopic, I really don't see how that won't leak.. unless you drill them at the top / never let it fall over haha.

That's interesting though and I'll look into it. I LOVE that these cheap tanks are tight and secure, but the pressure is quite annoying.

Also, I'm glad there is someone else as OCD about cartomizers as me. I agree, it does seem that my cartomizers hit their 'sweet spot' once the juice settles a bit, but once again, i slowly become paranoid and begin thinking that's just me burning the filler material.

I dissect each and every cartomizer once they die, attempting to improve my technique / the life-span of my boges. I have to say I'm getting pretty darn good at not burning the filler AT ALL.

 

[Charlz]

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/atomizer-cartomizer-tank-discussion/262905-word-about-getting-dry-hits-burnt-taste-carto-tank.html

here's where I first learned about venting. Have yet to do it though.

Using a taping drill an nylon screws and maybe an o ring seems to be the way to go. Some of them look like big warts on the tank, though.

 

[FriedLiverAtack]

I'm really OCD about my cartromizers, and I won't vape them unless the top is at least a little wet / slushy looking

I have always have gone through some effort not to get too slushy. They don't vape the same when they are what to me is oversaturated. When cartos start to get old they get more slushy and I throw them away at that point. And I have rarely had them get dry enough to cause dry hits. I don't think the top will get slushy looking in a tank unless they are totally flooded.

 

[donnah]

I drill fill/vent holes in all my tanks. Wouldn't use a tank without one now. Don't worry at all about the top of you're carto not being wet. It's not supposed to be. I just posted a thread with links to where I bought my drill, tap and screws. Very inexpensive to do. Makes filling (and venting,if needed) super easy.

If your carto keeps vaping dry in a tank, its not wicking well enough. This happens to me if I use a Boge carto. I can salvage it by taking the screw out, vaping once, maybe twice (no more) with the hole open and then replacing the screw. This draws juice up into the carto. But you have to keep doing it every once in a while.

If your carto keeps flooding and leaking juice out through the bottom, you've got an air leak. That means as you vape, air is coming into the tank from outside and creating excess pressure inside the tank. That pressure will force juice into the hole in the carto and out the bottom until there is none left. If you suspect you have an air leak, stand in front of a mirror and vape. If there is an air leak you will be able to see where it is by watching for bubbles coming from around the seals or maybe the fill hole itself. Its easy to spot. The only air bubbles you should see are the ones cooming out of the hole in the carto and that doesn't happen with every draw.

Each time I assemble a tank, I hold up a little 10x mirror and vape to make sure I've got a good seal everywhere.

Sometimes after the carto has been in the tank for awhile, the seals can move around and an air leak is created. In a pinch, you can remove the screw and let out the excess air, blow the carto out and youre good to go until the pressure builds up again. But the carto will keep flooding until the leak is fixed.

Its all about controlling air pressure.

 

[caspur]

Thanks for the posts!

Donna, I have read your posts/thread extensively now. I was confused by the term "vent hole", as I already use 'fill ports' on all my tanks (which are the same thing). Knowing that other people are in the same boat, and have the same type of solutions makes me feel better.

For some reason, whenver i do remove the screw / dry hit, or vape a couple times, regardless the middle of the cartomizer (the hole) fills with a drop or two of juice. This never happens when the screw is in place, but will always happen if i inhale without the screw.

Not sure what the problem is, or if that's what is supposed to happen. I am pretty positive i don't have an air leak, since i've never had any flooding issues with the screw installed.

 

[donnah]

You can use your fill hole as a vent hole also. When iI talk of a fill or vent hole, Im talking about a hole in the tank its self, that has a thumb screw in it. You take the screw out and fill the tank with a syringe and needle. When you vape a time or two with this hole in the tank open, you will see tiny bubbles coming from the punched hole in the carto. This means that juice is being wicked up into the carto. Dont leave the screw out for more than two vapes or too much juice will go into the carto, causing it to flood.

I'm trying to tell how to get juice up into your carto when its not wicking as it should. You said that this doesn't seem to last and it wont. If your carto isn't wicking well, you'll have to keep removing the screw and vaping once or twice with the hole open to "manually draw the juice up into the carto. Its not ideal, but it works. This is why I quit using Boge cartos, they don't wick well for me, even if I punch two holes in the carto.


. A few weeks ago I had the worst wicking (Boge) carto ever...two holes and it wouldnt wick at all on its own. But I was able to make it work quie nicely by doing this. After a week I got tired of constantly removing the screw and I tossed the carto. And my juice is at least 75% pg.

Also, I punch my cartos with a saddle valve and they're quite large.

I see now your confusion. No, I don't drill any other holes in the tank for "venting" the problem isn't your tank being air tight, which it has to be, but your carto just isn't wicking well. Boge carto are known for being packed tight, and I guess some of them are too tight. I gave up and use smoktech cartos. They don't seem to be packed as tight and they wick really well for me.

Like I said above, don't worry about the top of the carto not being wet. Don't even take off your tip to look at it LOL. Being dry on the top is a good thing. In carto that is wicking well and as it should, the juice isn't going to wick up higher than the juice level in the tank.

 

[ITPython]

Surprised nobody has mentioned this yet (well maybe they have, haven't read every word!) but I have found the key to keeping the carto moist with a tank system is by dry pulling hardly every so often. Just relying on the tank to supply the juice on its own is a crap-shoot, it's not a completely maintenance-free system like we would like to believe.

Seriously, this works wonders, even with 100% VG! If you feel your carto is not wet/flavorful enough, just dry pull as heavily as you are comfortable with doing without giving your neck/mouth muscles a seizure, do a couple really long (and hard) pulls (I would say 5-7 pulls) then look at the holes you punched in the carto, you should notice air-bubbles coming out of them, this means the carto is sucking in the juice by means of juice exchanging for the air in the carto filler.

If you do this enough times in succession it will flood the carto to a gurgling state pretty quickly, so it is a trial and error process to get the technique down. But a couple hard dry pulls and you can actually get the top of the filler soaked to the bone very quickly. No fancy/complex carb holes in your tank or anything like that, just dry pull when you feel the carto needs some moistening! That's it!

May not be a completely automatic process as we all hoped when buying our tanks, but it sure is a lot easier to dry pull a few times than having to re-fill the carto manually without a tank.

 

[donnah]

Dry pulls are pretty much a staple of carto tanks. But when the carto won't wick at all.. taking of the screw and venting while vaping wets it pretty quick also. I do dry pulls in addition to venting.

 

[cuttinloose]

I'm getting frustrated...Tank.... Always feels clogged. I put a carto on and bam. I don't have to suck so hard. Even bought a saddle valve and made the hole bigger..Don't know what to do. Maybe tank w/o carto?

 

[FriedLiverAtack]

Curious why so many people have trouble with dry hits, I never have this problem and I have at least 5 different tank designs and tried almost every carto on the market. The prepunched ones with the little holes and the flange in the way preventing filling by condom sometime take some trouble to get the carto saturated in the beginning but after that no problem. I must have a different vaping style. I tend to run at higher voltage and shorter draws than most of the people I see in videos.

 

[cuttinloose]

I'm not getting dry hits.....I just have to suck so damn hard my mouth hurts..Unless thats what a dry hit is????? It feels clogged, I would love to know what i"m doing wrong. With just a cart on u can even hear it getting a better hit? I couldn't wait to try a tank, now I'm discouraged...

 

[donesmokin]

I'm not getting dry hits.....I just have to suck so damn hard my mouth hurts..Unless thats what a dry hit is????? It feels clogged, I would love to know what i"m doing wrong. With just a cart on u can even hear it getting a better hit? I couldn't wait to try a tank, now I'm discouraged...

After a day or two the draw on my carto tanks gets too stiff for me. Adding a 510/510 adapter seems to help airflow. You can ream the air hole with a piece of wire (carefully) too.

V2 510 Shorty Extension

 

[Scotay87]

I'm not getting dry hits.....I just have to suck so damn hard my mouth hurts..Unless thats what a dry hit is????? It feels clogged, I would love to know what i"m doing wrong. With just a cart on u can even hear it getting a better hit? I couldn't wait to try a tank, now I'm discouraged...

Sounds like your tank is bottoming out on the top of your PV cutting off the air flow to the air holes on the carto. Try slightly unscrewing the tank. Or sliding the tank up on the carto just a smidge.

I have 3 J-tanks all with CV Ming drip tips on them. One of them (black) the top and bottom caps are ever so slightly thicker than the other 2 so with all parts together drip tip included the base/collar of the threads is slightly recessed in the bottom cap. When it is screwed all the way down on my Lava Tube I get very poor air flow so I just back it off little at a time. I have tried sliding the tank up but with the ming drip tip but it gets pushed back down as soon as I put the big barrel Ming back on.

 

[FriedLiverAtack]

I'm not getting dry hits.....I just have to suck so damn hard my mouth hurts..Unless thats what a dry hit is????? It feels clogged, I would love to know what i"m doing wrong. With just a cart on u can even hear it getting a better hit? I couldn't wait to try a tank, now I'm discouraged...

I don't have that problem either though it could have something to do with the connection between battery and carto. My cartos work exactly the same with or without a tank. I've heard that the flange on the prepunched ones cause some people trouble with some mods. This problem was discussed in the SuperT forum. I've also heard claims that high VG juice can cause problems with hard pulls after using a carto for awhile although it should be the same with or without a tank.

 

[cuttinloose]

I used a paperclip inside the carto and it goes through. I never over tighten anything, but next times my nerves r ready I'll see what I'm doing. But i haven't tryed a carto w/o the flange. But I did make the hole bigger??? just 1 hole. I use bwb so not sure pg to vg? It does seem a bit thicker. Was all excited about my saddle valve

 

[Scotay87]

I used a paperclip inside the carto and it goes through. I never over tighten anything, but next times my nerves r ready I'll see what I'm doing. But i haven't tryed a carto w/o the flange. But I did make the hole bigger??? just 1 hole. I use bwb so not sure pg to vg? It does seem a bit thicker. Was all excited about my saddle valve

Thicker juices I punch 2 holes...

Your airflow issue is not due to the holes in you carto for juice to feed it. Airflow comes form the pin holes on the sides of the threads and the center pin hole on the carto. Your lack of air is a result of those airways being impeded.

Do you get airflow drawing on the tank/carto off of your PV?
If you get airflow with the tank off your problem is at the connection.

What device are you using?

Since you are using a flanged carto that means smoke tek which would imply a smoke tek tank. The bottom cap has a recess in it for the flange to seat flush in the bottom cap. That recessed area could be deeper on your tank and the tank is is bottoming out around the connection depending on your PV. Just a thought...

As FriedLiver said he read about flanged carto issues on Precise PVs I have heard of an issue or two on eGo's as well (not sure clone or genuine eGo).

With the all pertinent info there act many vaping issues that can't be solved here in the forums.

 

[cuttinloose]

I have a ProVari. The tank is from MadvapesDual Coil 510 Chrome Tank Cartomizer, 3.5ml
When i needed more carto's they have been out so i found some at another site? I am gonna try this again when I'm done working and can concentrate.. on maybe trying another carto w/o flange, Or IDK..They seem to be fine in the beginning then all of sudden (same days just hrs after) clogg. But do u mean I'm not getting good battery contact b/c flange? Thank u for help.

Thicker juices I punch 2 holes...

Your airflow issue is not due to the holes in you carto for juice to feed it. Airflow comes form the pin holes on the sides of the threads and the center pin hole on the carto. Your lack of air is a result of those airways being impeded.

Do you get airflow drawing on the tank/carto off of your PV?
If you get airflow with the tank off your problem is at the connection.

What device are you using?

Since you are using a flanged carto that means smoke tek which would imply a smoke tek tank. The bottom cap has a recess in it for the flange to seat flush in the bottom cap. That recessed area could be deeper on your tank and the tank is is bottoming out around the connection depending on your PV. Just a thought...

As FriedLiver said he read about flanged carto issues on Precise PVs I have heard of an issue or two on eGo's as well (not sure clone or genuine eGo).

With the all pertinent info there act many vaping issues that can't be solved here in the forums.