1. What is the best way to go when you want to switch flavors throughout the day?
With my vivi novas, I switch flavors when the tanks are empty or basically empty so as to not waste juice. I rinse them with water or soak briefly in vodka, dry burn, rinse, and re-fill. Works amazing.
With cartos, I throw them away and open another one. But I also haven't hard a carto last more than a few days anyway.
With an atty, I blow them out and dry burn.
3. Is a clearo a fancier version of a carto
No. They work completely differently. There's no polyfill in a clearomizer, just a wick that extends into a juice reservoir. They're a lot closer to the way the penelope & odyssius work than the way cartos work.
4. Do you have to clean out a tank before switching to a new flavor
Yes. Take it apart, rinse & dry. Works for me. That applies to the "tanks" involved in clearos or carto tanks.
5. How long does a carto usually last using the boiling method?
I've never cleaned one, and except for the first few generic 901 cartos I got for my mistic when I first started, I've never had one last more than a few days.
6. When using an atomizer do you need anything to go along with that? (drip tip, drip shield etc...)
Drip tips are necessary for basically everything. They're much more comfortable on your lips and collect some of the liquid that occasionally spurts out of everything. Drip shields were made for the 901 to contain leaks. They're not necessary, but they're nice if you have a tendency to over-drip and can look awesome. You also need paper towels.
7. What is the cheapest alternative to having cartos for switching flavors throughout the day
Dripping. Blow + dry burn + re-prime with several drops, then drip until you want to change flavors and repeat. But you're also dripping all the time, which may or may not be something that appeals to you. The flavor is also a lot more pure, but until you learn your atomizer, you're bound to get either flooding or dry hits
or probably both. But you get used to how your atty performs and learn how much and when to drip.
Apart from that, I like having multiples of just about anything. I clean & change flavors when I'm at home, and that's what I use in that device until it's time to change flavors again. I have 2 full size novas and a mini nova that I carry basically every day (sometimes leaving one of them at home, since I only have 2 batts to put them on). When I want to change flavors, I grab the other one or swap a different nova on. I'd do the same thing if I owned more than 1 carto tank (and if I could find cartos that perform as well as the vivi nova).
Price/performance, I think the vivi nova is king
for me,
right now. Easy to clean & fill, and it gives great performance IMHO. I have some fusion 801 cartos in the mail to see what all the fuss is about, but I don't have high hopes for them. I've been using my DCT with a single coil smoktech tonight because I wanted to vape a flavor that gives my GF a headache while she's out of town and I didn't feel like cleaning a vivi nova
and it's "good enough" but a noticeably worse experience than the vivi novas.
So, for the "cheapest" way to change flavors, I'd say just get multiples of whatever clearo you're happy with. I need to try some stardusts. The Kanger T2s were
close to the vivi nova, but not close enough even for how much cheaper they are. I couldn't get them to stop gurgling, and it finally annoyed me too much.