Cleaned Cartomizer= Short Life?

[BigFish]

Ok, so, Let me start with that I know cartomizers are designed to be disposable.
But I'm broke and decided to try cleaning my carts.

I used the grain alcohol --> 10 minute boil --> 10 minute bake method.
My carts came out clean and dry... but...

After about a dozen puffs (nice, long puffs) I start getting that familiar off taste. But when I go to refill it, it only takes about 5 or 6 drops before it starts to flood.

Any suggestions/critiques?

Eventually I'll switch to a mod or something. Till then I'd like to save some money on carts.

Tech:
-- V4L KR808D-1 XL
-- V4L Blank Cartomizer (standard)
-- FreedomSmokeUSA e-liquid (24 - 30mg)

Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[hairball]

I've had really good luck with an ultra sonic jewelry cleaner and a food dehydrator.

I boil mine for 15 minutes on top of the stove to start, rinse and sling.

Then here's what I do pertaining to the jewelry cleaner:

Get some water almost to boiling (I don't use an alcohol).
Sling out as much water/juice out of the cartomizer that you can get out. Do it into a sink.
Rinse under hot water and sling again. Do this a couple times.
Load cartomizers into the jewelry cleaner and add the hot water.
Cycle the jewelry cleaner 4-5 times (3 minutes each).
Drain off the water and refill.
Cycle 2 more times.
Drain water and carefully remove the cartomizers.
Rinse under hot water and sling them again to get as much water out as possible.
Now put them into a food dehydrator and set on high. My dehydrator has a top fan to circulate the air.
Leave for 12 hours.
Refill and vape.
**If you have long cartomizers or jumbo's, drying time will vary.

 

[eyebrook]

I wash my Boge cartos with hot wate and blow them out from the mouth piece end, do it 5 or 6 times till the wadding is nice and white then refill, it can take 20+ drops to fill them up and its good to go after a few mins for the juice to soak through the wadding, and i dont dry them, just a thought works good for me

 

[Rolondo]

Been vaping for about a year and I started with V4L and still have and use the KR808 XL manual batts (380 mAh) - I ordered a
6v device about 3 mos in to get better performance out of the KR cartomizers (V3 w/KR adaptor) and it worked - and I've tried almost every carto out there - Here is my two cents for your situation:
- Order KR Boge Cartomizers (3 ohm) - I finally ordered these (cloudsofvapor and others) after reading alot about them and, trust me, nothing compares - I haven't tried the dual coil cartos yet (gotvapes.com) but for a single coil, the Boges just kick .... -
- Order a pack of ce2 R4s (clear or stainless - same vendors as above plus others - google it) - these are no more expensive than a box of cartos with filler - I can't tell you how well these are working on my KR8 batts (either the 2.4 or 2.6 ohm work great) - I've cleaned and dry-burned the coils on 5 of these at least four times and they perform like brand new every time - I've boiled, rinsed, dried with a small fan for 3 days, filled when completely dry and when slightly damp and never got my cartos to perform like when new - for $2, the e2s last way longer and after cleaning no different than the day you got 'em - I've got ten boxes of these and over the last 2 months I'm still using the same 8 clearos that I started with - btw, I remove all of the rings so no syringe - just drip down the side past the cup till full

Ok, so, Let me start with that I know cartomizers are designed to be disposable.
But I'm broke and decided to try cleaning my carts.

I used the grain alcohol --> 10 minute boil --> 10 minute bake method.
My carts came out clean and dry... but...

After about a dozen puffs (nice, long puffs) I start getting that familiar off taste. But when I go to refill it, it only takes about 5 or 6 drops before it starts to flood.

Any suggestions/critiques?

Eventually I'll switch to a mod or something. Till then I'd like to save some money on carts.

Tech:
-- V4L KR808D-1 XL
-- V4L Blank Cartomizer (standard)
-- FreedomSmokeUSA E-Liquid (24 - 30mg)

Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[BigFish]

So far I like your idea the best, Rolondo. I'll definitely check out the CE2 R4's. Maybe the 2.6ohm? I like a good TH. Most folks choke when they try mine... Plus, I mix my 30 and 24mg liquids.

Thank you to everyone for the info. I'm not sure I have the dedication to clean my carto's as mentioned above. Funny part is I'm lazy about that but I have my keyboard set to dvorak... Go fig.

Thanks again.

 

[mwa102464]

The Boge is a good Carto, however I recommend you also try some Ikenvape V2 Gold cartos and also his Fusion carto's, these are both a high QC carto that rank very high to a lot of users, me included, just a recommendation.

 

[BigFish]

That's really cool. I didn't even know that QC existed in this market. I just thought we early adopters were stuck with the proverbial "Buyers Beware". Thanks for the tip, mwa!

 

[ZooKansas]

Hey BigFish, I am using Boge Lr and standard cartomizers and the SAME thing you mentioned happens to me everytime I try to clean one. I have been extra careful when cleaning, tried the boil method, and the turkey baster(hot water) method, and let them dry for at least 24 hours. Refill them, and performance drops off. Also, they flood more easily. Perhaps something in the center hole opens up?? I have yet to try the jewelry cleaner, but it seems excessive to me at this point. I usually get mine to last about 2 weeks with the same flavor before I think about cleaning them.

 

[BigFish]

Hey BigFish, I am using Boge Lr and standard cartomizers and the SAME thing you mentioned happens to me everytime I try to clean one. I have been extra careful when cleaning, tried the boil method, and the turkey baster(hot water) method, and let them dry for at least 24 hours. Refill them, and performance drops off. Also, they flood more easily. Perhaps something in the center hole opens up?? I have yet to try the jewelry cleaner, but it seems excessive to me at this point. I usually get mine to last about 2 weeks with the same flavor before I think about cleaning them.

YES!!! I feel like I've drank more juice in the last day than vaped! LOL!

I'm really thinking about going to dripping or mods or something. The only thing I see that analog has over vaping is the consistency of flavor and the mindless-ness of the whole process. It's still not enough to go back, tho.

 

[Alžběta Madragana]

hmmmmmmm. I got some 510 cartos from a Supplier here - and I'm not happy - they get very hot - burnt lips! - and they die after 1 day - burnt taste is overwhelming - and when you get a burnt taste on your 4th or 5th vape, something is not right. So far, 5 days and 5 dead cartos... bad pack? I am beginning to think they're ALL bad. Definitely will NOT be buying any of those cartos again!
I won't name the Supplier unless I get a lot of requests to. They're LR Cartos goes with a 510 MegaBattery...

 

[BigFish]

YEESH, Alz! That really sux. I'm pretty happy with the carts I got from V4L and FreedomSmokeUSA. I didn't really start having any issues till I began cleaning. You may wanna try a lower voltage batt, too. Keep in mind that I have no experience with the 510's. I'm pretty much an 808 guy.

 

[Alžběta Madragana]

Thanks, BigFish. I found out the cartos were made by Bauway.
Also, - thank GOD - I'll finish up these mothers and I have ordered some different name ones direct from China. Got a price I couldn't pass up.
Set a new 'record' with them last night - I began vaping one of them and it lasted for 2 hours - that's vaping for maybe 10 minutes twice an hour with it. It died - vapor went to nearly zero. *Toss in trash, replace with fresh one*

 

[BigFish]

Hey guys, just checking in...
The carts everyone suggested look like they're for 510's. I'm smoking an 808.
Does it matter when it comes to the carto's or are there 510 to 808 adapters?

For the time being, I'll just use what I got (not unlike Alz) & see what happens after.

Thanks again for the suggestions!

 

[Credo]

Have a look at these:
GotVapes VORTEX 808 Bottom Coil Clearomizer - 1.2ml 2.7ohm 5PK [gotvapes-808vortex-2.7ohm] - $12.95 : GotVapes.com, E-cigarette Supplies - Atomizers Cartomizers Mods Juice and more

I've been vaping on 2 of them for over 2 weeks now.
One of them the mouthpiece is a little loose and comes out easily, the other is a snug fit.

Avoid cinnimon flavors in these...they'll eat this type of plastic.

I got a good 5 fills right out of the box, after five I pulled them apart and took out the anti leak filter, washed and burned everything, gave the base a wrap with teflon plumber's thread sealer tape and put it all back together.

Now I'm well past 20 refills and still going strong!

These are pretty dern close to direct dripping.
You can put in only 3 or 4 drops and vape away...or fill it to the brim...

Good vape at 3.7v and threaded for KR808D-1

I didn't like it so much on my eGo at 3.4v
It's really sweet on my Darwin at around 4.2v

On leaking...I never had any before taking out the ALF. After taking that out...when I first refill, shoving in the cap can force a few drops out of the bottom...after that it's smooth sailing for me.

Another cool thing about these...
You can make your on coils out of nichrome and silica...they'll pop in without solder or dicking with screws.

Not perfect yet, but worth a try.

I still love the CE2 as well. A different feeling vape but still my all time fave.

 

[BigFish]

Sounds cool, credo. Thanks for the link. Looks like it's worth a try. I like that it's kinda like dripping. I've been wanting to try that but didn't want to make yet another $100.00 investment... Then again, I want to try it all, just to make sure I'm not missing out on anything. LOL!

 

[lilfarmtruck]

Me personally, I think you killed them when you washed them. Nothing personal. I know many will disagree.. but I have found the best bet to carto life is : Vape them, top them off, vape them, keep them topped off...then when performance wains....throw them away. Gee wiz thats like trying to use a paper plate over and over again...even "chinette will fail after its had enough". I never waste my time by trying to "clean" a disposable item. It was not built to last in the first place... UNLIKE Carts.

btw..I use cartomizers exclusively.

 

[Credo]

Hey guys, just checking in...
The carts everyone suggested look like they're for 510's. I'm smoking an 808.
Does it matter when it comes to the carto's or are there 510 to 808 adapters?
For the time being, I'll just use what I got (not unlike Alz) & see what happens after.
Thanks again for the suggestions!

808 Cartos tend to be around 3ohm and they work well with 808 batteries at 3.7-4.2v (KR808D-1 battery range) or KR808 5v USB Passthroughs.

510 are gonna be from 2 (LR) to 2.5ish (regular). Typical 510 batteries run from 3.2v to 3.4v.

What does all this mean? It means the total wattage (heat of the atomizer) of either battery running its native carto is going to be very similar.

If you pop a 510 carto on a KR-808D-1...you'll get a little warmer hit. A LR 510 carto on a KR808 battery can be kinda hot, but requrie a shorter draw to get similar amounts of vape...which can be really nice for darker/sweeter flavors to me. The slight bit of extra heat can also add a bit of throat hit.

Personally, I do keep a KR808D-1 battery, and an adapter to 510 stuff. I use the adaptor to get the 2.4Ohm CE2 cartos on a KR808D-1 battery. Love it...such an easy draw with plenty of warmth and throat hit. It is a bit warm

To me, both carto designs are quite good. If I want a nice 'hot' carto I'll go for LR 510 and use an adapter. If I need longer battery life and the cooler vape is acceptable for the liquid at hand...I stick with the native KR808D-1 stuff.

Hope this isn't confusing....ask questions if it is

 

[mylose64]

dry burning goes a long way. I used a watermelon liquid and for some reason it gunked up my clearomizer BAD. So I rinsed it out, soaked it in alcohol, rinsed it out again and there was almost no improvement.

I dry burned it on and off for about 5 min and the thing looked brand new. I rinsed it after I dry burned it the last time.

 

[Credo]

Sounds cool, credo. Thanks for the link. Looks like it's worth a try. I like that it's kinda like dripping. I've been wanting to try that but didn't want to make yet another $100.00 investment... Then again, I want to try it all, just to make sure I'm not missing out on anything. LOL!

$100 to drip? Nah...just get a 901 atomizer from $5 to $11 each.
These work with KR808D-1 and 901 batteries.

Of course adapters work to use other atties.

If you have auto batteries be very careful not to overdrip...as juice in the unsealed switch can mess it all up.

 

[Rolondo]

Wish I had read this and taken it to heart over a year ago when I started - would have saved me a ton of wasted time - I started with KR stick batts and kept wondering about the lack of consistency in vapor production - thought I could somehow beat the system by boiling, soaking, rinsing, blowing out, drying with a fan for 3 days...all to no avail - you will NEVER get that amazing satisfaction that you get with a new carto and your favorite juice - after 8 mos and having tried almost all cartos, discovered Boge and the search was over (3 ohm on v3 @ 6v) - some last a week, some 2 and then straight to the trash - @ 2 weeks of life, that's roughly $50 a year or 1 carton of cigs - last note....now have 4 KR and 4 510 (steel & clear) cE2s in rotation and have cleaned each at least three times - (rings removed, drip fill, no syringe) - think you would really like these after a short learning curve (tired of dripping a long time ago) - between the Boges and the e2s, this is the best vaping experience ever - may get another device or two over time just for the newness factor but they're just battery holders - IMO, it's all about finding the best screw on or screw in to atomize your fave juices - Thanks

Me personally, I think you killed them when you washed them. Nothing personal. I know many will disagree.. but I have found the best bet to carto life is : Vape them, top them off, vape them, keep them topped off...then when performance wains....throw them away. Gee wiz thats like trying to use a paper plate over and over again...even "chinette will fail after its had enough". I never waste my time by trying to "clean" a disposable item. It was not built to last in the first place... UNLIKE Carts.

btw..I use cartomizers exclusively.