cleaning coils
- Thread starter cleggjm
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I don't think it is a good idea. Can't be sure you would rinse it all out. There are other threads with other ideas you can do.
Not a good idea at all. I usually just use hot water. You can use Everclear, or any kind of vodka.
I'm a Everclear and Vodka kinda gal myself. Would not use rubbing alcohol. It the coils are real bad, you can even use denture cleaning tablets. Good luck to ya. 
I've used 90% ISO for years no problem. I rinse them in hot water afterwards and let sit until completely dry (24-48 hours).
I'm a Everclear and Vodka kinda gal myself. Would not use rubbing alcohol. It the coils are real bad, you can even use denture cleaning tablets. Good luck to ya.
I'm going to test this today. I've got a few boxes of the denture cleaning tablets laying around so using one to test it out to see if it does anything at all to the most stubborn coils that we still have laying around might be interesting. The vodka only removed the previous eliquid flavor but did nothing towards actually cleaning the wick of discolorment nor to break down any of the black discolorement on the coil itself.
If that doesn't make much difference, it might be useful to search dry burning here in ECF as well as on Youtube. If done carefully it can turn the black residue on coils to ash as well as burn most of the gunk off of the wick, and extend a coil's useful life. A follow up wash is important after a dry burn too.
yeah dry burn definitely does the trick. I mainly do the iso just to disinfect the thing. I've also boiled the coils after dry burning which works too.
Sure you can. I've even used dish soap and an old toothbrush to scrub a coil. As long as you rinse it properly and give it a good dry burn.
This is how the denture cleanser does to clean coils.
As you can see it makes the wick look like new again but it does absolutely nothing to the coil itself as is still all gunked up. Will have to dry burn it next to see if that does anything worthwhile or if it's just a waste of time.
Both the denture cleanser and the vodka bath produced the same results, clean wick but actual wire coil stayed gunked up so use whichever is cheaper around you, vodka or denture cleaning tablets. Was soaked for more than 48 hours
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In my experience a dry burn is a must for any of the juices that "caramelize" the coils.
Do you soak your coil after dry burning it? I took the coil (in the photo that I posted earlier) and dry burned it and then rinsed it in hot water and put it into the toaster oven to fast dry. But damn! I'm not sure how people are able to vape on a coil that's been dry burned as it leaves a very nasty flavor when using it to vape now. But I only rinsed it in hot water and did not soak it in vodka after doing a dry burn.
Perhaps it needs to be dry burned first, and then go into the vodka or denture cleanser bath?
Here it is after dry burning it. It looks pretty clean other than the "baby" toothbrush that I used really can't reach far enough down into the coil to clear off all the debris after dry burning it, and as far as I know, this process may not have even cleared off the very bottom coil at all.
It might be hard to spot but there is some debris left on the coil, in this photo (taken with my Galaxy S4 phone so it's not very clear) you can see what looks like silver particles on part of the coil that didn't rinse away and couldn't be brushed away, perhaps that is causing the nasty flavor. The actual wires of the coil got a little spread out and misshapen because I tried to use a wooden tooth pick to try to brush off what I could of the debris along with trying to then blow it out just using mouth / air pressure.
Perhaps it needs to be dry burned first, and then go into the vodka or denture cleanser bath?
Here it is after dry burning it. It looks pretty clean other than the "baby" toothbrush that I used really can't reach far enough down into the coil to clear off all the debris after dry burning it, and as far as I know, this process may not have even cleared off the very bottom coil at all.
It might be hard to spot but there is some debris left on the coil, in this photo (taken with my Galaxy S4 phone so it's not very clear) you can see what looks like silver particles on part of the coil that didn't rinse away and couldn't be brushed away, perhaps that is causing the nasty flavor. The actual wires of the coil got a little spread out and misshapen because I tried to use a wooden tooth pick to try to brush off what I could of the debris along with trying to then blow it out just using mouth / air pressure.
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I just use a hot stream of tap water, shake and blow it out. I also use a recycled toothbrush to clean off as much ash as possible. Seeing as this is a dual coil, you can only blow and shake it to clean the bottom one, so you may get mixed performance. On one hand, that taste you are experiencing may just be some initial bad flavor after the dry burn, and if so, should go away in a few ml's of vaping in my experience. The other possibility is that the coils are not evenly spaced and causing that burnt flavor. I would do a quick dry burn, just to see whether they turn red evenly, or have a "hot spot" that glows much earlier. You may be able reposition them if that is the case.
In some cases, I have done all the normal steps of cleaning, dry burning and cleaning, yet end up with a coil that dies or burns unevenly. If so, just consider it an educational moment. About 90% of the time, it works out and gives me much longer life, so an occasional dud is OK. With dual coils, you may have less success, but it is definitely worth a try. In the future, a light dry burn earlier in the coil's life (with less buildup) and more frequently may be more effective as a preventive measure. Good luck!
In some cases, I have done all the normal steps of cleaning, dry burning and cleaning, yet end up with a coil that dies or burns unevenly. If so, just consider it an educational moment. About 90% of the time, it works out and gives me much longer life, so an occasional dud is OK. With dual coils, you may have less success, but it is definitely worth a try. In the future, a light dry burn earlier in the coil's life (with less buildup) and more frequently may be more effective as a preventive measure. Good luck!
Sometimes dry burning then soaking and rinsing doesn't work. You will still get a burnt taste even after 20 pulls. Yes I let it sit and yes I did dry pulls. For about $1.60 for the bvc I am quick to toss rather than figure out the ones that don't work.
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I always do my ISO soak followed by a water rinse after the dry burn. Should also mention I blow out the coils to get rid of the "soot" prior to the soak/wash
It is interesting how far we will go to stretch an inexpensive coil compared to what we spent on cigarettes every day! I use single coils, and once dead toss them into a ziplok bag for possible future rebuilding, even though they cost about 60 cents each. Vapocalypse be damned, we can never have enough spares!
The best strategy I know is to use lightly flavored, unsweetened clear liquids with little or no color. Coils just don't get much buildup and last a very long time.
The best strategy I know is to use lightly flavored, unsweetened clear liquids with little or no color. Coils just don't get much buildup and last a very long time.
If you buy 50 coils at a time, you can get the cost down to 80 cents a coil. If you buy 20 at a time, they're only $1. Not sure how long a coil lasts you, but it's not that big of an expense to rejuvenate your vape every once in a while.
I've dry burned the stock protank coils in the past, and it will work for a little while, but by the end of the same day I would end up having to replace the coil anyways. It will either taste like char or will not pull very easily. I used MBV juice though, and my coils would be finished after like 3 days. If you can last a week on one coil, that's less than 4 bucks a month. Not worth the time of fiddling with it.
I've dry burned the stock protank coils in the past, and it will work for a little while, but by the end of the same day I would end up having to replace the coil anyways. It will either taste like char or will not pull very easily. I used MBV juice though, and my coils would be finished after like 3 days. If you can last a week on one coil, that's less than 4 bucks a month. Not worth the time of fiddling with it.
I just replace my coils, I buy them 5 at a time and they generally last me a couple weeks each... I vape about 2 mL per day, and I will clean the coil when I'm cleaning the clearomizer. Hot water, dry on a paper towel for a day, and back to vaping.
You also need to figure the cost of the alcohol. In Michigan, a ounce of Everclear cost 74.9 cents ($.749), a couple of ounces and your looking at almost the cost of a coil.
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