Coils clogging fast with Cotton. What am I doing wrong?

[eJohn]

Hello all!

I have been using a genni for nearly 2 years now and have recently purchased the Squape Reloaded atomizer. I have the Wide deck which I've loaded up with some organic cotton I got from Walgreens. I have watched the videos on YouTube about loading up the cotton and followed them to a T. The initial performance (vapor and taste) is sublime but the problem that I'm having is that it quickly starts to degrade.

First, I notice a change in taste and when I unscrew the atty to look at the coils, they are clogged on the outsides of the micro coil in a brown residue that extends onto the cotton. I have to change the cotton twice a day to fix the issue. I also notice that once I remove the cotton and give the coil a good dry burn, it clogs even faster after I put in the new cotton.

Is this a known issue with cotton? Am I using the wrong type of cotton? Do I HAVE to boil it before using? That would be a chore.

I tried lifting the micro coil (6/7 wrap of 24 g Kenthal @ 0.8 Ohms) to sit a little higher on the deck and that resulted in a little better performance but the clogging still occurs to where I have to change it twice a day.

I'm using a heavier VG type of premium liquid that's nearly clear in color. The same liquid on my Kraken genni lasts days before I have to clean the coils.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[State O' Flux]

Unless you've misquoted your build, a 7/6 wrap of 24 gauge Kanthal A1 round wire on a 1/16" mandrel (1.6mm - standard micro ID) is highly unlikely to be 0.8Ω... but rather closer to 0.4Ω - so the only question I have is... do you have sufficient current output to run a 0.4Ω build?

If you're using a unregulated 18350 battery mod, or a low wattage APV... the coil may not be getting hot enough / fast enough, resulting in weak vaporization and a rapid build-up of VG caramelization.

 

[eJohn]

Unless you've misquoted your build, a 7/6 wrap of 24 gauge Kanthal A1 round wire on a 1/16" mandrel (1.6mm - standard micro ID) is highly unlikely to be 0.8Ω... but rather closer to 0.4Ω - so the only question I have is... do you have sufficient current output to run a 0.4Ω build?

If you're using a unregulated 18350 battery mod, or a low wattage APV... the coil may not be getting hot enough / fast enough, resulting in weak vaporization and a rapid build-up of VG caramelization.

I purchased the coils pre-made and I do have a resistance reader where you just screw on the atty and switch it on. It reads roughly 0.80 Ohms. It's been pointed out to me that I might be using too much cotton causing it to burn and clog. I pack enough in the coil where it's a very tight fit and barely movable. I just re-did it with less cotton and so far it's still working great.

 

[State O' Flux]

It's been pointed out to me that I might be using too much cotton causing it to burn and clog. I pack enough in the coil where it's a very tight fit and barely movable. I just re-did it with less cotton and so far it's still working great.

You've figured it out. Too much, too dense and too tight with cotton and you'll have wicking problems... if you can pull a bit of "gently rolled" cotton through with only a very light drag - but sufficient to adequately fill the coils ID - you've discovered that better to have too little than too much.

 

[Mike 586]

I pack enough in the coil where it's a very tight fit and barely movable. I just re-did it with less cotton and so far it's still working great.

Yeah, "Less is more with cotton", though too little is every bit as bad as too much (the side I erred on). Figuring out coils, how much power to apply and all that is child's play for me. Wicking and getting a feel for how much cotton was enough was my biggest learning curve too.

 

[super_X_drifter]

This may help you to know if your density is correct

http://youtu.be/lfOEoLumeR0