Confusion about liquid nicotine

[HarpoM]

I want to start making my own liquid. I understand I need the liquid nicotine, a pg/vg base and flavoring, as well as the other equipment such as syringes, etc...
What I don't understand is this: If I buy nicotine that includes a pg/vg base, do I need to buy separate bottles of pg/vg and add that to the nicotine, or do I just need the liquid nicotine pg/vg base and sweeteners?

Just a little confused. I have a diy calculator that shows the ingredients as nicotine, pg/vg and sweeteners

Darren

 

[supertrunker]

Your nicotine will always come in a base liquid, either PG or VG. Depending on the strength of it you will have to dilute it with more PG or VG depending on your preference.

So yes, you will need more PG and VG.

Nicotine is not a major ingredient of any recipe and the percentage of nicotine in a liquid is typically quite low, in the order of at most 3%.

The way i decided on making my own liquid was this: if you mostly vape a high PG liquid for flavour then you buy your nic in VG. Because most flavours are mixed in PG, so it's easier.

If you are a cloud hound like me, then the liquid you make will be mostly VG apart from the flavouring and the PG component will be solely the flavours you add.
It's also fair to say that there are a lot of people that vape unflavoured juice and they seem healthy on it!

T

 

[retired1]

Moved to DIY E-Liquid

 

[Capt.shay]

It is generally considered to have separate Nic. VG and Pg. You will use an E-liquid calculator to determine how much of each you will need as well as flavoring. Check out this blog for a quick tutorial on mixing by weight. Mixing 101 | E-Cigarette Forum

 

[HarpoM]

Thank you very much. I'm going under the assumption that supplies will dwindle in the next few years. I want to get a head start on diy.

 

[JCinFLA]

For the longterm, to guarantee that you'll have what you need to DIY...buy Nic base in quantity now. Figure out how much you'll need based on: (1) what Nic mg you plan to make your finished eliquids, (2) how many mLs you vape on average per day, and (3) how many years you plan to continue vaping. There is an online calculator that can help you input that info...and it will pop out how much Nic base you'd need then. For lonterm storage of nic base - You need to put it in glass bottles in your freezer. Most people get amber or cobalt blue bottles with polycone caps for that. There are several threads already about longterm Nic storage(recommended bottle sizes, caps, how to protect it in the freezer, labelling the bottles, best place in freezer for longterm, etc.) , so for further info...please refer to them.

The other DIY materials (PG, VG, most flavorings) will always be available since they're also used in other products...and not just for vaping. So stashing a bunch of those is not necessary. Exception to that will most likely be tobacco flavorings, since 99% of them are only used for vaping. RY4Double is also used in a specific very popular candy that people make in Colorado. So some flavoring vendors are going to continue carrying it.

So, for now...figure out how much Nic base you'll need. Most people buy the 100mg/mL Nic Base...to be able to make the most eliquid with it, and so it will take up less space in your freezer. But you don't have to buy that concentration if you're not comfortable with it. Buy whatever works for you.

 

[HarpoM]

It is generally considered to have separate Nic. VG and Pg. You will use an E-liquid calculator to determine how much of each you will need as well as flavoring. Check out this blog for a quick tutorial on mixing by weight. Mixing 101 | E-Cigarette Forum

Would you happen to know of a brand of nicotine that does not come with a pg/vg base that I could purchase? It seems easier to just add the pg/vg to the nicotine and flavoring. I could be wrong.

 

[Capt.shay]

Would you happen to know of a brand of nicotine that does not come with a pg/vg base that I could purchase? It seems easier to just add the pg/vg to the nicotine and flavoring. I could be wrong.

They all come in either a PG base or a VG base. Nicotine is very strong and it has to be diluted with something to make it a safe, usable level level. Most people in DIY purchase Nic. in the highest commercialy availabe strength and that is 10% or 100mg/ml. I like PG the most because it is easier to work with. VG base may last longer for very long term storage.

 

[HarpoM]

Let's say I want an end result liquid juice that is 50/50 pg and vg. If I buy nicotine with a vg base, would I not put any vg in my mixture, and only add pg to get the 50/50 mixture. I hope this make sense and I'm not being obtuse

Darren

 

[Capt.shay]

Your making sense but your wrong You only add a little bit of the nic. so you will probably still need to add some more straight VG and/or PG to get to the level you need. Take a look at the shot of my calculator in the tutorial and you will kind of get an idea of how it comes together.

 

[Maestro]

Yes you can buy VG nic. When you add flavors, you'll be adding PG because that's what's in the flavors. Then add whatever PG you need on top of that to get your desired ratio.

 

[HarpoM]

So if I buy nicotine with a VG base, and I want a 50 50 mixture of pg/vg in the final product, would that mean I just add 50 to the final product and no vg?..... Geesh. Years from now, I'll look back at my posts and say "what a noooob"

 

[SLIPPY_EEL]

That is if you buy the nic in your desired level of mg, but you're far better off getting a high mg nic plus your pg and your vg to mix at your desired level as you will save money.
Have you bought anything yet?

 

[Train2]

Play with a calculator, like EJuiceMeUp (for PC) or an online one.

What you're missing is that your Nic base is CONCENTRATED - usually, at least.
You'll use a couple mls of it - which will have all the nic you need for a whole bottle. Then you'll dilute with PG and VG to hit the strength you want.

So as an example, your recipe may have, in 30 mls of juice
2 mls of strong nic base (which is effectively 2 mls of VG if the nic is in VG)
4 mls of flavoring (which is effectively 4 mls of PG)
Then, to end up with 50/50, you'd add 13mls of VG and 11 mls of PG.
A change to the flavor impacts the PG/VG ratio - that's one reason why a calculator helps...

So if I buy nicotine with a VG base, and I want a 50 50 mixture of pg/vg in the final product, would that mean I just add 50 to the final product and no vg?..... Geesh. Years from now, I'll look back at my posts and say "what a noooob"

 

[SLIPPY_EEL]

I use 'eJuice Me Up' app on the laptop

 

[Sugar_and_Spice]

So if I buy nicotine with a VG base, and I want a 50 50 mixture of pg/vg in the final product, would that mean I just add 50 to the final product and no vg?..... Geesh. Years from now, I'll look back at my posts and say "what a noooob"

Can you tell us the strength of nic you use now. Then we can tailor the responses to you that can help you better.

 

[Sugar_and_Spice]

Geesh. Years from now, I'll look back at my posts and say "what a noooob"

WE have all been where you are now. And without the help of all of the vapers here, we would have failed much sooner and maybe even said forget it. But everyone here will help you succeed and remember no question is considered dumb.

 

[HarpoM]

That is if you buy the nic in your desired level of mg, but you're far better off getting a high mg nic plus your pg and your vg to mix at your desired level as you will save money.
Have you bought anything yet?

I have not bought anything yet. I'm still trying to wrap my brain around it.. lol

 

[HarpoM]

Can you tell us the strength of nic you use now. Then we can tailor the responses to you that can help you better.

I currently use 18 mg of nic.. Mostly for the throat hit. But now I understand that the amount of PG actually adds to the throat hit?

 

[JCinFLA]

EcigVape is another calculator that's online. There are 9 different ones you can use, depending upon how many flavorings your recipe has in it, if you want it to adjust the recipe for your PG/VG ratio, etc.

I use the one for Ten Flavors with PG/VG Adjusting. Doesn't mean I have to have 10 flavorings in my eliquid though. I can just fill in as many blanks in the calculator...as I have flavorings.

Really, until you take a look at a calculator, and see what info. they require you to fill in, how easy it is to use it, and how plainly it then tells you how much of each thing to add to your mix to get your desired eliquid...we're all kind of spinning our wheels here.