Cost/benefit diy

[therussellv]

Has anyone done a cost/benefit analysis on diy liquid? I would like to see maybe a cost per ml with a typical investment for a first timer, trying to convince the wife of the benefits.

Last stinkie Oct. 15, 2013

 

[Dakota Jim]

I vape at 2mg (down from 24 in April) and my monthly eliquid cost is $6.42 for 200ml

initial investment is a good $100 for an assortment of flavor concentrates, nic base, PG, VG, bottles and syringes (do NOT use pipettes - no accuracy and are a pain in the A to deal with) but you will be able to mix a good 2000ml for that.

Nic base, flavors, bottles, syringes here

DIY E-Cig Supplies & E-Cigarette Liquid | Make Your Own E-Liquid | RTS Vapes

PG and VG here

Propylene Glycol 1 Quart: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Make sure you follow safety standards with your higher mg nic base as outlined in the stickies in the DIY forum and download an eliquid calculator for mix ratios (this is my favorite - it does require Excel) http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...e-calculator-added-quantity-calculations.html

hope this helps

 

[j3illy]

I've been wondering what the bare minimum upfront cost would be, for me to make 50-100mL of only a couple flavors..

 

[Myrany]

Well now that I have my beakers, graduated cylinders, bottles and basic supplies...

Last time I ran the numbers my juice costs me $.07 a mL.

If you just want to test the waters
The DIY Flavor Artisan's Master Kit - One Stop DIY Shop Store
is the kit I started with and it is enough to make quite a bit of juice. Has the advantage of getting you basic measuring gear and supplies without a big upfront. If you find you like doing it then you can decide what to invest in from there.

Also the videos on that site are a nice intro in how to DO the DIY.

 

[klynnn]

The most important aspects are research and patience. It really doesn't take much equip to get started and can be done very cheap. The cost savings are well worth the effort. Start slow with a couple favorite flavors.

 

[WillyZee]

my first initial custom DIY starter kit cost me @ 75 bucks ... it was enough to make approx 450ml of 6 -9 vapeable juices ... under .17ml

and I bought this stuff in Canada ... would be much cheaper in the US.

Cheers and Happy New Year

 

[Cromeus]

$55 got me 500ml of 50mg, $47 got me another 3.5l of good VG, so 4000ml of 6.25mg at ¢2.5/ml. 5% ish of a mixed juice should be flavor, and say I'm making 16 different flavors, so I need 13ml of each flavor.
Capellas does $3.29/13ml bottle, for a total of $52.60
$30.24 gets me 16 8oz bottles to store my bulk juice in.(upgrade to glass for an additional $17)
Needles, syringes, and PP beakers can be had for $10 for a set.

Add that all up, and you have 4.2 litres of 6mg juice in 16 flavors, mixed and bottled, for under 5 cents per ml.
That's prices, shipped to my door, in CAD. Cheaper if I did 8 flavors instead of 16.

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[j3illy]

If I'm just looking to do something small like 100 mL, would I be better off trying to find all the components from just 1 website, or is it cheaper to get the stuff separately? I've done some basic research on DIY and understand you need nic. base, PG/VG, and flavorings. I'd like to DIY 18mg/mL, and I'm also unsure on the best bet for what strength nic. base to buy.

 

[WileECoyote]

I went crazy and spend about 100 on everything I needed an extra. Then I got a 200 dollar scale. I don't regret any of that, but now I make juice for about $.07 a mL. 18mg ~15% flavor including the 30mL glass dropper bottle. Now my OCD is kicking in. I am going to have to compute the initial investment of equipment into my cost analysis. Arrgg. As my wife says, another day without a cigarette is priceless...

 

[Thrasher]

yea forgetting the initial start up costs as I also buy in bulk. my fav all day vape costs about 16-20 bucks per pint - thats 16 -30ml bottles. last time i figured it out.

cheap graduated cylinder 6 bucks
http://www.amazon.com/Amico-Chemist...1388206291&sr=8-7&keywords=graduated+cylinder
couple of syringes are cheap and available everywhere so say 5-6 bucks

I buy pg and vg in gal jugs so 1 gal of each shipped 55. or less if ED is running a sale.

cheap bottles are every where starting for 20-30 cents a piece.

and the nic itself 250ml of 100mg is around 30 bucks and will make around 2000ml of 12mg

and flavors usually start around a couple bucks each for samples

once you find ones you like you get bigger bottles cheaper per ml
my fav is $28 per 16 oz of concentrate and I run it at about 10%

 

[jdanderson1449]

I've just delved into this myself. Small quantities to start off so a little expensive at first. 250 mL each of PG and VG for $6.95 each. 48 mg/ mL nic juice for about $14. I've been saving and cleaning my spent bottles from purchased juices. I'm planning on mixing by weight but I've got a couple of small syringes around to get weights per mL of each. And I can get LorAnn flavorings cheap at the local hobby store.

My total current investment is about $40 for what amounts to about 500-600 mL of juice. I vape 14 mg/ mL puts me at about .08 per mL.

Stuff I buy at the vape shop here is about .60 per mL.

Any supplies I can't get locally come from myfreedomsmokes.com. I've used them for equipment before and have tried some of their juices and have been happy with turn around and quality. I have a feeling I'll only be getting nic juice and parts from them for a while.

Hope this helps you make a decision.


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[Cromeus]

If I'm just looking to do something small like 100 mL, would I be better off trying to find all the components from just 1 website, or is it cheaper to get the stuff separately? I've done some basic research on DIY and understand you need nic. base, PG/VG, and flavorings. I'd like to DIY 18mg/mL, and I'm also unsure on the best bet for what strength nic. base to buy.

...you can't buy into DIY for 100ml for cheaper than buying premade juice. The smallest VG I can buy locally is $6/500ml USP anyways. My advice? Buy the 8oz unflavored from MBV, buy their $3 15ml flavorings, a 50 cent syringe, ten 30ml bottles for like $3, and you're in for $40 worth of practice.

EDIT: I should mention that the price point for that is 16 cents a mil - .4 cents/ml more expensive than just buying a big premixed bottle of hawk sauce with a coupon.

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[klynnn]

Check out wizard labs. You can buy nic pg/vg plus flavorings and all equip to start small.

 

[Palantir1120]

Check out wizard labs. You can buy nic pg/vg plus flavorings and all equip to start small.

quick question... the nic solution is diluted in either VG or PG, which is best? does that mean you don't have to purchase a separate container of vg/pg? I too am trying to research for DIY juice.

 

[Cromeus]

quick question... the nic solution is diluted in either VG or PG, which is best? does that mean you don't have to purchase a separate container of vg/pg? I too am trying to research for DIY juice.

Yes, if you're doing a 50/50 mix, and purchase 250ml of 36mg/ml VG, and add 250ml of PG, you get 500ml 50/50 18mg

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[Palantir1120]

Yes, if you're doing a 50/50 mix, and purchase 250ml of 36mg/ml VG, and add 250ml of PG, you get 500ml 50/50 18mg

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Ok next question. I am usually vaping 60/40 or 70/30 pg/vg. Should the nic be in the pg or vg? Its 130 am and my math skills went to bed already.

 

[Racehorse]

Last time I ran the numbers my juice costs me $.07 a mL..

That sounds about right.
There was a topic started not too long ago by somebody who did crunch all the numbers, and he came up with around that too.

I have done it and came out w/about 6 cents per ml for my vapes.

 

[Cromeus]

Ok next question. I am usually vaping 60/40 or 70/30 pg/vg. Should the nic be in the pg or vg? Its 130 am and my math skills went to bed already.

Whichever is cheaper - buying a 500ml of pg with nic, or a 250ml of vg. Say you're making 750ml of juice - you need 13500mg of nic total to make it 18mg(18*750, forget flavoring volume for now), so you either need 50mg 250ml VG or 25mg 500ml PG, either of which contains 12500mg total, and you can figure out more exact figures when your math skills are awake.

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[Palantir1120]

pg and vg are same price. the nic is about double the price for each size. have you bought flavorings from wizard labs? Cause it is unclear how those come in, no size options or specifics.

 

[Cromeus]

pg and vg are same price. the nic is about double the price for each size. have you bought flavorings from wizard labs? Cause it is unclear how those come in, no size options or specifics.

I use a Canadian supplier, at a cost of $55 for 500ml of 50mg for a total of 25000mg nic.

Chances are, buying the larger size of nic will save you a buck

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