DIY Juice...get a test kit!

[vegasjoe]

Hello Everyone,

I've been lurking this forum for a while. I just got all my supplies to start making my own juice. This includes a nicotine test kit. I bought a bottle of 100mg/ml unflavored NIC from a very popular vendor. I went ahead and made a 10ml sample that was supposed to be 20mg/ml. This sample was unflavored and was a 50/50 pg/vg mix. I tested it and it came out to 35mg/ml!!

So I went ahead and tested the actual NIC liquid that was supposed to be 100mg/ml. Assuming I did the test correctly, it measured to be 149mg/ml!!!

Yes, I know newbies shouldn't start with 100mg liquid. And yes, I know there is a sticky warning in the DIY section about 100mg liquid.....so no lectures, I'm super careful, follow all safety precautions (gloves, goggles, etc)

My point is...get a test kit. If anyone is wondering , my bottle of 100mg NIC liquid is dated May 22 2013 and is LOT # 1-13-A. I don't want to name the vendor in a public forum so if your bottle is labeled with the same date and LOT number do yourself a favor and test your liquid to be on the safe side.

 

[vegasjoe]

OK, So I took the original 100mg/ml NIC liquid which actually tested to 149mg/ml and I made a diluted solution. I mixed 30ml of the tested 149mg/ml liquid and 30ml of pure PG. This should yield a 74.5mg/ml solution. I then tested 1ml of this solution and it tested to 70mg/ml. Given the +/-2-4mg margin of error it pretty much confirms the other tests I did.

As a result, I've relabeled my 100mg/ml NIC liquid to 149mg/ml. I will be diluting this 50/50 with pure PG and will be using this to work with. 149mg/ml is way too strong to be working with when making e-liquid!

Again people...test your juice...

 

[stealthmayhem]

My point is...get a test kit. If anyone is wondering , my bottle of 100mg NIC liquid is dated May 22 2013 and is LOT # 1-13-A. I don't want to name the vendor in a public forum so if your bottle is labeled with the same date and LOT number do yourself a favor and test your liquid to be on the safe side.

I have some 100mg nic juice from LOT # 1-13-A, but is dated May 28th. I tested it and it came out to ~102mg/ml.

 

[Smokachino]

I'm just getting into DIY myself, so it will be interesting to hear what folks with more experience have to say. I was too chicken to buy 100 mg nic juice after reading all the warning stickies (went with 36 mg), and didn't even think about buying a test kit.

BTW, welcome to the forum!

 

[AttyPops]

Did you stir/mix the 100 mg juice before using/testing it?

 

[AttyPops]

And....test the test kit. AKA use a known-mg "good" sample and see what the kit says about it.

 

[drlaws]

And....test the test kit. AKA use a known-mg "good" sample and see what the kit says about it.

I agree with this. You should never completely trust a test kit on it's own. You either need a standardized solution of nic (a "known good sample") or you need to have two different test kits to compare (and possibly a third, if those two disagree) in order to be confident of the results. However, one test kit without a standardized solution is probably better than no test kit at all. . .

 

[Katya]

Or you need to send a sample to Kurt...

It is a serious issue--if your results are correct.

 

[mnd0vrmattr]

coool, is it pretty dif to make your own juice?

 

[AttyPops]

coool, is it pretty dif to make your own juice?

Only if you consider fractions to be "diff".

DIY E-Liquid

 

[Myrany]

Or you need to send a sample to Kurt...

It is a serious issue--if your results are correct.

DUmb question but um

WHos Kurt?

 

[Katya]

Kurt is our chemistry expert extraordinaire and our resident guru.

He has helped us (vapers) many times in the past.

 

[vegasjoe]

AttyPops,excellent points. I've throughly mixed the solution and will be retesting. I never considered the possibility of separation in the liquid skewing the results.

Regarding a "good" known sample, does anyone know where I can get a "good" known sample? You would assume that the label on the bottle would be correct, but this isn't turning out to be the case. Where does one order a known good sample?

 

[Thraxxy]

Good advice.

Nicotine is extremely dangerous in high concentrations.

 

[morecupcakesplease]

What are the perks of making your own liquid? How much cheaper is it? of course you can create your own flavors, but what else make all the hassle worth while?

 

[vapero]

I ordered from vapingzone 75 mg and no test kit am I safe to try ( diluting of course)

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

 

[vegasjoe]

Everyone, Thank you for all your input and suggestions. Based on AttyPops comments, I throughly mixed the raw 100mg/ml Nic liquid and retested. I tested a 1ml sample and the test indicates 94mg/ml. Given the margin of error on a 1ml sample this should be 90-98mg/ml.

This makes me feel better about doing business with this vendor again.

The lesson learned here is to throughly mix your liquids before making ejuice. I never would have considered that the incorrect strength was a result of liquid separation. Based on the "sticky" about 100mg/ml liquid in the DIY section, it was too easy to come to the conclusion that I too got an incorrectly labeled batch.

Thank you again everyone for your comments and suggestions. Your input is greatly appreciated.

Again, if anyone knows where I can get a know good sample so I can "test" my test kit, please let me know. Thanks everyone!!!

 

[Katya]

Thanks for letting us know, Joe!

We don't need Kurt, after all!

 

[Myrany]

What are the perks of making your own liquid? How much cheaper is it? of course you can create your own flavors, but what else make all the hassle worth while?

lets see if I can run the numbers roughly

1 30 ML bottle of FLAVORING $7.95 so 7.95/30= $.027 per ML
1 500 ML bottle of 24 MG nic liquid (you can get larger sizes and higher concentrations for more savings) $25.95 so $25.95/500 = $.005 per ML
1 500 ML bottle of PG $10.95 so $10.95/500= $.022 per ML
1 500 ML bottle of VG $10.95 so $10.95/500= $.022 per ML

So for a 10 ML bottle of juice I would use
5 ML of the Nic liquid so 5 ML x $.005 per ML = $.025
1.5 ML of the VG so 1.5 ML x $.022 per ML = $.033
1.5 ML of the PG so 1.5 ML x $.022 per ML = $.033
2 ML of the flavor so 2 ML x $.027 = $.054

So total cost for 10 ML of my DIY = $.025 + $.033 + $.033 + $.054 = $.145 or about 15 cents

Yeah it saves that much

EDIT: That's a 12 MG 50/50 blend
All costs based on MyFreedomSMokes.com prices you may well find the supplies elsewhere cheaper it was just one place with decent prices that had it all so I used it for the rough numbers.

 

[Katya]

What are the perks of making your own liquid? How much cheaper is it? of course you can create your own flavors, but what else make all the hassle worth while?

I can't tell you if it's worth it, but many vapers DIY. However, if you're considering making your own eliquid, please visit our DIY subforum and read all the information and warnings beforehand. DIY requires some knowledge of basic math and safety precautions because, after all, you are dealing with a potentially lethal substance.

Good luck.