do wicks really wicks better after a "break in"?

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paulw2014

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Aug 13, 2012
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I've never understood why that is, but my T3 seems to be wicking better after a tank. What is the best "break in" procedure for wicks? I think it's too much trouble to vape a whole tank just to break it in, since that's like two days worth of vaping for me. Not to mention all the dry hits in between.

Would soaking it in alcohol help break it in?

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tj99959

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  • Aug 13, 2011
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    The material used can make quite a difference, but in general wicks need time to swell for optimum wicking. Trimming a little of the ends of the wick can help with it. Kinda like trimming a little off a flower stem so it will wick water better. The coil needs to brake in also. If there is anything I dislike more than an old curded up coil, it's a new coil with no crud on it.
     

    Kahuna

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    If there is anything I dislike more than an old curded up coil, it's a new coil with no crud on it.

    Hahaha same here. Sometimes I get a weird wet rag taste from a new coil/wick. Wicks need to be "broken in" to equilibrate liquid flow. In a new wick, it needs to fill all the air spaces thru capillary action. Depending on your juice, this can take a while from a few minutes to an hour.

    What I do whenever I get a new set up is a quick break in. I drip a few drops to saturate a wick, dry burn* in short pulses at first then for longer periods (a few seconds) at the LOWEST setting**. I do this a few times until my wick looks somewhat darker, always keeping the wick wet. Heat brings the liquid to boiling which thins it out and aids in saturating your wick more, and starts even flow.

    This technique saves me time and trouble not to mention I can "season" or "break in" a wick without having to waste a whole tank on less than satisfactory vaping.

    * if you are using a cotton/bamboo/hemp/etc never dry burn. You will have to pay special attention to keeping you wick very wet in this process.
    ** if you aren't using a variable volt/watt mod, just use a battery you have been using but a volt or two away from your normal recharge cycle.
     
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