Does Juice have a Shelf Life?

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Grimwald

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OK...three weeks off of cigs and I'm so excited that I just placed my 4th order...I'm getting quite a selection of juices. I keep them in an air tight container...cap on tight...in a cool shaded cabinet, I figure I have 3-4 months of juice...don't want to run out now do I? But I don't want to over do it. So at what point am I getting crazy...is there a rule of thumb...how much is too much? 1 month...6 months...10 years?
 

mudhill

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i have some that is nic-unflavored that i have had for 2.5 years,but that might be pushing it a little.

some of my bottles say use within 2 years or have a expiration date on them,,you could keep them in a freezer.

the info on the ecf is all over the place.

when i get my next shipment from another vendor ( DIY ) i'll have enough base for 2 years or more,i hope.

Larry
 

1st Officer

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I read on the DIY Forum that 2-3 years if you store it in brown glass in a dark, cool place but if you put it in the fridge it can last much longer. Check back with me in a couple of years and I'll let you know because I started making it from scratch a few weeks back and I have a bunch of 10 and 20 ml bottles that were made in the beginning of my learning curve and my guess is they will still be in the little fridge behind the bar for much longer than that. The first couple of tries kinda tasted like the north end of a south bound mule but I'm happy to say it didn't take long to get the hang of it thanks to all of the fine folks at the DIY forum.
 

Baptyzmbyf1re

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So far it seems like 1 year is a good starting point...as long as I remember "1st in 1st vaped"...I should be able to live within that framework...but I am new at this. My next investment is a black marker to put a date on everything.

Good old FIFO. Ah, harkens back to my accounting days. Who knew I would start off a bean counter and end up a computer engineer ....

I would say that method is certainly the best. Keeping track of dates acquired and mixed would certainly be a great start.
 

1st Officer

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From the FAQ section of the supplier I get my Nicotine and other ingredients.

What is the storage life of unflavored Nicotine Liquid?

The life of unflavored nicotine liquid is limited by the life of the PG and/or VG that it is mixed with. According to Dow Chemical, PG USP/EP has a shelf life of two years when stored below 40°C (104°F) in closed containers away from sources of ultraviolet (UV) light. VG has a very limited shelf life, and again according to Dow Chemical, given its severely limited shelf life, extracts made from Vegetable Glycerine typically have a shelf life of 14-24 months. Here is a link to VapersClub which has an excellent collection of information on PG, VG & Nicotine VapersClub

So it would seem that the VG degrades at a somewhat faster rate than PG or Nicotine in it's pure form. They go on to say brown glass and refrigeration add to the 2 years by as much as a year for the Nicotine. If you like the technical stuff for reading "National Vapers Club" is a wealth of that sort of thing.
 

fourthrok

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It's not that good of an idea to freeze pre-mixed juices ....the different ingredients (nicotine, PG, VG, flavorings) can freeze then thaw at different rates...which could effect the overall quality. It's fine to freeze a non flavored nic/PG base...that could hold up for years as the PG and the nicotine freeze and thaw at close to the same rate. Just need to give it a good shake if it's been frozen over 2 years. Some say it could last 10 years that way! But for pre-mixes refrigeration can help keep a juice a bit longer. Maybe add up to about 9 months to a year to the standard 1 year rule of thumb for non refrigerated juice. This does NOT apply to pre-filled cartomizers though! Neither freezing or refrigeration is the best plan for them, although the 'fridge thing would be okay so long as you were sure no humidity/moisture could get at the cartos.
 

DedTV

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It's not that good of an idea to freeze pre-mixed juices ....the different ingredients (nicotine, PG, VG, flavorings) can freeze then thaw at different rates.

Aqueous substances in solutions don't usually freeze at different rates in solution. That's why your car's radiator doesn't turn to slush in winter but stays liquid. Glycol based solutions also don't usually expand so you shouldn't have to worry about a glass bottle (or your car's radiator) blowing up in the freezer either.

Unless you have juice that is over 90% VG you aren't going to freeze the juice in a home freezer as the freezing point of the juice will be below 32F. You're just going to be cooling it.
90+ VG is an exception though as Pure Glycerin (VG) has a freezing point in the low 60s F, which is why it's so thick at room temp. You'll want to keep a truly 100% VG juice above 70F at all times. But just a little bit (around 10%) of PG, PGA, or water will cause the freezing temp of the solution to drop drastically making it safe to store in your freezer (and a bit more viscous at room temp). But 100% VG juices are fairly rare as most flavorings are PG or alcohol based and VG. If you can get the juice out of a typical dropper bottle at room temp (72F) it's probably no more than 90% VG and likely safe to put it in the freezer.

Just don't flash freeze it, drop in liquid nitrogen or put it in front of the cooling fan in the freezer and you'll be fine (quick freezing can defeat the anti-freeze properties of the solution in spots and cause crystallization which is bad). The best thing is to first put it in the door of your fridge, then after several hours, move to the coldest part of the fridge. Then the door of the freezer. Then to it's final resting area. Cool it as gradually as you can.
And when you take it out the freezer, do the reverse. Warm it up as slowly as you can. Fast thawing is as bad as fast freezing. And don't shake it or agitate it until it's warmed to room temp as that could cause crystals to form. And as it'll usually be the flavoring which forms crystals, that's what is most affected if it happens.
After it's been at room temp for a few hours, then give it a good shake in case there was any separation while it was chilled. You may also need to resteep it if it's a juice that normally needs to steep.

Chilling will definitely inhibit enzyme reactions which will extend the life of your nic and most flavorings. So it's not a bad idea if you're going to be storing it for a long period of time. Just remember to cool it and thaw it as slowly as possible and minimize agitation during temp changes and it's a good idea.
 

JENerationX

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I'm vaping some of my Kick Bass Vapor stuff from September of last year. They've been in a tub in my nightstand with the door closed. I was told by Kick Bass Vapor, they should be fine at 1 year, maybe longer. As long as they don't taste funky, I'll vape them. These were all things I stopped vaping as my tastes change. Almost done with most of them, and the rest of my juices are 4-6 months.
 

MidwestMom

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I use a sharpie to note on the bottom of the bottle when month and date of when I ordered it, hubby is making me a cabinet to hang next to my computer station at the house so I can store all of my goodies in a nice place cool dark ... I figure 1 yr from all the research i did would be a good safe bet though as I move through this vaping experience I don't think I'll ever stock more than 6 mths at a time but I'm still new and there are a couple of samples I got that have hit my desk after about .5ml of EWW vape that I have stuffed away the date labeled of course to see if they get better over time... and for those emergency I'm out and my order won't get here till WHEN!!!! days
 

nightfell

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I am looking into getting those brown glass eyedropper bottles to store things in I'm more worried about storing things in plastic and the degradation of the plastics into the liquid than I am about the shelf life of the actual liquids...

I am too, please let me know if you find a decent place.
 

MidwestMom

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