Hello! A few questions.

[Arsonade]

Hello there
I just got my 501 two days ago, I already like it quite a bit, and my transition from pipe to e-cig has been a pretty smooth one so far.
I do have a few questions however and I'm hoping someone might help me out.
An overall sort of question I have is 'how the heck does this all work?'
more specifically, I'm having trouble figuring out if I'm doing things quite right.
First of all, how hard is one supposed to pull? I gather that the mouthpieces direct air such that it pulls the liquid into, or past the atomizer, but when a cartridge begins to loos vapor does this mean pull harder?
A concern I also have is that it looks, though I can't be sure, that the atomizer is burning through the fiber that's holding the liquid, it doesn't look burnt, but it seems to have an indent whenever I look inside, it looks as if its been melted away. It's possible I just have no idea what I'm talking about and that this is how its supposed to look, but if its not I'm worried about what I'm breathing in.
I also had a question about e-liquid, how safe is it to handle? I also got a drip tip (that doesn't seem to fit quite well but works nonetheless), should I be worried about touching this stuff? or getting it in my mouth (while its in liquid form)
How does one go about cleaning an atomizer?
Is it really safe to be dripping onto one?
It also seems that this hits the back of my throat quite hard, is that normal?
recently, when I find that a cartridge has gone empty, I drip about 4 or 5 drops of e-liquid into the fiber stuff and keep going with it, is this OK?
I've noticed that the plastic on the sides of the cartridges seems to be melting just a little bit (little grooves forming on the edges), is this something I should be worried about?
Although I've researched this a bit, I do have one question on the safety of vaping, is t really true that this carries no risk for cancer?
I'm sorry about all of these questions, I've been learning mostly on the fly and while I tried to do quite a bit of research before buying my first one, I don't think I really understood that the whole thing can be quite a hassle at first.
Hope to be here for a while (the modding sections looks especially cool, I'd love to get into that eventually)
-Adam

 

[AlexTM]

Congratulations, Adam, on you progress

* When the vape gets less, don't pull harder. Either wait a few seconds, so the remainig liquid can wet the bridge again, or refill liquid. You might want to try a cart mod if that happens a lot.
* The indent is perfectly normal, it's just the filling pushed together. The bridge of course needs a good contact to the filling, so it can wick the liquid our of the filling and onto the coil.
* You need not worry about getting a drop of liquid onto your hands or into your mouth, but you should try not to let it happen too often; nicotine is absorbed through the skin, too. If you get "liquid" in your mouth occasionally: It's very rarely actual liquid, most of the time it is condensed water with traces of liquid in it. Doesn't taste good, usually, but is harmless.
* For atty cleaning, do a forum search. I blow out mine occasionally, like every few days to once a week, and if I feel they clog I give them a shower oder a bath in hot tap water and blow them out well. For everyday maintainance, perfectly sufficient.
* Dripping is perfectly safe.
* Throat hit depends on the PV, the liquid, if you pull very hard or not, but it is perfectly normal.
* Dripping into the cart is perfectly normal, that is how you refill them. However, if you can only fit 4-5 drops into one, and it's not a super-mini PV, you should look into mods; that's not much. I use Fluval and Straw, not a bad one.
* "Mouse bites" at the edge of the cart are fairly normal, but they are a sign that you vaped very hot, meaning, very dry.
* There is currently no indication whatsoever that vaping could cause cancer.

The forum search is also not a bad idea, and neither is, if you like videos, youtube.

 

[Arsonade]

Thanks!
I'm glad to hear that I haven't been doing things completely wrong, I thought I was breathing in burnt plastic for a while there.
My carts do hold more than 4 or 5 drops, but I wasn't really sure if that was something I should be doing, so I tried to avoid it, as a result I have been vaping a lot of dry carts, which would explain the 'mouse bites'
One additional question I had
just tonight actually I was looking at videos of Doctor Vapor on youtube (which I can't link to as I'm a new member ) getting a lot of good tips.
I do have one more question though.
My atomizer seems to be getting quite hot now, hotter than it was the past two days, is this something bad? an indication that I have to clean it? or that its just dying?
Also, I'm charging my batteries with a PCC, if I have them charging even when they're full, is this a problem?
I really appreciate the help, I'm excited to be part of this really.
-Adam

 

[AlexTM]

There is definitely a learning curve to vaping. A perfectly managable one, and there actually was one with cigarettes, too – not to mention pipes, that's a much steeper one. But it's there.

510 atties get pretty hot, but you should still be able to touch comfortably. Do wipe the threads with a clean bit of paper towel occasionally, though, any liquid there is not particularly good and can also make the atty run hotter. (Makes for crappy taste, too.)

Fill the carts until they look like a slushie, the liquid shouldn't pool on top, but they should be quite wet.

Li-Io batteries are fairly sturdy, but you should know that a PCC contains a battery, too, which has a limited lifespan. So it is better not to overuse it, especially since chargers are a few dollars at most. Also, a nearly empty PCC battery can occasionally pull out power from a full PV battery, so make sure the PCC battery is reasonably loaded most of the time.

 

[beast775]

your on your way,nothing wierd yet just growing pains thats all.welcome to vaping.