Help a newbie please: Choking

[Raman]

Hi,
I've often bumped into this forum when researching my vaping problems. I decided to be blunt and humbly ask for guidance.

So I'm fairly new to vaping though I've already invested some time and resources into it.
But something isn't working out for me...

My first e-cig was a V3 Ego Spinner. I vaped on and off on it for about 1 year, but wasn't satisfied with taste or vapour. Maybe I didn't use it right, but I found that a new coil was great for 1, maybe 2 days, and then I lost satisfaction.
You've got to understand that I'm a big cigarette smoker. Used to smoke pipe too. So if vaping is to supplant my habit, it needs to provide me with ample nicotine, smoke/vape, taste and a smooth throat hit. And well, the Ego stick didn't do it.

I asked a friend who's really into vaping and has quit smoking with it. He recommended a sub ohm. So I bought an ELeaf I-Just 2. (First with 0.5 coils, now I'm trying a 0.3.) A lot better. But I'm having another problem : It's way too dry and it makes me choke.

I'm not choking because of the heat, but from dryness. For those who've been cigarette smokers, imagine a party where you drank and smoked way too much; then the next morning you instinctively go for a cigarette, but the 1st puff makes you choke at the end of your throat. Or you could also think of a cigarette with tobacco way too dry and low quality. In any case, it's like an attack on your throat.

Well, that's what I get too often with my I-Just 3. I choke if I try to inhale directly. The best that I can do is blow the vapour in my mouth and roll it in there, breathing in tiny amounts. I mean, that's not bad in itself, but I feel that's not the whole of the vaping experience.

Am I doing something wrong? Do you have suggestions?
I'd really appreciate. I really wanna quit smoking and I think vaping is a way cooler option.

(Btw, I make my own liquids and I've tried different concentrations of vg/pg, from 65/35 to 85/15. And I've tried from 2% to 5% nicotine.)

Thanks.

 

[Kickingthesticks]

Takes time you just have to adjust to it. remember when you first started smoking and it made you cough?

 

[beckdg]

Inhale very rarely at first.

Take your time. It's a marathon, not a sprint.

Eventually you'll adjust and experience greater satisfaction without the irritation.

Tapatyped

 

[mattiem]

Hi,

Well, that's what I get too often with my I-Just 3. I choke if I try to inhale directly. The best that I can do is blow the vapour in my mouth and roll it in there, breathing in tiny amounts. I mean, that's not bad in itself, but I feel that's not the whole of the vaping experience.

Am I doing something wrong? Do you have suggestions?
I'd really appreciate. I really wanna quit smoking and I think vaping is a way cooler option.

(Btw, I make my own liquids and I've tried different concentrations of vg/pg, from 65/35 to 85/15. And I've tried from 2% to 5% nicotine.)

Thanks.

If you are just wanting to vape instead of smoking and are not into blowing massive clouds it is not necessary to do a direct lung hit. I personally smoked for over 45 years and have now been smoke free for 5 years. At no time during all that time did I do the direct to lung hits. Well, that really isn't the truth. I did try it one time just for grins and, like you, it choked me. For me the mouth through nose method works. The nicotine is absorbed through the mouth and nose. I just draw it into my mouth and gradually let it out mostly through my nose. BTW: I smoked my last smoke the day I got my first cig-a-like. I was one of the fortunate ones that was able to make an immediate switch.

Hang in there. You will find your sweet spot too.

edited to add: I also mouth through nose with sub-ohm coils. Sub-ohm just means using a coil that meters out at less than 1 ohm.

 

[vapingbeauty]

Try to inhale less at a time

Sent from my LGMS550 using Tapatalk

 

[mongo74]

Pretend it's an analog (real cig) and puff it that way. I've found that very high PG and more than 3% nic does that to me as well.

 

[motordude]

If you are just wanting to vape instead of smoking and are not into blowing massive clouds it is not necessary to do a direct lung hit. I personally smoked for over 45 years and have now been smoke free for 5 years. At no time during all that time did I do the direct to lung hits. Well, that really isn't the truth. I did try it one time just for grins and, like you, it choked me. For me the mouth through nose method works. The nicotine is absorbed through the mouth and nose. I just draw it into my mouth and gradually let it out mostly through my nose. BTW: I smoked my last smoke the day I got my first cig-a-like. I was one of the fortunate ones that was able to make an immediate switch.

Hang in there. You will find your sweet spot too.

edited to add: I also mouth through nose with sub-ohm coils. Sub-ohm just means using a coil that meters out at less than 1 ohm.

This, This, and This!!!
There are so many different ways to get your nic hit.
Just experiment with different techniques.

 

[JCinFLA]

I agree with mattiem and motordude above. I smoked for 42+ years, quit with the help of vaping in Jan. 2014. I also don't inhale my vapor...yet I have no problem getting "my nic fix". Vapor comes into my mouth, and maybe a short distance down the back of my throat...then back out through the mouth, or out the nose sometimes, too. The nic is actually absorbed more readily in your cheek linings and the mucous membranes of your nasal passages.

 

[crunchie812]

Hi,
I've often bumped into this forum when researching my vaping problems. I decided to be blunt and humbly ask for guidance.

So I'm fairly new to vaping though I've already invested some time and resources into it.
But something isn't working out for me...

My first e-cig was a V3 Ego Spinner. I vaped on and off on it for about 1 year, but wasn't satisfied with taste or vapour. Maybe I didn't use it right, but I found that a new coil was great for 1, maybe 2 days, and then I lost satisfaction.
You've got to understand that I'm a big cigarette smoker. Used to smoke pipe too. So if vaping is to supplant my habit, it needs to provide me with ample nicotine, smoke/vape, taste and a smooth throat hit. And well, the Ego stick didn't do it.

I asked a friend who's really into vaping and has quit smoking with it. He recommended a sub ohm. So I bought an ELeaf I-Just 2. (First with 0.5 coils, now I'm trying a 0.3.) A lot better. But I'm having another problem : It's way too dry and it makes me choke.

I'm not choking because of the heat, but from dryness. For those who've been cigarette smokers, imagine a party where you drank and smoked way too much; then the next morning you instinctively go for a cigarette, but the 1st puff makes you choke at the end of your throat. Or you could also think of a cigarette with tobacco way too dry and low quality. In any case, it's like an attack on your throat.

Well, that's what I get too often with my I-Just 3. I choke if I try to inhale directly. The best that I can do is blow the vapour in my mouth and roll it in there, breathing in tiny amounts. I mean, that's not bad in itself, but I feel that's not the whole of the vaping experience.

Am I doing something wrong? Do you have suggestions?
I'd really appreciate. I really wanna quit smoking and I think vaping is a way cooler option.

(Btw, I make my own liquids and I've tried different concentrations of vg/pg, from 65/35 to 85/15. And I've tried from 2% to 5% nicotine.)

Thanks.

Mix your own juice? What flavors? You might try cutting the amount of flavoring in half, maybe more. If you are using the same amount of flavorings for sub ohm as you did with an eGo, that could be your problem. Adding a little menthol or mint can help with the throat as well.

 

[mattymatt82]

I had this problem when I started vaping also. It went away for me after a short period of time. When I let a smoker take a vape to see what it is like they always choke a little.

 

[Raman]

Thanks for the replies. At least I see that it's not unusual. Reassuring.

A precision : I only recently started mixing my liquids (I really hate the term "juice" for some reason...). So I've never tried them with the Ego: only with the Eleaf.
Also, I received a new tank which I've been trying since yesterday, with the same results (choking): It's a SUBTANK Mini Styled Clearomizer, in which I put a 0.5 coil.

Here is the liquid that I'm vaping right now (see attached image).
If you think that reducing or changing concentrations would help with my problem, I'm all ears.

Otherwise, I'll do as you say and take it slowly.

 

[Raman]

One more thing :
Whichever tank I use, it gurgles a lot. I don't know if that's indicative of a problem.
I checked many forum entries and youtube videos on this matter, tried all the different solutions but to no avail.

 

[Cheallaigh]

it is an adjustment... I'm DtL always have been and I choked off and on for about a week... but I got used to it, it's thicker to your throat and lungs than cig smoke, plus they have deadeners in it. gurgling means flooding, you can run a q-tip down the chimney when it's cool to get rid of some of the excess, and also cover the airvents with a papertowel(it will be messy) and blow into the chimney while firing a few times to get rid of the excess... as for the causes... make sure the coils are in firmly, all seals/O-rings are correct and try raising your wattage if you can by a few.

 

[Raman]

Is gurgling/flooding problematic or merely annoying?

 

[Cheallaigh]

less vapor, more juice and spitback, and a sign there could be something not quite right with the tank... like the things I listed.

oh and it will gunk up the coils faster

 

[Hitmetwice]

When I joined the subohm crowd every liquid I had needed to be diluted 100% with plain PG/VG (I used straight PG). This cuts nic and flavouring in half.
(but you are getting twice the vapour now subohming)
It was an easy fix for me and I ended up with twice as much liquid to boot.

Give it a try with 10 or 20ml of your favorite. Cheers.

 

[daviedog]

If you are talking about "dry" mouth or throat, PG & VG contain hydroxy groups HO, that will definitely dry you out.
In a year 3mg/ml,,chain vaping,, desert.
Back to 16mg/ml,,5 big hits an hour,,temperate zone..

 

[SteveS45]

When I was a smoker and after quitting Vaping irritated my throat for a while due to the way cigarette smoke affects your throat. But it does go away the longer you do not smoke. Just my personal observation and what I tell friends who try vaping and complain it chokes or makes them cough. Stop smoking and then it will go away is what I tell them.

 

[Hendog24]

Isn't 5% nicotine like 50 mg per ml? Anyway first thing to do is to make sure that if you're mixing your own liquid you're not mixing up massively high nicotine strengths. Also I started choking with my first sub ohm tank. I had to learn how to do a fast hard direct lung hit. That solved the problem.

Sent from my SM-N910P using Tapatalk

 

[Baditude]

Is gurgling/flooding problematic or merely annoying?

It is a symptom that the coil/wick is flooded, and yes it can be annoying.


VAPING TIPS:

Flooding is a common occurrence in e-cigarettes. The definition of flooding is getting juice into the air passage of the tank. This can include any point between the mouth piece and the very bottom part that connects to the battery. Each tank has holes in that air passage, where the wicks passthrough. This is required for the device to work properly. Unfortunately, this opens up the possibility for flooding. The trick with flooding, is knowing how to avoid it. I’ll explain a little more, but a few common causes for flooding a tank include: improper filling, over filling, pulling too hard when hitting the device, and the temperature can even play a role and/or damage.

Before I get into the explanation, let me explain how an e-cig works a little more in depth. Nearly every tank has a wick that is used to absorb the juice in the tank. This wick cuts through the air passage. Typically, the wicks look like strings hanging in the tank, but some have smaller wicks located at the bottom of the tank and the ‘strings’ are not visible unless the tank is disassembled. Each wick has a piece of wire that wraps around it in a coil. When you activate the button on the battery, you send electricity through the wire. As the wire heats up, it vaporizes the juice that is in the wick.

Improper Filling: When filling your tank, you have to be careful not to get juice into the center tube of the tank. This center tube is the air passage. When you take a draw, air comes from the bottom of the tank, through the air passage and into your mouth. If you get juice into this passage way, your tank is flooded.

Over Filling: If you over fill a tank (specifically a top coil like the ones that come with the starter kits and gift boxes), the wicks can become over saturated and just like a rain cloud, they will leak into the air passage. Once this happens, you have a flooded tank.

Pulling Too Hard: As I mentioned the wicks absorb the juice in the tank. As you pull on the device, you cause a vacuum effect that pulls juice into the wicks. If you pull too hard, you can pull in more juice then the coil can vaporize. If this happens, the juice leaks into the air passage and you have a flooded tank.

Temperature: E-Juice is a viscous liquid. Which means that as it warms up, it will thin out. And in the opposite form, it will thicken when it gets cold. When it thins, it is more difficult for the wicks to hold back the thin juice. This usually causes the wicks to over saturate and, you guessed it, it will leak into the air passage and you have a flooded tank.

Damage: There are o-rings and gaskets used that can wear out with usage. If certain ones fail or get lost, leaking will occur, in turn flooding the air passage and causing you to have a flooded tank. Other than accidentally losing something, damage can occur when its carried in a purse or a pocket or by over tightening the tank to the battery. Over tightening is a very common cause of leaking due to the damage it creates.



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