How to get the most out of PT2 coils?

[RainbowBabz]

So my girlfriend and I mainly use Kanger PT2s. We go through, on average, 5 coils a week between the two of us, which isn't really bad, BUT I'm curious as to whether I can get better than that. My top-choice b&m has been out of coils for EVERYTHING for several weeks now, with no anticipated restock time. My second choice rarely is understocked, but mainly carries 2.5ohm when I would prefer 2.0-2.2s. Amazingly this week they actually had some 2.2s, but it can't be guaranteed (since obviously I'm not their only customer, lol).
With my old iClears, I was able to extend their life a little, but... I'm not sure if there's anything I can do with these.
Any advice?

 

[BigCatDaddy]

Rebuilding is the best option, but if you aren't the fix-it type, you can just soak them is some vodka or everclear overnight and then rinse with water and let them dry. Pop the chimney off, remove the flavor wick on top and dry burn them. Replace the flavor wick with a bit of cotton and replace the chimney. Check out youtube for videos, there's a ton of them.

 

[leekeylee]

+1 for rebuilding, saves the pennies, easy to do and in my opinion you get a better vape

 

[molimelight]

I'd agree with BigCatDaddy, rebuilding is the best way to restock yourself. Especially with some good organic cotton. However, I'd also agree that it's not for everyone. Before I rebuilt I would order online from a site that sold the five packs. Many of the online places are ridiculous in their pricing for individual coils. I would order a few of the five packs and then supplement locally if I got low and hadn't ordered some. Sun Vapers has the five packs for 4.99 with with $2.99 shipping in U.S. If you want to try rebuilding without all of the wire wrapping etc. You could try these from Fasttech. If you wanted to replace the flavor wick at the same time you could also get this.

 

[DaveP]

It's not unusual to go through 2 to 3 heads a week on a Protank if you like fresh flavor. Because the protank coils use a silica wick, soaking and dry burning is a valid option. Rebuilding restores like new performance, especially if you convert the head to a cotton wick. You can just remove the cotton wick, dry burn, replace it and start again from a "like new" performance level. The coil itself can go until it pops.

Or you can look at rebuildable atomizers like the Kayfun Mini.

 

[Tranquility Base]

What BigCat said is the way to go. Also, if you feel adventurous, try removing both the flavor wick and the one inside the coil (twist gently while pulling it out), do a dry burn (just pulse the button a few times to burn off any gunk) and substitute cotton or Rayon. You don't need the flavor wick that sits atop the coil, just make sure the cotton is loose and fluffy but is covering the openings on both sides of the coil head. Prime with a drop of juice on either side. Try that a few times, then grab some Kanthal and wind a few yourself. I've rebuilt the same dozen coil heads dozens of times each over the past year with five bucks worth of Kanthal and a few pennies worth of cotton.

Careful of super-cheap clone head replacements -- both the wire and the wick are often terrible, impacting taste. Some cheap wicks practically disintegrate into powder with the touch of a finger, probably stuff you don't want to vape. Once you get the hang of tuning up Kanger coil heads yourself, you'll save a lot of $ and really boost flavor and satisfaction.

 

[nasca]

buy some 32 gauge kanthal, an ohm meter, and some japanese cotton. and watch a youtube video on rebuilding the coils -- it sounds harder than it actually is, but you'll wish you had done this sooner. you'll soon recoup that $30ish investment and save money as well as receive a better vape.

 

[93gc40]

Fastech has coils for less than $1 each.. I like the 1.8 and 2ohm ones. I run em till they die. I also clean and re wick them every few days. When they finally quit working I recoil them. When the silicone wears out I order more coils.

 

[edyle]

So my girlfriend and I mainly use Kanger PT2s. We go through, on average, 5 coils a week between the two of us, which isn't really bad, BUT I'm curious as to whether I can get better than that. My top-choice b&m has been out of coils for EVERYTHING for several weeks now, with no anticipated restock time. My second choice rarely is understocked, but mainly carries 2.5ohm when I would prefer 2.0-2.2s. Amazingly this week they actually had some 2.2s, but it can't be guaranteed (since obviously I'm not their only customer, lol).
With my old iClears, I was able to extend their life a little, but... I'm not sure if there's anything I can do with these.
Any advice?

YES : Absolutely:
You can extend the life of protanks coils anywhere from 10 to 100 times, and with replacement grommets - indefinitely.

1: simplest life extension: REWICK with cotton - every day or 3 - maybe a week
- use a tweezer to start tugging/shredding out the old wick; easier when wet.
- dryburn the coil; 3 watts is safe to dryburn with just about no chance of burning out the coil; you'll see the coil glow red; you want to burn off any gunk and blow on it to blow off the ash
- rewick with cotton - this is the tricky part when doing it the first time; once you get used to doing it, it's easy; you just need by trial and error to figure out how much cotton; basically need not much cotton- just enough that it slides through; fluffy cotton; you can roll it gently but don't twist it to compress it.

2: recoil: may every 3 weeks or months
This is more tricky, especially if you have big fingers of poor eyesight;
the hard part is putting back in the grommet at the bottom

3: replace grommet:
removing and putting back the grommet tends to wear it down, and especially if it's the cream harder plastic one; there's the softer silicone like one which is easier to handle.
Replacement grommets can be found; I think lightningvapes has them.


#1 is the most important thing; just rewicking your coils with cotton extends the life by factor 10 at least.
If you find it worthwhile to also recoil protank coils, then it's definitely worth looking at getting a proper rebuildable which has screw down posts where you can fasten the coil down properly, instead of fiddling with the tiny protank coils and depending on little grommets to apply pressure to make electrical contact.

 

[GinnyTx]

we soak and dry burn, I've got three P2's going still..and Ed at least that..we've been giving those away as we move on up the line..but I actually replace with new maybe one a month per tank.

 

[VHRB2014]

This little ugly runs like a dream, thanks mostly to the 1.3 ohm 30g hand wound coil wicked with cotton.
It use`s a PT2 head, but the wick area is totally wide open for a easy intake of juice.

 

[Frenchfry1942]

I soak mine in vinegar. I have a bowl of 25% vinegar and 75% water on the counter in a corner. I just take everything apart rinse under hot water to remove most of the juice, then soak. After that I rinse under the hottest tap water I can. I have to use a needle-nose pliers to hold the piece. I do look at the wick but it is always clean. Anyway, then air dry. I never bought PT2 coils again.

Hope helps.

 

[EBates]

As Ms Ginny said clean you PT heads I got probably 3 dozen that have been cleaned and returned to service. I have also tried rebuilding PT heads but found my build quality left something to be desired (leaks/shorts/burnt vapes/PITA).
My take on rebuilding is get a Kayfun then start rebuilding. Do Some Research Before Doing Any Rebuilding. There's a Ton Of Wrong Ways To Go At It, So Be Careful.

Here's my PT Head Cleaning Process. There's a ton of pt head cleaning vids on Youtube, should my instructions not be clear.

Soak in 91% Isopropyl alcohol or everclear over night or until I get 5-6 to clean.
Rinse throughly with warm tap water forcing water into the wick area.
Towel dry and blow out any water.
Mount the head on a tank base.
Remove the gasket and stem.
Remove the flavor wick(s).
Mount the tank base with the atomizer head on your PV.
Dry burn 6 watts, 5 seconds on/off. Repeat until coils are all turning red and wick is clean.
Blow the burned off crud away.

Hold the flavor wick with tweezer while burning them with a lighter or torch until wick is clean.
-Place the flavor wick back on top of the coil.
Or
-Replace the flavor wick with the material of your choice.

Reinstall the stem and gasket.

 

[RainbowBabz]

See, I knew I could extend their life by rewicking, but I'm afraid to get into that. Up until recently it's always been easier to just buy new coils. But since I'm often forgetting to rinse/dry burn with these things until the tiny wick is already burned...

Can I rewick with cotton ball cotton? Seems really ghetto but at this exact point my budget doesn't exactly afford me the ability to buy "proper wicking material" while I'm still learning, you know? I really never intended to get into the DIY aspect.
(But, then again, I really never intended to completely give up the stinkies, either. Lol.)

 

[EBates]

See, I knew I could extend their life by rewicking, but I'm afraid to get into that. Up until recently it's always been easier to just buy new coils. But since I'm often forgetting to rinse/dry burn with these things until the tiny wick is already burned...

Can I rewick with cotton ball cotton? Seems really ghetto but at this exact point my budget doesn't exactly afford me the ability to buy "proper wicking material" while I'm still learning, you know? I really never intended to get into the DIY aspect.
(But, then again, I really never intended to completely give up the stinkies, either. Lol.)

The wicks in a PT head are Not Burned By Vaping. The silica used in these wicks can easily stand up to a propane torch with no damage at all. The black crud you see on the wick is burned juice. Dry burning the wick will return it to white. The same is true of the flavor wicks, just hold them with tweasers and use a butane lighter or propane torch to burn off the burned on juice.

 

[RainbowBabz]

The wicks in a PT head are Not Burned By Vaping. The silica used in these wicks can easily stand up to a propane torch with no damage at all. The black crud you see on the wick is burned juice. Dry burning the wick will return it to white. The same is true of the flavor wicks, just hold them with tweasers and use a butane lighter or propane torch to burn off the burned on juice.

Wow. Didn't know that. Lol

 

[MN_Mike]

How are you going through 5 coils per week? I rotate between a mini protank2 and a mini protank3 and I replace wicks maybe twice a month. I rinse the wick thoroughly when I change flavors and dry burn them if the vapor is getting weak or funky tasting. That's about all I do. I'm using 1.5ohm coils on my mini protank3 and 2.5ohm coils on my mini protank 2.

 

[FlamingoTutu]

Sweet, darker juices can gunk up coils faster than super glue. Mine would last a day or less before needing CPR.

 

[wheelie]

Maybe you could find someone to rebuild and install new coils. I rebuild mine and once you have a coil in it you don't have to keep building them. Just open them up and pull out the cotton and install new cotton and 2 strands of silica wick, snap on the chimney and good for another round. I get eight or ten rounds out of a coil. We change out coils every two day regardless how they are vaping. I like to keep things fresh. If you were closer I would rebuild them for you and show you. Maybe someone close to you would be willing to show you.

 

[RainbowBabz]

How are you going through 5 coils per week?.

5 coils between two devices. Not maintaining them. Lol. Trying to get back into the habit.