How to tell if your coils are ruined?

[kdubbie]

So this is driving me crazy, but determined to figure it out ... My first protank head hit perfectly for 5 days, then out of nowhere it started dragging very anemically. Then the next three heads after had the same weak fire. (I thought it was my vamo, but after taking all the suggestions here, it still fires my cartomizers, t3, mt3 heads like a champ, loud and continuous, just the protank and viva nova are bad)

So after doing a lot of reading on protanks heads, coils, etc ... i see a lot of people say things like ... "You probably popped your coil" or "Your coil is bad" ... "Just replace the coil"

My question, how do you know if the coil is actually bad? Can you tell by looking at it, or only by performance? What does a "popped" coil actually mean? The vamo still reads the ohms correctly, just weak fire ... I did pop the center post off the protank head, but not really sure what to look for in a "ruined" coil.

Thanks for any feedback.

ps - I am going to start rebuilding my coils, nuts to buying new ones if it's as easy it looks in the videos I have seen

 

[Cann0n]

A popped coil is when you supplied too much power to a coil and the wire became too hot and broke. This can happen over time with high voltage.

My experience with the protank is when my juice gets 1/3 level, it doesn't hit like it should and becomes slurpy.

 

[Heavyrocker]

Proberly gunk build up on the coils,try a dry burn.

 

[Aubie80]

If you pop a coil the vamo will read 9.9 on the resistance check, meaning the wire has broke somewhere in the coil

 

[kdubbie]

Proberly gunk build up on the coils,try a dry burn.

I did do a dry burn on one of them and since that, it totally tastes burned ... probably fried the wick

 

[kdubbie]

If you pop a coil the vamo will read 9.9 on the resistance check, meaning the wire has broke somewhere in the coil

Great thanks a lot ... Since I can read the ohms on the Vamo and no visible breakage on the coil on each head I tried, I assume I didn't pop the coil...Can coils go bad without popping them?

 

[SirSteve]

Great thanks a lot ... Since I can read the ohms on the Vamo and no visible breakage on the coil on each head I tried, I assume I didn't pop the coil...Can coils go bad without popping them?

Gunk builds up on as previously stated, this can cause them not to function correctly and to have increased resistance. You said you tried dry burning and now it taste burnt. Other members soak the head in a Pure Grain Alcohol, like everclear or cheap high proof vodka overnight to reduce the buildup. Just make sure you rinse them under water and allow to dry before using, high proof alcohol burns pretty easily. If you aren't getting the 9.9 reading, your coils probably haven't popped.

 

[Judge Dredd]

Moved to Clearomizers.

 

[Heavyrocker]

I did do a dry burn on one of them and since that, it totally tastes burned ... probably fried the wick

Just Pull out the silca and slide in a mesh wick,this what i did,i only use RBA tanks now,the mesh in Novas and Pro tanks work greta.

 

[cocacola31173]

I did do a dry burn on one of them and since that, it totally tastes burned ... probably fried the wick

Did you take the flavor wicks off first and rinse it off good after. You have to wash the ashes and other gunk that burnt off.

 

[kdubbie]

Did you take the flavor wicks off first and rinse it off good after. You have to wash the ashes and other gunk that burnt off.

I did not, but thanks for letting me know, that makes sense...

 

[dr g]

Since you are going to rebuild might as well pop the top off that head and take a look inside.

 

[Steven Pye]

Gunk builds up on as previously stated, this can cause them not to function correctly and to have increased resistance. You said you tried dry burning and now it taste burnt. Other members soak the head in a Pure Grain Alcohol, like everclear or cheap high proof vodka overnight to reduce the buildup. Just make sure you rinse them under water and allow to dry before using, high proof alcohol burns pretty easily. If you aren't getting the 9.9 reading, your coils probably haven't popped.

vinegar works pretty good too with hot water

 

[Butters78]

To vape is human but to rebuild is devine.

 

[dr g]

To vape is human but to rebuild is devine.

And to f-up coil after coil is human again.

 

[Glen Snyder]

I did do a dry burn on one of them and since that, it totally tastes burned ... probably fried the wick

You need to thoroughly remove all the gunk from the coil, pulse fire the coil until it glows evenly and quickly and the wick is pure white. If your flavor wicks have black on them toss them and replace with silica or cotton.

 

[RT88]

and then i wash under cold water after the dry burn. kinda sucks getting the wicks wet again because you have to dry them for hours before you dry-burn... but i do it, then add the liquid to wet wicks, doesn't matter

 

[LeoRex]

vinegar works pretty good too with hot water

Really? How hard is it to flush it clean after?

 

[Steven Pye]

Really? How hard is it to flush it clean after?

I remove my atty head from my clearomizer and use 1/4 vinegar to 3/4 really hot water and let sit for a few hours- I then drain, and soak again using 100% hot water.

not only does it get the coils cleaned of gunk, it removes tough flavors like menthol and bubble gum

using this method I have had my Innokin iClear 16 heads last for weeks on end

if you are using clearos that dont have removable heads I would think that taking the vinegar solution and letting it soak for a few hours then flush 3-4 times with hot water

 

[LeoRex]

I might give that a shot.. everyone else uses ethanol or vodka, which is expensive and waste of booze. vinegar makes for a cheap alternative.