Interested in starting mixing my own juice, but having trouble finding some information...

[GrannyM]

Hey ddirty (& Aurora),

Looks like you're off to a good start.
Just a comment or 2 regarding your question on pre-mixing your base & then just adding flavor.

It is definitely easier & quicker to use pre-mixed base. I do it all the time when I'm mixing small batches. It's such a pain to have to measure out 1.87 ml time & time again, lol. That said, it will only work if you're okay with some small variations in nicotine strengths. That's because different flavors require different percentages. Here's an example based on your 36 mg/ml strength reduced to 24 mg/ml final vaping mixture.

Let's reduce your 36 mg/ml to 27 mg/ml to start. (You can start lower; this is just an example)
That will be 75% of your nic base + 25% of VG or PG (depending on what you want).

Adding 1% flavor to this 27 mg/ml mixture will give you about 27 mg/ml. (A little less than 27 but I rounded off)
Adding 5% flavor to this 27 mg/ml mixture will give you about 26 mg/ml.
Adding 10% flavor to this 27 mg/ml mixture will give you about 24 mg/ml.
Adding 15% flavor to this 27 mg/ml mixture will give you about 23 mg/ml.
Adding 20% flavor to this 27 mg/ml mixture will give you about 22 mg/ml.

Note also that your VG% will be reduced as you add more flavor.

I recommend you try both methods (from scratch & from pre-mixed base). Only you can determine what you're most comfortable with.

Hope that helps.

 

[glassmanoak]

I always mix small samples to begin with. I use 5ml. I always use a good ejuice calculator, but if the numbers it spits out don't make any sense, try again. The most dangerous part is the nicotine, so be careful. I never add nicotine to a test batch, because I feel that it is just wasteful. It is super easy to just add the nic later.
For fruit or bakery flavors, I usually start about 5% and go from there.
For tobacco, I usually start about 1% or less. I ALWAYS let tobacco steep before making larger batches, so I sometimes make the first batch in 2 or 3 different strengths. Lots of people disagree with the steeping part, but I have found it indispensable to me because I don't like harsh tobaccos.
Good Luck! I hope you enjoy DIY as much as I do!

 

[BakuPeg]

Hey I just had one question that's slightly off topic but I didn't want to forget and it's still regarding getting started with DIY. What do you guys prefer to do: do you make every mix completely from scratch, or do you make a large bottle of your preferred PG/VG ratio and nicotine content and then simply add flavor to that?

I usually mix everything fresh. My nic stays concentrated until I get to mixing it. I buy 60mg 50/50 nic and I stick my extra nic juice in the freezer and thaw it b4 use. I use all glass 15ml amber bottles so its always 3ml nic for hubby and 4.5 ml nic for mother. (12 and 18mg nic at the end) 50% vg, then flavors then pg to the top. I mix about once every other month and make a few months of juice per mixing. so now I have quite a shelf full of juice steeping. I let my juices steep for a few weeks to a month. Others don't steep. Its up to you.

Be sure you have a comfortable mixing area to do your work. Its good to mix on a cookie sheet, or tray so if you have a spill it is easy to manage. Since you went with Wizard labs the cookie sheet works well to keep the little vials from tiping. (I wonder how many of us went through our wizard labs flavor cache, arranged them perfectly on a table only to have them tumble and crash in a little flavor avalanche because one of them decided to fall. )

Keep detailed notes on each mix you make. You may make your future all day vape but it won't do you a lot of good of you don't write down what you mixed. Always use a calculator, always saftey first.

At the WL prices, its hard not to go wild with the flavors. If you need assistance with some of the flavors use the search option on the board like.. "TPA Chai Tea" and view current and past flavor discussions. There is an ongoing TPA thread that will also assist you.
Remember some flavors will be strong and need only 1-2% while others (most) need 15-20%. Some inbetween. Yes it can be confusing at times. I suggest you do reserch at the "usual" mix of a flavor before you mix a batch. Or test it out yourself with an atty. View/study Hoosier's blog on flavors and remember a butterfly fart amt could make your day

Have fun and welcome to DIY.

 

[Aurora-Oblivion]

Hey ddirty (& Aurora),

Looks like you're off to a good start.
Just a comment or 2 regarding your question on pre-mixing your base & then just adding flavor.

It is definitely easier & quicker to use pre-mixed base. I do it all the time when I'm mixing small batches. It's such a pain to have to measure out 1.87 ml time & time again, lol. That said, it will only work if you're okay with some small variations in nicotine strengths. That's because different flavors require different percentages. Here's an example based on your 36 mg/ml strength reduced to 24 mg/ml final vaping mixture.

Let's reduce your 36 mg/ml to 27 mg/ml to start. (You can start lower; this is just an example)
That will be 75% of your nic base + 25% of VG or PG (depending on what you want).

Adding 1% flavor to this 27 mg/ml mixture will give you about 27 mg/ml. (A little less than 27 but I rounded off)
Adding 5% flavor to this 27 mg/ml mixture will give you about 26 mg/ml.
Adding 10% flavor to this 27 mg/ml mixture will give you about 24 mg/ml.
Adding 15% flavor to this 27 mg/ml mixture will give you about 23 mg/ml.
Adding 20% flavor to this 27 mg/ml mixture will give you about 22 mg/ml.

Note also that your VG% will be reduced as you add more flavor.

I recommend you try both methods (from scratch & from pre-mixed base). Only you can determine what you're most comfortable with.

Hope that helps.

Good suggestions, thanks for your thoughts as that really gives us more options overall too!

 

[frosting]

I'm not reading through what everybody else wrote. I'd say I'm more.... an intermediate experienced DIYer.

I think you'll do GREAT. Have confidence. I strongly feel that, those who enjoy the science of cooking, will be just fine DIYers.

If you use 36mg nicotine, gloves are not as important(in my experience) Past 50mg, I would even use gloves. Nicotine does sting like a son of a whoa when it gets in your eyes. Goggles are up to you.

One site I WISH I knew about when I first started DIYing, I haven't bought from them yet but absolutely plan to.

Unflavored nicotine liquid You can choose 25mg, 50mg, or 75mg

I started out by using

DIY PG Unflavored 36mg Nic Base 240ml

Right this moment you'll notice they have a sale of 240ml of 36mg nicotine PG base.

When they have these sales, they sell out fast. They have some awesome deals on nicotine as well as hardware and flavorings from time to time. I've almost always gotten crystal clear nicotine base from them. As it ages, it will turn yellow.

Flavoring:

Good Ol' Stand By - Perfumers Apprentice - Professional Flavors Make you sure you shop in flavors. I did a bit of looking into at TPA/TFA and the woman is a genius perfumer. She has kindly separated flavors/perfumery. Keep in mind there is a huge section of chemicals/aromas only for perfumery. Just something to be aware of. Most things are well labeled. Great prices.

http://www.diyflavorshack.com/default.asp A little pricy, but Dawn always throws in a few extras and her flavors do tend to be more hit than miss.

Capella Flavor Drops - Over 75+ Water Soluble Concentrated Flavorings The crowd pleaser that is Capella. Most flavors seem to be agreed to fair well at 15%. Still, better to try a percent low and work your way up. Some of the best flavoring I've ever used.

Random:

I love having one of these:

Good ol' cylinder.

Don't forget a funnel!!




Maybe someone's mentioned all of this, I dunno but I hope it helps. There's a lot of trial and error. Remember how you felt when you first started vaping, all intimidated? Basically the same thing with DIY until you just get your hands dirty.

The most important thing..... Keep a juice making notebook!!!!!

 

[nanovapr]

Does anyone think it's absolutely imperative to test the nicotine level after making a juice, so long as I'm using a calculator, measuring exact amounts, and getting the nic itself from a reputable site?{snip}

If anything, it's better to test the nic strength before adding flavors. At our level of testing, it's based on color change, flavorings can obscure that. I occasionally test a new batch of nic, but don't test after mixing.

All good advice here! I only have a few additions.

The cookie sheet to mix over is a good idea. I am fortunate to have a second set of sinks (stainless) that I can dedicate to mixing in. I have a stool that I can adjust the height to, I have it so I can rest my arms easily on the edge of the sink, and can do any pouring/measuring over that.

Especially when you are handling nic ,shut the door if you can, to pets, kids, television. Don't have a phone in the room with you, and don't talk to your significant other. It only takes a tiny distraction to make you lose track of where you are, 99% of time this isn't a problem.

Get the recipe in plain view. If it's on paper, mark off each ingredient (gee, did I already put that one in?). I use a spreadsheet on a netbook, and move the cursor down one row once each ingredient is in. It can be helpful to get all of your ingredients out, and in a row. As you use each one, set it back a bit, so it's plain what is next.

Add the nic last. Up to that point, the worst you can do is make a mess.

Once you get confident and/or get a recipe you like, graduated cylinders of a couple of sizes speed up the process greatly for larger batches.

If you use needles in a syringe, always use Luer-lock syringes if you can. They twist-lock on, and are very secure. It is no fun to blow the needle off of a regular syringe, and spray the contents everywhere. It's fine to use no needle, but I use pierceable rubber lids. That way they can't be spilled, and it minimizes exposure to outside air.

Don't get complacent on safety gear. It's better to err to the side of being conservative. I handle PG/VG/flavorings with just gloves (not really necessary, but they can be grippier than bare hands, especially when slicked up). I handle 100mg nic with gloves, Tyvek coat and face protection. I wear glasses, so goggles won't work well. You can find cheapie full-face shields that cover your whole face, and flip up.

Good luck! DIY is a lot of fun. Start small, and keep lots of notes. Nothing is worse than to stumble across YOUR perfect juice by just adding a little bit of this and that, and never be able to recreate it again.