Kanger Protank II Mini spewing juice when blowing through mouthpiece

[STiZzle2010]

I am posting this in the effort to help a friend.

He purchased 2 Kanger Protank II minis a week ago which have worked flawlessly for him until now. Like every clearomizer (at least based on my experience) he gets a very small amount of leakage onto the battery. He is in the routine of blowing through the mouthpiece after filling to ensure there is no liquid in the shaft that may have gotten in. Right now his tank is just under half full and is leaking bad through the bottom. When he blows through the mouthpiece, juice is spewing out of the bottom. The more he blows, the more liquid comes out! This is happening to both tanks that he is using. I have only had my PT's for a day and have not experienced this so I cannot help him. Any idea why this is happening?

 

[RaceGun59]

Did the silicone seal come off the coil chimney or the coil head is loose?

 

[AegisPrime]

Actually, blowing through the mouthpiece creates airflow that will draw liquid into the wicks and blow it out the bottom of the PT - if you blow (or suck) for long enough you'll empty the tank

Best way to clear the airway after filling is to hold the tank up (without the base) and blow hard through the mouthpiece - for the base, clean off the metal chimney and blow through that before reattaching.

Is he using a thinner liquid? Has the head been dismantled and/or cleaned?

 

[STiZzle2010]

Did the silicone seal come off the coil chimney or the coil head is loose?

Coil is tight and all of the silicone seals are in place and appear to be good.

Actually, blowing through the mouthpiece creates airflow that will draw liquid into the wicks and blow it out the bottom of the PT - if you blow (or suck) for long enough you'll empty the tank

Best way to clear the airway after filling is to hold the tank up (without the base) and blow hard through the mouthpiece - for the base, clean off the metal chimney and blow through that before reattaching.

Is he using a thinner liquid? Has the head been dismantled and/or cleaned?

This makes perfect sense. He has cleaned the tank which he did have to dismantle in order to do so. I have checked all of the fittings and everything seems to be assembled correctly. I can't remember where I read it but I saw that with these tanks if the juice falls below 1/3 of the way full, they are prone to leaking. Do you think that is what is happening here? I know that he tends to drain the juice before refilling. He also only has 2 tanks but several different juice flavors so, he is cleaning them regularly to change flavors.

 

[cramptholomew]

I take it off my battery, hold it upside down until the liquid is fully in the tank, and blow through the bottom into a vaper towel.

 

[RattlerX]

He broke the vacuum seal. Turn tank upside down, unscrew the bottom and only blow through the coil. Use a q-tip or pipe cleaner for the tube in the middle if needed. re-assemble and tape away.

I have been there and done that by reading postings and not really understanding how everything worked.

 

[STiZzle2010]

Thank you. We have preformed these steps and everything seems to be working fine now.

 

[AegisPrime]

I can't remember where I read it but I saw that with these tanks if the juice falls below 1/3 of the way full, they are prone to leaking. Do you think that is what is happening here? I know that he tends to drain the juice before refilling.

From my own experience, with an unmodified head the PT performs best with 2/3 - 1/3 liquid in it - fill it too full and it can gurgle and leak - let it drain too much and it can gurgle and leak. It performs differently depending on the thickness of the liquid too (and temperature can change this) - some people using high-VG liquids have to pull one or both of the 'flavour' wicks because they slow the flow of juice into the head causing dry hits - high-PG liquids need the wicks in there or the tank will flood.

 

[STiZzle2010]

Good to know. Yea he uses 50/50 or 60/40 so there shouldn't be too much a problem there. I use the same mix but it is good to know not to fill too much or to let it fall below 1/3 if possible. Out of curiosity, what do you mean by an unmodified head? How or why would you need to modify it?

 

[AegisPrime]

Good to know. Yea he uses 50/50 or 60/40 so there shouldn't be too much a problem there. I use the same mix but it is good to know not to fill too much or to let it fall below 1/3 if possible. Out of curiosity, what do you mean by an unmodified head? How or why would you need to modify it?

The ProTank design has a reputation for inconsistency - some users have no issues, others just can't get it to perform to their expectations/likings. There's some QC issues on the part of Kanger in its replacement heads but it doesn't help that it's one of the most cloned designs out there.

As a result, there's a lot of advice on how to 'fix' the ProTank - some users (presumably of thicker e-liquids) advocate opening up the head and removing one or both 'flavour' wicks immediately - with a thin liquid this'll flood your head since the wicks are there to control the flow of liquid.

Others recommend flipping the silicon seal that seals the chimney to the head body - I'm not sure exactly what that's supposed to do but since the silicon closes off the inlets to the coil a little, perhaps again it's to increase flow of (thicker) e-liquids to the coil.

ProTank 'fixes' are like opinions which are like ...holes everyone has one and if you don't understand how the (very simple) design of the ProTank works and you start pulling apart the heads based on some of the 'voodoo' that users suggest then there's a good chance you'll never get it to work properly and never understand why that is.

As to why you'd want to modify it, the best reason is that you can recoil ProTank heads and rewick them with cotton for a better vape and more consistent performance - since you're building the coil and wicking it yourself, you can adjust it to better match the liquid you're using - slightly more advanced, but definitely not 'voodoo' and highly recommended by the persistant ProTank users

 

[STiZzle2010]

I see and this makes perfect sense. I have already looked into rebuilding the coil which is not only cost effective but seems as though it will eliminate the QC issues you mentioned. It does not appear to be very difficult and I plan to take a stab at it. I had only researched using silica as the replacement wick but I will have to look into the cotton.

 

[Don Robertson]

The ProTank design has a reputation for inconsistency - some users have no issues, others just can't get it to perform to their expectations/likings. There's some QC issues on the part of Kanger in its replacement heads but it doesn't help that it's one of the most cloned designs out there.

As a result, there's a lot of advice on how to 'fix' the ProTank - some users (presumably of thicker e-liquids) advocate opening up the head and removing one or both 'flavour' wicks immediately - with a thin liquid this'll flood your head since the wicks are there to control the flow of liquid.

Others recommend flipping the silicon seal that seals the chimney to the head body - I'm not sure exactly what that's supposed to do but since the silicon closes off the inlets to the coil a little, perhaps again it's to increase flow of (thicker) e-liquids to the coil.

ProTank 'fixes' are like opinions which are like ...holes everyone has one and if you don't understand how the (very simple) design of the ProTank works and you start pulling apart the heads based on some of the 'voodoo' that users suggest then there's a good chance you'll never get it to work properly and never understand why that is.

As to why you'd want to modify it, the best reason is that you can recoil ProTank heads and rewick them with cotton for a better vape and more consistent performance - since you're building the coil and wicking it yourself, you can adjust it to better match the liquid you're using - slightly more advanced, but definitely not 'voodoo' and highly recommended by the persistant ProTank users

Well said........ it won't make ya' "popular" with the all-knowing All Star Team of 'experts' - but well said!

One should be aware that the All Star Team deals not in fact, but rather in "my Ya'll Tube video has more 'hits' than YOUR Ya''ll Tube diddieo!

SOLID explanation .......... you're in trouble now! Fine job though - fine job!

Senile Old Man Don ............

 

[AegisPrime]

I see and this makes perfect sense. I have already looked into rebuilding the coil which is not only cost effective but seems as though it will eliminate the QC issues you mentioned. It does not appear to be very difficult and I plan to take a stab at it. I had only researched using silica as the replacement wick but I will have to look into the cotton.

Great! Please post the results of your experiments!

Here's a nice video for people just starting to recoil their ProTanks - it's not a 'proper' microcoil (Candi doesn't torch and tweeze it to get the coils properly snug) but it's a nice, friendly introduction

 

[crxess]

The ProTank design has a reputation for inconsistency - some users have no issues, others just can't get it to perform to their expectations/likings.

Inconsistency is in Human differences. Thankfully we are, however it creates issues with EVERYTHING designed to be used by us.

All Bottom Coil Tanks use Vacuum to function. Each design requires specific vacuum parameters to function PROPERLY.
Some Humans get through the learning curve and never have unsolvable issues while others Never learn and move on to other types of devices.
All tend to blame the Device.......maybe they never realize.

In a vacuum controlled environment every part has a role and any change can effect outcome.

I could write volumes but it has been explained many times.
The information is on ECF
Some will search and learn
Some will refuse to accept they were wrong

 

[Virtual Life]

A good friend likes to put two of those silicone seals on the chimney, second one upside down. He swears that it provides a more consistent vape because it seals better and prevents flooding. I have not tested this, but he has my respect, so there must be something to it.

 

[AegisPrime]

A good friend likes to put two of those silicone seals on the chimney, second one upside down. He swears that it provides a more consistent vape because it seals better and prevents flooding. I have not tested this, but he has my respect, so there must be something to it.

The silicon seal is there for three reasons:

1) To prevent liquid directly entering the airflow tube from the tank
2) To create a seal around the point where the chimney meets the head
3) The seal also slightly covers the inlets, helping to keep the wicks snug and prevent flooding

Adding an upturned seal is likely only going to affect 1) since it creates a tighter seal on the airflow tube - but if liquid isn't entering the tube from the tank anyway then you won't see any tangible difference (note that if liquid was getting in this way, you'd be swallowing gobs of e-liquid with each inhale and it'd gurgle like a straw).

Using this to create a tighter seal may also push the bottom silicon cap down a little harder which could conceivably compress the wicks and reduce the inlet space further - that may help with thin liquids and flooding but in all likelihood it's probably not doing anything at all.

It's entirely possible though that using this solution is simply counteracting not screwing the ProTank assembly together tightly enough to create the proper seals. Next time I dismantle my PT2 I'll give it a try.

*Edit* Ok, curiosity got that better of me so I gave it a try - no discernible difference in draw but adding an extra silicone seal does create a noticeable gap between the base of the ProTank and the metal tank (since you can't screw it down as tight) which in turn means the bottom o-ring isn't sealing as tight as it should either.

If this works for people then great, but there doesn't seem to be any reason it would work unless their (single) silicone seal is worn or damaged.

 

[Daisey Moonshine]

I have the same rig, but no matter what brand of equipment you are using, be careful when cleaning and putting the components back together because the gaskets will wash away.

As for the Kanger, pay close attention to the coil because there is a small gasket on this component, too.

Another important tip is to make sure the components are clean and dry before re-assembling.

 

[jdanderson1449]

I have had this happen on several accounts. When it does, I remove the base, wipe the chimney and blow it out. Refill and voila! All better. I will say, the instances that it happens with protank is when it is under 1/3 and I lay it down over night.


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[Foot]

I used to get this occasionally with my Protank Mini IIs and it seems to have gone away when I make sure to fill properly (not too much or too little) and wipe down that center column well before reassembling.

Took me awhile to realize that the harshness I was getting was due to small amounts of liquid in the center!




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[jdanderson1449]

It actually happens more on my EVOD types than my protank types. I'm not entirely sold on EVODs but with a protank around, who would be.


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