Looking for some answers to my problem. Please help

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brizz

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Oct 29, 2014
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Arizona
So I have been vaping for roughly 5 months and to this day still get a pretty bad "old man throat clear" or a hard scratchy cough after vaping. All my local B&M said "oh it'll go away after you get used to it" well I think after 5 months I'd be used to it. It got so bad I couldn't even vape for 2 full days...due to this lack of vape I went for the analog (horrible I know trust me) but it was no where near as harsh! What can I do to resolve this constant sore throat? Info to help assist *******Nic level is now 6 and lower and my ratio ranges from 50/50 to 90vg/10pg. I use common and reputable juices, I vape on my IPV mini or mech mod with either a tank, Atlantis, or my RBA with a wide bore drip tip and 1.2 ohm build at about...25 watts******** (Hopefully all that info will give you what you need to help answer my question) thank you so much in advance!


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Maiar

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I'm just imagining what my throat would feel like at 25W. I'm usually in the 7-11W area.... maybe it's just too hot for you? That could easily irritate your throat and everything. My only thought would be to dial back the wattage and see if that helps.

People who know things will be along shortly I'm sure though with more helpful advice.
 

brizz

Full Member
Oct 29, 2014
52
17
Arizona
I'm just imagining what my throat would feel like at 25W. I'm usually in the 7-11W area.... maybe it's just too hot for you? That could easily irritate your throat and everything. My only thought would be to dial back the wattage and see if that helps.

People who know things will be along shortly I'm sure though with more helpful advice.

Fair enough but I tried taking it down to around 13 and same thing after about 5 minutes. Just took a little longer before the first cough. Weird right?


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brizz

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Oct 29, 2014
52
17
Arizona
Hi brizz and welcome. This is just my experience but when I was vaping 50/50 pg/vg I would also get that (old man throat clear and the scratchy cough) after switching to 70/30 pg/vg it all seemed to clear up. I am vaping 12mg juice now but will start buying 6mg as soon as my stock ends.

Well in my and RBA and Atlantis I'm running 90vg/10pg. And I did notice the nic level make a difference but it seems changing nic and ratios only make it last a little more time before the coughing starts. I thought there may have been a pg allergy but even 100vg lead to the same issues


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Ace64

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Sep 28, 2014
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I smoked lots! 2 packs a day for 35 years. My kids would know when I got up in the morning. In the office everyone knew I was there. All from my cough. It was horrid, and really loud.
I stopped with a little evod and a twist. Now I am stuck on a mech mod, RDA, and I build at around .33 - .65 ohms depending. I have no cough.

Just a suggestion. I would get checked out by a Dr. if I still had that cough.
 

IMRs

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I also think 25 watts is a bit high and higher PG levels cause a sore throat. The head you're using could be burning also and you sometimes don't even notice if you've been vaping on it for a long period of time.
When I used Kanger heads, they were forever giving me a sore throat. I suggest trying a Nautilus Mini. You get nothing but real flavor from it and you can crank the wattage up pretty good without it burning up.
Well, lastly I've noticed if I chain vape, no matter what juice or head I'm using, I sometimes get a sore throat, but that's not rocket science... It's bound to happen.
Bottom line is lower your wattage even more because even at 8, I sometimes get sore, so you just have to try and slow down. I know-easier said than done.:facepalm:
Hope you feel better real soon! :)
 
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Rickajho

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So I have been vaping for roughly 5 months and to this day still get a pretty bad "old man throat clear" or a hard scratchy cough after vaping. All my local B&M said "oh it'll go away after you get used to it" well I think after 5 months I'd be used to it. It got so bad I couldn't even vape for 2 full days...due to this lack of vape I went for the analog (horrible I know trust me) but it was no where near as harsh! What can I do to resolve this constant sore throat? Info to help assist *******Nic level is now 6 and lower and my ratio ranges from 50/50 to 90vg/10pg. I use common and reputable juices, I vape on my IPV mini or mech mod with either a tank, Atlantis, or my RBA with a wide bore drip tip and 1.2 ohm build at about...25 watts******** (Hopefully all that info will give you what you need to help answer my question) thank you so much in advance!

Welp:

It could be an extreme sensitivity to PG. It is documented by Dow Chemical and P&G as a potential irritant. Move to some 100 VG liquids for at least a week to see if that changes anything.

You didn't mention what flavors you are using - another potential source for irritation or even allergic reaction. Does this happens with all flavors, or vary depending on what flavor is in play?

And... were the throat issues a problem when you were smoking? In other words, you could have a problem left over from your smoking days - like polyps in your throat - that are still there and being aggravated by vaping. That's a quit smoking problem that needs to be corrected, not a start vaping issue.
 
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MsShona

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Like the previous posters mentioned, try changing up the mix of pg and vg in your e-liquid. I've only been vaping for 2 months. I had a sore throat at well, but it had nothing to do with pg & vg. It was my inhalation method. I started with a cigalike (the Vuse) and I would inhale into my lungs just like a cigarette. It was rough...but that's all I knew how to do. When I switched to the eGo setup which yielded way more vapor, my throat just couldn't take it. That's when I realized that I would have to learn to puff these things differently. I now inhale the vapor only into my mouth and let it waif up into my sinuses and blow out my nose and mouth. No more sore throats and I taste the flavors more anyway. From what I read, you absorb your nicotine better from vapor through the mucus membranes in the mouth and nose more readily then in the lungs anyway. So play around with your inhalation method as well. It may also be part of the problem. ;)
 

williamclarkonet

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I'm just imagining what my throat would feel like at 25W. I'm usually in the 7-11W area.... maybe it's just too hot for you? That could easily irritate your throat and everything. My only thought would be to dial back the wattage and see if that helps.

People who know things will be along shortly I'm sure though with more helpful advice.
I agree the watts for that build is too high
 

IMRs

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Like the previous posters mentioned, try changing up the mix of pg and vg in your e-liquid. I've only been vaping for 2 months. I had a sore throat at well, but it had nothing to do with pg & vg. It was my inhalation method. I started with a cigalike (the Vuse) and I would inhale into my lungs just like a cigarette. It was rough...but that's all I knew how to do. When I switched to the eGo setup which yielded way more vapor, my throat just couldn't take it. That's when I realized that I would have to learn to puff these things differently. I now inhale the vapor only into my mouth and let it waif up into my sinuses and blow out my nose and mouth. No more sore throats and I taste the flavors more anyway. From what I read, you absorb your nicotine better from vapor through the mucus membranes in the mouth and nose more readily then in the lungs anyway. So play around with your inhalation method as well. It may also be part of the problem. ;)
Good info & Welcome to ECF neighbor! :)
 

Cavenerd

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What are you vaping? I know you said that you were at a 90/10 vg/pg ration, but what flavors do you use? Some of the additives are possibly another source of allergens.

I hate to by a nervous nelly but since you said that you smoked for 35 years I can reasonably assume that you're at least 35. :). Schedule an appointment with your health care folks, if only to tick-mark the serious stuff of your list. In the mean time, switch over to colorless 100vg juice with mild flavor. If you know any DIY'ers, sample some flavorless, nic-less pure VG and see if you get a similar reaction.

Good luck, Brother. Hang in there.
 
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BigCatDaddy

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To the OP, you don't say how long you smoked, but regardless, five months of vaping won't undo the damage caused by however many years you smoked. I'm over a year now with vaping, and I still get some lung clearing hacks on occasion. I still get urges to smoke and some withdrawal symptoms in what seems to be 3 month cycles. I just vape thru them though, no way I'm going back to the smokes. As others have said, find your happy mix and keep vaping. Resist what your body and those evil smokes are trying to lure you back to.
 
There are generally three things that can contribute to harshness/throat hit.

1) Higher PG%

2) Higher Nicotine levels

3) Citrus jooses containing higher citric acid in the flavoring.

There are a couple other factors that can exacerbate the issue.

Heat. If your vapor is at too high a temperature for your airflow, the heat from the vape can cause it to burn a bit feeling like an almost dry hit at the hotter temperatures. turning down the watts on a variable device can easily eliminate this variable.

The Less Pure the VG is the harsher the hit is. For example, certian flavors from White Label Juice Co are too harsh for me because of the combination of a less expensive grade VG and higher levels citric acid from fruity flavors (one example for me would be double apple).

Type and density of whicking in rebuildables can contribute too. I'd recommend sticking with organic cotton.

I went through something similar before discovering I was one of the small percentage of the population that has a reaction to PG. The most important thing for you to do is to find a way to eliminate one variable at a time and track the effects on your experience. Right now it sounds like you're all over the place trying to figure out what was going on, just like I was until my OCD took over and and I started breaking it down into all the different variables. One thing you can do is find some super pure VG premium Joose in a non citrus flavor and vape it at medium to low wattage (producing 3.8 to 4.2 volts) and find out if its the VG that's causing your cough.

The real problem is you're introducing a foreign substance into your lungs and they're going to try to reject it. You've conditioned them over a longer period of time to tobacco smoke. Bet you coughed on your 1st cigarette :) It may take a long time to get used to vaping, but you can speed up the process by using what I've offered to find the best option for you. Hope this helps.
 
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IMRs

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Sep 15, 2013
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3 harsh = temp

There are generally three things that can contribute to harshness/throat hit.

1) Higher PG%

2) Higher Nicotine levels

3) Citrus jooses containing higher citric acid in the flavoring.

There are a couple other factors that can exacerbate the issue.

Heat. If your vapor is at too high a temperature for your airflow, the heat from the vape can cause it to burn a bit feeling like an almost dry hit at the hotter temperatures. turning down the watts on a variable device can easily eliminate this variable.

The Less Pure the VG is the harsher the hit is. For example, certian flavors from White Label Juice Co are too harsh for me because of the combination of a less expensive grade VG and higher levels citric acid from fruity flavors (one example for me would be double apple).

Type and density of whicking in rebuildables can contribute too. I'd recommend sticking with organic cotton.

I went through something similar before discovering I was one of the small percentage of the population that has a reaction to PG. The most important thing for you to do is to find a way to eliminate one variable at a time and track the effects on your experience. Right now it sounds like you're all over the place trying to figure out what was going on, just like I was until my OCD took over and and I started breaking it down into all the different variables. One thing you can do is find some super pure VG premium Joose in a non citrus flavor and vape it at medium to low wattage (producing 3.8 to 4.2 volts) and find out if its the VG that's causing your cough.

The real problem is you're introducing a foreign substance into your lungs and they're going to try to reject it. You've conditioned them over a longer period of time to tobacco smoke. Bet you coughed on your 1st cigarette :) It may take a long time to get used to vaping, but you can speed up the process by using what I've offered to find the best option for you. Hope this helps.
Very good post! I just wanted to add that PG for me is a different nightmare. After almost 3 years of vaping, since the first week of vaping, I reverted back to a 14 year old. My face was breaking out like crazy and it was actually painful! Up until about 3 or 4 months ago, somehow I figured it all out. I lowered the PG in my juice and amazingly no more zits!
 
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