Low resistance pass-through problems

[nerdjuice32]

Hey guys. I've been vaping for a while now. I have a standard 510 battery and low res attie. Last time I bought the attie, I happen to read on their page not to use a pass-through to charge with a LR attie as it will ruin the attie and battery. I have found this to be correct. (lol)

I know you're not supposed to keep the battery charging all the time, so I don't do that. I almost exclusively vape in my car or on my computer, both of which have usb pass-throughs. I literally never charge my battery using a conventional charger. Now when I take my battery off the pass-through it shuts off after about a half second of hitting the button; not able to turn on again until I plug it back in and for some reason twist the attie off and on again.

I'm wondering if there is any way to pull this off. I can't stand using standard resistance atties anymore, so that's not an option. I also don't want to get away from pass-throughs. Is there any way to do this without ruining the battery? Otherwise, I think the only solution is to buy 2 batteries and switch off between them while the other is on the charging station, but I'd really prefer not to.

 

[mirth]

how low are you talking like sub-ohm? I don't have any passthroughs yet but I was just trying to clarify, I have some LR (1.5) heads on Protanks and was wondering if that would apply to them as well

I would just get a second batt personally, when I was going the eGo route i bought a second because they didn't have the passthrough option but I'm glad I did just for the extra mah when on the go

 

[nerdjuice32]

how low are you talking like sub-ohm? I don't have any passthroughs yet but I was just trying to clarify, I have some LR (1.5) heads on Protanks and was wondering if that would apply to them as well

I would just get a second batt personally, when I was going the eGo route i bought a second because they didn't have the passthrough option but I'm glad I did just for the extra mah when on the go

I'm pretty sure these are 1.5's. Here's the battery I have:
Joye EGO USB Manual 650mah Battery

 

[AttyPops]

Well, it MAY be an over-wattage thing. Like a safety cut-off to avoid shorts.

Try 1.7/1.8 ohms if so. Or maybe even 2.0 ohms.

@mirth: Ohms are ohms from the battery's standpoint. Although they vary a bit and you'd need a meter or some tester to tell the real ohms of a coil at any given time (rather than the approximate rating for sales purposes...the reality vs the intent).

 

[Rickajho]

Hey guys. I've been vaping for a while now. I have a standard 510 battery and low res attie. Last time I bought the attie, I happen to read on their page not to use a pass-through to charge with a LR attie as it will ruin the attie and battery. I have found this to be correct. (lol)

I have no idea what point they are making. As stated, that doesn't make much technical sense. Can you provide us a web link so we can see that info?

I know you're not supposed to keep the battery charging all the time, so I don't do that. I almost exclusively vape in my car or on my computer, both of which have usb pass-throughs. I literally never charge my battery using a conventional charger. Now when I take my battery off the pass-through it shuts off after about a half second of hitting the button; not able to turn on again until I plug it back in and for some reason twist the attie off and on again.

I'm wondering if there is any way to pull this off. I can't stand using standard resistance atties anymore, so that's not an option. I also don't want to get away from pass-throughs. Is there any way to do this without ruining the battery? Otherwise, I think the only solution is to buy 2 batteries and switch off between them while the other is on the charging station, but I'd really prefer not to.

Ok, let's try to sort this out.

First, LR devices are hard on batteries. The lower the resistance, the more stress on the battery. You didn't say how old these batteries are but they could already be depleted.

And device resistance can change - either way - as the device is used. You may be starting with a 1.5 ohm atty, but after a week of use it might now be a 1.0 ohm atty. The lower the resistance... Getting a cheap test meter and checking the resistance of LR devices is always a good thing.

You linked to a basic JoyeTech passthrough. They are nice, but those batteries aren't built for LR devices. They may work for a while, but there is a (likely) possibility that continued use of 1.5 ohm attys on those passthroughs is going to trip the internal protection circuit, rendering the batteries useless. Connected to the passthrough cable or not - those batteries aren't made for LR devices.

If you like LR stuff you really need to move up to an APV that is designed to safely handle LR devices. Otherwise you risk blowing through theJoyeTech PT's anyway, either from short life spans or blown protection circuits. The symptoms you are describing sound like that particular battery is worn out, but the protection circuit hasn't tripped.

 

[nerdjuice32]

Here's what attie I've been getting:
Joye LR 510 Atomizer

You can see the 3rd line from the top in the description:
"DO NOT use these atomizers on any passthrough or regular or mega batteries, you will ruin the atomizer and the passthrough or battery."

^Also, would mods be considered 'mega batteries'? And would my battery not be considered a 'regular battery'? lol

I used to have a Puresmoker Legacy but it broke (not due to battery/attie reasons). You wouldn't happen to know of any mods with a passthrough, would you? The Legacy battery system is better than eGo's without PT's, but still I love PT's. I may just have to settle. The Legacy is really the only mod I know anything about. Most of my vaping 'career' has been with the eGo's. I'll try and do some research myself, but thank you guys very much for the help!

 

[AttyPops]

Here's what attie I've been getting:
Joye LR 510 Atomizer

You can see the 3rd line from the top in the description:
"DO NOT use these atomizers on any passthrough or regular or mega batteries, you will ruin the atomizer and the passthrough or battery."

^Also, would mods be considered 'mega batteries'? And would my battery not be considered a 'regular battery'? lol

I used to have a Puresmoker Legacy but it broke (not due to battery/attie reasons). You wouldn't happen to know of any mods with a passthrough, would you? The Legacy battery system is better than eGo's without PT's, but still I love PT's. I may just have to settle. The Legacy is really the only mod I know anything about. Most of my vaping 'career' has been with the eGo's. I'll try and do some research myself, but thank you guys very much for the help!

Low resistance atomizers allow for more current to pass through the atomizer resulting in more and warmer vapor.
Only use the 510 LR atomizers on 3.7 volt or lower batteries.

These were designed to work on 450mah or higher batteries as they do draw more power from the battery and will drastically reduce the lifespan of a battery between charges.

DO NOT use these atomizers on any passthrough or regular or mega batteries, you will ruin the atomizer and the passthrough or battery.

We recommend using these on the joye ego series of vaporizer's.

These will be roughly 1.5ohm.

(^^^ What it actually says at that link)

OK, that may be a little confusing.

The eGo units are 3.4 volts and 650 mAh or more. That's what it says the atomizer is designed for. Now, yours is that, but also has an additional PT function in it. I would assume (and you can check with the vendor) that when they say a PT, they mean a "direct 5v PT" or a smaller PT with a small battery. They also caution against using cig-a-like sized stuff (that's the regular or mega reference. Regular or mega 510 cig-a-like, not a mod), or any battery less that 450 mAh.

So the question you should ask them is ...."by 'any passthrough' do you mean this (provide link)?"

Also, I have some questions for you. Do you have a multi-meter? or something to test the ohms of the atomizer that is giving you fits? Do you have another (new) atomizer?

Also, it is commonly suggested to use an A/C to USB converter (wall wart) rather than your computer USB port. This safegards your computer. Although for a "PT" style eGo, it should be OK because it only trickle charges the battery from the USB port and doesn't draw many amps. There are "direct" PT's (they don't have a battery) and they draw a lot of amps and are usually higher voltage. Yours isn't that kind.

There have been warnings about using 1.5 LR stuff on eGo style units in the past. However, to the best of my knowledge, people do it now all the time (there may have been changes) and haven't had problems (so they report). That's not to say people haven't ever had an eGo battery blow, but it's often due to other problems as far as I know. And there's no guarantee that an atomizer won't short at any time regardless of ohms.

It is a common rumor/understanding that the eGo units can fail if the atty shorts. They will either refuse to work or refuse to charge due to the electronics being ....fried...because of the short. At least that's what I've read here. I haven't had one fail but I don't use them much if at all anymore. (had 2...1 a PT).

So, maybe try another atomizer. That one may be partially shorted or just too low of ohms. If it doesn't like it, be careful charging the unit, charge it in a safe place and watch it for overheating, until you get higher ohm stuff. Make sure that using this LR stuff didn't damage the charging circuits (by making sure it seems to be functioning and charging correctly). IDK how to tell you to do that. I wish you had a metal ammo box to charge it in or something.

It's probably OK. Probably tripping on an over-amp condition.

OK, I've rambled. Does any of this make sense?

 

[Rickajho]

Ok, let's try it this way: What is it you like about passthrough's?

 

[AttyPops]

Ok, let's try it this way: What is it you like about passthrough's?

You know, I almost went there too. But then I thought..."What if he just has one atomizer that's at 1.2 ohms at the moment and it's giving him fits, or a bad batch?" Hate to start recommending a whole new setup unless he needs it.

(he likes the charging-as-you-vape going by what he said about not using the other charger)

OTOH, if it's a flaky unit and has to be replace anyway......

ETA...and he did say he's been vaping for a while now...I wonder how old the eGo-PT is? Join date Sept 2012...

 

[nerdjuice32]

Sorry for the delay in my response. Thank you all very much for the input. I'll try and get to all the questions/suggestions.

The battery is less than 3 months old. Is the battery considered a PV, or the cord itself? I figured it was referred to as 'a battery with PV fuction, the PV being the cord'. If so, I would be hard pressed to tell you if I ordered this specifically for my ecig. I'm a bit of a computer nerd (I wish I understood electronics better though), so I have at least 7 or 8 of the usb to.. w/e fitting this is cords. I can use any of them for my ecig. Is that a problem, do you think?

The attie is definitely getting old. Upwards of a month and a half of continuous use, though well cared for. It still hits like a beaut when my battery is functioning. Sometimes I can vape for hours at my computer with no problems. Though, most of the time when it's unplugged it turns off first puff. I have a few new atties but no more LR's. Next time I get one I'll test it out and see if that takes care of the intermittent problem.

I like passthroughs as I never find myself craving yet realize the battery is dead and have to charge. I'm on quite a budget and can't afford more than one setup, really. More than one battery, even. I may be able to pull something off, but I'm about to move as well. Backup money is always a good idea.

Unfortunately I do not have any kind of meter I can test ohms or voltage, though I may soon be within access to some stuff (and someone who knows how to use them).

I may be over imposing (and I apologize if so), but lemme try and get this straight:
Voltage is how much current is flowing
Ohms is the resistance to that current
Amps... Something about how much power is being drawn.. but for some reason is different than voltage?

 

[Rickajho]

No - you is fine. lol

The battery type you have is a passthrough. It has been, historically, described as a battery that plugs into a charging cable and can be used to vape while it's being charged at the same time. The cable, is just - well - the cable that goes with the passthrough battery.

I am concerned about the behavior you are describing. These batteries have protection circuits designed to shut off the battery if it detect a short. (Something you never want to do to any battery.) Mind you, your atty may not be fully shorted. But if the resistance of the atty has dropped, the closer it is to zero ohms the more the battery protection is going to "interpret" that as a short. Thus one possible reason for these shut downs.

At this point the only thing I can strongly suggest is you get a cheap electrical test meter at the likes of Home Depot or Harbor Freight Tools to see what resistance these attys are measuring. 1.5 ohms is bad enough on this type of battery. If any of them are metering less than that it's time to set those ones aside or risk trashing your batteries.

 

[Glen Snyder]

Food for thought...the last 3 stories of EXPLODING eGo type batteries have ALL involved either a computer usb port of a car usb adapter. Just sayin'

 

[NicoHolic]

I use a stainless version of the Joyetech USB pass-through battery with the Kangertech Mini ProTank loaded with a Kangertech 1.8 ohm head. The head registered 2.0 ohms when juiced on my eVic, which seems to read 0.1 ohms high, and on my multimeter, the battery 510 connector measures 4.0 volts fully charged, either with or without the USB connected. That's right about 8 watts and it vapes about the same on the fully charged pass-through as it does on the eVic set for 8 watts. No problems so far.

 

[AttyPops]

Sorry for the delay in my response. Thank you all very much for the input. I'll try and get to all the questions/suggestions.

The battery is less than 3 months old. Is the battery considered a PV, or the cord itself? I figured it was referred to as 'a battery with PV fuction, the PV being the cord'. If so, I would be hard pressed to tell you if I ordered this specifically for my ecig. I'm a bit of a computer nerd (I wish I understood electronics better though), so I have at least 7 or 8 of the usb to.. w/e fitting this is cords. I can use any of them for my ecig. Is that a problem, do you think?

The attie is definitely getting old. Upwards of a month and a half of continuous use, though well cared for. It still hits like a beaut when my battery is functioning. Sometimes I can vape for hours at my computer with no problems. Though, most of the time when it's unplugged it turns off first puff. I have a few new atties but no more LR's. Next time I get one I'll test it out and see if that takes care of the intermittent problem.

I like passthroughs as I never find myself craving yet realize the battery is dead and have to charge. I'm on quite a budget and can't afford more than one setup, really. More than one battery, even. I may be able to pull something off, but I'm about to move as well. Backup money is always a good idea.

Unfortunately I do not have any kind of meter I can test ohms or voltage, though I may soon be within access to some stuff (and someone who knows how to use them).

I may be over imposing (and I apologize if so), but lemme try and get this straight:
Voltage is how much current is flowing
Ohms is the resistance to that current
Amps... Something about how much power is being drawn.. but for some reason is different than voltage?

Real close You think logically! If you had named them, it may have gone that way. However, this is how it went:
Volts = pressure (like PSI ). It's the difference in potential between the poles. The more diff, the "stronger" the incentive for electron flow.
Ohms = exactly what you said...resistance to flow. Measured in ohms. Higher #'s = more resistance to flow. 0 = a short.
Amps = what you called volts....the total current flow. # electrons flowing past a point per ?second?
Watts = Power (hence light bulb ratings. Brighter = more work done = more power needed/drawn) Also why your electric meter is in kWh (kilo-WATT-hours) e.g. 1000 watts used steadily for 1 hour = 1 kWh.

There's a bunch of formula associated with all that. (Like Watts = Volts * Amps. Sorry, couldn't resist) You can google Ohm's Law if curious.

The least costly route for you right now is to get another atomizer to put on and try it. If the old one is shorted, the new one will work.

 

[AttyPops]

Food for thought...the last 3 stories of EXPLODING eGo type batteries have ALL involved either a computer usb port of a car usb adapter. Just sayin'

Could be a factor. OK, you asked for it (I'm trying to think again...stand back!!!!...there could be smoke or grinding of gears )

However, I'll point out to you that, for the last 3 mass-shooting incidents, all perps were wearing shoes. Thus...be cautious of anyone wearing shoes.... In other words, it may just be common that people use Computer USB and car adapter ports with PT's.

I'd be more suspicious of the PT functionality in general, or charging in general, as a culprit. Particularly since the computer USB ports are probably more....accurate...than the other types of AC to USB or DC to USB things. So type of USB port may not be the issue. Who knows?

Not saying you're wrong though. Before PT's they used to blow up on the screw-on chargers too. So...???? Who knows. Charging = dangerous. Batteries = dangerous.

The thing with PT's is ....they're almost always charging, so the odds for having a problem change. (guessing).

Your caution is a good one. Unattended charging (by whatever means) deserves extra caution and attention to where you place it. Although everyone advises not to charge unattended, I don't know of anyone that unplugs their charging e-cig when they take a potty break or a shower. Just use caution. If you're using a PT you're likely to notice it getting too hot and throw it away from you (and not into a paper bin or under the super-flammable curtains)

For a PT, I'd consider where I laid it down and if I even wanted to leave it plugged in if I was laying it down for long.

The irony of all these cautions we all read and quote is....I actually DON'T want to be in the room when a battery goes BOOM. So how am I supposed to monitor it? lol. I guess making sure it isn't getting overly warm once in a while and also that it isn't left on the charger past the expected amount of time is the best non-technical monitoring people can do without a multimeter.

 

[nerdjuice32]

At this point the only thing I can strongly suggest is you get a cheap electrical test meter at the likes of Home Depot or Harbor Freight Tools to see what resistance these attys are measuring. 1.5 ohms is bad enough on this type of battery. If any of them are metering less than that it's time to set those ones aside or risk trashing your batteries.

I didn't know cheap meters existed. As I said, the difference in my computer nerdiness and how much I know about electronics is pitiful. I should be ashamed. I'll try and find a meter. I'm well enough into e-cigs to become a full-fledged vaper nerd too.

[/B]

Real close You think logically! If you had named them, it may have gone that way. However, this is how it went:
Volts = pressure (like PSI ). It's the difference in potential between the poles. The more diff, the "stronger" the incentive for electron flow.
Ohms = exactly what you said...resistance to flow. Measured in ohms. Higher #'s = more resistance to flow. 0 = a short.
Amps = what you called volts....the total current flow. # electrons flowing past a point per ?second?
Watts = Power (hence light bulb ratings. Brighter = more work done = more power needed/drawn) Also why your electric meter is in kWh (kilo-WATT-hours) e.g. 1000 watts used steadily for 1 hour = 1 kWh.

lol. My favorite hobby is thinking logically! And to think I only got into Star Trek after high school.

Thank you for the explanation. Yeah, I was under the impression that Voltage was actually what Amps are. So basically the peak voltage limits the maximum amps? And hence, maximum Watts? Does the wattage change based on ohms? Obviously performance will change, but does the wattage technically stay the same?

 

[AttyPops]

OK. You asked for it....

First off, you should check out ohm's law or google "ohm's law wheel". Baditude has some good blog posts too. The snail gang here is working on yet-another-ohms-law-post too. Here's a link to that work-in-progress. It's buried in anther thread, but this link should take you to the specific post. If I don't get some editing help it may never finish. lol. This is the latest revision:

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/fo...1-etc-filler-type-cartos-865.html#post9962545 <-- post 8639 as of this date/time.

That's if you like long reading. In short...all the variable are related. Change one, they all adjust. Also, if you know any two of volts, amps, ohms and watts, you know them all. But you need two, because one alone is insufficient information.

So max amps is not a function of one thing, like voltage, but rather at least two things (voltage and resistance for example... or voltage and any other thing). They are pretty much all three-variable equations, but they can all be re-written in terms of each other.

Also, to further answer part of your question: max amps are often limited by the battery capabilities/rating (the power source). And ....if rating exceeded like during a short, the battery heats up due to pushing too many amps and goes boom.

Parts have max watts they can handle too. That's probably why your PT is complaining and shutting off (a safety feature to prevent overload). But it's a guess because we can't tell for sure because you don't have a meter to test the coil with yet (or an APV that reads ohms, or another coil at 1.5 ohms...we could use those as a diagnostic too. So, it's time to accumulate stuff like a good vaper within budget of course. Soon you'll have a stack of stuff too. It's inevitable. The good news is it has limits so you don't have to chase it forever!)

 

[nerdjuice32]

Thanks so much AttiePops. I think I have what I need. If I get all this sorted, I'll post here to let you know my findings.

Take it easy guys. Thanks for the help.

 

[steved5600]

Most if not all APV's have a current limit on them to prevent accidents. The pass through I had was not made for that don't know about any new ones but I suspect they are the same. If you go below 1.5 ohms most APV's will error out or they will simpler ones not function. For real low res you need a mech. type mod.. I have a Porvari, Vamo V2, Zmax V3 Telescoping and they do not like anything below or at 1.5 ohms. I use my K101 for the ones below 1.5. Thing is you have to have an atty that is made for that. That coil if it's say 1 ohm and 4.2 volts (when the battery is fully charged) will deliver 17 watts. Only reason to do that is if you have a dual coil rig. Then each coil will be getting 8 watts. One coil at 17 watts will deliver a burnt taste and gunk up the atty quick. That is my worth. This is only IME. Someone else my have another reason to go that high that I'm not familiar with.

 

[Rickajho]

I didn't know cheap meters existed. As I said, the difference in my computer nerdiness and how much I know about electronics is pitiful. I should be ashamed. I'll try and find a meter. I'm well enough into e-cigs to become a full-fledged vaper nerd too.

Ask and ye shall be told where to go. (No, wait...) Like this one, for example: http://www.harborfreight.com/7-function-multimeter-98025.html

Barely the price of one atty.

It doesn't have to be this one. Just to shows you that they are out there for very little cost. Similar price/function should be available in most hardware stores. Radio Schlock too, but a bit pricier.

About Harbor Freight:

They do have a store locator on the site. You can see if there is one in your area.

There are several (3) meters there that look almost identical but they have different stock numbers. (Big honkin' number on the front of the packaging.) Get the 98025 - it has the least negative reviews.

For five bucks you can bet both quality and control are lacking on these things. Save yourself a potential return trip: Turn it on and check it out before you even leave the parking lot.