New DIYer, tell me how i did

[CorTEH]

I been vaping now for 2 years almost, and really have taken it up as a full time hobby.. Having spent more money then I would like to admit I'm realizing now that I should just start DIY to not only take the next step in this love affair I have but to also save some greenbacks. Take a look at my order and tell me if there is anything big that I missed or is a must have so its not to late to change it or add it. As you can probably tell I like custards/deserts. Also when it comes to goggles, mask, and gloves I'm getting all that from my work.

Vegetable Glycerin USP - 500ml VG-500ML 1 $9.49 $9.49
Propylene Glycol USP - 250ml PG-250ML 1 $5.49 $5.49
48mg Nicotine solution - 120ml-120ML 1 $9.99 $9.99
Graduated Cylinder Polypropylene - 25ml-25ML 2 $2.79 $5.58
Graduated Cylinder Polypropylene - 10ml-10ML 1 $1.79
Griffin Beaker Polypropylene - 50ml-50ML 2 $1.29 $2.58
Funnel 75mm Long Stem Polypropylene-75MM 2 $1.49 $2.98
Erlenmeyer Flask Bomex Glass - 100ml-100ML 1 $2.99
1ml Luer Lock Syringe - Quantity Discounts-1ML 2 $0.75 $1.50
5ml Luer Lock Syringe - Quantity Discounts-5ML 2 $0.59 $1.18
10ml Luer Lock Syringe - Quantity Discounts-10ML 2 $0.69 $1.38
14ga Blunt Tip Luer-Lock Needle 1.5" - Quantity Discounts-14GA 2 $0.65
16ga Blunt Tip Luer-Lock Needle 1.5" - Quantity Discounts-16GA 3 $0.63
30ml LDPE Dropper Bottle with Child Resist Cap DB-30ML-CRC 10 $0.55
15ml LDPE Dropper Bottle with Child Resist Cap DB-15ML-CRC 5 $0.53
Blueberry Cinnamon Crumble Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Boston Cream Pie Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Cake Batter Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Caramel Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Chocolate Fudge Brownie Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Marshmallow Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Medium Tobacco Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
New York Cheesecake Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Sweet Cream Flavor Concentrate by CAP (1oz)-30ML 1 $5.45
Super Sweet Liquid Sucralose Sweetener Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Sweet Lychee Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Sweet Tangerine Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Sweet Strawberry Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Sweet Watermelon Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
True Tobacco Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Vanilla Cupcake Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Vanilla Custard* Flavor Concentrate by CAP (1oz)-30ML 1 $5.45
Waffle Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
French Vanilla* Flavor Concentrate by CAP (1oz)-30ML 1 $5.45
Glazed Doughnut Flavor Concentrate by CAP (0.27oz)-8ML 1 $1.49
Sub-Total: $97.97

 

[Dconnor]

You look like you are in good shape. Not saying what your target nic is, so could possibly get more there. I started with 60mg, but have moved up to 100mg.
You probably don't really "need" some of the beaker, flask etc but they are nice to have.

 

[CorTEH]

I am vaping at 3mg. It was hard to exactly pin point what nic concentrate and I think the one I wanted was OOS so I just went with 48. Next time ill prob get 100mg.

 

[suburbiansam]

I'd like to second Dconnors suggestion to nix some of the glassware. Is also like to add that you may want to spring for glass bottles, rather than ldpe, as any plastic other than PET has been known to leech into the juices.
Something that wasn't on your list was a scale to the .01g or a croc pot/ultrasonic cleaner to speed steep your juice. There is nothing worse than waiting 2-3 weeks to try a new juice.
Good luck

 

[CorTEH]

I'd like to second Dconnors suggestion to nix some of the glassware. Is also like to add that you may want to spring for glass bottles, rather than ldpe, as any plastic other than PET has been known to leech into the juices.
Something that wasn't on your list was a scale to the .01g or a croc pot/ultrasonic cleaner to speed steep your juice. There is nothing worse than waiting 2-3 weeks to try a new juice.
Good luck

Ok. I have a crock pot but I have heard two different things, one being that heating up your juice will help speed steep and two that heat is bad for your juice and that's why you want to keep it in a cool dark place.. so I'm not sure how diyers do it but I do own a crock pot. As for glass bottles I prob have over 30 of them from past purchases that I plan to soak and clean out very well to reuse. The flasks I'm going to keep around for the mad scientist look, muahaha.

 

[cocacola31173]

I cut my 100 mg nic into 3 mg nic base in 400 batches. That way all I have to do is add the flavor to a bottle and fill the rest up with my nic base. When I mix the nic base all I use is a glass measuring cup to measure and mix my PG and VG in and I use a syringe to add my nic. Then I add it all to a 500 ml glass amber bottle.

 

[Hoosier]

Ok. I have a crock pot but I have heard two different things, one being that heating up your juice will help speed steep and two that heat is bad for your juice and that's why you want to keep it in a cool dark place.. so I'm not sure how diyers do it but I do own a crock pot. As for glass bottles I prob have over 30 of them from past purchases that I plan to soak and clean out very well to reuse. The flasks I'm going to keep around for the mad scientist look, muahaha.

Both are correct. Depends on the juice.

How DIY'ers do it is to try different things and see what works best for the specific recipe. Hidebound is what you'd call someone who always does something the same way with every recipe, not a DIY mixer.

 

[dannyv45]

As mentioned by Hoosier there are good things about heat and bad things. Heat will speed maturing but prolonged heat will degrade NIC. So the answer is, It is OK to heat steep for up to 5 hours to speed up the maturing process then store in a cool dark place. Think of it this way. You use heat to cook your food then cold to preserve it.

Also remember to taste your fresh mix before steeping. It is not always nessessary to steep. If it taste good to you right after mixing then vape away it will likely improve as time goes by but if it's way off the mark then steeping may be the only answer.

 

[mhertz]

I have never used crockpots and so have no experience with them, but I see two potential problems at least; one as danny stated above, it will degrade the nic. That I wouldn't be that much concernt about since it's pretty neglible for short turns I would guess, allthough it quite possibly will enhance the tobacco notes of the nic, as heat does in my experience, but second, e.g. vg dosen't like higher temps(for storage, not evaporation, I mean), as can be read from there msds sheets which dictates usually around 25C max, and I have withnessed first-hand vg gone bad in non-airconditioned room-temp during summer time, where the temp was roughly 30C, and there my vg got a sour taste. It was vapable still, but for some time I was thinking what was wrong with my mixes, and thought it was the nic, untill I tasted the vg and found the cause and dumped it.

Again, not saying speed-steeping using warmth is bad per say, but I just think there could potentially be issues with it...

 

[dannyv45]

Some oxidation is nessessary to develop the flavor of the mix. Oxidation happens in natural steeping as well. The trick is to control the rate of oxidation of a fresh mix. Heat steeping speeds this up which is what you want. Then the rate slows as the mix cools and then oxidizes at a normal rate when stored after steeping. If you were going to store a mix for a long time without vaping it then natural steeping is the answer. If your going to vape the entire mix within the next 2 to 3 months or so then the accelerated oxidation heat steeping provides is a plus, maturing the mix to a ready to be vaped state right away. Within the 2 to 3 months the mix will be vaped in, the oxidation rate to spoilage is a non factor. So it is advisable if you heat steep to make a mix in quantities that will last 2 - 3 months and no more if storing at room temperatures. You can extend the shelf life of the mix even more by storing that mix in the refrigerator. This will slow the oxidation rate even more letting it last even longer then 3 months. The only draw back with refrigeration is that if left out to long condensation may form inside the bottle. Water is a factor in accelerated oxidation so exposure to room temperature and keeping it uncapped should be kept to a minimum.