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Hi and welcome,
DIY? I have not purchased retail juice in almost 3 years.
Yes...DIY is the way to go!
Do you have any questions or problems you would like addressed?
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Cheers
I
I haven' bought any in several years myself but I'm certainly not near as educated on it as most of you seem to be
I'm starting to realize that a lot of the flavoring that I thought wasn't any good is probably the amount I was using. Is there an average on the percentage of total flavoring to be used
Welcome to ECF You may want to check out this forum, too: DIY E-Liquid
As far as percentages, some flavor manufacturers will put a "recommended" percentage on their flavors, but it's really just a starting point.. What percentage are you flavoring at? You are correct that too high a percentage can be as bad (sometimes worse) than to low. I would recommend a dilution, but it's hard to know what to tell you without knowing your flavoring percentages. Mnay people flavor in the 5--12% range, but everyone is individual. I've been DIY a while now though and my tastebuds are back after a long hiatus, so I can taste things better, and I like my juice more subtle. If you are flavoring at 10% or above and getting bad results, I would reduce flavorings. You can dilute a mix you have that is overflavored, and how complicated that gets is up to you. Since you are still in the experimenting phase though, you could not worry about nicotine levels until you start finding flavor ranges that work well for you, just dilute with some PG or VG, and see if your results improve. Alternately, you could start over from scratch.
Similarly, steeping times are important, it's easy to overflavor if you are tasting or using some mixes too soon. Some flavors require a month of steeping or more to really shine, and tasting too early can lead to over flavoring, as you aren't tasting some of the flavors that will "emerge" with steeping.
Best of luck and welcome to ECF. I hope checking out the DIY board is helpful too, it can sometimes be hard to get up and going with DIY, but it shouldn't be extraordinarily hard and etc.
Anna
As far as percentages, some flavor manufacturers will put a "recommended" percentage on their flavors, but it's really just a starting point.. What percentage are you flavoring at? You are correct that too high a percentage can be as bad (sometimes worse) than to low. I would recommend a dilution, but it's hard to know what to tell you without knowing your flavoring percentages. Mnay people flavor in the 5--12% range, but everyone is individual. I've been DIY a while now though and my tastebuds are back after a long hiatus, so I can taste things better, and I like my juice more subtle. If you are flavoring at 10% or above and getting bad results, I would reduce flavorings. You can dilute a mix you have that is overflavored, and how complicated that gets is up to you. Since you are still in the experimenting phase though, you could not worry about nicotine levels until you start finding flavor ranges that work well for you, just dilute with some PG or VG, and see if your results improve. Alternately, you could start over from scratch.
Similarly, steeping times are important, it's easy to overflavor if you are tasting or using some mixes too soon. Some flavors require a month of steeping or more to really shine, and tasting too early can lead to over flavoring, as you aren't tasting some of the flavors that will "emerge" with steeping.
Best of luck and welcome to ECF. I hope checking out the DIY board is helpful too, it can sometimes be hard to get up and going with DIY, but it shouldn't be extraordinarily hard and etc.
Anna
Hi mike,
Unfortunately, every brand will be a little different and some flavors may be stronger or less so than others within the same brand.
Also if mixing two flavors, % may be lower than if mixing as a standalone of each.
Where are you buying flavours and what do you have?
I found it useful to select one or two dead simple recipes and build from there. Once you know your flavors, making mixes becomes much more intuitive, similar to cooking. (Marshmallow and chocolate should NEVER be in an omelet, but onions and bacon are perfect!)
Oh and What Anna said. (ninja!)
Cheers
I
I discovered this sleeping process by accident but never tried very hard to perfect it. Do you know what type of flavors require it most and the proper procedures
I'm using mostly flavors from heartland because its about 10 minutes away but also have some from wizard labs
There are many methods for steeping including time with the occasional vigorous shaking (my favorite method now that I'm up and running) although some folks use an ultrasonic cleaner, a magnetic or other type of stirrer, and heat, to speed up recipes. There are reports that sometimes, too much heat can actually mute flavors, and since I have my DIY up and running, I really prefer to let time do all the work for me. You can find out more about steeping on the DIY thread.
Some flavors (like berries, fruits etc.) require less steeping time than others (like vanillas, custards, tobaccos, and creams) . Some flavors (mainly citrus) seem to do better with shorter times or the "citrus" notes can vanish, as it were.
If you are steeping say, a strawberry and cream, you will want a steeping time that works for the "longest" needing steeping flavor. E..g. if you make a "Strawberry and Bavarian cream" mix (just as an example) you will probably taste most of the strawberry and none of the cream, etc. So you have to steep enough for your "longest steeping " flavor.
I started with single flavor mixes and combined them in my tank to see how they played well together or not (not as accurate as steeping "together" but it did give me general sense of what was going on with each flavor profile and while it was a slow start, it was a more accurate start (for me) as over time it enabled me to figure out what played well together, and with my palate. I did read a ton of recipes first and also tasted a lot of storebought juices which helped me identify what I liked and didn't. I have a pretty good handle on how my flavors "work" now. I did keep storebought around as I was doing that, so I didn't go nuts waiting, LOL.
With that said, many people do well following a recipe and get good results from that, it really depends on preference. I guess the only thing I might add is if you have any alcohol based flavors, you may want to let your mix "breathe" periodically (but don't overdo it flavoring can evaporate out as well) and a vigorous shaking every once in a while doesn't hurt.
Also, if you are having trouble initially you can look into "one shot" flavors which are designed to be vaped stand alone (although I will freely admit, I sometimes add other things to mine, even if sometimes a single ingredient) and many can be vaped right away, without too much steeping time (or any). Maybe you want to try a few one shots to see if you can find the "percentage ranges" that are right for you, (your flavoring "window" percentage, so to speak) and then it will make working with single flavor combinations more easy, and you can vape one shots while you wait. Some of them are great. Do keep in mind every manufacturer does make flavors of "varying" strength, for example Flavor Art's flavors are "known" to be strong, so they may not require as high of a percentage than some other flavors, but some one shots might give you a general sense of where you want to be, percentage wise.
Best of luck,
Anna
Some flavors (like berries, fruits etc.) require less steeping time than others (like vanillas, custards, tobaccos, and creams) . Some flavors (mainly citrus) seem to do better with shorter times or the "citrus" notes can vanish, as it were.
If you are steeping say, a strawberry and cream, you will want a steeping time that works for the "longest" needing steeping flavor. E..g. if you make a "Strawberry and Bavarian cream" mix (just as an example) you will probably taste most of the strawberry and none of the cream, etc. So you have to steep enough for your "longest steeping " flavor.
I started with single flavor mixes and combined them in my tank to see how they played well together or not (not as accurate as steeping "together" but it did give me general sense of what was going on with each flavor profile and while it was a slow start, it was a more accurate start (for me) as over time it enabled me to figure out what played well together, and with my palate. I did read a ton of recipes first and also tasted a lot of storebought juices which helped me identify what I liked and didn't. I have a pretty good handle on how my flavors "work" now. I did keep storebought around as I was doing that, so I didn't go nuts waiting, LOL.
With that said, many people do well following a recipe and get good results from that, it really depends on preference. I guess the only thing I might add is if you have any alcohol based flavors, you may want to let your mix "breathe" periodically (but don't overdo it flavoring can evaporate out as well) and a vigorous shaking every once in a while doesn't hurt.
Also, if you are having trouble initially you can look into "one shot" flavors which are designed to be vaped stand alone (although I will freely admit, I sometimes add other things to mine, even if sometimes a single ingredient) and many can be vaped right away, without too much steeping time (or any). Maybe you want to try a few one shots to see if you can find the "percentage ranges" that are right for you, (your flavoring "window" percentage, so to speak) and then it will make working with single flavor combinations more easy, and you can vape one shots while you wait. Some of them are great. Do keep in mind every manufacturer does make flavors of "varying" strength, for example Flavor Art's flavors are "known" to be strong, so they may not require as high of a percentage than some other flavors, but some one shots might give you a general sense of where you want to be, percentage wise.
Best of luck,
Anna
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