Newbie burning cartos. Help.

[biciporrero]

Hi everyone. Glad to finally get my first post on here. So, I ordered a KR808 and got it a week ago. Went with Vapor4Life as it was recommended in some posts I saw here and I love it. Smoked 5 analogs the first day, 3 the 2nd day, and haven't had one since, even though they have been in my pocket the whole time. I'd just rather vape. Didn't know if I'd quit smoking, just figured I'd buy this thing and might cut down or at least vape when I was sick. This is so super awesome!!!

So, I read the advice and got juice and lots of cartos and stuff, but I think I'm doing something wrong. I know I definitely killed some cartos by sucking them try, getting a VERY burny taste. Then trying to refill and the taste stays awful. But it seems like I'm still doing that with every carto.

Any advice? I've read here to stop using a carto when the flavor dies down or when even the slightest taste of burning. I don't taste the flavor dieing down at all. With the burning taste, I get it sometimes and have vaped a lot more off the carto, other times it just keeps burning more and more. Other times I feel I've stopped right away after the first burnt taste, only to refill and have a burnt or chemical taste the rest of the carto, and/or getting a mouthful of juice.

I'm using the carto condom refill method, if that makes a difference.

Any idea what I'm doing wrong? Give it more time? I'm 11 days since my last analog, so still new.

THANKS!!

 

[texasgranny]

Once you get that burnt taste...it probably will stay unless you can clean your carto. I don't know what brand you
have, but there are MANY videos on YouTube about cleaning them.
You might also try a quick fix (before cleaning) by adding some vodka or everclear in the carto, let it soak and then
blow out the excess and do this a couple times. Then add some juice back in and see if that helps.

It takes a little time to learn the balance of not enough, versus too much. The first week or so,
I killed a few cartos. Just remember, you can recover from too much juice (blow out the excess) but it is hard to recover from not enough juice (burnt taste).

 

[biciporrero]

Using vodka or everclear isn't an option. I'm a recovering alcoholic, almost 2 years sober, so keeping that stuff around isn't something I wanna do. Is there another option besides booze for cleaning cartos?

So, should I just stop using a carto even if I SUSPECT it's getting low? And refill early to avoid the burnt taste?

 

[biciporrero]

Oh, and my brand is everything Vapor4Life.

 

[WomanOfHeart]

You can try any carto designed for the KR808D-1. I think Boge makes some. I usually vape 510 (although I've been on a 901 kick lately. I vape a mod.) I really like the Boge soft tips and rarely get a really burnt taste.

 

[Lilavati]

Using vodka or everclear isn't an option. I'm a recovering alcoholic, almost 2 years sober, so keeping that stuff around isn't something I wanna do. Is there another option besides booze for cleaning cartos?

You can boil them, there are vids for that. What I do for changing flavors is to use white vinegar (I haven't tried it for burnt, but it will probably work), since its a lot cheaper than booze. It is also utterly unappealing as a beverage choice.

 

[Mike A.]

You can boil them, there are vids for that. What I do for changing flavors is to use white vinegar (I haven't tried it for burnt, but it will probably work), since its a lot cheaper than booze. It is also utterly unappealing as a beverage choice.

Same here. I've not used it on cartos but white vinegar seems to work well for the atomizers that I've cooked in the same way. I've started rinsing my new ones in that first to get rid of the primer stuff that tends to leave that same nasty effect when it burns off.

 

[dormouse]

Some of the V4L cartos run hotter. They call their blanks WOW carts (the hotter ones, 2.x ohm) and Coolcarts (the cooler ones, 3.x ohm). Try some of the cooler ones. It's a bit hard to tell which prefilled ones are which cartos but you could ask them. Maybe you'll have better luck with the Coolcarts.

 

[Numevexo]

Using vodka or everclear isn't an option. I'm a recovering alcoholic, almost 2 years sober, so keeping that stuff around isn't something I wanna do. Is there another option besides booze for cleaning cartos?

So, should I just stop using a carto even if I SUSPECT it's getting low? And refill early to avoid the burnt taste?

I go for the white vinegar route. You really don't need the alcohol to disinfect anything, and white vinegar is an excellent cleaner. I used it to clean a used aquarium I bought when I needed something strong, but not toxic.
Do Not Use Isopropyl Alcohol. Leftover fumes from that would not be good for you.

 

[sweetblackkitten]

so do you boil the atty in the the vinegar, or just let it soak in there?

 

[VprNomi]

There's a learning curve on this. The trick is to figure out when it's starting to get dry BEFORE you get the burning taste (if you want to avoid that nasty taste & make the cartos last longer). I also use V4L cartos and I refill them (actually, top them off since I never let them get too dry) every few hours on average. I work from home & vape a lot.

Pop the white carto top off & look inside at the filler every so often. If it looks like it's getting dry, add more juice. You might want to do this relatively often at first to get an idea of how long you can use them before they need to be refilled or switched out for a new one. It won't take long to figure it out.

 

[VprNomi]

Oh - and I don't recommend the condom fill method. It's too messy. I pop the white cap off the carto, hold it at a 45 degree angle & drip juice on the inside rim (to slide down into the filler) while rotating the carto every few drops to get it in there evenly. You can see what you're doing, so stop when the filler looks full but not oversaturated. I don't understand why people put the juice in the battery/atty end of the carto. I know lots of people do but I think that's just asking for problems.

 

[biciporrero]

Thanks to everyone for the advice. I'm using the carto condom refill method, because I was really hoping to be lazy and not have to do surgery on cartos, but I guess I might have to, at least for awhile while I learn how dry is too dry. To be honest, I have yet to pop the cap off any of my cartos, so we'll see what I find.

 

[VprNomi]

Finally, I'd say once the carto is burnt, cleaning it is probably no longer an option. I say this because while you can clean the burnt taste from an atomizer (atty), cartos are different. If you've burnt the filler and/or wick, cleaning it isn't going to help because it's paper, cotton and/or polyfill. You either have to get rid of the charred material (which is probably more work than it's worth) or toss it.

 

[Numevexo]

I have to agree with VprNomi.
Popping the cap off the mouthpiece and filling drop by drop while rotating the carto is relatively easy and it gives you a better understanding of what's going on inside there.
I find myself doing it more often and just keep topping off the carto, as long as I'm smoking the same flavor continuously.

 

[VprNomi]

Don't worry, it's easy. All you have to do is stick a paperclip (or anything that fits in the hole - I've used toothpicks) in there about a quarter of an inch, angle it to the side a bit & they pop right out. Once you've done it, you'll see it's no big deal. They pop right in & out. Especially V4L since every carto I've gotten from them has a soft top.

I also agree with the Coolcarts recommendation. I tried one & I like it alot. It never gets hot, even when I'm constantly vaping.

Thanks to everyone for the advice. I'm using the carto condom refill method, because I was really hoping to be lazy and not have to do surgery on cartos, but I guess I might have to, at least for awhile while I learn how dry is too dry. To be honest, I have yet to pop the cap off any of my cartos, so we'll see what I find.

 

[VprNomi]

I dedicate a carto to each flavor so I use this modified dripping method until it's time to change flavor, then switch the carto out for the new one.

I have to agree with VprNomi.
Popping the cap off the mouthpiece and filling drop by drop while rotating the carto is relatively easy and it gives you a better understanding of what's going on inside there.
I find myself doing it more often and just keep topping off the carto, as long as I'm smoking the same flavor continuously.

 

[Patsy]

I also use V4L carts and have found after nearly a year at vaping that topping off is the best way to keep the flavor and not burn the cart. It's really worth the time. At least give it a try and see what you think.

 

[ERB]

I was tired of getting a burned taste and decided to go with the fluxomizer/CE2. I’m lazy and don’t feel like constantly topping off my cart. Plus, I can be a little overzealous in my vapping at times. However, filling the things when they do run out requires more work, and many find that some minor tinkering is required to get them to function properly. I’m more than willing to trade that to avoid the horrible burning sensation I occasionally get from standard cartos. I do still keep my normal cartos for when I’m on the go and need something easy. This thread has information on them.

 

[venkman]

i encountered this problem too in my early days of vaping, with 808s. when i figured out an easy method to avoid this, i posted it. so, here ya go:
wow, ecf won't even let me write the name of or link to a post on vaperzforum? yikes, that's kind of absurd. ok, copy and paste time:

"Never burn a carto again
...unless its faulty. For my first couple of weeks vaping with the KR808D-1, i found myself burning (and tossing) too many cartos. I've now got a "system" to avoid this. It's nothing revolutionary, and I'm sure I'm not the only one who does this, but I figured I'd share.

First, you need a PCC. Well, you don't need it, but if you're on the go at all, you should have one. Next, you need two batteries. Lastly, 3 cartos. This idea is based around the fact that an 808 carto lasts longer than an 808 battery (i use the the "regular", not the short or XL)...so if you change you're carto whenever you change batts, u'll pretty much never burn a carto.
So, you have one filled carto screwed onto the fully charged battery that you're going to be using, and the other two filled cartos and spare batt in the PCC. When the batt you're using dies, put a new carto on the fresh batt and plug the dead batt into the PCC. By the time you kill that battery, the other should be charged and you can use that with the 3rd carto. Then just top off the 3 cartos at the end of the day, charge you're batteries, and you're ready for the next day. I do a lot of chain vaping, and 3 batts/cartos last me all day.

Easy peasy lemon squeezy. "


also, when i used to fill cartos, i found that the best method for me was what i called the "thermometer shake." pop off the white cap, and remove the silicone ring. drip onto the filler/down the side of the carto until the filler looks wet, but not pooled with liquid. make sure you have a condom on the battery end, grasp the carto by the open end, and flick or shake it like you would an old thermometer. repeat this process until the filler still looks wet after shaking. it helps the juice absorb more quickly, thoroughly, and evenly.