Nicotine Levels and Harshness

[UncleMidriff]

Should a higher level nicotine cartridge feel more harsh than a lower level nicotine cartridge?

The reason I ask is because the high level nicotine cartridges I got from Meltrex are fairly harsh. I notice it especially when I keep the smoke in my mouth and then exhale through my nose, without really ever inhaling. It's like exhaling glass shards, and they're ...... off about it.

Just to calm fears about the harshness being due to something stuck in the atomizer, I switched to one of my old njoy cartridges that contain zero nicotine liquid squeezed from a Crown7 cartridge. The harshness quickly dissipated.

So, the harshness is down to either the nicotine content of the cartridges, or something about the cartridges themselves.

Any ideas?

Oh, I guess I should mention that the flavors I'm experiencing harshness from are Strawberry and Apple, and the cartridge that I tried that wasn't harsh (from Crown7) is Vanilla.

 

[leaford]

I think it might be the quality of the e-liquid. I'd been noticing that harsh, stinging sensation on and off, and it took me a while to narrow down when I was feeling it, and when I wasn't. I finally figured out that I was feeling it with e-cig.com's e-liquid, and not so much with some manufacturer's cartridges, like Janty. It took me so long in part because I was smoking menthol, which has its own kind of burn. Recently I switched entirely to Janty's cartridges, squeezing a few of them to fill the other brands' cartridges. Amazing difference. No harshness at all, other of course than the normal dry throat. I'm waiting on an order of e-cig-sales.com's new liquid. I am expecting that it'll be the same as Janty's, and If so, I'd highly recommend you switch to that.

 

[trog100]

i just tried holding some in my mouth then without inhaling forcing out thru my nose.. the back of my nose didnt like the experience.. i think its more down to the vapour then the nicotine content.. i recon the same effect would be had with simple steam.. i could be wrong thow its not something i do often.. he he

a weird sensation..

trog

 

[UncleMidriff]

Well, I got a new atomizer in the mail from NJoy today and the stinging sensation is still there, so I guess I can rest assured it's not something horrible coming from the atomizer.

I'm going to try some Janty cartridges, I guess, because the ones I have are just too harsh. Do anyone know if the Janty carts fit the NJoy? You have both a Janty and an NJoy e-cigarette, don't you leaford?

 

[leaford]

No, they're not compatable. You can pull the filler from them and put it in an Njoy cartridge. Or get some of e-cig-sales.com's liquid. I just got some, and so far it seems like the same.

 

[NerdyCinderella]

No, they're not compatable. You can pull the filler from them and put it in an Njoy cartridge. Or get some of e-cig-sales.com's liquid. I just got some, and so far it seems like the same.

Why do you say that leaford? I'm using NJoy's, Meltrex's and Janty's cartridges interchangeably for my NJoy and Janty Kissbox Classical (given the fact that my Janty proved to be a lemon and I hardly had 1 day's use of it).

 

[trigger]

So, the harshness is down to either the nicotine content of the cartridges, or something about the cartridges themselves.

Any ideas?

It definitely is the nicotine! I experienced the exact same feeling from my e-ciggy as i did from my old nicorette inhaler. Nicotine, as well as a poison and a highly addictive chemical, is also an irritant so this is the "harshness" that we have come to know (and love... well me anyway! lol) Its irritant properties even show in the patches... when you first start using the patches, you get a stinging, tingly sensation where the patch is in direct contact with the skin. :ugeek:

Oh, I guess I should mention that the flavors I'm experiencing harshness from are Strawberry and Apple, and the cartridge that I tried that wasn't harsh (from Crown7) is Vanilla.

I'm guessing that the different levels of harshness from different flavours might be that the flavours themselves might have their own levels of harshness or that some just soothe/mask the harshness better than others!

Anyone agree?

Phil.

 

[TropicalBob]

I do. And your nicotine inhaler analogy is dead on. Those buggers burn. Ditto for the patch and skin irritation. It's the nicotine -- and a lesser amount should cause lesser irritation. I've yet to start stepping down in nicotine strength, but plan to soon. Sometimes, the harshness of the 24mg liquid is so abrupt that I reflexively hack-cough at the irritation. If manufacturers are smart, they'll add buffers to stop that irritation. That's what menthol does in regular cigarettes. It soooooothes.

 

[trigger]

What about your snus and stonewall TB, what are they like for irritation/harshness? I know from personal experience that with nrt lozenges that it gets sooooo bad at first they actually give you hiccups! (Had them for two days solid the first time round, thought I was gonna go insane!)

 

[TropicalBob]

That does happen, particularly with strong snus. Plus, some new users experience a "burn" so powerful they have to spit out a snus pouch. I still get the burn, but it's not unpleasant. Stonewalls have no side effects, as I've used them. Pipe tobacco is unique, too, in its ability to create "tongue bite" so painful a person can't drink a liquid or brush teeth. It took me years of experimentation to find the perfect "no bite" pipe tobacco for me.

The flavored snus usually do not produce any burn, however. So I prefer milder ones, especially the white minis.

 

[trigger]

The flavored snus usually do not produce any burn, however. So I prefer milder ones, especially the white minis.

Another example of flavour masking/soothing harshness! Thanks TB

 

[trog100]

how does the bodies tolerance come into things.. i remember many years ago when i was a kid and the ability to inhale without showing signs of physical discomfort was treated as some kind of "right of passage" thing..

with my first e smoke i had to inhale slowly and carefully else it made me cough.. my very strong tobacco which i am sure contains more nicotine didnt have this effect..

i think the vapour itself is an irritant.. else why did it make me cough at first.. if it was simply the nicotine it should not have..

trog

 

[trigger]

You're right in a way trog, some people, at first, are more sensitive to propylene glycol, which would cause the coughing. As uncle midriff said:

I notice it especially when I keep the smoke in my mouth and then exhale through my nose, without really ever inhaling. It's like exhaling glass shards, and they're ...... off about it.

Just to calm fears about the harshness being due to something stuck in the atomizer, I switched to one of my old NJoy cartridges that contain zero nicotine liquid squeezed from a Crown7 cartridge. The harshness quickly dissipated.

If it was just the vapour, it would be the same feeling through the nose regardless of nicotine content. As I said in a previous post, the feeling for me was exactly the same with my e-ciggy as my nicotine inhaler (which obviously has no PG whatsoever)
BUT I'm not sensitive to PG so I don't know what the harshness is like from it! (could feel exactly the same for all I know!) Perhaps anyone who knows they are sensitive to PG could try with a no nicotine cartridge or liquid and post their results here?

 

[leaford]

No, they're not compatable. You can pull the filler from them and put it in an Njoy cartridge. Or get some of e-cig-sales.com's liquid. I just got some, and so far it seems like the same.

Why do you say that leaford? I'm using NJoy's, Meltrex's and Janty's cartridges interchangeably for my NJoy and Janty Kissbox Classical (given the fact that my Janty proved to be a lemon and I hardly had 1 day's use of it).

They Janty cartridges are a good millimeter shorter than Njoy's or Meltrix's. They'll work, but not all that well. You'll have to puff harder for less smoke. It works much better if you have the right length cartridge, so I just pop the filler out of the shorter Janty one and pop it into the longer Njoy one.