Nothing works. Ever. What am I doing wrong?

[Amandable]

Disclaimer: This is a rant. I'm posting it in this forum because I'm not sure where it should technically go.


I started vaping a month ago. Started with an Ego C Twist and a stardust/Evod. Next week moved to a Vivi Nova. My SO purchased a Kanger Protank when I got the Nova, and after we got home I regretted my decision. I used the Nova for a week. Fiddling with it, getting a burnt taste, flipping it upside down to get it to wick properly, etc. Eventually ordered a Protank 2. Protank 2 arrives and it is like a Hallelujah moment. For the next week, vaping is amazing. Then the coil starts to go. I think, "No problem, I'll just replace that." I was using a 2.2 ohm coil and replaced it with the same thing. Next few days were okay, then I start getting a burnt taste. Could the coil have gone bad so fast? I chalk it up to it being a bad coil and replace it with another 2.2 ohm coil. Same thing. Day or two is fine. Then I get a burnt taste and the vapor production ceases. At this point I'm like, "What am I doing wrong?" I learn how to dry burn it, do that, and still get not so great results. I finally seem to resolve the issue after a week.

Then I buy a Sigelei. No regrets there, that thing works great. Meanwhile, issues with Protank 2 return. I can't for the life of me figure out what went wrong since that first week was so amazing. I give up on Protank and deem it to be "Failtank". I start using the Nova again. It worked alright. Bought some new 2.5 ohm heads for it at my local B&M, same store I originally purchased it from.

I go to replace the head tonight to discover that it doesn't fit. There's this little cone cylinder that sticks up from the top that doesn't allow the top piece of the Nova to screw down. No matter what I do, no luck. Tried swapping out the little cone top piece with the flat top piece/silicone cylinder from the old coil. At this point I discover that this is not the problem, that the new head is about 1/8 of an inch taller than the old head. 20 minutes later and covered in juice, I completely give up.

It's at this moment that I realize that I have spent and am spending significantly more money on vaping than I ever did on cigarettes. I smoked about two packs a week. Between changing Failtank heads every two days and running through juice like mad, encountering issue after issue after issue... literally every time I fill a tank or change a coil head there is problem. Something doesn't fit. Something doesn't work. Something is different about the vapor production than that very first week that Failtank was actually Protank.

I am at a loss, guys. And I know this was really rant-y and probably "TLDR", but I'm just so frustrated that I'm ready to go back to smoking. I guess I'm looking for any tips - anything at all to take me back to that first glorious week with Protank 2.

I appreciate any help. Thanks.

 

[DlyDragger]

You're good, we've all been there. The ProTank is easy, just needs to be cleaned. The coils don't go bad that fast but they do get build up on them. Cleaning them will get you back to the glory vape. I clean mine every 2 days and there is a handy video on how to do it here:
How to Clean & Dry Burn... Kanger ProTank - YouTube

I don't know a ton about the Nova's but I have heard about this problem enough times to atleast have some idea of what's going on. There are probably 20 different Nova knock-offs and it seems like none of them are quite close enough to share coils. Not sure what to tell you except get the coils the same place you got the tank.

Edit: If dry hits are a problem on the ProTank, flipping that little rubber grommet over that sits just above the wicks helps a lot too.

 

[Chas F.]

I think you gave up on the Protank too soon. I noticed a burnt taste if I vaped faster than it could wick. I ended up removing 1 of the flavor wicks and now it vapes like a madman. I rebuilt my first atomizer using 3mm silica and 32ga wire @ 1.6 ohms and it works very well too. Instead of ditching your gear, do more research and see if anyone else has had the same problem and check to see if there is a solution. I was ready to ditch my Pro's but after doing that one minor mod, I'm happy with 'em. (Other than being a tad bit too airy.) BTW, I decided to rebuild the protank because I can't stomach spending more vaping than I did smoking.

 

[sawtoothscream]

fix the protank heads, its simple. pull out the wick in it now, fire it until it glows, put a piece of rolled cotton puff ball in it and enjoy. lots of vids on how to do it and you can tweak it.

 

[Spazmelda]

It sounds like your protank is not wicking the juice fast enough. There are some things you can do. Cleaning would probably help. You could thin the juice a little. You could remove one of the flavor wicks. You could remove the little silicone hat on the head. If I have a transient wicking problem, I some times blow gently through the tip of the tank to force some liquid into the coil area. Sometimes just getting it flowing again will solve the problem. Replacing the flavor wicks might help, if they are gummed up with burnt juice (some juices are worse about doing this than others). Unscrewing the base just a tad off of the tank can help with juice wicking. Eta: some of these solutions can cause you to go to the opposite extreme and get leaking and gurgling, so you have to play around a little.

Probably all of these sound like Greek to you right now. If you take a head and dissect it, you will probably understand how they work a little better and be able to better diagnose where the problem is coming from. There are a few protank rebuilding tutorials on YouTube. I'm not suggesting you start rebuilding them at this points (although its easy and a real money saver) I just think it would help you understand how they work if you watch someone take one apart and put it back together.

As far as the vivi nova coils, I'd take them back to the b&m where you bought them and tell them they are not compatible with the vivi nova you bought from them earlier.

 

[rubblebucket]

I feel your pain I actually had everything you mentioned happen also. I have three vivi novas two are flaptop heads the other is a pin and they are not compatible. I also had an issue with a leaky protank2 but that was fixed easily. Don't give up yet you'll get it soon. There's a lot of trial and error involved. As for the burnt taste it may be voltage/wattage too high. If you have a smart phone I found an app called sweet spot that you enter your coil resistance and it tells you the safe zone for that ohm. Then its just a matter of fine tuning the wattage to suit the eliquid you're vaping. Good luck and hang in there. Im still pretty new too only a few months and im obsessed.

 

[Dragnator]

I've got to toss my hat in the ring here for the carto tank. I've been using carto tanks now for about a week and a half. I'm using the smoktech UDTC tanks with the locking ring on the bottom, and flanged cartos. I got a week out of my first one, and just changed it last night because the draw was getting a little tight. I haven't had one flood, leak, or burn yet, and I can create FOG with ease! As long as you prime the carto well, and keep juice in the tank, it's pretty smooth sailing. Your results may vary of course...

 

[jacob1174]

I think you gave up on the Protank too soon. I rebuilt my first atomizer using 3mm silica and 32ga wire @ 1.6 ohms and it works very well too.

I would agree. My first battery was an Joyetech EGO C Upgrade. I got a Protank because I wanted to use an e-juice which was not compatible to plastic tanks. I switched the coils to 1.8 ohm so I could get a good vape out of the Protank. I still use the Protank with my mods but only use the 1.8 ohm coils. In my opinion, the 1.8 ohm coils produce great vapor in the Protank. Keep trying and don't give up. Sure you may have spent more money than you anticipated, but isn't your health worth the money?

 

[BigBen2k]

First off: Welcome!

2nd; you're happy with the battery, yes?

3rd; you're on the cutting edge (read: expensive) of delivery systems, and I can't figure out how you got there. I use a Kanger T2, an old but proven design, and I like it so much, I got 5 more of them, and why not; they're cheap.

However you choose to proceed, you've come to the right place.

 

[InTheShade]

Welcome to the forum Amandable and I am sorry you are having so many issues. I'm not going to recommend any other delivery system though, what you have can be made to work - and work well. I used the vivi novas as my only delivery device for many weeks and it's fine.

First though, take a deep breath, realize you are among some of the most supportive people on an internet forum, and believe you can make this work.

Finally, vaping is fiddly. Sometimes you have to fail, and you might even have to end up covered with juice just to get things to work. If you stick with it, you'll come through the other side.

You mentioned a few issues with your toppers, the main thing I can suggest is you do a little forum search for each issue you are having as it would take me about 3 pages to try to help you on each. If you still can't figure it out, I suggest starting a new thread with each issue you are having so you can more easily follow the replies and solutions offered.

Good luck, we want you to succeed.

 

[stevegmu]

I've never burned a coil but I vape a different way than many. I like lots of flavors, so usually have 6 on the go and 9 or so filled tanks while relaxing at home- all on batteries. I take a few drags off of one for a few minutes and move to another. The wicks always have time to saturate, so no burning. Maybe you could try having several tanks in a rotation, so they all have time to fully wick.

 

[SASmith]

Hang in there, I have been so frustrated at times..........enough said. Try to stick with what you have, watch as many u-tube videos about your devices that you can stand. I have stuck to a few different clearomizers and have tried to learn everything I could about them, they all seem to have their little quirks, once you really get to know them things seem to smooth out. They sold you the wrong head for your Viva Nova, no wonder you were frustrated, perhaps take your device with you when you go to your local B & M.. Hope things improve for you soon!

 

[Snicks]

I rebuild my coils for all my tanks and my latest coils for my protanks easily last me a month or MORE now. I think you are giving up too easily. You could go back to smoking but then thats like failure. Don't know about you but I hate failing at anything.

Spending a lot of money in the first few months is kinda normal as you try different tanks, mods etc...eventually you find what works best for you and stick with it. I spend around $80 monthly on vaping and I could spend less but I'm always buying extra juice.

 

[Amandable]

Thank you all so, so much. It just feels good to know that I am not crazy and that the problems I've been having aren't unique!

Update: Went to gotvapes.com and compared the Vivi Nova heads that I bought to the ones on their site. Definitely not the same. Then it kind of dawned on me - I checked out the heads for the stardust cartos and boom, there they are. The store must have sold me stardust style cartos instead.

In respones to an earlier question, I am VERY happy with the Sigelei. I bought it last weekend after using Ego C Twists for about a month. The twists worked pretty well, but I'm kind of .... retentive person and I really liked the idea of being able to set my device to wattage instead of volts and set it to calculate for me. I also like to be able to set the display to read the ohms on my coil head. Right now I've got it running at about 6 watts and I have been super happy with the performance, battery length (18350s) and form factor (I've got the mini purple zmax).

Protank... Okay, so I put a new coil in last night, but cleaned and saved the other to dry burn today. Instead of screwing the base all the way down, I left a tiny bit of a gap between the base/coil section of Protank and the tank section. That seemed to do it! It was vaping beautifully last night! I can only hope that things will get easier going forward.

You guys are awesome, thank you again for all your kind comments/suggestions!

 

[Demomed]

I agree with previous poster, removing flavor wicks will make a huge difference on the protank. I use a higher vg and my protank on an evic puffs like a train. I'm currently running out of new coils so we'll see how rebuilding goes in few weeks.

 

[Amandable]

Update 2.0: I am starting to notice that my problems occur with Protank when I go to refill it. I'll unscrew the base, refill, screw base back on, vape, and get very little vapor production. I find that i have to unscrew the tank, unscrew or "re-seat" the coil, and screw base back on. I might have to do this 1 to 5 times depending on my luck. I usually eventually get it vaping normally again. Is this normal?

A word about my juice: I use a vanilla flavored juice made by a local B&M - Boca Vapes, to be exact - and it's 50/50 pg/vg. I love the taste and I'm pretty attached to it. Could the juice have something to do with my coil problems as well?

Thanks again!

 

[jacob1174]

Thank you all so, so much. It just feels good to know that I am not crazy and that the problems I've been having aren't unique!

Update: Went to gotvapes.com and compared the Vivi Nova heads that I bought to the ones on their site. Definitely not the same. Then it kind of dawned on me - I checked out the heads for the stardust cartos and boom, there they are. The store must have sold me stardust style cartos instead.

In respones to an earlier question, I am VERY happy with the Sigelei. I bought it last weekend after using Ego C Twists for about a month. The twists worked pretty well, but I'm kind of .... retentive person and I really liked the idea of being able to set my device to wattage instead of volts and set it to calculate for me. I also like to be able to set the display to read the ohms on my coil head. Right now I've got it running at about 6 watts and I have been super happy with the performance, battery length (18350s) and form factor (I've got the mini purple zmax).

Protank... Okay, so I put a new coil in last night, but cleaned and saved the other to dry burn today. Instead of screwing the base all the way down, I left a tiny bit of a gap between the base/coil section of Protank and the tank section. That seemed to do it! It was vaping beautifully last night! I can only hope that things will get easier going forward.

You guys are awesome, thank you again for all your kind comments/suggestions!

I really glad you have your problems solved! Sometimes just asking questions really helps. Hang in there and enjoy the vaping experience.

 

[Superchunk]

I hear you man - I went through the exact same thing with the Vivi Nova as you - it was okay, but overall not very good. Burned some coils somehow. Bought replacement coils and another Vivi Nova and had the exact same issue with the new coils having a bit of a nib which pushed out something at the end. Confused the hell out of me. In the end, it was a clone and the coils just aren't compatible.

I will say that I got a proper Vision Mini Nova and it works a treat, very good clearo.

In the end I guess we will all figure it out, unfortunately once the money has been spent.

 

[90quattrocoupe]

Get Kanger Tech heads for your Protank. They seem to work better than the others.

Greg W.

 

[CommaHolly]

personally, it sounds like you're trying to get too complicated for a newbie,,,,,

pick yourself up some 510 cartos, fill using the condom method, do a teriyan spin (check youtube for those) and vape away,,,,,,

top off often.

piece.of.cake.