Picking my Nicotine Level?

[thirdfloornorth]

I'm getting ready to buy my first e-cig (decided on a 510, Volvano Magma branded) and my first e-juice (torn between Alien Vision's Boba's Bounty or Backwoods Applewood Tobacco so far).

I am a recently quit smoker (three months without a mote of nicotine) and was originally worried about getting a juice containing nicotine at all, scared it would be like throwing gasoline on a dying fire.

But the more I've thought, the more I think I'd feel silly vaping without at least a little nicotine. Also, a lot of the best flavours review-wise seem to not come in 0-nic. The flavour and throat hit also apparently decrease with nicotine level?

Now, my questions: Firstly, the thread's name sake.

1. What would be a good nicotine level for me to safely not imbibe too much and make myself sick, but to also enjoy it?

I was thinking 12mg, but being a FORMER not current pack a day smoker, have no idea if that is too much or too little. I would want to have the OPTION to vape a LOT throughout the day safely, but also vape occasionally or with "pacifier" 0-nic liquid supplemented by occasional nicotine liquid if I wanted to.

Looking for a nice broad range of answers, particularly from anyone who quit smoking for a prolonged period and had no nicotine in their system when they picked vaping up.


2. What are some equivalencies between amount of vaping and comparable number of cigarettes?

I know this is an often asked question, and also a subjectively hard one to answer. But a range of answers would at least give me a close ballpark idea. I plan to start off dripping and understand that 3-4 drips is optimum, so how many cigarettes would this be close to, for you?


3. For YOU, what is the ratio between how much you vape a day and how long does a 30mL/24/12/whatever mL bottle lasts you?

Thank you in advance for your useful answers and extreme patience for a newbie

 

[flbutterfly1]

Both my hubby and I went from a pack a day to 8mg liquid. He was smoking camel filters and went straight to about 2ml a day of 8mg nic.I was marlboro user and went from 8mg to 4mg, now i use 6mg all day 1-2ml aday. I seem to use mine like a pacifier I get light headed and feel weird if I vape over a 8mg, so I just like to chain vape.

 

[thirdfloornorth]

Both my hubby and I went from a pack a day to 8mg liquid. He was smoking camel filters and went straight to about 2ml a day of 8mg nic.I was marlboro user and went from 8mg to 4mg, now i use 6mg all day 1-2ml aday. I seem to use mine like a pacifier I get light headed and feel weird if I vape over a 8mg, so I just like to chain vape.

When you say you "chain vape" and go through 1-2mL a day, how much/often are we talking?

Marlboro what? Reds, lights? And over 8 gives you a headrush? Whoa...

 

[flbutterfly1]

My PV pretty much never leaves my hands unless I am sleeping, I puff all day. I will put it my pocket when cleaning the house but when I am idle watching tv or on the computer I puff constantly maybe 2 puffs then wait 5min 2-3 puffs and so on. I also weigh 90lbs so maybe I am just sensitive to nic. although I was a pack or more a day red smoker. I keep seeing all these people vaping 24-36 mgs and I think that is really high I tried 18mg when I first started and that was not going to work to me 1 puff and I had a 15 min head rush. If I vape 3mil a day that is 24mg of nic aday about the same as a pack of smokes, but lets say I vape 3ml of 24mg that is 72mgs of nic a day that is really high. So if you are a chain vaper you want to cut down the mgs of the liquid so that you can vape often enough like when smoking, but if you want to only vape when you have a nic fit then up the mgs so you can get thru the day just getting your fix and staying happy. Every one has their perfect spot it just depends on your style and I still keep a high 18mg around just in case I usually cut it down to 9mgs and that will take care of my nic fit.

 

[Mr.Self_Destruct]

I was a PAD smoker marlboro lights. i first started with 18mg. I found I was vaping too much for 18 mg and cut down with my next order to 12mg. I'm very happy at 12mg. I can't vape like a freight train without any problems and I'm satisfied. as far as your first juice order i would recommend backwoods brew. Alienvisions bobas bounty is good but it is all vg. I don't think you should start with all vg until you figure out the carts and see if dripping is something you'd be interested in.

 

[CaptJay]

Youve no nic in your system and FWIW Id keep it that way - no need to feel silly when you can get GREAT tasting vapes without any nic (an who's to know if you don't tell them its nic free?) - almost all vendors sell a no-nic version of their nic-liquids.
Tasty vapor do some great 'doublers' (juice with ZERO nic) which are wonderful to vape alone, as well as cut down stronger nic juices. They also work out much cheaper as they are larger (4oz for no nic vs 1oz for +nic) I have some myself for when I jsut want to experience taste and not nic. Many other vendors will also have a no-nic on their drop down menus.
If you've weaned yourself off nic and don't miss it then don't go back - oh and well done

 

[thirdfloornorth]

I was a PAD smoker marlboro lights. i first started with 18mg. I found I was vaping too much for 18 mg and cut down with my next order to 12mg. I'm very happy at 12mg. I can't vape like a freight train without any problems and I'm satisfied. as far as your first juice order i would recommend backwoods brew. Alienvisions bobas bounty is good but it is all vg. I don't think you should start with all vg until you figure out the carts and see if dripping is something you'd be interested in.

I'm actually going to try dripping from day one.

And I'm assuming you meant "I can vape like a freight train", which in that case, good That's something I want to have the option to do.

I don't seem to be getting much in the way of questions 2 and 3 so far

 

[Israfil]

Personally I started with 18mg in the carts that came with my kit and from then on filled em up with 24mg. I've tried 32, it was great for those real craving times but most of what I use is just 24. I used to smoke a pack (or more) a day.

I would suggest 24 as a good starting point. Starting high, you can always cut it down with VG bought at walmart for like..3 dollars.

I can chainvape if I'm trying to create a cloud or I can inhale deeply and get more of a hit. It's all about how you inhale.

Question 2: There really isnt an equivalency, although if you're looking for how long 3 drops lasts (4 will flood ya most of the time) I'd say a good 10-15 inhales. As usual, it really depends on the length of your inhale, how wet the atomizer is, and too many other factors. The best advice I could give on this subject is just to use it whenever you need/want to.

Question 3: 30 mils lasts me about 2-3 weeks, but I'm a pretty heavy vaper now. It used to last me a month. I would suggest starting off with 60 mils of juice, and seeing how long it takes you to get through half. Always keep a backstock because you never know when you'll do something stupid like knock over a bottle on your desk while cutting it down or something.

I've found that it's also best to keep multiple flavors around because sometimes you just won't be in the mood for your standard.

As someone who wants to drip from the start I'd suggest a drip tip or T-tip. They're pretty cheap and they help a lot. If you don't want to buy one, you can always modify one of the blanks they ship attached to atomizers to be one.

 

[thirdfloornorth]

Youve no nic in your system and FWIW Id keep it that way - no need to feel silly when you can get GREAT tasting vapes without any nic (an who's to know if you don't tell them its nic free?) - almost all vendors sell a no-nic version of their nic-liquids.
Tasty vapor do some great 'doublers' (juice with ZERO nic) which are wonderful to vape alone, as well as cut down stronger nic juices. They also work out much cheaper as they are larger (4oz for no nic vs 1oz for +nic) I have some myself for when I jsut want to experience taste and not nic. Many other vendors will also have a no-nic on their drop down menus.
If you've weaned yourself off nic and don't miss it then don't go back - oh and well done

I'm definitely planning on having some cheap-but-good "pacifier" no-nic juice around, but... I dunno.

I've been doing a lot of research, looking at the connection between natural MAOIs in cigarette smoke and their role in the addiction, I'm curious what nicotine in absence of those MAOIs would do.

I'm legitimately curious if vaping with nicotine would a), bring my addiction raging back full force like gasoline on a fire, b) start off slow like my first few months smoking, or c) be a nice familiar thing but not nearly as addictive lacking the other components.

Guess I'll have to be my own guinea pig. Will post the results lol.

Wish I could find someone else who had quit for months then picked vaping up.

Worse that happens is I have to quit again :/

 

[Mr.Self_Destruct]

I'm actually going to try dripping from day one.

And I'm assuming you meant "I can vape like a freight train", which in that case, good That's something I want to have the option to do.

I don't seem to be getting much in the way of questions 2 and 3 so far

whoops. yes that's exactly what I meant. That I can vape like a freight train.

 

[thirdfloornorth]

whoops. yes that's exactly what I meant. That I can vape like a freight train.

So do you drip? How many drops do you use, and how many puffs do you get of of that in relation to an analog?

What's you consumption ratio of juice, especially when vaping like a freight train What does that involve?

 

[BiffRocko]

Go for the lowest you can get in the flavor you want. In my experience, it's been way easier to OD while vaping than it ever was with cigarettes. Using 18mg for more than a short while gets me high and eventually to the OD point. In fact, whatever you go with, I'd suggest making sure you have 0mg on hand in case you do get too much nic but still want to keep vaping. I vape 0mg most of the day and only switch to juice with nic when I'm feeling like smoking a cigarette.

I plan to start off dripping and understand that 3-4 drips is optimum, so how many cigarettes would this be close to, for you?

I drip 2-3 drops. In my eGo, I'd say that's equivalent to 2-3 cigarettes worth. In my Chuck, which runs at a bit higher voltage, it's 1.5-2. This also seems to depends on the juice I'm using. Tasty Vapor's Geoff's Blend goes quite the distance.

For YOU, what is the ratio between how much you vape a day and how long does a 30mL/24/12/whatever mL bottle lasts you?

I was going through 4-6ml a day using carts. Since I started dripping, that's dropped to 2-3ml a day. I'm not sure why, but it's much more efficient.

 

[CaptJay]

Fair enough then - but Id start off around 6mg - thats likely the lowest you can get pre-made - or buy a no-nic juice and its +nic twin (same flavor, same vendor) nd use one to cut down the strength of the other.
I drip as well, I wouldn't say that 2-3 drips = 2-3 cigs though. Myself I use 12mg (an ex-ultralight smoker here) and I use it to chain on pretty much. I've had a cig since I gave up and it gives me a massive headrush, way more than using a PV, I didnt like it at all; made me dizzy and nauseous.

 

[Mr.Self_Destruct]

So do you drip? How many drops do you use, and how many puffs do you get of of that in relation to an analog?

What's you consumption ratio of juice, especially when vaping like a freight train What does that involve?

I mostly use carts. I do drip in the morning with 24 mg i use 3 drops at a time. I usually vape about 6-9 drops of 24mg every morning then put a cart on. I also drip to try flavors when I get an order in.

 

[Laddsy]

I mostly use carts. I do drip in the morning with 24 mg i use 3 drops at a time. I usually vape about 6-9 drops of 24mg every morning then put a cart on. I also drip to try flavors when I get an order in.

I haven't tried dripping yet (only carto's). Is it hard to do?

 

[Israfil]

Nah dripping isn't hard. All it involves is dripping a few drops into the atomizer directly (usually 2-3) then putting the cart back on and vaping.

It's certainly more involved than vaping off cartos, but still. It's easy enough.