Please help! Just quit smoking and started using e-cigs but I'm lost

[smokingiskillingme]

Hey Everybody,

I'd really appreciate a hand here. I just bought the Vision Ego Spinner 1300 mAh and I'm having a few issues. The biggest issue is that one of my tanks won't work with it (the Smok Neptune 3.5 Viva Nova Tank). When I put the juice in the first time it appeared to work fine. Then I pulled out the coil (I didn't like the juice), cleaned it off with a damp paper towel, and put it back in. Now, when I refilled it w/ juice nothing is working. I saw someone mention some combination of Tip/Swirl to deal w/ this issue but I've no idea what this means.

Also, when I put on my tank that is working and vape the white button intermittently will blink for no apparent raeson even though it's charged. Is the battery shorting? What's happening? Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

 

[Vapoor eyes er]

Hi and welcome to ECF. The Smok Neptune 3.5 Viva Nova Tank is a knockoff version of the genuine Vision brand Vivi Nova and many have had issues with it. Make sure the head is screwed down. Next remove clearo from battery and GENTLY pull the center post at the battery end of the clearo out just a touch. Either the clearo is not making a good connection with the battery or the clearo head is shorting out. NEVER over tighten anything- just finger tight.

 

[smokingiskillingme]

Hi and welcome to ECF. The Smok Neptune 3.5 Viva Nova Tank is a knockoff version of the genuine Vision brand Vivi Nova and many have had issues with it. Make sure the head is screwed down. Next remove clearo from battery and GENTLY pull the center post at the battery end of the clearo out just a touch. Either the clearo is not making a good connection with the battery or the clearo head is shorting out. NEVER over tighten anything- just finger tight.

Many thanks for the help. Sadly, I'm too ignorant to make heads or tails of this (though I got the take away: don't buy Smok Tech). Some clarifications would help me (apologies in advance for my extreme ignorance). First what is the head? Second what would cause the shorting out?

Some additional questions: how much does one fill up the tank (e.g., just a few drops or all the way up the wicks) and how does one clean out the wicks (e.g., with or without water)?

Lastly, is the 5 flashing lights a sign of shorting?

MANY thanks to y'all for taking the time to share your knowledge w/ me. Would happily buy beers for anyone who replies/happens to be around Boston

 

[basylica]

flashing lights on a vision usually means you need to charge it

Ideally you should fill the tank full (upto rubber cap) so the wicks can be soaked. you don't need to KEEP it that full, but you end up having to do the tip and swirl move as the juice gets lower and lower.
I've got a c4 clearo on my desk that is down to just a little bit left and its working fine...but i'd top it off if I had more

speaking of (OT) it seems like you can blow through the first half of a clearo in a few hours, but the latter half and last few drops last me FOREVER! hahaha...

 

[smokingiskillingme]

Wait, but what is the tip/swirl move?

 

[Vapoor eyes er]

These are the heads- includes a wick+ coil/ element:


The tilt/ swirl is you "roll" your PV horizontally with the clearo attached to ensure the wicks are fully saturated. On this one charge how long have you been vaping the battery?

 

[elvenhippie]

the head is the coil/wick assembly, it screws on top of a metal tube withing the plastic tube of the clearo. the tip swirl move here, i believe, is describing you actually tipping, twirling, spinning, etc your whole ecig so that the wicks stay wet at the coil, instead of just relying on the wick to suck it up to the coils and defy gravity.

the blinking could be a short, could be that you squished the coil a little when cleaning it and reduced its electrical resistance (measured in ohms, using the greek character that looks like an upside-down u) enough that your battery can't fire it, and it pops out that error. it could also very well be in need of a charge.

edit-ninja'ed... with pictures, too.

 

[smokingiskillingme]

Oh also, the flashing lights are happening while I'm vaping. And since I just charged it, I'm wondering if it's a sign that it's shorting or overheating. Why don't they include an instruction manual?!

 

[Vapoor eyes er]

Oh also, the flashing lights are happening while I'm vaping. And since I just charged it, I'm wondering if it's a sign that it's shorting or overheating. Why don't they include an instruction manual?!

Instruction manuals are the weak link in the world of vaping. It sounds as if the clearo may be shorting the battery. When you charged the battery did you charge it for about 3-4 hrs? Was the light on the charger a solid green at the end of charging showing it's fully charged?

 

[KeithB]

The flashing light could just be the cutoff kicking in. Do you tend to take long drags? eGo style batts generally will stop activating after 8-10 seconds depending on the manufacturer.

 

[InTheShade]

The flashing light could just be the cutoff kicking in. Do you tend to take long drags? eGo style batts generally will stop activating after 8-10 seconds depending on the manufacturer.

Yes, I just tried this on my spinner - 5 flashes after holding the fire button down for about 7 seconds. If you are getting vapor and it's firing correctly, I'd suggest this is the issue.

 

[Fenris4024]

For starters, welcome to the ECF!

Now to see if I can't help a bit....How long before the flashing light happens? if its right away, its a short, if its 5-10 seconds (I think with the visions its about 10 seconds), the flashing is the battery's manual cutoff. Hope that helps you some.

Apologies that we all seem to be answering your question with questions of our own, but we just want to have a good idea on what the issue is so we can help you get the best vaping experience we can!

Stay strong and Vape on!

 

[smokingiskillingme]

First, many many thanks to such a helpful community. Your input is much appreciated. Some answers/comments:

1) The pic of the head was super helpful. Is there any normal amount of ohms one should be shooting for (again, I have a vision spinner 1300 but if that's not ideal please do let me know).

2) I charged the battery overnight, so it was a little over 5 hours (and was green when I picked it up). I'm seeing differential responses to overnight charging, btu assuming that doing so is acceptable (please let me know if this is naive).

3) KeithB--that I think was the issue. You are right--I was taking very long drags. For some reason, I was under the impression that you had to heat up the juice before it'd start vaping (that and I think I've f'ed up the battery a little from my tinkering; yikes).

4) Cartomizers vs atomizers: is this just a difference in taste?

5) Do people trust the Vision products in general?

Also worth saying: I'm a reasonably intelligent guy who normally has only a wee bit o' common sense. But w/ this being my first 48 hours not smoking in 20 years, I'm not thinking all that straight. So please share any advice, however general or specific, that you might have. For example, do y'all think that 'steeping' actually matters? Also, I'm using Mountain Vapor (the tobacco flavors). Seems fine to me, but ... do I know.

Most importantly: thanks thanks thanks thanks thanks.

 

[elvenhippie]

1) sorry for the delay, my previous post about ohms was both ambiguous and erroneous. You would have to "squish" the coil very hard to affect it this way, as loops of the coil touching one another don't do this. Not to mention the construction of most top-fed clearos has no way for it to really get there either. As far as ohms to shoot for, I wouldn't worry overmuch. anything from 1.8-3 will do you just fine with a VV (variable voltage) device. If you had a user's manual, it would say something like "start at low voltage for any device attached to the battery, and dial it up slowly until it gets to where you like it, but before it starts to taste like burnt metal, filler, or just plain like garbage."

2) Charging overnight is typically not going to hurt a battery with electronic components, they usually have safeties built in just for this. If you go for a mech mod later, just get a smart battery charger and it will have the same effect.

3) You don't have to heat the juice before vaping, though some do like to prime it for a second or two only. This, I believe, is so that the vapor is already warm when they draw it.

4) Cartomizers are typically less hassle, and usually cheaper. There is a difference in taste, but the choice is made largely by your wallet and how much time you're willing to spend tinkering/dripping. I would suggest you look into carto-tanks, you can get some for less than $10, and it makes the cartos so much better.

5) I'm not sure. I don't usually have issues with smok stuff, but I've never used their clearos, only carto stuff.

As far as flavor, I have found that the further you get from the analogs, the less you are after any sort of tobacco flavor. Why would you want a tobacco flavor when you could be smoking a nice hazelnut, tiramisu, or wintergreen? [this is a very very narrow snapshot of the flavors you could be vaping...]

 

[dtrud0h]

One tip I'd like to share is that for me at least, to kick the morning smoke urge I had to have an overwhelming flavor. I'm not a sweets person, but a hot cinnamon that kept my mouth on fire seemed to do the trick.
Another tip is for hardware questions try YouTube and you'll get a good idea of the parts and terminology of the various pieces mentioned ( like CE4, CARTO, CLEARO....)
And about ohms and voltage this was on another members blog, I'm fairly sure your battery is either 3.3 or 3.7 volts so look for delivery devices rated to keep you in the green and you should be OK.

Image can be found here http://vapinggeekgrrl.blogspot.com/
Good luck and best regards.
Vape On

 

[Vapoor eyes er]

1) The pic of the head was super helpful. Is there any normal amount of ohms one should be shooting for (again, I have a vision spinner 1300 but if that's not ideal please do let me know).

Because the Spinner (I own 2) fires from 3.2- 4.8 volts the best ohms head is 2.4 ohms as it offers the widest range of usage voltage wise. 1.8 ohms is good for 3.2- 4.0 volts. 2.4 ohms good for 4- 4.8 volts.

2) I charged the battery overnight, so it was a little over 5 hours (and was green when I picked it up). I'm seeing differential responses to overnight charging, btu assuming that doing so is acceptable (please let me know if this is naive).

Best to not charge them unattended as the shutoff chips can fail and the battery may catch fire and/ or explode. These batteries and chargers are cheaply made with low quality control- best to be safe as I've had both chargers and battery fail but luckily I was home and noticed they were getting warm. There's a stickie here at ECF about battery safety.

4) Cartomizers vs atomizers: is this just a difference in taste?

Best vape is from dripping on an atty but is time consuming.

5) Do people trust the Vision products in general?

I am not brand loyal and prefer to pick and choose the best...
JoyTech eGo fires at a 3.3 volts- other eGo class PVs fire at 3.7 volts (Kgo, Riva, SmokTech)
Vision- LOVE the Spinner and the Vivi Nova and HATE their Stardusts/ CE5, CE5.
SmokTech- LOVE their 3.7 volt eGo and 1.7 ohm single coil cartos and HATE their Vivi Nova

So please share any advice, however general or specific, that you might have.

Prolly the most important advice I can give you is to stay hydrated...
PG and VG are humectants...
A humectant is a substance used primarily in foods and cosmetic products to help retain moisture. These substances are called hygroscopic, which means that they are able to absorb ambient water. These hygroscopic compounds posses a chemical structure that attracts water from the atmosphere and binds it to various sites along the molecule.
When we inhale PG/ VG it "traps" the moisture in our mouth, throat and nasal area and thus the vapor. The real problem arises when the body is dehydrated and begins "stealing" moisture from other parts of the body to keep key organs hydrated. Add to that more than 3 cups of java or caffeine based soda drinks and severe dehydration can occur.
Ask any chemist and they will tell you the same. I drink 2+ liters of water per day and no more than 3 cups Java per day.

For example, do y'all think that 'steeping' actually matters?

I have been DIY juice for 1 1/2 yrs...the darker freshly made juices generally require steeping. If your juice smells and/ or tastes perfumey that's generally a sign it needs steeping. Ask the vendor and they'll tell you.
I began with cartos but have been using Vision Vivi Nova tanks for the past 8 months and really like them- inexpensive and easy to maintain.

 

[smokingiskillingme]

All super helpful and blissfully clear. A few more questions for the hardy:

Is dehydration as bad w/ 100% VG? I ordered mine 100% and they taste fine to me. (2+ liters of water seems like a lot).

What in particular should I be worried about getting wet? Just the battery, or battery and carto, or just parts of the carto...

Many thanks for the comment about the morning cig. Mornings have been driving me batty. Not looking forward to the third tomorrow.

 

[Vapoor eyes er]

Is dehydration as bad w/ 100% VG? I ordered mine 100% and they taste fine to me. (2+ liters of water seems like a lot).

Yes VG is also a humectant. Realize now that you've quit smoking or at least cut back drastically your body is in repair mode. Lung cilia have been covered in tar and paralyzed from the chems (fact) and begin regrowth within 2 days of quitting. Our bodies are an amazing creation but they sometimes need our assistance. As for the water you'll have to gauge for yourself. The problem with dehydration is the body takes moisture from less important organs to keep vital organs working= survival mode and certain organs become stressed. Another way is to observe the color of your urine. Here's a color chart:
http://www.urinecolors.com/dehydration chart.pdf

What in particular should I be worried about getting wet? Just the battery, or battery and carto, or just parts of the carto..

.
If your battery is manual/ push button then the battery is sealed and is less susceptible to damage from juice. Auto batteries are not sealed and can be easily damaged from juice. There will be slight condenstaion on the battery- this is unavoidable. After filling carto blow through it lightly into a tissue to remove excess juice from the air way.

 

[smokingiskillingme]

Holy crap this is helpful. Follow-up Q: when I'm done w/ the juice in a given tank, and I want to clean it out, I can take the head (wicks and coils) out. Can I get them wet? In particular is the coil fine to douse in water/vodka?

Third morning not smoking and it's still maddening. Many thanks for the reminder that the cilia are starting to be un-paralyzed. Focusing on facts like those are quite helpful.

 

[random25]

I was quite lost myself but i just searched the forums for a few days and figured it out. It would be helpful if one of the more experienced members made a list of all the abbreviations with their meaing,