Steeping Times and an Ultrasonic Cleaner Part III

[bobalex]

Hi All,

Since Christmas I've been vaping the Go-Go Fury with the new Go-Go tanks:



After 45 days you'd expect some degradation in performance. The draw became tighter and tighter so last night I rinsed out my tanks, put them in the ol' US, and with the heat option on, ran the tanks through 4 cycles at 8 minutes per cycle. After the cleaner stopped I rinsed the tanks out one last time and let them dry out overnight.

This morning I filled them up and ... All Better. They're not back to "new" performance levels but waaaaaay better than before.

Years ago I thought running my cartos through an ultrasonic cleaner would revive them. Not so much. But it seems to do the trick with these tanks.

I'm a 100% PG all tobacco all the time and your mileage may vary.

 

[Azphat12]

Been looking to purchase one of these ultrasonic cleaners.

Anyone give me a recommendation of one to buy?
I mix my juice in 240ml bottles...so I imagine I need a cleaner that the bottle will fit?
Does the entire bottle need to fit? Do I need the lid closed?

Here are the bottles I am using...
250ml Amber Glass Bottle - MyFreedomSmokes.com

 

[adeline]

Been looking to purchase one of these ultrasonic cleaners.

Anyone give me a recommendation of one to buy?
I mix my juice in 240ml bottles...so I imagine I need a cleaner that the bottle will fit?
Does the entire bottle need to fit? Do I need the lid closed?

Here are the bottles I am using...
250ml Amber Glass Bottle - MyFreedomSmokes.com

The lid can remain open.

How much juice are you putting in that bottle? I ask because I think that bottle is about 5 inches tall, and most ultrasonic cleaners are 2-3" deep. I had a couple tops get vibrated open, so I would recommend standing it up inside the cleaner.

What's your price range?

 

[bobalex]

Been looking to purchase one of these ultrasonic cleaners.

Anyone give me a recommendation of one to buy?
I mix my juice in 240ml bottles...so I imagine I need a cleaner that the bottle will fit?
Does the entire bottle need to fit? Do I need the lid closed?

Here are the bottles I am using...
250ml Amber Glass Bottle - MyFreedomSmokes.com

Hi,

Here's the one I use:

http://www.harborfreight.com/25-liter-ultrasonic-cleaner-95563.html



It goes for $75. You can set it up to 8 minutes and has a "heat" option.

I would have preferred to buy the one adeline purchased recently:

Amazon.com: Joy4Less Professional Grade Ultrasonic Cleaner 4810, 30-min Timer, Plastic Basket: Electronics



as you can set it up to a 30 minute cycle. It's $90.

You don't need to use it with the lid closed (I never have) and I assume level of the e-liquid in your bottle should be below the water level in the tank to insure even mixing.

 

[Azphat12]

I make 240ml and put it in the 250ml bottle. So they are pretty full.
I normally would make 1 RY4 and 1 of something else...usually Menthol.

I would like to spend in or around $100 and would prefer the longer run times..
Was also thinking of buying more of a square container to mix the juice.... then pour that into the bottles for storage.

 

[Vappa]

I make 240ml and put it in the 250ml bottle. So they are pretty full.
I normally would make 1 RY4 and 1 of something else...usually Menthol.

I would like to spend in or around $100 and would prefer the longer run times..
Was also thinking of buying more of a square container to mix the juice.... then pour that into the bottles for storage.

You might consider putting your juice directly in the US (so instead of water use your liquid). The thing you have to take into account with this, is that the total juice level should be above the 'minimum' water level that's mostly indicated in the tank of a US. So, the one that Adeline and I have is not suited for that, as it contains a 2 liter tank and it needs at least 1 liter as minimum water leven. But i can imagine that US with smaller volumes might do the trick here.

 

[Azphat12]

What do you think about something like this??

1/2 Gallon Stainless Steel Digital Heated UltraSonic Cleaner - Monster Steel

1-99 minute run time ----- sweet?!?! I figure 3 or 4 1hr runs, and it should be steeped?
35-176°F variable heating ----- good so we can set the proper heat all the time without Nic loss?
Frequency 42KHz or 25KHz ----- nice option?
Stainless Steel Construction ---- so this should be durable?

It has a 100mm (which I think is 4 inches) depth.
I figure I could use 60ml bottles and steep them instead of 1 big 250ml bottle?
I have plenty of 60ml glass bottles laying around in amber and cobalt.... so its an option.
Thoughts?

 

[adeline]

What do you think about something like this??

1/2 Gallon Stainless Steel Digital Heated UltraSonic Cleaner - Monster Steel

1-99 minute run time ----- sweet?!?! I figure 3 or 4 1hr runs, and it should be steeped?
35-176°F variable heating ----- good so we can set the proper heat all the time without Nic loss?
Frequency 42KHz or 25KHz ----- nice option?
Stainless Steel Construction ---- so this should be durable?

It has a 100mm (which I think is 4 inches) depth.
I figure I could use 60ml bottles and steep them instead of 1 big 250ml bottle?
I have plenty of 60ml glass bottles laying around in amber and cobalt.... so its an option.
Thoughts?

3-4 one hour runs should steep most any complex tobacco blend to your satisfaction.
Temp setting is nice! Mine I think cuts the heater off around 140 or 150 degrees
You're going to want to run 42KHz I think
Should be durable!

You're right in that it's 4 inches deep... Should fit a 60ml bottle fine -- I don't have any around to measure though.

Wow, talk about pro-grade. That's the most hardcore ultrasonic cleaner I've seen from folks in these forums.

 

[Azphat12]

Well, if your going to spend upwards of $100 dollars.... might as well spend a little more and get one that can withstand a hurricane, lol.
What caught my eye was the good timer, and variable heating. Set it for 1 hour on a good heat that wont burn your juice. Do that 3 or 4 times and be done with it? That sounds like a win for me....

 

[Azphat12]

Just bought this one.... pretty much the same thing, but it has handles. Alot cheaper also....

New 135 Watt 2L 2 Liter Digital Heated Ultrasonic Cleaner | eBay

 

[adeline]

Very nice! And a good price! Let us know how you like it.

 

[bobalex]

Looks BIG. I'm sure it'll get the job done. The price tag is a bit steep for me. I don't think I could have convinced my wife that I needed to spend $169 to speed up my DIY steep time.

But ...

If there are other uses why you need a Big US cleaner ... go for it.

 

[Azphat12]

My wife knows me.... I would buy another one.... and another.... until I finally got this one anyway.
Plus taxes were just done so its a good time to get everything.

She has some jewelry, and we both have watches and glasses.
Plus the kids dirty the dvd's and cd games alot so Im sure we can get more use out of it that just steeping.

It will probably take 2 weeks to a month to get here from China...being new year and all.
Ill let you all know how it performs though.

 

[jeapa]

I just decided to join the Ultrasonic steepers as I found a small inexpensive unit on clearance at Harbor Freight. It is tiny and has a 3 minute timer, but I figured for $15 it should work fine for me as I am only making juice for 1 person. I am going to make up some more juice tonight and give it a shot. The model I got is a Chicago 03305.

 

[glassmanoak]

My timer is set at 8 minutes, max. It is defective so it actually takes 11 minutes. I could NOT handle a 3 minute timer and not get an egg out of the deal.

 

[bobalex]

My timer is set at 8 minutes, max. It is defective so it actually takes 11 minutes. I could NOT handle a 3 minute timer and not get an egg out of the deal.

I know! When I had the 3 minute cycle US I got mighty tired of hopping up 40 times to turn it back on.

 

[jeapa]

I know! When I had the 3 minute cycle US I got mighty tired of hopping up 40 times to turn it back on.

Yeah. Heres hoping I wont mind so much. I have it sitting on my desk right next to my pc so I figured I would just run it while I am sitting here on the computer. It is kind of loud though so I wont be able to do it when my dh is sleeping..

 

[bleev]

In an attempt to make my atomizers last longer I wash them after just a few day to limit the coil buildup. I have a 60cc syringe I fitted with a thick plastic tube that I fitted to the syringe using a hot hair dryer...did the same thing to the other end to hold the atomizer. I then push and pull denatured alcohol through the syringe 5-6 times. Then I push and pull distilled water to clear the alcohol and let it sit in an ultrasonic cleaner for maybe 30 min.

It's worked well thus far and they all work like new when dried.

With steeping DIY juice a very knowledgeable member told me 1 hour in an UC = one week so 4 hours you have steeped for one month...it works....

 

[godspeed1208]

i have a quick question, what would matter more... the amount of shaking/vibration or the hot water? i realize that mine after about 3-4 cycles in the ultra sonic cleaner the water starts to get hot with lid closed. Will it decrease the outcome if the juice is in hot water for long? Thanks

 

[bobalex]

i have a quick question, what would matter more... the amount of shaking/vibration or the hot water?

Hi - I think the ultrasonic vibration adds more to speeding up the steeping process than the water temp.

On my last batch I used the "heat" option to see if the juice was vape-able at 2 hours instead of the usual 3.

Nope.

I don't use the lid as the bottles are too tall.

Though the water gets pretty warm I've never noticed a degradation in the juice. It's good until I vape it all up.

What I did notice this last batch ...

I use the e-cig express "Desert Ship" flavor. They suggest starting off at 1%. My first batch (pre-ultrasonic cleaner) steeped for just about ever and I got tired of waiting and increased the flavoring. Wasn't too bad ... wasn't that good. Since then I've always made Desert Ship at 2%. I don't like it that much by itself but blended in with my other flavors (Cowboy and Generic tobacco) not bad at all.

This time I made it at the suggested strength of 1% and at the end of 3 hours in the ultrasonic ... I Like It!

Makes me want to follow instructions a bit more seriously from now on.