Still trying to get this vaping thing going

[dcdozer]

Hi all,
Just started out vaping about a month ago, and have progressed from a small NJoy unit I got at 7-11, then I fell for the Vapor Fi trap, and have since moved to the Kanger Emow Mega. The Emow has been much better than the others, but it seems to be very fickle. Sometimes it works like a champ, but at any moment the atomizer will just stop firing, or the tank will get flooded and start to leak. It makes it hard to stop falling back on the smokes when I don't have confidence that the thing will work. They're verified genuine, so that's not the problem. I'm also blowing through the atomizers really quickly (seems like one every other day or so), and I'm using 70% VG juice from Teleos (dang that stuff is good), so that may be part of the problem. Anybody know how to help avoid these issues with the kangers? Is it the kanger, or is this user error?

All that said, I was thinking that I need to just go with a nicer box setup, and have been looking around online. I want to get something pretty nice to try to avoid the trap of buying 50 different vaping devices (failing so far as this will be the 4th one in a month), but I also don't want to get something that's too tough to figure out for a newb like me. I was originally honing in on the iStick 30W, but then saw the IPV mini, and then the IPV mini 2, which is where I've kinda settled in. Does that sound like a good device for someone like me? I just want something that works well consistently, lasts all day with pretty heavy vaping, is high performing enough to keep me out of the vape pen market for a while, and doesn't require a PhD in electronics to figure out when I get it! Also, if this is a good device, which tank and battery do you recommend?

Thanks all for your help!

 

[Sir2fyablyNutz]

I'd suggest the ipv mini D2, the temp control version if you like that style of mod. For a few dollars more you can get the larger version of the ipv (4 I think, it has temp control) which holds 2 18650 batteries (2500 mah X2 = 5000 mah battery life). With either it is highly suggested to get a separate battery charger so you can just swap out batteries rather than rely on the pass thru charging. You also want reliable batteries so I'd suggest looking into these blogs :
18650 Safety Grades -- Picking a Safe Battery to Vape With | E-Cigarette Forum
All 30A-Capable Batteries Shootout -- Bench Test Results -- Which battery is best? | E-Cigarette Forum
Baditudes Blogs Baditude's blog | E-Cigarette Forum
Mooch's blog | E-Cigarette Forum

Where to buy
Illumn.com - Flashlights, Batteries, Carry Gear, Intelligent LED Lighting, and More!
Authentic AW Batteries - RTD Vapor
http://www.lighthound.com/
18650 Batteries | Rechargeable Li-ion | Battery Chargers

Other comparable units to the double battery temp control ones are the Sigelei 150 watt TC (also comes in a single battery 75 watt). Snow wolf makes a temp unit 160 watt I believe. There are many others. Check here for shopping links :
DEALS and STEALS - Deals and Steals | E-Cigarette Forum (go to last couple pages)
FORUM SUPPLIERS - ECF Forum Suppliers | E-Cigarette Forum
COUPONS - Stores - ECF E-Cigarette Coupons

Temp control is the new thing, keeps you from getting a dry hit. You don't have to use the temp control with these mods (the coils need a special wire) but it would be nice to have if you decide to go there.

Most box mods are easy to understand and use, even the temp control ones. There are many you tube's on any model you are considering. Good luck in your decisions.

 

[djsvapour]

It may sound mad, but I could still happily vape with a VV eGo and small tank, but have leaned towards bigger mods and tanks for reliability more than outright performance.

Not everyone is the same though... and if you need to future-proof yourself, it might be better to exceed the 30w mods.

Today, I was using a mini Cloupor (30w) and subtank. I'm using it at barely half of it's performance.

With something like an IPV mini 2 (the 70w) you are going to have so much flexibility.

 

[93gc40]

Quit stressing.. Decide your budget, realize that within the constraints of whatever that budget is... MOST of the devices are pretty much on par, they all have FANS and HATERs. There is no perfect so don't try to find it.

For the beginner to advanced vapor ANY of the 30watt devices on the market will do.. Get the one you like best. Were talking $50 or less here..... So if it sucks upgrade in 6 months.. Thing is the box in a very minor part of the deal, unless defective or broken, it's a battery case.

The atomizer is where you should concentrate.. Getting the right Atty for how you NEED to vape is important...... Dripper with big deck, lots of air flow and many posts might not be the best for the Mouth to lung flavor chaser

 

[Susan~S]

Hello & welcome to the forum @dcdozer.

Sometimes it works like a champ, but at any moment the atomizer will just stop firing, or the tank will get flooded and start to leak. It makes it hard to stop falling back on the smokes when I don't have confidence that the thing will work. They're verified genuine, so that's not the problem. I'm also blowing through the atomizers really quickly (seems like one every other day or so), and I'm using 70% VG juice from Teleos (dang that stuff is good), so that may be part of the problem. Anybody know how to help avoid these issues with the kangers? Is it the kanger, or is this user error?

Let's see if we can address some of your problems.

1. Atomizer stopped firing.

• Sounds like the center pin of the battery is not making a connection with the atomizer of the clearomizer/tank. This usually occurs from over-tightening the tank onto the battery connector. Just make sure that if you use something conductive (metal) to pry up on the center pin that you do NOT hit the fire button while you are working on the battery. Or better yet, turn off the battery.
  
  Center Pin Issue - Fixing a non firing eGo battery

2. Flooding/leaking tank

• First, to fix a flooded atomizer take your tank off the battery and blow through the mouthpiece (with a paper towel under it or cover the airflow hole). This will drain the extra eliquid.
  
  When you inhale, take a long smooth draw vs a short sharp draw. This will prevent extra eliquid from being pulled into your coils and flooding it. Inhalation technique with an e-cigarette.
  
  Whenever you first sense that your atomizer is beginning to flood try this:
  1. Open up the airflow so when you take a hit you are not pulling in as much juice into your coils (if your tank has airflow control) .
  2. Raise your voltage or wattage if your battery allows you to do this. This will vaporize more eliquid.
  3. Tip your battery up (and take a few hits). By tipping it up you will prevent more eliquid from being fed into the coils.

3. Blowing through atomizers & PG/VG ratio

• Your tank has "pin sized" airholes. 70% VG is very thick. You will do much better with a 50/50 mix. You can thin down your thicker juice with a few drops of distilled water per mils of juice to help with wicking. This will most likely help you with your problem regarding flooding if you are drawing on your mouthpiece too hard.

 

[Bunnykiller]

you are doomed... everyone has to go thru at least 5 different mods before finding Nirvana...

 

[calecamo]

i would recommend the Cool Fire 4. It looks very nice and if you still like smaller devices the ittaste vv/vw 4. As the isub tank is very affordable, and easy to use

 

[Bxlxaxkxe]

I love the Kanger Subox Mini kit. Highly recommended. Small, good on battery life, delicious flavor, and nice clouds if you want em!

 

[dcdozer]

Wow - thanks all for the fast responses. Sounds like I should do a little tinkering with the Emow to get it running more consistently, buy a box because it will open up a new world of vaping, and resign myself to the fact that I will buy a ton of these things because, well that's just what vapers do. Even if I do, smoking still seems to be much more expensive, so the budget isn't really a big concern.

 

[93gc40]

Wow - thanks all for the fast responses. Sounds like I should do a little tinkering with the Emow to get it running more consistently, buy a box because it will open up a new world of vaping, and resign myself to the fact that I will buy a ton of these things because, well that's just what vapers do. Even if I do, smoking still seems to be much more expensive, so the budget isn't really a big concern.

You only need to buy tons of useless crap and gear... To be a VAPER.. You do not need to spend much money at all to be an EX-Smoker, who vapes.

1 year into vaping full-time, 9 months No Cigs.. I have spent Less than $300 on Vape gear and supplies, not counting the juice. I do know I have spent 60% less in the last year, on Smoking related expense, intotal. I am now doing DIY juice so that cost will drop by more than 50%, going forward.

I started with some EGO1100 batteries and a Kanger protank. then got a Mini Protank 3. Started build my own coils. Got a Kayfun 3.1 tank. Then a Brass Origin Clone and a 15watt KICK module, another Kayfun and 2 Geni tanks, 2 weeks ago i got a Smokeless owl and a Hobo 3 atty. I use the Origin/Kayfun and Squonker/Hobo, daily. Currently I want real regulation and more than 15watts at 1.3 ohms. So I Feel, you.

I'm kinda waiting, for a Regulated wooden squonker to come out for $50 or less. If not I think I'm going to go the Istick 30 watt route, only because they are the most popular. And they are cheap.

 

[Jozeph87]

i can't even get juice

 

[dcdozer]

Susan~S - your tips have worked so far. The 70%VG is definitely a challenge for the emow tank, but I'm hooked on the flavors of Teleos and don't care for the PG throat hit. I've got an atty on day 3 now, and it's still working well. I was doing the opposite of what I needed to do when I started to notice the atty getting gunked up and tighter on the draw. When that happened, I was tightening the airflow and pulling harder to try to get the stuff out. Problem just got worse. Now I'm upping the voltage and taking a soft long draw (sometimes tipping the tank upwards) and it gets cleared out. THANK YOU!

About the boxes, I saw something about eLeaf's boxes auto firing and other reliability issues. I assume that's been worked out? And as djsvapour said, I'm probably looking at a box for reliability rather than performance. (My wife is switching with me, and is more interested in clouds, so I'm looking at that too btw.) Would a single battery device last all day with heavy vaping if I ran it lower on the wattage scale?

Thanks again everyone. Can't believe how helpful everyone is here.

 

[dcdozer]

OK - I also found out my wife was pulling like she was trying to suck the battery through the tank. So it seems the emow mega can handle the 70% VG juice after all. Thanks again everyone!

Still one question out there: do the single battery devices like the IPV D2 last all day with heavy vaping if the wattage is set fairly low?

 

[AXIOM_1]

OK - I also found out my wife was pulling like she was trying to suck the battery through the tank. So it seems the emow mega can handle the 70% VG juice after all. Thanks again everyone!

Still one question out there: do the single battery devices like the IPV D2 last all day with heavy vaping if the wattage is set fairly low?

Yes, they can but you will want to get a very high rated Mah battery for it. The higher the rated battery you buy (Mah) then the longer it will also take to charge it. So, get a good Mah rated battery and run it at lower power and it will run all day. I run an IPV mini on a single battery. If I keep it at 10 Watts or so it lasts a long time.

 

[dcdozer]

Yes, they can but you will want to get a very high rated Mah battery for it. The higher the rated battery you buy (Mah) then the longer it will also take to charge it. So, get a good Mah rated battery and run it at lower power and it will run all day. I run an IPV mini on a single battery. If I keep it at 10 Watts or so it lasts a long time.

At some point I'll make the switch to a box. Seems like they come out faster than cell phones, which is crazy, so I'm not in a rush. Especially since @Susan~S helped me address the issues with my kanger emow mega (and my wife's technique).

Everyone here is awesome. I still haven't completely kicked the cigs, but I'm getting closer. Thanks all for that.

 

[AXIOM_1]

At some point I'll make the switch to a box. Seems like they come out faster than cell phones, which is crazy, so I'm not in a rush. Especially since @Susan~S helped me address the issues with my kanger emow mega (and my wife's technique).

Everyone here is awesome. I still haven't completely kicked the cigs, but I'm getting closer. Thanks all for that.

You will get there brother. You just have to slowly reduce the ciggs and increase the vaping. Yes, there has been an explosion in mods and tanks. The vaping industry is really growing rapidly.

 

[Elizabeth Baldwin]

I love the Kanger Subox Mini kit. Highly recommended. Small, good on battery life, delicious flavor, and nice clouds if you want em!

^^^^^ I agree. I have 3 sets. I love them.

 

[AXIOM_1]

you are doomed... everyone has to go thru at least 5 different mods before finding Nirvana...

lol

 

[Susan~S]

About the boxes, I saw something about eLeaf's boxes auto firing and other reliability issues. I assume that's been worked out?

Most (if not all) of the problems were with the iStick 50 watt (autofiring). These were happening with the mods produced in March. Some smaller vendors may still have old stock but I think most of the larger retailers are shipping new stock.

 

[dcdozer]

Most (if not all) of the problems were with the iStick 50 watt (autofiring). These were happening with the mods produced in March. Some smaller vendors may still have old stock but I think most of the larger retailers are shipping new stock.

Dang Susan~S, you are thorough. I gave up on that question, and you still dug it up! Wow. Thanks!