Tips & Tricks for NOOBS

[Duderino]

First off, I am SO glad that I found this forum. There is a ton of useful information here, and everyone seems really cool. Thanks to the mods and contributors for putting it together and keeping it going.

I wanted to start a thread that gives advice for all new vapers. I will be getting my V4L Vapor King tomorrow or tuesday, and I couldn't be more excited to try it out and (hopefully!) quit analogs for good. Like I said, there is a ton of info here, but it can be a little scattered. I spent a lot of time lurking around, getting the pros and cons of the different models, refill methods, went through all the stickys and the FAQs... I picked V4L based on the excellent reviews in the subforum, not only of their product (easy to use, great quality) but also of their customer service. Of course, advice for any model of PV is welcome.

As experienced vapers, please give your best tips & tricks for a total noob like myself. I'm looking for anything that will make the vaping experience better, easier, and overall enjoyable from the start. Advice that will eliminate any frustrating problems that you had as a beginner will be especially appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[Rosa]

Welcome to ECF


I'll start:
• Drink more water!
• Don't try to do the mg math, just vape until you are satisfied.
• Try some other flavors, you might be surprised.
• Take long, slow, easy drags -- don't take short hard drags like a cigarette.

 

[webbcm127]

id add:
make sure u purchase extra juice..around 60ml with your first purchase
dont be afraid to refill carts or cartos---its easy lol
and make sure you have a couple extra bats for the cig style ecigs or one extra for the fat bats
oh and a coupel extra attys or cartos!-)

 

[dysfoundation]

Take juice recommendations with a grain of salt not every juice is friendly with your palette.


Second Place is Dead Last

 

[Bradder]

Blow out your atty before you use it for the first time.

 

[WomanOfHeart]

Stockpile supplies like juice (or take up DIY juice), attys, cartos. You never know when you might need them. Vendors do run out of things and China has holidays that last for days.
PIF or sell juices and equipment that you don't like or aren't going to use anymore. Someone else might want it!

 

[Beez]

• Give yourself permission to do it all less than perfectly.
• While many leave analogs immediately, there is a wide variety of changing styles, so if it takes you longer, don't sweat it.
• Get some liquid that is similar to your analog brand, maybe in two strengths near your current mg level.
• AND, get 2-3 alt non-tobacco flavors that sound good to you. Like Rosa said, you might be surprised (a lot of us assumed we wanted a PV experience like analogs only to discover we preferred non-tobacco flavors).
• Some of the cart mods you will see are fine, but some don't work nearly as well as advertised! Don't stress over it, using the original cart filler will work just fine (and if you want, experiment later).
• Make sure to have extra attys, carts, batteries and chargers.
• GOOD LUCK AND WELCOME!

 

[OgreLokon]

Don't necessarily go for what you think would taste good- how it SMELLS has more of an effect

 

[Pneathery]

And most definatly enjoy yourself!
I will second the drink more water. For my first week, my skin hurt, I couldn't figure out what was going on, then remembered the whole water thing (I hadn't drunk any water in two days). I now drink 6+ BIG glasses of water a day.
I also second the whole backup plan, after all you can't just hop into your car at 2 in the morning because your atty decided to die right then, or you JUST ran out of juice. Personally I would weather have 60ml of damn near any juice laying around then worry about running out. My first order was 30ml "Kamel" pg, and 30ml "Marlbaro" VG, so I could mix them.

I think the best advice would be to have a lot of differing strengths of juices. I smoked up to 5 PAD depending on stress, so I now have some 36MG for those times I REALLY want to smoke. I normally VAPE 24MG.
Also I NEVER smoked menthols, but I really enjoyed vaping menthol when I first started, I think one of the reasons was that it was damn near the only VAPE I could actually taste in the begining. That and it was VERY satisfying, like that I just had a smoke satisfying.
I tend to ramble on now that I quit smoking, sorry.
But one more thing. What I find useful, others might not, my wife LOVES cheesecake VAPE, I think it tastes like plastic. Just remember everyone is different, and congrats on starting down this road, and on quitting.

 

[WomanOfHeart]

Practice makes perfect (or at least damned close to it!) Take your time with filling carts and cartos. You'll have it down in no time and be filling them faster and with less mess than when you tried to first time.
Don't be afraid to experiment with different types of PG/VG mixes, PV configurations and vaping styles. You won't find one that you really enjoy if you don't.
Don't give up on anything, even if you've tried it before. If you don't like a certain type of carto, try another one. If you don't like a certain brand of atomizer, try one from a different vendor or buy an adapter and try a completely different type.
Try dripping for at least one day. I really thought dripping would be difficult and a waste of time until I actually TRIED it. Now I drip 95% of the time.

 

[zadane]

Don't get sucked up into the hype around a certain product.

pay attention to the negative and positive.

for example, there is a lot of hype around fat batts.

everyone sings them praises all day

1 they last longer than regular skinny batts.

that's about it.

 

[WomanOfHeart]

Don't get sucked up into the hype around a certain product.

pay attention to the negative and positive.

for example, there is a lot of hype around fat batts.

everyone sings them praises all day

1 they last longer than regular skinny batts.

that's about it.

Actually, they last longer than the skinny batts because they have more mAh. Skinny batts might last longer than a 2-4 hours for someone who doesn't vape much, but the heavy vaper might need more than this.

510 @ 280mAh is not going to outlast an eGo @ 650mAh for someone who vapes a lot.

 

[Chime]

Try it all ways, cartomizers, dripping, or cartridges. Different stuff works for different people.

Cool thing I just found out recently is throwing a drip tip on top of a cartomizer is made of win.

Don't worry about the way a Personal Vaporizer looks, not looking like a cigarette is actually a bonus in most cases.

Try to avoid proprietary styles of e-cig if you can, they most likely will restrict you to that particular vendor for all your components, depriving you of some really great deals usually.

If you drop cigs right after you get your PV, you will most likely still go through withdrawals, this is normal just stick with it and try to aim to quit over a weekend.

 

[Rosa]

Actually, they last longer than the skinny batts because they have more mAh. Skinny batts might last longer than a 2-4 hours for someone who doesn't vape much, but the heavy vaper might need more than this.

510 @ 280mAh is not going to outlast an eGo @ 650mAh for someone who vapes a lot.

Yes, and so if you don't smoke all that much then you don't need the bigger batts. BUT, if you smoke more than about 1/2 a pack a day you should seriously consider getting them. If you smoke more than about 1 1/2 packs per day, you will absolutely want them (unless you are into changing your battery every half and hour )

 

[snails1023]

Don't be afraid to vary your nic. dose throughout the day.
Above all, nothing is written in stone, experiment and enjoy the experience.

 

[Stosh]

Keep a damp paper towel handy at all times, starting out juice will get loose and out of control.

But if you stick with it, always remember it will get easier.
Lighting your first cigarette was an adventure, then it became second nature, vaping is similar.

 

[NCC]

Unless saving money is your key objective, don't be too concerned about spending as much, or more, on vaping than you did on cigarettes ... at least initially.

 

[medic123]

Don't try dripping with an auto battery.

 

[Duderino]

Thanks all! Once again, a ton of great info for a beginner... I'm still not 100% sure what dripping is all about. Do you just drip the juice directly into the mouthpiece? That seems VERY convenient, much more so than filling a cart or carto.

I am smoking a little more than 1/2 PAD, more on the weekends of course. I ordered 2 manual batts from V4L, a PT, 5-pack of pre-filled cartos, 2 5-packs of blank cartos, and 4 30-ml bottles of juice (2 menthols - 18mg, banana - 18mg, and pineapple - 24mg). I figure this should last me about a month. I don't want to run into batt issues (ie, not enough battery life during the day), but I figure I can charge them at work with the USB charger (also part of the starter kit) and use the PT at home. Does this sound reasonable?

Finally, just have to say that I really hope vaping agrees with me. I want to quit smoking because... well, what smoker doesn't want a healthier alternative! BTW, this thread doesn't have to become a discussion on the health benefits of vaping over smoking. Suffice it to say, even though I haven't tried it yet I am CONVINCED vaping is healthier!

Awesome avatar, OgreLokon!

Thanks again everybody! And keep the great advice coming!!

 

[DC2]

The best advice I could give is to get a manual battery instead of an automatic.
If you get an automatic battery the learning curve is much steeper and you may experience a lot of frustration.

You can always get an automatic battery later after you figure out how an electronic cigarette works.
If you feel you must have an automatic battery to start, then get one of each to start.


If you buy an atomizer model then the second best advice I can give is to learn how to drip as soon as possible.
Dealing with cartridges and wicking issues can also increase the learning curve and become very frustrating.

If you learn to drip you will never have to worry about inconsistency.
You can still learn about and work on using cartridges or cartomizers, but you can always fall back on dripping when needed.