What is the shelf life of E-Liquid?

[YanaGirl]

I haven't been using e-cigarettes for very long, just around 3 months or so. I started off with the DSE801 using prefilled menthol cartridges. Well I found that frustrating because I learned that half the fun of vaping was changing flavors so I ended up buying a lot of juice. So I purchased an ego-t which of course holds a lot more e-liquid and now I must have about 12 or 13 bottles of mostly 30ml e-liquid. The question is how long will it last? Will it go bad after the expiry date or will it just lose flavor and/or throat hit?

I change flavors quite often and am using clearomizers, the ego tank cartridges and cartomizers.

Thank you for any info you can give.

 

[sailorman]

Under normal low light, room temperature, the expiry date should be about a year from manufacturing. If you keep it cold, it will last even longer.
It won't hurt you after the expiry date, but you'll probably lose some flavor. The nicotine itself can last at least a couple years in a freezer, but what that will do to the flavoring is a mystery to me.

The main thing is to keep it out of light and heat. Air also oxidizes the nicotine, so if you have some spare smaller bottles laying around, you might consider swapping some juice into those in order to minimize the air space. Best thing is to keep it in a dark part of the refrigerator. I doubt freezing it would hurt it. I definitely won't hurt nic, PG or VG. It probably wouldn't hurt the flavoring either, but I'm not going to guarantee that.

 

[YanaGirl]

Thank you. I have mostly PG juice because I heard that it has more flavor and a stronger throat hit. I did try putting it in the refrigerator, but it made my juice thicker so it was a little difficult to drip into my cartridge/cartomizers. Maybe I'll try just taking out whatever flavor I use for that day and let it sit for awhile first, then return to the fridge again.

Maybe I'll try freezing a small amount of it to start with so then I'll know if it works. And if it doesn't at least I haven't destroyed too much.

Thanks for the help.

 

[sailorman]

PG/VG will definitely thicken up in cold temperatures. I DIY and keep it in the fridge and freezer. I have to let it sit for a while and get back to room temperature or it's so thick I can't even work with it.

Even in the freezer, it doesn't actually freeze like water does. It just gets real thick. It doesn't expand either, so if you're freezing it you don't need to leave any space. The less space the better, as it minimizes air contact and prevents oxidation of the nicotine.

 

[YanaGirl]

PG/VG will definitely thicken up in cold temperatures. I DIY and keep it in the fridge and freezer. I have to let it sit for a while and get back to room temperature or it's so thick I can't even work with it.

Even in the freezer, it doesn't actually freeze like water does. It just gets real thick. It doesn't expand either, so if you're freezing it you don't need to leave any space. The less space the better, as it minimizes air contact and prevents oxidation of the nicotine.

Thank you so much. This is all good to know, I will try freezing and defrosting a little bit of it to see how it works.

 

[rlguy28]

I have had first hand experience with heat. It definitely messed up some of my bottles and the flavors just taste stale...

 

[reckless]

yes i definetly found out that heat p;ays a big part in how long my juice stays good, ie the way it was intented to taste and vape. i got an order in the mail and was a way for a couple of really hot days. and this was juice that i had been vaping for a long time so i new how it was supposed to taste, perform. and the heat definetly muted and changed the flavors. i don't put my juice in the fridge. there's really no need for that with me. i'll definetly vape what i have in a years time. if i don't it's usally because i didn't care that much for the juice in the first place so i'll just throw it out. but i do have a nice case that has alot of small compartments in it. this way i can pair the cartos and juices together in the own little compartments so they don't get mixed up while i'm switching flavors. this keeps my desk neater and keeps the juice out of the direct sun light. also i would like to add. that some juices actually taste better over time. this is called steeping, just like a good wine or scotch and you will see that the flavor profile (sometimes not always) will change with some juices. i like to let my bobbas bounty /(0ne 0f my favorite juices steep for a week before i vape it. in my opinion the longer it steeps the better it is. i just cant go that long with out vaping it. lol its too good. hope this helps

 

[LittleBastard80]

I hope they are never banned. Saving my my life

 

[wv2win]

Under normal low light, room temperature, the expiry date should be about a year from manufacturing. If you keep it cold, it will last even longer.
It won't hurt you after the expiry date, but you'll probably lose some flavor. The nicotine itself can last at least a couple years in a freezer, but what that will do to the flavoring is a mystery to me.

The main thing is to keep it out of light and heat. Air also oxidizes the nicotine, so if you have some spare smaller bottles laying around, you might consider swapping some juice into those in order to minimize the air space. Best thing is to keep it in a dark part of the refrigerator. I doubt freezing it would hurt it. I definitely won't hurt nic, PG or VG. It probably wouldn't hurt the flavoring either, but I'm not going to guarantee that.

I agree with this explanation. However, the larger eliquid manufacturers claim that the eliqiud has a 2 year expiration date. Madvapes has been doing a test on nicotine diminishing rates under different enviornments. After 2 - 3 months, their results show very little, if any, diminished content regardless of enviornment. I always keep my extra eliquid in double sealed plastic baggies and out of any light.

One vet, who is no longer with us, claimed he ruined some eliquid by putting it in the refrigerator. I could never figure out why that would happen. From Madvapes tests, it doesn't appear to be necessary to keep it in the refrigerator.

 

[young gotti]

as a new vaper, actually still waiting on my first shipment, i was a bit weary of how much liquid to order

the last thing i want to do once i start vaping is run out and be stuck waiting for more liquid and go back to smoking