Wicking and Coils

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tayone415

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Not sure if this is the right section, but I just finally went from a VV/VW MOD to a Mechanical MOD. I'm trying to learn the best ways and the right ways to wick and the best type of wicks and the process to prep it. I keep hearing different ways to do it from people in my local vape shops, reading forum posts and on YouTube.

I heard a lot of people don't boil organic cotton, but I found mine has hydrogen peroxide, so I will boil it with distilled water.


My Questions:

1. If I boil my organic cotton balls that has been bleached with hydrogen peroxide, is it safe to still cook in the same pot after cleaning it, or do I really have to buy a separate pot just for boiling cotton?

2. Is it better to wrap a coil over the silica wick 3-4x or just build a coil or micro coil then feed the silica through?

3. Cotton Wicking for coils and micro coils, is it better to feed the cotton through the coil or tuck it under the coil or both?

4. Will I conserve more juice with silica (NO ekowool) or cotton?

5. Would I have to boil medical grade sterile cotton?

6. Do I have to use distilled water for boiling?
 

State O' Flux

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My Questions:

1. If I boil my organic cotton balls that has been bleached with hydrogen peroxide, is it safe to still cook in the same pot after cleaning it, or do I really have to buy a separate pot just for boiling cotton?
coalyard has this covered. ;-)

2. Is it better to wrap a coil over the silica wick 3-4x or just build a coil or micro coil then feed the silica through? I prefer to build the coil, then wick it. The finished coil product is superior.
Read this (paragraphs 5-7 in particular)... for an explanation why a compressed coil can be superior to a gapped coil.

3. Cotton Wicking for coils and micro coils, is it better to feed the cotton through the coil or tuck it under the coil or both?
With an RDA, I choose both... to increase juice "capacity". I may also use, depending on the juice blend, a pull-thru, a "bed" and a "cloud" of cotton. I may also use silica and cotton in combination.


4. Will I conserve more juice with silica (NO ekowool) or cotton?
Although I'm a major proponent of cotton, I've recently gone back to 3mm (German) silica in 2mm ID compressed coils... finding that, for now, the flavor is more consistent.
I also have been testing ramie with great success.
Try all... individual performance can be very subjective. There is no one perfect wicking material for all vapists, and other than XC-116 or pre-made ceramic rod wick... it's all pretty darn cheap.


5. Would I have to boil medical grade sterile cotton?
Organic or sterile cotton balls from the local big box pharmacy is more than sufficient. Organic cotton make-up pads (cut into wide strips then rolled) and Peaches N' Cream cotton yarn are also popular.

6. Do I have to use distilled water for boiling?
See coalyard's comments.
 

Tbev

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You shouldn't boil cotton you should buy sterile cotton for wound dressing, boiling cotton creates an environment that is great for growing bacteria.
Wrap a coil, heat, squeeze, repeat till coil is glowing from the middle out, then thread wick thru. You want it to be lose enough to pull thru without deforming your coil. Other things depend on the atty your using the resistance of your build.
What are you working with? What are you shooting for?

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tayone415

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Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) decomposes to hydrogen, and oxygen. There is NO need to boil it, but if it makes you happy...

I use RiteAid organic cotton, not boiled. Now that I think further about it, boiling increases the risk of bacteria and mold due to moisture, and that is something to be concerned with, IMHO.

I just been told by different people at my local vape shops, and reading other posts to boil it and to boil it with distilled water, then dry it with a towel and microwave it, blow dry it or put it in a pillow case and put it in the dryer and some people say no need but it helps with better flavor. Would the mold and bacteria happen if it was dried after? If hydrogen peroxide isn't deadly then I don't care about boiling it, but, if I can boil it safely I would boil some, only because I have an unopened bottle of distilled water now, with no use. Unless I can drink it safely?

You shouldn't boil cotton you should buy sterile cotton for wound dressing, boiling cotton creates an environment that is great for growing bacteria.
Wrap a coil, heat, squeeze, repeat till coil is glowing from the middle out, then thread wick thru. You want it to be lose enough to pull thru without deforming your coil. Other things depend on the atty your using the resistance of your build.
What are you working with? What are you shooting for?

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I have 2 builds at all times, depending if I want more flavor and a cooler vape or a hot vape chasing clouds. I'm anywhere between a 0.2-0.75. Yeah, I know huge difference in ohms and anything under 0.5 isn't safe. I do use Sony's VTC5 30A 18650 2600mah which has a 30 amp limit for safety for sub ohm vaping, but it's not an all day everyday thing and I keep my 0.2- anything under 0.5 to 2-5 sec vapes, and keep my battery voltage above 3.8 for low builds.

For an all day regular build, I want good flavor, big clouds (NOT huge), warm-really warm vape. I'm in between just wraping ekowool 4x with 26 gauge kanthal, since 28 is too high and 24 can get too hot, or doing 28 gauge micro coils with 4-6 wraps?

I can't find, the right build yet, and I'm always changing drip tips to try to compensate the amount of vapor and balance out the heat with vapor.

What I'm working with is a HCigar Nemesis clone, with a nimbus clone and drip tip, igo-w, i-style drip tip, and a wide mouth drip tip and a Sony VTC5 30A 18650 2600mah battery.
 

Tbev

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Smaller holes in dt condense the vapor giving better flavor, that is why kayfan tips look the way they do. You cab put e an igo l top on a Nimbus and I it will increase the flavor BC it's smaller, reducing the volume in the chamber = more flavor, Nimbus has a fairly big cap.

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tayone415

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Smaller holes in dt condense the vapor giving better flavor, that is why kayfan tips look the way they do. You cab put e an igo l top on a Nimbus and I it will increase the flavor BC it's smaller, reducing the volume in the chamber = more flavor, Nimbus has a fairly big cap.

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I have an igo-w not igo-l and a nimbus clone, I can fit the nimbus clone over my igo-w but not the other way around. Both my RDAs are drilled out, the igo-w is drilled above a 1/8th hole it's at last 2mm+ and my nimbus clone originally had 4 small holes but 2 are drilled out and are a little bigger than my igo-w drill holes. I sometimes adjust my airflow control on my Nemesis clone, but, I like an airier draw with dripping.
 

tayone415

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You can twist 2 28ga wires together, with a drill, wrap up like 6 wraps, in a tight microcoil, throw some cotton in there, should be about as good as it gets in the flavor dept. I notice a bit of difference with twisted wire.

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Thanks, I been told that before, but I don't own a drill. I think once I use enough of my 28 gauge that I feel like I got my money's worth I'm going to buy some 24 or 26 gauge.
 

tayone415

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Hydrogen peroxide leaves a residue when dried. I personally wouldn't vape it without boiling it if it was treated with it. Yes it's sterile and can be used on a wound but not for ingestion.


From hearing opinions from e-cig members and employees from B&M shops, it's mixed opinions to boil or not, seems to lead more towards boiling, but I get wetness will catch things in the air. Not sure what the best approach is still? I 'm going to start a poll thread.
 

Tbev

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and perhaps there already is. Just may need to be copied to a few of these topics.

While i am still new to this, January this year. I read lots on here, and see so often about boiling wicks and cotton. As i myself may not be educated well enough to say you should/shouldn't. I will get this started.

Gonna guess the majority here are ex-smokers, or trying to give them up. You have moved into making your own coils and wicks, as opposed to buying made coils, and now your here.

I won't take credit for this statement, but I saw it a while back. Did you BOIL your cigarettes before smoking them ?.

I am gonna have to guess no, you didn't.

After you boil your wick/cotton, how and where do you plan on drying it ?. Just leave it sit out and dry, sounds like a science experiment to me. Use a hair dryer maybe ?. And where is that kept, the bathroom usually.
Hand Dryers Increase Bacteria by 255% | UberFacts

On the flip side: Silica and ekowool can be torched (before and after your coil is made). Any bacteria that can survive that, boiling is not gonna help in any way.

Was cotton made to be used as a wick and vaped, most likely not. But boiling it just sounds all wrong, you just can't dry it bacteria free.

Vape the organic cotton, or don't. Vape the silica/ekowool, or don't.

Here ya go

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