Wondering How Many 15-Year (or plus) Vapers Remaining

[DPLongo22]

January 25th is a significant date for one of our very own, marking the 15th anniversary of said member's vape/smoke-free journey.

Not wishing to draw attention to him or herself (again), I'm changing up the program. Instead of endless "Congratulations!" posts, I'm posing the question (as per the title of the thread)*. Not being quite there myself (yet), I'm genuinely wondering how many others are at-or-near the 15 year mark. That's a very long time, and outside of what any of us thought we might last without smoking. I certainly never expected it, and I know "he-or-she" never expected it either.

So many years have passed, with so many members and threads, many of whom became friends (both short and long term), and too many memories to count. To the ones we came to know, and those we did not (but we all knew/know of each other), this is a celebration of everyone.

For the new vapers, please take notice that this (once "crazy") thing can and does work. To paraphrase a particularly wonderful movie line, "If you want it, it will come."

Tonight and onwards, lift a glass or cup, and celebrate along with @Katdarling and me. Tell your story and share your memories, as they're too good to keep bottled in. Wave those vaping flags, loudly & proudly.

* It was not I who came up with the idea of an "inquiry" thread - I just stole and am taking credit for it.


Do Not Click Here!

 

[smacuser]

 

[Hobbs]

Only 10yrs+ off and on here. I vaped for several years and returned to analogs. I enjoyed smoking more than vaping. I would buy excellent quality tobacco in bulk and make my own filtered cigarettes. Cost me less than a dollar a pack because no taxes.

Last 14OCT2025, I couldn't get my breath. I was hacking too. Short walks to just carry out the trash took my breath away and I had to stop and get my breath. I knew at that moment 14OCT2025 that I physically couldn't afford to smoke another cigarette. As much as I enjoyed smoking, there was absolutely no doubt about it. I had to quit or die much sooner than expected. I'm 72 and the days left are more valuable than smoking.

So 15OCT25, I dug out my vape gear again. I still needed that nic hit. And here I am today. Vaping, not smoking. Every once in a great while I get an urge to smoke an analog and then my immediate thought is back to 14OCT2025. May I never succumb to analogs allure ever again.

Your 15 years is a milestone worth pausing for. Fifteen years isn’t just a number, it’s a whole era of change, trial and persistence wrapped up in one date. What stands out most in your post is the sense of continuity. People came and went, friendships formed, knowledge got shared, and somehow you remained steadfast.

It’s also a good reminder for newer folks that this didn’t start out as a polished, proven path. It was experimental, messy, and even doubted. Yet here you are, with long-term proof that it can stick and that the “crazy idea” had real staying power.

Raising a glass to the collective effort, the shared history, and the quiet victories that don't make headlines. Congrats to those who’ve walked the long road, and respect to everyone still on it.

 

[Territoo]

16 years for me, although for a few years a long time ago I had quit vaping, but didn't go back to analogs. I was driving a distance and stopped at a gas station. While paying, I noticed a display of disposables, but they were not like today's disposables. It was like an oversized cigalike with a purple light on the end that lit up when I took a hit. It was 0 nic. On a whim, I bought one and vaped it while I drove. I hit it so hard that I went through the battery before I reached my destination. I stopped at another gas station but all they had were the traditional cigalikes. This was in the days before Juul. I bought a Blu, but the next day, I found a vape shop and bought something better.

 

[Infinium]

This year marks 10 straight years of vaping without ever going back to combustible cigarettes. I quit nicotine in 2017 for health reasons and because of Italian laws, which probably quintupled the cost back then.

When I bought my first Justfog Q16, I thought I was throwing my money away, considering I was smoking 20+ cigarettes a day. Instead, it only took 24 hours to switch completely to vaping, and later it turned into a huge passion.

 

[zoiDman]

Yeah... I've done 15 or so Trips around the Sun with an e-Cigarette in the Cup Holder.

I've seen a Lot of Changes. Most were for Good. But some, Not So Good. Overall a Good Ride. Having meet many, Many very Nice People here on the ECF. And Hopefully Helped a Few along the way.

 

[WorksForMe]

After smoking for about 30 years, and trying to quit many times, I first tried vaping in 2010. I couldn’t get it to work very well for me, and I didn’t quit smoking. When I tried vaping again in January of 2012, I found vaping had gotten better and easier. I quit smoking on February 11th after vaping for three weeks.

I lurked on ECF until I joined in September of 2012. I hung out on the Smokeless Image forum for quite a while before switching to the Provape forum for a while. Since then, I’ve primarily been on this forum and the Legislation and News forums.

I used to spend hours on ECF, and hate that things have slowed down so much around here lately. I had to find new things to do online.

I haven’t paid as much attention to vaping lately. I stocked up a lot several years ago, and now I rarely buy vape supplies, and I don’t vape as much since I quit using nicotine. I really miss the old days at ECF, but I’m getting used to it.

.

 

[FlamingoTutu]

Help! How does one find when they joined ECF? Thank you.

 

[Territoo]

You joined August 3, 2013. I just clicked on your name and your profile came up.

 

[FlamingoTutu]

Thank you Territoo! When I clicked on it it showed me nothing.

I never wanted to smoke but some girl gave me two cigs when I was 13 or 14 so I could try to blow smoke rings. That's all it took to get me hooked. Part of the problem was I had severe, undiagnosed ADHD. I desperately wanted to quit for many decades.

One day out of the blue I stumbled across ECF. Boy was this place busy back then!

With all the advice here I tried to quit several times and failed.

I'm not kidding when I say I desperately wanted to quit. With the help of all the good people here I finally made another attempt to quit. That day we went to town, an hour away, and something happened to my ecig. Dead battery or out of juice, I forget now. Went to buy a pack of cigs and they wanted so much money for the I refused to buy them. That anger carried me through the rest of the day without a cig. Then it was two days, then three, and four...

Now it's been 12+ years with out a cig and I have ECF and all those here to thank for that.

Some time back I realized I'd stopped using the nic juice. Weird but it's been a while. Now that I want some I've forgotten how to make it.

 

[Coffee Addict]

I have been here since 2008. Was vaping before that but in my research found this forum. My first encounter with vapes was at a mall kiosk where they were selling these. I was super intrigued since I smoked for many, many years and wanted to be rid of the cigs. The lady let me try one. They were the cig look a likes with the red tip that glowed when you inhaled. I knew right then I had to have one. They were expensive back then to most people, costing about 50.00
But I had to have one. Bought it anyway. Vaped all the way home from the Mall. Never looked back, that morning was the last cigarette I had, never one since then. Eventually moved up to the provari and stopped there. I know I will have to move on soon. All these new things just boggle my mind and I have no idea where to go from here. So for now I will stick to my Provari until I can research everything better. HAPPY VAPING!

 

[newyork13]

Nice idea for a thread @DPLongo22.

As best as I can figure, I've been vaping for 13 years. Discovered and joined ECF months later.
I still have my unfinished pack of American Spirits. Saved it for an apocalypse. Never been much tempted to indulge in them.
I wonder from time to time what 13+ year old cigs would be like.
I'll let you know when the apocalypse strikes. Of course, if that happens I'll have less than 1/2 pack of cigs, and will have to revert to my frozen nic.

 

[jwbnyc]

First ecig was 2009-10? Went online and was really confused by all the false ecig advertising around. Stumbled on ECF back then and lurked on and off. It was crazy, so active, a lot going on in the vape world in those days, all grass roots. I’d spend Hours each night after work trying to catch up on what was happening around here. Continued to smoke while vaping until Spring of 2012 when I finally went 100% vape. Joined the forum properly in 2014, great bunch of people, I’d be dead by now with out you. My success is your success. You’re all winners in my book.

 

[mostlyclassics]

Despite what the tag at the bottom of this post says, I started vaping in mid-January 2011, so I'm in my 15th year. Joined ECF in February 2011.

I'd been intrigued by the idea of vaping since quitting smoking had never worked. The longest I went was two days. But my initial shipment of gear and e-liquid (the gear was primitive back then) got me hooked on vaping and I never went back.

When the deeming regulations were announced, I stockpiled. My stash of gear will last me until I'm in my 120's. And, since I dropped my nicotine consumption by 90% (I DIY), the nicotine concentrate (100 mg..ml.), stored in a freezer at -15 degrees F., will last me until I'm somewhere in my 900's.

Thank God for ECF!

 

[englishmick]

Nice idea for a thread @DPLongo22.

As best as I can figure, I've been vaping for 13 years. Discovered and joined ECF months later.
I still have my unfinished pack of American Spirits. Saved it for an apocalypse. Never been much tempted to indulge in them.
I wonder from time to time what 13+ year old cigs would be like.
I'll let you know when the apocalypse strikes. Of course, if that happens I'll have less than 1/2 pack of cigs, and will have to revert to my frozen nic.

Got a story about old cigs. Told to me by my father around 1970, probably to encourage me to quit.

He worked with a guy who had quit smoking 10 years earlier. He always carried his last half full pack, sitting in the pub he would pull it out and proudly tell people what it was. One night without a word he pulled a cig out of the pack, grabbed someone's lighter, and lit it up. He got one nasty drag and the cig immediately burned all the way down. After that he got up and went to the bar and bought another pack. Right away he was a smoker again.

 

[englishmick]

I quit 11 years ago but for around 5 or 6 years before that me and my wife messed with cigalikes, never did better than cutting down a bit. Then a friend recommended Evods to my wife and I got one myself. I had no idea there was stuff out there that was better than cigalikes. Shortly after that I joined ECF. Read a bunch of stuff and got a Sigelei 20W tube mod and a Pro Tank. My wife quit with the Evod and I quit with the Sig.

There were no vape shops when I started on the cigalikes, just stalls in the malls. Then I found a site for a Chicago based outfit that sold them on-line. When I got the Evod a head shop up the road had one small corner for vape gear. Evods and tiny bottles of cheap nasty Chinese juice. Think the Evods were $75 each.

It all seems so long ago now. I just read my diary for that time. We called the cigalikes smokers, and the deck part in the middle igniters. We made those names up. I always regretted not keeping one of the old cigalikes for nostalgia. A few years later the Sigelei almost did me in. It was sitting on my desk and it suddenly short circuited and started pumping out smoke, I grabbed it and ran for the door and threw it out on the lawn.