You quit to save your life and save your money.....

[Mogar]

*Steps up to the podium and taps on the mic* Hello everyone, my name is ummm... Mogar and Im a... modaholic (waits for response from the croud). Its been 144 hours and 32 minutes since purchasing my latest mod.

All joking aside, vaping is like any hobby. It can be fun to do with others or alone, it can be a pastime or, to some, an all encompassing passion. It is very easy to fall into the pit and it is hard to climb out.

Think of vaping like you would cars. A Yugo (if you know what those are) can get you from where you are to where you want to be. If you are fine with that, then drive it where you can. However if you are like others, you see a better model, newer or one with pipes etc etc. If you had the money and you could do it, you upgrade if you want it. Then you see one in red, one with stripes and one that has this kicking fin that makes it look great, so you upgrade again. You are all that then you see.... the convertible.... OHHH MY GOD you gots to get into that convertible!!!!
The beater is just like your ego with a clearomizer that you can buy for $25.00. It gets you there, but if you want bells and gadgets, where do you stop???


(thinking of that, I wanna install a mini case fan on my Subtank that turns on when the fire button is pushed.... mmmmm Turbo Subtank rba Subohm......)

 

[Robino1]

Well now you all got me curious about my spending. I have been diligently keeping a spreadsheet from the very beginning. I know I have saved a bunch, but with this conversation, I decided to do a breakdown.

Started vaping 2012 so for the total of 2012:
Hardware: $314.95 Liquid: $482.70 These reflect trying different things to find what I like and what works
What I would have spent for Cigs that rest of the year: $960.50

For the year 2013:
Hardware: $303.85 Liquid: $959.60 Cigs would have cost me: $2,938.00

For the year 2014:
Hardware: $701.54* Liquid: $1050.40 Cigs: $2,938.00 *Reflects the $$ I put out for 2 rebuildable atty/tanks and 1 high end PV.

So far 2015:
Hardware: 0 Liquid: $184.00 Cigs: $734.50 Hardware should not change as I am absolutely thrilled with what I have.

Note: I have not changed what the price of cigarettes would be had I continued buying them. I know the price has risen, I just do not know how much nor when. So I figure my savings is actually higher than what it shows on paper.

My bottom line: To date I have saved $3,573.96. That figure will continue to rise, as long the government stays out of the vaping business

 

[tj99959]

After going a full year without spending a dime, I rewarded myself by spending $50. I think I can afford that.

Simple question; after finding a brand of cigarettes that you liked, how often did you switch brands?

I found the vape that I like about 4 years ago .......... how often do you think I should "switch brands"?

 

[jseah]

Well now you all got me curious about my spending. I have been diligently keeping a spreadsheet from the very beginning. I know I have saved a bunch, but with this conversation, I decided to do a breakdown.

Started vaping 2012 so for the total of 2012:
Hardware: $314.95 Liquid: $482.70 These reflect trying different things to find what I like and what works
What I would have spent for Cigs that rest of the year: $960.50

For the year 2013:
Hardware: $303.85 Liquid: $959.60 Cigs would have cost me: $2,938.00

For the year 2014:
Hardware: $701.54* Liquid: $1050.40 Cigs: $2,938.00 *Reflects the $$ I put out for 2 rebuildable atty/tanks and 1 high end PV.

So far 2015:
Hardware: 0 Liquid: $184.00 Cigs: $734.50 Hardware should not change as I am absolutely thrilled with what I have.

Note: I have not changed what the price of cigarettes would be had I continued buying them. I know the price has risen, I just do not know how much nor when. So I figure my savings is actually higher than what it shows on paper.

My bottom line: To date I have saved $3,573.96. That figure will continue to rise, as long the government stays out of the vaping business

So basically you spent about $1,000 a year just on juice alone. How much do you go through in a day? Or are you using really expensive juice?

 

[tj99959]

So basically you spent about $1,000 a year just on juice alone. How much do you go through in a day? Or are you using really expensive juice?

Or you could ...................................
500ml of 100mg nic base = $50
1 gallon of PG = $25
1 gallon of VG = $25
Flavoring concentrate = $30
And vape for a couple of years for $130.

 

[Completely Average]

Or you could ...................................
500ml of 100mg nic base = $50
1 gallon of PG = $25
1 gallon of VG = $25
Flavoring concentrate = $30
And vape for a couple of years for $130.

500ml of 100mg nic base for $50?

Buy now and you can get a full liter of the stuff for the same price.

https://www.myfreedomsmokes.com/unflavored-nicotine-smoke-juice-e-liquid-liter-sale.html

 

[tj99959]

500ml of 100mg nic base for $50?

Buy now and you can get a full liter of the stuff for the same price.

https://www.myfreedomsmokes.com/unflavored-nicotine-smoke-juice-e-liquid-liter-sale.html

That's a great price! Historically 100mg nic base has been at $10/100ml.

 

[Completely Average]

Yeah, I just ordered a bottle yesterday. Saw the price and couldn't pass it up. Thinking about buying a second bottle just because. My only worries is that I would never get to use it all. I've cut my nic levels in half over the past few months and my next step down will be to 6mg. Plan on going down to 3mg by the end of summer. It would take me a lifetime to go through 2 liters of 100mg base.

 

[TheotherSteveS]

Whether it's cheaper to vape or not, the irrefutable fact is that smoking tobacco kills. It's difficult to put a price on that.

I smoked for over 20 years and I can say with absolute certainty that I really enjoyed very few of those thousands of cigarettes. The main pleasure was in keeping the pangs at bay.
On the other hand, since I have had access to decent vaping gear, I can truly say I love to vape. I mean I really enjoy it. Satisfying the nicotine craving is just a part of it. I've been reducing my nic levels to almost nothing and I honestly don't miss it. I realize that it's blowing clouds that is the key element that really gives us satisfaction, which is why most smoking cessation methods are doomed to fail for most people.
Another factor is that I'm a geek. Getting new devices, playing around with resistance and volts, building coils 12 different ways just to see if it fires better ~ this is my idea of a good time, So I don't see spending money on new gear as never ending technological trudgery to get the right vape. It's new toys to play with, and perhaps an even better vape.
If the gear you buy gives you pleasure, then how can that possibly be wasted money.

That is pretty much what I was going to say to the letter! lol!

 

[Ou2mame]

Vaping is as expensive as you want it to be. If you are spending more than you want to, then that's a self control issue not a cost issue.

Say I smoke a pack a day. That's 70 bucks.

I buy an mvp 20w for 35 bucks, and a taifun gt2 for 20, and a kayfun v4 for 20. Clones obviously. So that's a week of smoking. Then add in the kanthal and cotton, thats 8 days of smoking.

Juice..order from mt baker, bootleg, or ecblend, and you're at under 30c/ml. You smoke between 3 and 5ml a day. Let's call it 5ml. That's 1.50 a day. So you save 8.50 a day. It will take you about 10 days to get into the positive.

And then everyday you vape you save 8.50. And that's it, for me anyways. Sure, you will start on a disposable, but that cost should be offset by the pack you didn't buy. Then there's the ego battery and 5 dollar tank, and the 9 dollar 15ml of juice that lasted you 2 weeks in that tank. That 2 weeks of not buying cigs should offset that cost too. If you want to upgrade, thats on you. I wouldn't factor that cost into the cost of vaping. That cost is the cost of wanting. So you can't blame vaping for wanting something new, because you don't have to upgrade.

Switching to vaping can be very cost effective, and if that's your priority it will be. But say you start riding your bike to work and then buy a 5k titanium bike, would you say that it's expensive to ride your bike to work?

 

[tj99959]

The point is that each person gets to decide for them self how long they want to chase the rabbit. When you decide that your vape is great, you can stop spending .... if you want to.

 

[TheotherSteveS]

This is a really great thread! There, I said it!

 

[Robino1]

So basically you spent about $1,000 a year just on juice alone. How much do you go through in a day? Or are you using really expensive juice?

I have/had a bunch that I accumulated while trying to find ones that agreed with me. Now that I have, I am currently stocking up on stuff because I am afraid of the future of vaping. I know that mixed liquids aren't supposed to last indefinitely, but I do have quite a bit in my refrigerator. I now only order every other month. I have PIF'd quite a bit to either someone that I see has a need or to my daughter. If I could credit the amount of liquids that I have not used, my liquid spending would decrease by quite a bit.

Plus I had so much in higher nic mg and when I dropped my nic level, those bottles were no longer wanted or needed.

This coming year, it will be interesting to see how this plays out since I no longer "flavor chase".

I am thinking also about seeing how a bottle, of my vendor mixed, fares in the freezer. I don't think anyone has actually tried this. ... Not sure.

I go through about 5ml per day. Sometimes more, sometimes less depending on what I am doing. Approximately 45ml per week? I buy them in 100ml bottles and several of those at a time. They are $40.00 per 100ml bottle. They are a NET liquid.

I would spend $56.50 per week in cigarettes so there is a large savings right there.

 

[inspects]

.... but do you really save money? I've spent the last five days reading and researching and what is out there is totally overwhelming. One model after another.... perhaps one better than the other. Questions, questions... should I stick with what I have that seems to be working? should I upgrade? if yes, to what? And then reading people's posts and how they moved from one model to the other, either because what they had malfunctioned or because they wanted a better experience. I'm starting to think this could turn out to be a pretty expensive hobby... perhaps even more than the smoking itself.

I bet you'll live longer vaping than smoking, how much is your health and life worth?

Like others stated, one can buy a simple set up or go hogwild.

Everyone has their own particular preference.

Good luck in your journey.......

 

[inspects]

I'm not usually the sort of person who goes for things simply because they are trendy and I can generally control any urges of that kind. Still, finding the right gear does involve a bit of trial and error I suppose. Add to that all the shipping costs which for me, living in Malta, could be quite hefty. I really have to tread carefully. It's not a question of not being able to afford stuff - it's more a question of making an informed decision that works and avoiding waste.

{moderated} I use several others (same brand), they work very nicely. It's a 30 watt Eleaf iStick and a Kanger sub tank mini.

This setup was never used, both items are still in the box. There was a sale, I bought several of them to save money and help other people stop killing themselves with cigarettes. If you read reviews about the Eleaf iStick I think you'll find most people don't have many problems, and you can generally go all day without recharging the battery via mini USB cable (cell phone charger).

The Kangertech sub-tank has a rebuildable section in the box and come with two pre-built coils, or you can keep using the pre-built Kangertech OCC coils. After you learn how to rebuild your own coils, the cost is next to nothing. This little setup is really great for beginners, someone trying to stop smoking. Before I bought higher priced items I spent money through trial and error like most people.

Additionally, I still use the very first vape gear I bought often, a simple Aspire Spinner II battery and a Aspire clearomizer tank. That setup cost about $30.00 total and works like a charm too. The coils for the Aspire clearomizer were not really designed to be rebuilt, but they certainly can be.

Like other folks mentioned, making ejuice is not as complicated as it may sound, I haven't made any (yet), but I intend to in the future.

{moderated}

-Dale

 

[Robmidi]

To try and boil it down,
My wife & I were multi-decade smokers. We switched to vaping in Oct. of 2013. Started with V2 cig-a-likes with pre-filled cartos. Big mistake. Then we changed to eGo c-twist & CE-4 clearos. We later changed to Sigelei Zmax V5 mods (adjustable voltage/wattage). I then started using Kanger Aerotanks. Now have them and also Aspire Nautilus and Nautilus Mini. I prefer the Nautilus with BVC coils (more flavor). My wife likes the Aspire ET-S clearos. We have also gone from tubular mods to a Pioneer 4U IPV mini 30 watt that uses a 18650 battery.
We are now happy (hardware wise).
When we smoked, we spent together $150 per WEEK. We spend about $200 per month now, comprised of mainly e liquid and coils. We don't wind our own and we don't use RDA's.

My main point is that had we jumped in to what equipment we're using now, we would have saved hundreds of $$$.
Hope that's of some help. Just don't succumb to "shinyitis" and go for more and higher priced hand-engraved, copper whoozits, etc.

 

[Tim Swan]

I am definately saving money and my health (or so says my Doctor). I have been vaping for just over 3 yrs. now. Upgraded 4 times at an average annual cost of $130.00. I vape ~ 2mL/ day. All of this having been written and putting pen to paper, my daily cost is $1.07.00. Yes, that includes coil head replacements.

Sent from my SM-T900 using Tapatalk

 

[Phassat]

You're definitely a candidate for DIY juice.

For about $130 you could buy enough stuff to mix over 2 gallons of juice. There's no way you could vape 2+ gallons in a month.


And where were you buying 40 packs of cigarettes for $50? Where I live there is a $1.41 per pack tax on cigarettes, and then a sales tax of roughly 46 cents is applied on top of that. The tax alone on 40 packs would be $74.80.

Indonesia... $1.2 per pack for cigarettes... It has been increased because government want more tax.. Few years back it was $1

I bought tpa flavors and dow vg and pg.. Plus menthol mint and other ingredients.... It stays in the closet waiting me not to lazy enough to start doing it.

 

[Alien Traveler]

I quitted not to make my wife a widow. On my quitting I have found my new hobby - vipe for less. Rather involving one...

EDIT: Also, trying to be a good citizen and caring for future generations I refuse to subsidize development of BV (vaping industry).

 

[Sonata Dusk]

I think this is a really great topic of discussion because my hubby and I were having the same talk tonight after visiting a vape store and seeing the different and crazy mods that the workers had. They showed us some interesting things and tried to sell me a brand new machine (Even though I walked in with a brand new machine that I had literally just gotten that day from an online store that I just needed something little for)

I agree with what everyone else is saying, anything can turn into a hobby if you really want.

I'm the type of person though who wants to be content for a while. My first vape pen was an unbranded nightmare that maybe worked a week before it started to develop problems (Flea markets, gotta luv them). The new one I just bought is amazing and was double the price. The people at the store were a bit rude about mine not having enough power but I got the one that was right for me (And to me, power is not everything). The flavor is good, the vape is consistent, and it has a lot of things built in that might not matter to others but matter to me.

The thing is, I could chase wattage, or new mods, but more power to me just equals out to more money (just like more machines, more tanks, more whatever else, etc.)

I'd rather get a machine I luv, use the hell out of it, and then update it once I've outgrown it vs. having one of everything on the market.

Everyone's different but it's just like with almost anything else (At least in my opinion and my world) -- It's controllable.

Maybe set yourself a budget for vape things . . ? Whether I like my juice or not, I use it all before I order more so I don't end up with a flavor factory hogging up my kitchen, lol. I'm sure someone out there is a flavor factory (literally) but I think it's just about finding your own style of vaping and what works for you.

My biggest problem is wanting dumb things that I know are dumb . . . like a banana bag to store my pen in . . . which would be stupid because I always leave it put together sitting straight up on the counter but it's just hard to say no to a banana bag . . .

I mean, guys, it's a banana bag . . .