Vaping 101 || A Beginner’s Guide To Vaping

Over the last few years, people have begun divorcing themselves from the toxic ingredients contained in tobacco products. Popular figures such as Lenny Kravitz, Tom Petty, Katy Perry, and numerous others all promote the benefits of vaping. Others include Rich KrK, Dromahtyz and DJ Trizzles of the Seven Cities Syndicate, Vaporactive – Smoke-Free Source and Sean Verchick (Radioactive – Imagine Dragons), – the list is endless.

Vaping is both as simple and complex as you make it. You can get really simple eCigs that even look like regular cigarettes and require no setup. Vape and go. Or, you can get good quality sub-ohm starter kits that need a little more work to get set up, but ultimately produce a better experience.

Basically, if you’re thinking about ditching the cigs this New Year in favour of vaping, you’re going to need to know where to start. Our beginner’s guide to vaping will take you through all the basic information so you can make the switch as easy and hassle free as possible.

Vaping 101 – Choosing Your First Vape Kit

Finding the right vaping setup is important if you want to successfully switch over from tobacco. There’s an array of different starter kits and devices, ranging from the very simple pre-filled pod systems to the more advanced non-disposable tanks.

Disposables

Disposable devices are typically all-in-one units that are thrown away when the battery dies. They’re not a bad place to start. They’re easy, cheap, and readily available. However, they just don’t provide the best experience at all and often the flavours can be relatively weak. If you try disposable and are left a little unsatisfied, don’t be put off vaping altogether.

Pen-style mods or even sub-ohming can provide a more rich & satisfying vaping experience with customisable parts & unlimited flavours of e-liquid.

Pros: Convenient, cheap, easy to use
Cons: Usually weak on vapor, batteries don’t last very long, flavours aren’t the best
Check out: Blu | NJOY | Vuse
Rating: 3/5

Disposable E-Cig

Pen-style mods

Pen-style mods are highly recommended as they sit at the convergence point between customisation & ease of use. Pen-styles mods are much more powerful than your typical disposable e-cigarette, and will provide a much more satisfactory experience producing more vapour at higher temperatures.

These mods provide a higher quality vapourising experience than disposables and are intuitively customisable, allowing you to easily change the tank, heating coil or tip, as well as add any flavour e-liquid of your choice.

Nevertheless, due to the customisation of pen-style mods, this means that there is a little maintenance required in order to keep the device in fully working order. Furthermore, despite the discreet & low-key appearance of the devices, pen-style mods do not provide the rich flavourful experience that gain be gained from more powerful box-mod devices.

Pros: Less temporary than disposables, more customisable, unlimited flavours
Cons: Not as powerful as box-style mods, requires some maintenance
Check out: Kanger Top Evod Kit | Joyetech AIO Kit
Rating: 4/5

Pen Style Mod

Box-style mods

The largest of the three types of vaporizers, the box-style mod (or box mods) provides significantly more power, holds longer battery life & often features built-in screens which display vital information about your unit.

The box-mod allows for the access full range of e-liquid flavours and similarly to pen-style mods, it is possible to customise box-style mods to further enhance your vapourising experience. There are several different power settings to choose from, as well as allowing for full coil & tank customisation.

Contemporary devices can be incredibly easy to use as they feature powerful onboard software which regulates the temperature & vapour production of the device in order to maximise efficiency with little user input.

Pros: Most powerful vaping devices, rich clouds of vapor, lots of customisation options
Cons:: A little learning required to effectively complete part replacement & maintenance.
Check out:: Innokin Coolfire IV TC 100 | Kangertech TOPBOX Mini Starter kit
Quality Rating: 5/5

Box Mod

Vaping 101 – Terminology Guide

Clearomizers

A clearomizer is a combination between an atomizer and a tank which uses clear glass or plastic allowing you to see inside the tank.

Coils

Pre-made coils are swappable parts for sub-ohm tanks which help to regulate temperature and wattage range for your vaping device. Coils are often highly-affordable and come in a variety of metal types. It is important to check your coil specs prior to use to ensure compatibility and avoid burning out your coils cotton. If you have just purchased a new coil, it’s also important to remember to prime the coil with some drops of e-liquid before first use.

Batteries

Some box-style vape mods allow for swappable rechargeable batteries which allow you to modify the power and capacity of your device. To increase the portability of your device, you might want to pick up a spare battery to change on-the-go.

e-Liquid

With thousands of different flavours to choose from, by far, the most debated topic amongst vapers surrounds which flavour of e-liquid is the best. Furthermore, there are different types or e-liquid as well as a range of nicotine strengths to choose from.

Different Types of e-Liquid

Vegetable glycerin (VG) – Smoother, more clouds.

Propylene glycol (PG) – Thinner, more flavourful.

Nicotine level

Nicotine levels differ from e-liquid to e-liquid, and ultimately the strength you choose comes down to personal preference. We would classify the following strengths for users based on their current smoking habits.

0mg/ml – For entry-level non-smokers who wish to start vaping to experience the flavours.

3mg/ml – The lowest nicotine level for light smokers wishing to try vaping.

6mg/ml – A standard entry point for regular smokers who want to change to vaping. The most popular nicotine level.

12mg/ml – For heavier smokers, the 12mg/ml variety is packed full of nicotine but creates a harsher hit.

18mg/ml – One of the highest nicotine levels to help completely satisfy your cravings. The downside to the stronger nicotine juices is that they result in less flavour.

E-liquid ‘Flavour Clash’

As there is a range of different e-liquid flavours available for your device, it’s important to take the time to keep the tank and coil clean to avoiding unintentionally mixing together incompatible flavours (Blueberry + Coffee? No thanks!)

To avoid ‘flavour clash’ firstly, disassemble your tank and coil before running the tank and tip under hot water for around 60 seconds. Secondly, be sure to dry all components prior to reusing to avoid any issues.

That’s pretty much the basics, everything you need to know to get started! Happy vaping!