Whether you are a seasoned vaper or are new to vaping, having given up smoking, it’s a good chance that you are not aware of the main components of e-liquid. I’m speaking from experience, as it wasn’t until I started writing about the vaping industry that I found out what has been in my vape device for the last four years. Using this short piece, I want to give you all the information about e-liquid in various forms.
The Four Main Components
Four main ingredients make up e-liquid which, when heated in the tank of the vape device, produces that sweet tasty vape. In some situations where vapers prefer to mix their unique concoction, the nicotine element may be left out of the e-liquid – more on this later. The standard components are –
- Propylene Glycol (PG) – an organic compound in use for over 60 years in the food and medicine industries, is an excellent carrier of flavour and the thinner of two main components.
- Vegetable Glycerine (VG) – a clear liquid produced from plant oils like Coconut or Soy and used in Food and Cosmetic products. Its thicker consistency means it produces more significant clouds of vapour.
- Food-Based Flavourings – these are the characteristic flavours used in the food industry.
- Nicotine – This Will be one of two types of nicotine, Freebase or Nicotine salt, and as stated, can be pre-mixed or added later.
Many Options on The Market
There are many different manufacturers of e-liquid in today’s marketplace, which can make it confusing for vapers looking to choose what to vape; my answer to this is try, try, and try again. E-liquid in its standard 10ml bottle isn’t expensive; try different brands and tastes until you find the ones you prefer. Popular choices include the dinner lady’s range of flavours and the delicious Heisenberg e-liquids, which are also well received, to name just two.
Different E-Liquids Available
There are several different types of e-liquid that mix PG and VG in varying amounts to create vape liquids more suited to some ways of vaping; the three types of e-liquids on the market are as follows –
- 50/50 – with equal amounts of PG and VG, it produces an excellent even vape with good flavour and vapour.
- 70/30 – higher in VG, this e-liquid is designed for use with a sub-ohm coil; the combination produces more significant clouds of vapour.
- 80/20 – this mix ratio is higher in PG and produces a vape high in flavour, and a strong throat hit.
These different combinations lend themselves to specific ways of vaping, you might not see the need to move from a 50/50, which most vapers start with, but the option is there.
Shortfills And Shots
As previously mentioned, some experienced vapers prefer to mix e-liquid to their own recipe. To enable this, most good vaping stockists sell e-liquid with no nicotine pre-mixed; this is called Shortfill e-liquid. To this is added a nicotine element available in different strengths, referred to as the Shot, by adding the Shot to the shortfill their desired e-liquid is achieved. Most shortfill e-liquid bottles have room for the Shot, so mixing is easy.
So, there we are, that’s the basic information on e-liquid. I hope you are now more informed know what your e-liquid contains and how to improve your vaping experience.
