My vaping experience so far - tips greatly appreciated!

[Natevapor]

I have been vaping for about 2-3 months now.  I bought a 510 titan kit and some of TW's e-liquid.  Since then, I have purchased 4 more batteries, and a bunch of regular replacement atomizers.  I seem to be having issues with the life of my batteries and atomizers.  The atomizers typically last 2 weeks and a battery lasts 3 weeks.. after 3 weeks my batteries do not charge anymore.  I clean everything regularly with compressed air etc...

I recently purchased the ce3 cartomizer but experienced really bad leakage issues along with the fact that it was vaping my e-liquid ridiculously fast.  I have switched back to the normal atomizers since then, but I am discouraged with how it has been going recently, always having to buy new batteries and atomizers and then having them die on me a week or two later..  I am considering purchasing the eGo for longer battery life.

Here is my question:  Is it worth it to shell out $17 for one dual coil tank and start using them instead? Will the life of the tank last longer than 3-4 weeks? Otherwise I will just stick with the stock atomizers.. I'm just discouraged with how much this stuff is failing on me and thought I had solved it with the ce3, only to see e-liquid dripping all over my batteries each time.

What do you recommend I take as my next step towards a better vaping experience? 

Thanks guys!

[pufferfish]

Hi Nate and welcome to the forum 
It sounds like you've been very unlucky with your kit and TBH I'm alarmed that you are getting such a short battery life.
If your kit is an automatic battery type and you're getting a lot of leakage, that will be the reason for them suffering such a premature death as the e-liquid gets into the little breather hole in the top of the battery and kills the electronics of the air pressure sensor .
My recommendation would immediately be to get yourself some more robust batteries like the manual Tornado or eGo-C; which will give you a much longer interval between charges than the Titan battery. The manual batteries take a very short time to get used to pressing the button when you vape...and no more risk of losing a battery due to leaks.
Your very best battery choice IMHO would be the eGo-C passthrough... it has refinements such as an on/off function to prevent accidental activation in your pocket; a colour-changing LED on the button to show when the charge needs to be replenished; short-protection and being a passthrough, you can vape at your computer whilst it charges then unplug and go out with a fully-charged battery.
If you go for the full -C kit you'll find it comes with tanks which are a satisfying vape with great flavour etc. The parts will all be available separately soon if you don't want the expense of a full kit.
You have many choices available and I've just mentioned my own preference, whatever you choose you will certainly get better battery life out of a Tornado... I still have ones over a year old in daily use. And all your current 510 atties will fit.
Do let us know how you get on...

[Lettie22]

Natevapor -- I second what Pufferfish said.   I can't make any recommendation on the DCTs as I haven't used them.   

But please remember that TW gives you a 28-day warranty on your batteries, so if you purchased any within the last 28 days -- please give them a call and they will make good on it.    I too can't understand why your batteries don't last longer than they do, but I have no knowledge on batteries.   Just know that two of my Tornada batteries I got from my kit back in October are still going strong!

[cyborg]

Hi Natevapor
Welcome to the forum
Auto batteries can be a little temperamental I recommend manual every time.
If you are using compressed air on auto batteries I think you could possibly be damaging the switch as it is activated by air pressure.

[Natevapor]

Thank you Pufferfish, Lettie22 and cyborg for your helpful replies! I would have liked to update everyone sooner but there has been a lot going on lately.  My closest friend just got his 19 year old girlfriend pregnant and they’re keeping the baby - lots of drama.  Anyways, I figured it would be time for an update!

Pufferfish was very good at convincing me to upgrade my e-cig, so I ended up buying the brushed steel ego-c kit.  So far I love the ego-c!  The battery life is much better than the 510-t and the vapor consistency is good.  Unfortunately, the first atty I used went bad in 2 days when it started creating very odd, burnt tasting vapor.  I never burned it without any liquid and I have heard that the ego-c atty quality can be spotty.  Is there a warranty on these so I can get the broken one(s) replaced?  I have only tried 3/5 attys that come with the kit so I'm not sure if others are bad too.

Also… there seems to be differences between the strengths of my e-liquid flavors even though they are all 18mg.  Sometimes my e-cig makes me feel great and other times it doesn’t seem like I am getting much nicotine at all…  this varies between different flavors which is something I never noticed when I used the 510-t.  Anyways, what else do you think would improve my vaping experience? I am looking to have the highest quality vaping experience possible and I am wondering if I should start mixing my own liquid.  Just the thought of that process sounds daunting to me but it also seems interesting.  What are the pros/cons from doing this?

Any tips on taking care of my ego-c?  And any products I might want to look into? 

Thanks for your helpful responses!

Nathan

[Lettie22]

Nathan, thanks for updating us.   We all like to know how a noob is getting along.  I can understand the "lots of drama," and it is nice you are there for your friend.

Regarding your question on the warranty -- yes, there is a 28-day warranty from the date you received the kit.   I would suggest that you try the other 2 attys you haven't used to be sure there is no problem with them also, before contacting CS.   However, be sure you don't let the 28 days expire before contacting them.   Also, if you try any maintenance that is not included in the manual, it will VOID your warranty.   However, once the warranty period has expired, and you experience a faulty atty, you might want to try a couple of the tips on the forum before throwing the atty away.

As for your having different nicotine experiences with different flavors, I really can't comment or give any insight on that.   Oops, yes I can give one comment.   Some people experience what has been defined as "vaper's tongue," where you can't really taste much of anything.   When it happens to me, I tend to vape a lot because I don't think I'm getting what I need.   I've found that some flavors being more potent can satisfy me more.  Usually vaper's tongue will go away within a few days, but then we have a couple members that never got rid of it.   Not sure, but maybe that might be your problem.   

Your statement ~~ "I am looking to have the highest quality vaping experience possible" is what all of us want also.   That being said, it is so subjective and what one person loves, another hates;  it's pretty much just trial and error.   So far, I like the ego-c best, but there are so many devices and cartomizers that I have never even tried!

Besides the guidelines in the manual, the only other thing I suggest on maintaining your ego-c is to wipe down the various threads on the device.  When I wipe mine down every other day, there is always some black stuff that easily comes off.   I usually wipe them down when I do my blow-through as recommended by the manufacturer.

Good luck and keep us posted.

[jurgen]

Hi, Natevapor....I hear you....I am around as long as you, since christmas, when my son got me a tornado. So far no problems with the batteries but I learned when they leak they can destroy the batteries. So I make sure I replace the caps on the cartomizers as soon as they leak. My dual coil cartomizers (1.4-1.6 ohm) last me only 3 days. Then I blow them through with an  air  steamer and let them dry. This does not always work either. After I cleaned them and let them dry for 24 hours I pull air through and I discard them when I feel resistance. The ones I pull air through easily I use again, also they do not perform anymore like the new ones. When I am lucky two days. But they are cheap and on sale with prefilled tobacco juice of 18mg. They work well when they are new and I pay only 6 Dollar for 3 of them. Don't work, discard......
 This all is a learning process. In the moment I am happy with my screw driver which has more power as the Tornado. But like I said, even here the cartomizers start leaking when they are more than half empty and I have to be careful, refill and clean all the contacts. The screw driver has a little more battery life and with the attachment I can use my tornado atomizer with the refillable cartos (they leak too when they are half empty), possible related to the caps which I Ialways have to change. What I like is the draw, the throat hit and the vape with the Screw Driver. And I make my own juice now with the Platinum Ice, the PG and the flavors. I do not get a lot of taste, too and I don't know yet if I just can add some flavor drops to increase it, because that would change again the consistence, make the juice weaker, less throat hit, less vape and so on....Like I said, its a learning experience and the folks here on the forum try to be as helpful as possible. But everybody has again his/her own oinion and at the end you have to find out yourself. I have put as much money in so far what I would have smoked away, but for me it's worth it. I did no light up for over 2 month and now it's getting better. I work  now with what I have for a while, also I look already at the DCT's, the Tornado, the e-Go C. But I take it easy for now. I may purchase the DCT's to try them with the Screw Driver, because Cyborg is very happy with it and always there to help with problems. But I am still hesitating.
Hang in there and keep on reading, asking questions and keep vaping. I believe it's worth it to have exchanged the cig's with the e-machines you find here. Greetings from sunny California......

[Natevapor]

Ugh unfortunately after reading what Lettie22 said about vaper's tongue, I did some research and realize that I have it.  I can't even taste food very well right now...  The past day or two I have been vaping directly onto my tongue and now I am changing that.  Is there any danger of this lasting forever or doing permanent damage to my taste buds?  I can't taste anything I vape and I'm afraid this could become a long-term problem.  I will continue to drink water and vape through it.  I just want to make sure there isn't anything that I could do to permanently damage my mouth. Should I stop vaping for a day or two and try to see if it goes away? 

[pufferfish]

don't worry, natevapour, it's only a temporary problem and may only last a day or two if you're lucky... persevere and your tastebuds will recover. In the meantime, drink plenty of fluids as vaping does dehydrate you if you don't, and you may find that a couple of swigs of sharp lemon or lime juice will help temporarily.
Let us know how you get on and hope it doesn't last long for you 

[Lettie22]

So sorry you for Natevapor!    I just had the vapor's tongue, but only lasted about 2 days.   When I have it, I usually use flavors such as Diablo Poco, a very strong menthol, or a strong lemon or lime flavor.   It was funny this time when my taste buds came back because I had to set aside the cartridges with the strong flavors for the next time I have it (they were entirely too strong to vape when my taste buds are fine)!   

[Natevapor]

Thanks so much guys! My vapers tongue has been going away, and its still there but almost completely gone.  I started off vaping 18mg eliquid and before vaping I was only smoking about 2 packs a week.  I wanted to get a strong nic buzz so thats why I've been using 18mg.  When I switched from the 510 to the ego-c, I was getting a lot more vapor and it seemed like whenever I was vaping that my stomach would cramp up a little.  Does 18mg seem to high of nic for me to be vaping?  Since vaping, I have been using it a lot more and consuming a lot more nicotine then I was before with cigarettes.  I want to make sure that I am still getting a good nicotine hit when I vape but I don't want to overdo it.  What do you guys think?