E-Cigarette Troubleshooting Guide

Sun 17 Jul 2016

Despite huge advances in e-cigarette technology over recent years, vaping still isn’t completely hassle free. We have a lot of vaping experience here at ELFC, and we’ve come across and solved most of the problems you’re likely to encounter. This guide will go through some of the most common issues vapers have with their e-cigarettes and e-liquid, and what can be done to overcome them.

Problem:

E-cigarette not firing.

Solutions:

• It may sound simple, but check if the battery is dead. If so, get it charged.
• Check the connection between your atomizer and battery, the 510 pin may need adjusting to make a good connection, or the contacts may need to be cleaned.
• Is the resistance of your coil within the specifications of your mod? If not, change to a higher or lower ohm coil.
• Check if your atomizer has a short circuit.

Problem:

Poor vapour production.

Solutions:

• Is your voltage or wattage too low? Steadily increase the voltage or wattage until you’re happy with the vapour production.
• If the coil you’re using is over a week old, it may need replacing.
• Opening up the airflow can increase vapour production.
• Switching to a higher VG e-liquid will increase vapour production.

Problem:

Bad or burnt taste.

Solutions:

• Turn down the voltage or wattage. Using too much power will burn the wicking material.
• Try a different e-liquid. E-liquid left out in the sun can turn bad, as can e-liquid over 2 years old. Also, high VG e-liquid will not wick correctly in some tanks which leads to dry hits.
• Is the coil over a week old? Old coils can produce a bad flavour.

Problem:

My tank is leaking.

Solutions:

• Check that your seals and o-rings are in place.
• Is your e-liquid too thin? Some tanks are designed to work with thicker, high VG e-liquid.
• Not using enough wicking material in RTAs can cause leaking.

Problem:

I’m not getting a lot of flavour from my e-liquid.

Solutions:

• As a coil head gets older the flavour it produces gets weaker. Using a new coil head should produce better flavour.
• Smoking damages your taste buds. If you have recently quit smoking then your ability to taste e-liquid (and everything else) should improve over time.
• Do you have ‘vapers tongue’? Vapers tongue is when a vaper cannot taste an e-liquid they have been using for a while. This is also referred to as ‘vapers fatigue’. Drinking more water can sometimes cure this, but most vapers simply choose to change flavour.
• If you have made your own e-liquid, maybe you haven’t used enough flavour concentrate. All of the flavour concentrates we sell have a recommended mix percentage in the product description.
• Has your e-liquid been steeped? Steeping is letting an e-liquid sit for a period of time allowing the flavour to develop and mature. Learn more about steeping in our DIY Mixing Guide.

Problem:

I feel ill after vaping.

Solutions:

• Switch to a lower nicotine e-liquid. Consuming too much nicotine can result in nausea and headaches.
• Are you allergic to something in your e-liquid? Propylene glycol is the most common e-liquid ingredient to cause an allergic reaction.
• Brand new tanks will occasionally contain a small amount of machine oil or chemicals left over from the manufacturing process. Vaping these oils and chemicals can make you feel ill. New tanks should always be washed before use.
• Is your e-liquid out of date?

Problem:

The resistance of my coil keeps changing.

Solutions:

• Check the connection between your battery and your atomizer/tank. Poor connections can cause the coil resistance to fluctuate.
• Make sure your coil head is screwed tightly into the base of your tank.
• If you are using an RDA, make sure that the screws are tightened down and trapping your wires correctly.
• If your mod allows, lock the resistance of your coil. This is particularly important for temperature control coils.
• The resistance of a coil will change as it’s heated up. A fluctuation of 10 or 20% is normal.

Problem:

My atomizer is spitting e-liquid.

Solutions:

• Gurgling and flooded atomizers can spit e-liquid. See below for solutions to gurgling/flooded tanks.
• Over dripping on an RDA can cause the exposed coils to spit e-liquid. Take care not to over saturate the wicks.
• Turn down the wattage.
• Use a drip tip designed to reduce spit-back.

Problem:

My tank is making a gurgling sound.

Solutions:

• When a tank is making a gurgling sound, this usually means that the atomizer is flooded. Flooding is when the wicking material is over saturated with e-liquid. Remove the coil head, put some paper towel over one end and blow through the other. This should remove excess e-liquid.
• Make sure that you close off the airflow and juice flow controls (if applicable) when filling a top-fill tank. Filling can increase the pressure in a tank causing too much e-liquid to be drawn into the atomizer.
• Using a thin, high PG e-liquid in a tank designed for thicker e-liquid can cause flooding and gurgling. Switch to a higher VG e-liquid.
• Having a tight, restrictive airflow can result in too much e-liquid being drawn into the atomizer. Open up the airflow and see if the gurgling goes away.

Problem:

I vape, but still feel the urge to smoke.

Solutions:

• Are you using pre-filled cartridges? If so, maybe it’s time to upgrade to a tank. It’s widely agreed that tank systems offer a better, more satisfying and more consistent vape experience than cartridges.
• One thing a lot of new vapers crave when switching from tobacco cigarettes to e-cigarettes is a strong throat hit. Using high PG e-liquid and tanks with restrictive airflow should result in a more than satisfying throat hit.
• A lot of e-cigarette users enjoy producing large amounts of vapour. If you’re not satisfied with the vapour production of your device, switch to high wattage mods, tanks and RDAs with lots of airflow and high VG e-liquid.
• The sad truth is that tobacco is very addictive, and it’s not just the nicotine that keeps people smoking despite all of the well known negative health effects. Tobacco is also full of harmful chemicals that we crave. If you still feel the urge to smoke after 8 weeks of vaping, then maybe it’s time to change what you’re vaping and find something you’re happier with.

ELFC is always happy to help new and experienced vapers. If you’re having any issues with you e-cigarette that haven’t been covered in this guide, feel free to get in touch at info@eliquidflavourconcentrates.co.uk.