Coils are one of the most important parts of a vape. They are essentially your vape's heating element, heating up the vape juice and turning it into vapour. The coil is activated and heats up every time you take a drag, which is why coils need to be replaced regularly to make sure you're getting the most out of your vape and not getting that unpleasant burnt taste from a dry hit.
How long a coil lasts can really depend on a few factors, one of them being how you're vaping. If you're a heavier, more frequent vaper, your vape coils might not last as long compared to a light vaper. But generally speaking, coils can last from a few days to a few weeks before they'll need replacing. This can be inconvenient if you run out of coils and have trouble finding last-minute replacement vape coils.
We've put together some tips and tricks that can help you extend your coil's lifespan, so you won't have to worry about picking up a replacement every few days.
Prime your coils
The first thing you should be doing when you install a new coil into your vape is to prime it. What priming a vape coil does is prevents the coil from burning out before the e-liquid has enough time to reach the wick.
To prime your coil, find the holes in your coil's head where the wick will meet the vape juice. Once you've found them, drop some of your vape juice directly onto the coil and wicking material. Keep letting it drip and soak in until it looks like your coil can't handle any more liquid - this means your coil is fully saturated. After completely soaking the wick you can install the new coil into your vape. Wait a few moments before taking a few hits without pressing the fire button.
After priming your coil it's now ready to use! Just remember that it's a new coil and you'll have to take it easy for the first few puffs. Start off with a lower temperature or wattage and gradually build back up to your preferred settings.
Use high quality e-liquid
All vapers know that picking the best vape juice is essential for the best vaping experience. But this doesn't just mean quality flavour and cloud potential. High quality vape juice is less likely to damage your coil over time as these liquids contain fewer sweeteners. Low quality vape juices usually have large amounts of sweeteners in them, which start to caramelise and clog up the coil with a dark, sticky residue and wear out the wick.
A liquid's PG/VG ratio can also have a significant effect, which is why one tactic to prolong your coil life is to use a high PG vape juice to reduce the chance of any residue forming on your vape coil too quickly. Although high VG vape juice are preferred if you enjoy DTL and sub-ohm vaping, high PG, 50-50 e-liquids, and nicotine salts are all much better at extending your coils lifespan as they have a thinner consistency that won't clog up the coil.
Here at Vaping 101, we make sure all of our vape juice not only produce the best flavours and vapour, but are also high quality to prevent any premature damage to your vape and its different parts. If you're having trouble picking the right vape juice for you, don't hesitate to get in touch with us and we'll help you find the best options.
Clean and maintain your vape coils
Even if you're using high quality vape juices, residue can still build up on your coil which can affect your vape’s performance. This is why it's still important to routinely clean your coil and remove this build-up.
Cleaning your coil couldn't be easier. All you have to do is remove the coil from your device, rinse it thoroughly, and soak it overnight in warm water. You can also use vodka and vinegar; don't bother picking up a special cleaning agent because these household items will work just fine.
Once the vape coils have soaked, let them air dry overnight again. When they're completely dry, they'll be ready to be fitted back into your vape. Getting into this habit of regular cleaning will help to extend your coil's lifespan and improve your vape’s flavour and cloud production.
It's also important to always keep your vape tank or pod filled. If there's not enough vape juice in your tank, the wick in your vape coil is going to dry up and start burning. This is what usually causes that unpleasant burnt taste when your vape juice starts running out. Some vapes have a handy indicator on the device itself that shows you how much vape juice you have left, while others may have a transparent window on the pod so you can see how much is left. Either way, keeping an eye on your vape juices levels can help prevent a burnt coil, which will keep your coil going for longer.
Follow the guidelines
We don't want to seem like sticklers for rules here, but sometimes guidelines and recommendations do exist for a reason. This is especially true if you want to keep your vape and coil in the best condition possible.
Most coils on the market come with recommended wattage guidelines. Even if you're building your own coils, the materials you use will also come with a recommended wattage range. By making sure you're vaping below the maximum recommended wattage, you'll reduce the number of burnt hits and prevent your coil from prematurely burning out.
We do understand that every person has their different preferences according to how they like to vape. But we've found that as long as you keep the wattage to the lowest level that you're happy with vaping, you'll still be significantly extending your coil's lifespan.
Take a few breaks
It can be very tempting to start chain-vaping, especially if you're a cigarette smoker making the switch to vapes. Frequently taking puffs from your vapes with minimal breaks in-between can have a significant impact on coil life.
Chain-vaping means your coil is frequently heating up with minimal time in between for it to cool down properly, which adds even more strain on the coil. This is because the wick doesn't have enough time to reabsorb more vape juice and will eventually start producing vapour with a burnt taste and lead to a completely burnt out vape coil.
The best thing you can do to prevent this is take more frequent, longer breaks between puffs. Ideally you'll want to wait anywhere between 20-30 seconds before you take another hit to give your vape coil enough time to cool down and for the wick to re-saturate with enough vape juice. This tip will not only help you make your coil last longer, it will also ensure maximum flavour production and intensity.
Conclusion
These tips can really help you maintain your vape coil’s condition and extend its lifespan as much as possible. You can see the results of these tips almost immediately and eventually begin saving much more money as you'll need fewer replacement coils. But remember, if you notice burnt hits occurring up more often, it might be a sign your coil needs replacing.
Needless to say, if you get in the habit of maintaining your device, you won't ever have to worry about your vape letting you down!
Need to stock up on vape coils? Browse our selection of high quality coils to find the perfect replacement.
