Dionne's Journey Continues...Clearomisers... Part 9

Hey there!

So, which electronic cigarette did you decide on?

How are you getting along with vaping? Any difficulties at all?

I remember lots of difficulties caused by my first kits, and then others I got cheesed off with because of leaking and with getting a burnt taste.

Do you ever get that?

In order to avoid it:

• Make sure your atomisation devices resistance is not too low for the battery’s power output. Ego batteries are 3.7 volts.
• Make sure you keep ample e-liquid in the tank. It is a good idea to keep it at least a ⅓ full. If your atomisation device has wicks you need to ensure they are kept moist/wet so that enough liquid can pass over the coil.
• Do not fire up your battery when there is no e-liquid. This will burn the wick and the carbon produced will turn it brown. The carbon will also discolour the liquid and it will taste burnt. If this happens the best solution is to change the coil.
• Make sure to take 2 or 3 ‘priming puffs’ before vaping with a new device or a just refilled tank. All you do it take 2 or 3 short sharp inhales with no battery power. This helps draw liquid to the coil ready to vape.

Leaking has been a real problem in the past but thankfully manufacturers are working on improvements all of the time. I really, really like the Kanger range of clearomisers. They are a little more expensive than others but the extra money is well worth it. I’ve been using them for some time now and have never experienced a leak of any kind! For me, right now they form part of my own personal ultimate set up! Let me tell you about them…

The Kanger products available from Exhale are:

• Kanger Protank II (510 thread)
• Kanger Mini Protank II (Ego thread)
• Kanger T3S (Ego thread)
• Kanger MT3S (Ego thread)
• Aerotank (510 thread)

Plus

• Replacement coils for Kanger Protank & Mini Protank II (packs of 5)
• Replacement glass for Mini Protank II
• Replacement coils for Kanger T3S & MT3S (packs of 5)

All of these units are bottom fed and dual coiled. There are no long wicks required to feed liquid to the coil. Gravity does all the work with this type of system.

Filling is a doddle! All you need to unscrew the base to fill from the bottom, which having used clearomisers that fill from the top took me a few days to get used to but now it feels entirely natural to do.

The coil head is easy to access to change as it is screwed directly into the same base part that is removed when refilling. I have found that after refitting a new coil, for a few days each time I refill I need to re-tighten it. However this soon seems to settle in and they last a long time.

The Protank series have glass tanks. Although this makes them heavier than other clearomisers the benefit of the pyrex glass tank is that it is impervious to liquids.

E-liquids from some suppliers have been known to craze and break the plastic of other clearomisers and so the glass does away with this issue.

Having glass sounds risky doesn't it? I have dropped mine many times and have never broken the glass this way yet. In face the only breakage I have had was caused by my own heavy handedness in reassembling the device after cleaning.

The glass has no screw threads and all assembly is handled by the stainless steel parts screwing together and the silicone ‘O’ rings seal the unit preventing leakage. This design does away with the need for glued joints or seals and it is very solid and robust. Also notable is that boxed with the device are spare ‘O’ rings so that when worn or if lost (unlikely) they can be replaced.

The mouthpieces of both Protank II’s are metal and removable for cleaning and fit snuggly into the clearomiser.

Catering for those who don't want glass, there is the T3S and MT3S which are both plastic tanks with integral mouthpieces that cannot be removed from the body of the unit. They each have a liquid capacity of 3ml.

Kanger recommend always keeping the tanks filled to at least ⅓ full which keeps a vacuum in the tank and after filling it is useful to perform a “priming puff”. Priming puffs are short inhales without power. This helps recreate the vacuum in the tank.

My own preference is for the Kanger Mini Protank II. Although it is of less capacity than the full size Protank II (1.5ml as opposed to 2.5ml) the reduced size is lighter in weight and the whole profile is the same width as the Ego battery making it a more streamlined device.

The Kanger Protank II uses the 510 inner thread of the battery and the device comes with a plinth which is attached to the Ego threads of the battery which performs 2 tasks. First it “beautifies” the battery buy using and covering the Ego threads which would otherwise be exposed and secondly it also adds stability to the clearomiser which is wider than the battery. The plinth is shaped so that it graduates and flares from the Ego battery width to the clearomiser width.

Other Clearomisers!

Exhale offer other clearomisers too! Let’s have a look what else is available!

CE4/CE5 & CE6 Clearomisers:

If you aren’t bowled over by the Kanger products you could maybe opt for the CE4, CE5 or CE6. These are very similar in appearance, with the same capacity and all have plastic tanks.

Each of these devices are top fed: E-liquid is fed into the tank after removal of the mouthpiece.

 

All of these use the Ego threads on the battery.

With each of these clearomiser you can also choose different coloured tanks. This can be useful to keep and use when vaping different flavoured liquids and thus avoid any worries about flavours being ‘contaminated’ or crossing over when using just one device. As an example you might have a red or pink tank for strawberry flavour, a green one for Apple, a yellow for Lemon and so on…. Or simply choose a different colour because you like it!

The CE4 and CE6 are disposable and the CE5 has a replaceable coil. The replacement coils for the CE5 come in packs of 3 or 10. The coil change is quick to do and as long as your clearomiser unit has not been damaged makes this a very cost effective device to maintain. There is detailed information on proper care and use of the CE5 provided and links to that are shown on the clearomiser page.

For those who don't want the bother of coil changes the CE4 and CE6 clearomisers cannot be maintained and once the coil is ‘spent’ they are simply thrown away.

The CE6 is also ‘wickless”. The wicks that are normally seen dangling in the tank are hidden inside the device. The liquid is fed to the coil via holes in the central shaft (hiding the wick). You will need to keep this device topped up well so that the lower holes are covered.

CE2 & CE3 Clearomisers:

There are also the CE2 and CE3 clearomisers. These are slim style clearomisers making them perfect for 510 batteries but can also be used on larger dual threaded batteries and use the inner 510 screw thread. Both of these clearomisers are filled using a syringe. There are video guide on filling these and care should be taken with both of these to fill slowly and gently so that the seals are not breached by the pressure which would be created through forceful filling. The CE2 fills with the syringe positioned at the top and the CE3 with the syringe at the bottom. These are disposable devices that cannot be maintained.

Vivi Nova V3 Series and Ego T2

There are also the Vivi Nova V3 and Mini Vivi Nova V3 and the Ego T2. These are clearomisers that can be maintained with replaceable coils. Liquid is filled from the top by removing the mouthpiece.

Vivi Nova V3 series:

The Vivi Novas both use the inner 510 screw thread. The mini is the same diameter as the Ego battery whereas the Vivi Nova is wider and benefits from the use of a plinth.

The plinth for the Vivi Nova has two tasks. It uses and covers the Ego thread which would otherwise be left exposed and also offers the clearomiser stability on the battery.

The plinth for the Mini Vivi Nova simply ‘beautifies” the look by using and covering the Ego threads.

The different in capacity is 3ml in the Vivi Nova and 2ml in the Mini Vivi Nova. Both have plastic tanks and come with 1 each of the different coil resistances (1.8, 2.4 & 2.8oHms).

Replacement coils in packs of 5 are available in the same ohms of 1.8, 2.4 & 2.8 and they are used for both Vivi Nova devices.

It is important to take care when choosing the coil resistance to work with your battery voltage. I always use a chart to guide me as this ensures best coil performance and life. Ego batteries are 3.7 volts.

• 1.8oHms is suitable for voltages up to 3.75
• 2.4oHms is suitable for voltages up to 4.5
• 2.8oHms is suitable for voltages up to 4.75

Ego T2

This plastic tanked clearomiser has a liquid capacity of 2.4ml and is available in many colours. Again useful for those who like to vape with different flavours and a great way to ensure no flavour cross over.

Filling is done by removing the mouthpiece section and this also gives access to replace the coil when necessary.

Replacement coils come in pack of 5 and are 2.4oHms.

So you’ll see already that once you have your kit, there are many more options for atomisation devices regardless of the battery you use. Most of the more powerful batteries are dual threaded and have both the Ego and 510 screw thread fitting allowing you the freedom to experiment. It is interesting and fun to ‘play around’ and I think most probably all vapers will try out various devices before eventually finding one they really like and will stick with it whilst others, like me, want to have a go with all the new developments and products.

Next time we meet I’d like to talk with you about Variable Voltage batteries and about the importance of battery safety, so until then….

See you soon!

Do you use any of these products and would you like to write a review for publication on these blog pages?

Exhale have kindly offered a reward of store credit for any that are published here so if you would be interested in taking part please email them at support@exhalecigarette.co.uk.

Write in the subject line ‘blog’ and the name of the clearomiser product you would like to review and include your name and contact details so that they can get in touch with you.

Here's what Stan told us having read this blog:

"I have been using the CE5 Clearomizers now for several months, I find that they are very reliable in terms of both taste and vapour production. My own preference is with round drip tips rather than the skinny tips they come supplied with but on the whole they are a good system with either.

When used with a VV device I have found they can be Vaped up to 4.2 volts before you start getting any sense of fluid or atomizer burn.

They come with a suggested ‘Life’ of 14-60 days, but with careful use and regular cleaning (I use Vodka, water rinse and allow to dry), this can easily extended.

I would recommend these units to anybody starting to Vape or even experienced users needing a small easy to use unit."