Vaping FAQ’s

Vaping is a means of administering nicotine by heating e-liquid over an element to create vapour which is then inhaled through the mouth and into the lungs.

In simple terms an e-cigarette also known as an e-cig or vape device are battery-powered smoking devices. According to TPD law all e-cigs/vape devices in Ireland have either a 2ml tank or 2ml pod to hold the e-liquid/vape juice.

The devices can vary from beginner to advanced with the beginners having little to no options for changing the settings while the advanced devices come with a lot more settings to choose from depending on how you like to vape. There are many different types of vape devices which we will cover in more detail below.

The legal age for vaping in Ireland is 18.

While we are not allowed to make any claims to this, there are plenty of studies to suggest that vaping is a much healthier option than smoking. Up to 95% some studies have shown. By removing the combustion element of smoking there’s no doubt that vaping exposes you to far fewer toxic chemicals than smoking traditional cigarettes. Also the nature of e-liquids means there are far fewer chemicals to begin with.

The EU has identified a number of compounds of concern which have been banned from use so as long as you acquire your e-liquid from a reputable source like Vintage Vape Rooms you can guarantee you are buying compliant and safe e-liquids.

Shortly after you quit smoking you will notice improvements in many aspects of your life from taste & smell to having more energy, cleaner clothes and much more! Part of the reason for this is all of the tar, mucus, chemicals and carbon monoxide that has built up over the years from smoking is now starting to leave your system allowing the oxygen in the blood to return to normal and your lungs to start the healing process.

Vaping allows this to continue while giving you a way of still getting the nicotine you need to stop any cravings. Slowly these cravings will become less intense & less frequent because of all the missing chemicals which means, that over time you can reduce your nicotine intake and eventually quit altogether.

Vaping is far more cost effective than smoking. For a start, the tax on cigarettes is guaranteed to go up year on year, this does not happen with vaping. There other factors in driving down the price including no cultivation cost etc. which is also passed onto the consumer.

So, what does this look like?

If you are a smoker looking to quit or reduce your nicotine intake then the simple answer is, YES, vaping is for you.

As vaping is still relatively new and is still evolving, there are many different styles of vapes which can be put into 4 simple categories

• Starter Kits
• Vape Kits
• Pod Kits
• Disposables

Starter Kits

There is no particular style of vape device that is classed as a starter kit so in this category you will find different styles from the list above. However, what they usually do have in common is that they are simple to use devices with not too many settings/options to confuse new users. Generally these are plug & play style devices. Our two most popular starter kits would be the Wenax Stylus & the Aspire Pockex.

Vape Kits

Like the starter kits you will find many different styles of vape devices in this category but with a whole lot more to them like wattage settings and airflows etc. After vaping for some time and becoming more comfortable with how it all works you may find you want a new/different experience and would like to upgrade your starter kit. These types of devices would cater for all styles of vaping from Direct To Lung & Mouth To Lung too big Cloud Chasers.

Pod Kits

These are a relatively new type of vape device and are a product which shows how vaping has evolved. What these do that other vape kits don’t is keep things really simple when it comes to refilling the liquids & changing coils. Again, these can cross different categories of devices. Here at Vintage we are all in love with the Voopoo Drag series of pod systems.

Disposables

The very latest style of vaping to hit the market these pre-filled pod kits have a designated amount of puffs which are then disposed of once used. Generally consisting of 20mg Salt nicotine.  Be Careful: Salt nicotine is a synthetic nicotine that enters the blood stream extremely fast and is a highly addictive substance.

There a four main ingredients in e-liquid/vape juice.

Nicotine
Straight forward enough to understand, this is the strength of the e-liquid/vape juice e.g. 6mg, 12mg or 18mg etc.

Flavouring
This determines the flavour of the e-liquid/vape juice e.g. Menthol, Blueberry, Mango etc.

Vegetable glycerine (VG)
Used in many food and pharmaceutical products.

Propylene glycol (PG)
Found in everything from fizzy drinks to prescription drugs.

The ratio of VG to PG sets the viscosity of the liquid and in turn the temperature needed to vaporise it. That ratio can also decide how intense the physical sensation of inhaling will be. More VG produces more vapour and a smoother hit. More PG in the mix delivers better flavour.

As vaping is a very personal experience you may want to experiment a bit and try different VG/PG ratios to work out what’s best for your vaping palate.

There is no straight forward or simple answer to this one as, like we mentioned before, vaping is a very personal experience and what one person likes the next will not. So, because of this it is best to just experiment with some different flavours to determine which flavour suits you best.

A lot of beginner vapers will just default to tobacco or menthol flavours as this is what they think they might like after smoking for so long. However, this is not always the case and you may surprise yourself and go for a flavour you never thought you would.

Vaping consists of two styles, Mouth To Lung(MTL) or Direct To Lung(DTL).

Mouth To Lung(MTL)
This style of vaping utilises a tighter airflow with low power and high nicotine. MTL vaping would be the closest to smoking a cigarette so would be most suitable for beginners.

Direct To Lung(DTL)
This style utilises maximum airflow with higher power and lower nicotine and would suit more experienced vapers.

This will be different for everyone depending on their previous smoking history but there are some guidelines to consider. Looking at the table below will give you a good indication to begin with. There will be some experimenting and adjusting to begin with to find the best nicotine strength for your needs.

What the experts say:

There are a few factors at play here so again there is no simple answer to this question. Generally coils will last somewhere between 7 – 10 days but this can change dramatically depending on usage, e-liquid viscosity, flavourings(dessert flavours are more taxing on coils), wattage settings etc.

To give your coils the best chance and to maximise there lifespan, we recommend operating all coils at the lower end of the recommended wattage settings.

For instance: A PnP VM5 coil is 0.2Ω with a recommended wattage range from 40 – 60 watts. You should set your device to the lower end of this recommendation which is 40 watts. You can then slowly increase the wattage to suit your needs. However, the closer you get to the higher end of the recommended wattage you get the quicker your coils will burn out.

This symbol Ω simply represents the resistance/strength of the coil.

The difference between coil strengths is to cater for different users and styles of vaping. For instance a 0.6 coil has less resistance than a 1.2 coil and in turn will be a lot stronger. The lower the Ω number is the more power the coil is able to take and the stronger the inhale will be.

All coils can be used with Salt Nicotine but it is recommended to use a higher resistance coil with lower power as there is such a high level of nicotine(20mg). Somewhere around 1.0ohm – 1.4ohm would be best. There are some mesh coils claiming to be developed for salt nicotine but we believe these can cause the nicotine to overheat and cause a harshness on the throat. Ceramic coils are best for salts.

Tanks have been limited to holding a maximum of 2 ml under TPD law, meaning all manufacturers must make their tanks hold only 2 ml of E-Liquid to be compliant in Europe.

All tanks/pods may differ slightly in how they are filled. Some have a slide mechanism which reveals a chamber where the e-liquid goes. Others you may need to remove the tank from the mod to access the chamber while most pods have a little rubber seal which is peeled back to reveal the chamber.

All tanks/devices you purchase will have the exact instructions for that specific piece.

Freebase nicotine is the standard choice in vaping, providing a slow release to the bloodstream and noticeable throat sensation in higher doses.

The second form of nicotine is nicotine salt. Nicotine salt is a synthetic nicotine. Compared with freebase nicotine, it releases into the bloodstream extremely fast and is a highly addictive substance compared to freebase nicotine.

Simply put, yes you can. As vaping is a form of habit just like smoking was there may be a period of time coming to the end of your vaping journey where you need to keep up the habit but are now nicotine free so you can vape 0mg until you break this habit.

These numbers represent the battery sizes used for vape devices in terms of the physical size of the battery. In turn they can hold different power outputs depending on the size.

Again, there is no simple answer to this question as there are a lot of variables at play here. However, most rechargeable batteries can be recharged approx. 300 times.