Random Beginner Vapeing Trivia

Wow, has it been a while since I posted! It was not intentional, I had perhaps the worst reaction to Poison Ivy that I have ever had, and though I tried several times to sit down and write a post, I just couldn't concentrate on it. I'm almost back to 100% though; no more fever and no more exhaustion from constantly dosing myself with Benadryl! 

Amazingly, even with all of my misery, I have been able to stick to my plan and am now smoke-free! I have not smoked a cigarette in over a week now, since about 8:00 the morning of Saturday, June 14th!! There have definitely been moments that were harder then others, like that first Monday when I found myself searching through the car hoping I dropped a cigarette or forget one that I clipped (luckily my car was cigarette free), but I've made it through! Of course even just writing about a cigarette I now have a craving, but I know that it will pass.

Since I have taken my little blogging hiatus, I have decided that it might be a good idea to explain some of the things that I have learned, some through trial and error. They are as follows: 

• Atomizers/Clearomizers don't last forever!

This was not something that I had ever took into consideration and I'm not really sure why, but I believe that I have reached the end of my first, and then my second, clearomizer.  I got the same burnt taste from the first that I used to use to signal myself that the cartridge needed to be changed on my Eonsomke e-cigs. I got the taste once or twice one day but it quickly went away. The next day, every pull I took gave the taste. The second clearomizer occasionally gives a burnt taste, but not always. I stopped using it all the same. I believe there are several methods to clean these and I may try to clean them using one of these ways at some point to see if I can get some life back into them. I'll let you know of my results when I do. Needless to say though, I now carry an extra clearomizer with me everywhere just in case.

• Sometimes the tank just leaks!

I purchased an eGo-T battery with a ce4 tank on eBay.  The kit was generic, not being branded with a name.  I figured I may be taking a risk, but it was very reasonably priced so it was worth a try.  It worked well, but right away I noticed that I was going through e-juice much more quickly then with my Eternity pen. At first I chocked it up to being from the wicks. They were much longer then I was used to as the ce4 is a much different set up with longer wicks. I thought they just sucked the liquid up and that was where it went. Until, that is, I noticed it coming down the sides of the battery.  I screwed the tank off and noticed that liquid had pooled into the hole where it screws on. Thinking I had perhaps filled it wrong, I emptied the tank and let it sit for a week, occasionally blowing in both ends to clear any remaining liquid out. (I figured if I had gotten liquid in the wrong place, more would follow the same path.). Once I stopped hearing liquid move around and deemed it dry, I filled it again with the same results. I suppose there are just some bad ones in a batch.  Even my Eonsmoke tanks start to leak just a tiny bit after some use. I just wipe the tip of the battery off and ignore it.

•It is illegal to vape indoors in NJ

I stumbled onto this one while searching the web and hadn't heard of it before, even though the law has been on the books for 4 years. Governor Christie added electronic cigarettes to the anti-smoking laws in the state, leaving vapers only able to vape in certain indoor places (like casinos or stores designated as e-cig stores).  This is hardly enforceable, however, as stealth vaping is so easily pulled off (my favorite place is the movie theatre...or any bathroom).

•Different liquids have different throat hits

One of the ingredients in e-juice effects how harshly the vapor hits your throat. I have seen two different ingredients listed as doing so, PG and Nicotiene. I have seen more reference to it being the nicotine content, so I am leaning towards that. I think that the amount of PG effects vapor production. I have to do more reading and playing around with different juices to be sure.

I'm just as sure that this is a small sample of what I have really learnt as I am that it is just a small parcel of what there is to learn. As I continue my journey in the world of vapeing I am sure I will have lots more that I will be eager to share!

Whole Tobacco Alkaloids (WTAs)

Remember in my first post when I had stated that I thought that there must be something in cigarettes other then nicotine that is addictive?  Apparently I was on to something!  There were so many smoker-turned-vapers that were complaining of having cravings that traditional nicotine only e-juice couldn't satisfy that researchers have developed a new type of e-juice that contains more of the alkaloids contained in tobacco (and by new, I mean within the past few years, it just hasn't been widely available).  Where regular e-juice focuses on just the nicotine alkaloid, Whole Tobacco Alkaloid (or WTA) e-juice uses a special chemical process to isolate and extract the other minor alkaloids in tobacco.  The end result is an e-juice that more closely mimics the calming effects experienced through smoking that is missing for some vapers.  I have seen the extraction process reported as being somewhat dangerous and it needs to be overseen by an experienced chemist.

I have been searching to try to find out just what these alkaloids are and what they might do.  One vendor of WTA e-juice, Mothers Milk WTA, lists their product as containing, besides nicotine,  Nornicotine, Anabasine, and Anatabine; all alkaloids (naturally occurring organics that contain nitrogen) of tobacco.  The minor alkaloids are said to create a synergy with nicotine and are indeed different metabolites of the substance.  The difference between these other alkaloids and Nicotine is that once ingested, nicotine has a half life of 1-2 hours while  the minor alkaloids have a half life of 4-12 hours (dependent on an individual's body chemistry).  The minor alkaloids are less present in tobacco then nicotine is, however, the levels build up in a regular user's system much faster then nicotine due to their longer half life.

Although WTA liquids do contain chemical in them that are not present in other e-juices, it is important to remember that these compounds are contained in tobacco smoke and are being ingested in smokers anyway.  If you are a smoker becoming a vaper, this does not make a difference and the WTA e-juice may help to make the transition period smother.  Non-smokers new to vaping should probably stay away from WTA liquid as there is no need to take in unnecessary extra chemicals.

I am curious about WTA e-liquid and am playing around with the idea of ordering some to test it out.  I will certainly do this if I begin to have trouble adjusting to vaping only once I am weened off of cigarettes.  I have still been having success with the quitting plan laid out for me be my LIVESTRONG MyQuit app, though I am going to have to adjust it.  I want Saturday, June 14th to be my last day to smoke a cigarette and no matter how many times I redo my plan with that day in mind, the app keeps on setting my date for 0 cigarettes before that.  The last time I adjusted it I accidentally deleted all my data, so I'm not going to keep trying to change it.  I'm going to do 2 more days of 3 cigarettes, then I'll drop to 2.  I am at least happy to know that others had the same problem that I once experienced and that someone out there came up with a solution!

Some online vendors of WTA e-juice:

Aroma eJuice
Mothers Milk WTA
Vapelicious
WholeCig

**Please note, at the time of this post, I have not had experience dealing with any of these listed vendors and cannot comment on quality or service!**

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Eonsmoke Eternity Kit

Here it is as promised, my review on the Eonsmoke Eternity Kit Vapor Pen!  For two weeks now, this little baby has helped me significantly cut down on my cigarette smoking.  Yesterday was my last day at 4 cigarettes, now I'm onto 3 days of 3 cigarettes each before dropping down again to 2.  I modified my quit plan again, but only because the app had me cutting down to zero a week before I wanted to.  The days have been hard to get through, but with support, I've made it!  One step closer to being a full-time vaper!

Brand Name:     Eon smoke
Product Name:   Eternity Kit
Product Type:    Vapor Pen
Price:               $23.98
Purchased at:    Lake Wanda Store
                        812 Canistear Road,
                        Highland Lakes, NJ    

                        07422
                        (973)764-4777

Ah, Eonsmoke!  It was a logical choice for me for my first Vapor Pen as Eonsmoke was my brand of choice back when I was using e-cigarettes.  That, and the brand has exploded into brick and mortar stores everywhere, including the local deli, The Lake Wanda Store, where I usually buy my cigarettes.  It couldn't have been easier!

The kit comes with everything you need to get started: a refillable tank with an atomizer, a battery (in black, purple, or blue), a USB charger, and a coupon for 15% off your first 3 orders on their website.  Well, everything you need, that is, except for some e-juice! The Eonsmoke Economy Kit, the starter kit for their e-cigarettes, comes with two cartridges, so I was expecting the Eternity Kit to also come with e-juice. Oh well, that just meant another stop later!  The vaper pen did not come charged, so I had to wait to use it anyway.

The directions were printed on the back of the box, had pictures, and were simple enough to follow. The only thing it doesn't explain is how to tell when the battery is low, which I still can't figure out.  When the pen is too low to power, the lights at the end of the pen and on the power button flash three times to let you know, but that is your only warning.  It would really be nice to know the pen is running low before it dies, so you don't have to wait the two hours for it to charge when you are jonesing for nicotine. I know that there are batteries out there that are capable of this, but perhaps the Eternity battery is not.

One feature that I think is great is the ability to turn the whole thing off. Pressing the power button 5 times in 1.5 seconds, achieved by rapidly pressing the button in quick succession, turns the pen on and off. This helps to protect the battery and atomizer, thus keeping them in working order for longer and making it safe to carry in your pocket.  Another plus is the available extra, colored tanks. (I found them for $4.99 at the Lukoil on Bershire Valley Road in Oak Ridge, NJ). This allows you to have multiple flavors on hand and allows you to keep them color coded for easy identification.  Alternatively, you could use the colors to coordinate your tank (and battery!) to your outfit.

Another big plus is that this battery is also compatable with Eonsmoke's e-cigarette cartridges. This is exciting for me as my old favorite flavor, Mojito, is not available in a liquid so I can still use it in cartridge form!  Also, if you run out of juice in a place where you can't easily fill your tank, you can just keep a cartridge on hand and twist it on. I haven't tried this yet but you can see pictures on the website. It makes the pen look funny, but this feature definitely opens up other possibilities!

The only other downsides I see to this vapor pen are problems with dirt. There are activities I enjoy where I get dirty, like gardening or car repair, that I could smoke a cigarette while doing.  With dirty hands, I am afraid to use the pen. There are air holes near the button that I suppose shouldn't be clogged. Besides that, I find that dirt from my pocket gets into the hole in the mouth piece. Some careful work with a q-tip can easily clean it out though.

All in all the Eonsmoke Eternity pen is easy to use and I am quite satisfied, though I can see myself eventually upgrading to something else, if only to get more warning when the battery is getting low. Now if only I could get over the anxiety I get when filling the tank! (More on that when I review my first e-juice!)

First Post!!

My name is Jakk and I am soon to be an ex-smoker!


Thinking about how to start this blog, I came up with that sentence and all I could think about was an AA meeting. I picture a church basement, the scents of must and unidentifiable oldness mixing with the smells of fresh coffee and donuts. An old piano stands pushed against the back wall, with carts now mostly devoid of chairs pushed next to it. The chairs once in those carts are now arranged in front of a podium, carefully placed in between the support columns that rudely break up the space so that all can see. Brave souls of all genders, races, and ages sprinkle the chairs, getting ready to support one another as they ready themselves to spill the darkest secrets of their addictions. To my knowledge, however, there is no AA meeting for smokers. (Or maybe it is just too well hidden.) Perhaps if there were, it would add another level of ease when grappling with the monster that is quitting smoking. One could walk into that church basement and have a place to discuss things that their non-smoking friends can't ever fully understand and that their smoking friends aren't yet equipped to help them with. Yes, there are numerous hotlines to call and places to reach out to for assistance with quitting smoking, but there is nothing like a group of people dealing with similar issues to help with any kind of change of this nature!


So where does that leave me?


My name is Jakk and I am still smoking. I have been smoking for the past 12+ years, sometimes smoking a pack a day, sometimes cutting down to as little as 4 cigarettes a day. There are even a spattering of months here and there where I quit (mostly), but those periods never lasted. After all this time though, I'm through. I don't want to keep spending tons of money on my premature death! I decided to try to quit again, this time with the assistance of the LIVESTRONG MyQuit App for the iPhone.


At the time of this decision, I was smoking an average of 15 Parliament Menthol Light 100s a day. I set a quit date, and using the quitting plan that the app gave me, I was able to cut it down to about 12 cigarettes a day without any problems. Then I started cheating: I was allowing myself to not count my first cigarette of the day. I reasoned that I could still balance this out later. At least I was still smoking less, right? When I got down to 10 cigarettes a day, I really had a hard time. I didn't like the idea of being limited to any number or how quickly my plan had me cutting down; I pushed my quit date back so that I didn't have to cut back so quickly.


Now I was really starting to worry that this approach was not going to work. I wasn't even halfway through my quit plan and already I couldn't handle it. I was afraid that if I tried to quit smoking with just the app alone it would never work. Sure, there is a world of resources that I could have tapped into for help, but I was convinced that I was just not yet strong enough to kick this addiction completely. I was convinced that even if I could quit, it wouldn't last, just as before. I had to do something else, if only just for now. I really can't support my smoking habit and I am becoming more aware of the health risks I am taking each time I light up another cigarette. (I'm especially worried about accelerated aging and dental issues.) If I can't completely kick my nicotine addiction, I need another way to feed my body the substance it craves that is cheaper and possibly healthier...so why not Vaping?


Cost-wise, vaping is much cheaper then smoking by far. Here in NJ, the average price of a pack of cigarettes is roughly $9.00. Cartridges for e-cigarettes are generally around the same price, if not cheaper, but each cartridge usually has the nicotine equivalent of a pack of cigarettes; usually you can get 5 cartridges to a pack. That means that for each cigarette you smoke, it costs $0.45 while the e-cigarette equivalent is $0.09, for a total savings of $0.34 per cigarette. At my 15 cigarettes a day, that means a savings of $5.10 a day, or $1,861.50 a year! Even cheaper still is the liquid, or e-juice, for vapor pens and refillable cartridges.


If you buy a bottle of e-juice for a vapor pen of refillable cartridges, you can save even more! I'm seeing an average price so far that reflects a similarity to a pack of cigarettes, so for arguments sake, let's price a bottle at $9.00. The size of the bottle varies between brands, but the Eonsmoke brand seems to be the most commonly found bottle at brick and mortar stores, so we will use it for this example. These bottles come in 15ml sizes and advertise as containing the nicotine equivalent of 15 packs of cigarettes. That makes each pack of cigarettes less then $1.00! The e-juice equivalent to a single cigarette work out to cost $0.03, which is $0.06 cheaper then the cartridges for e-cigarettes and $0.42 cheaper then an "analog" cigarette. The e-juice gives me a savings of $8.55 a day! With my tight budget and the economy the way it is, this gives me a great advantage.


As far as vaping and health is concerned, the jury is still out. Vaping is too new for anyone to know exactly what it might be doing to your insides. The cartridges and e-juices are still as of yet unregulated (although after 7+ years of it being on the market, the first steps towards regulation are now just being made), so there are big variances of ingredients between manufacturers. It was even reported that some of the same ingredients in antifreeze were found in one manufacture's cartridges, though I have not seen anything stating what those ingredients were and what they might do. It seems to me that that story could just be anti-e-cigarette propaganda. Either way, I'm sure that sticking to well known, established brands could prevent things such as this. Also, I can list a whole list of things that cigarettes do to you that e-cigarettes do not, such as the lack of tar, the lack of smoke smell (on everything), there is the lack of many carcinogens found in smoke, I'm sure it can't be as bad for your teeth as smoking, etc. The bottom line is that I'm looking at it as even if vaping is found to really not be healthy for you, and I'm sure that there are ways that it is not, I'm convinced that it couldn't possibly be as bad for you as smoking. And there are at least 53 scientists that agree with me! (see here)


So here I am, making my journey from the world of smoking to the world of vaping. It's not my first time, as I did use e-cigarettes for a while before smoking again, really solely due to the fact that people around me were smoking. Even though my nicotine needs were being met, I still found myself craving cigarettes at times, and I would bum them from friends. Of course, a couple of puffs in I would realize that I really had no need for it and question just why in the world I thought I wanted it. I became convinced that there must be something else in cigarettes besides nicotine that is addictive! Although, I do smoke menthols and many studies have shown that menthols are harder to kick then non-menthols. Perhaps that is part of the reason?


That first time I started into vaping, I began with Logic disposables but soon switched to Eonsmoke as they were rechargeable and therefore cheaper. I had been obsessed with Eonsmoke's Mojito flavored cartridges for a few months, but it didn't last. Part of this was because the batteries for the Eonsmoke e-cigarette rarely lasted me a whole day and I had to always make sure I left the house with two fully charged batteries and a charger. I found that it was just not possible to carry just one as there was no warning that the battery was low and it would invariably die on me just as I was having a strong craving. That, and I had starting buying packs of cigarettes because I felt guilty bumming them from friends all the time. We had started hanging out at a local bar, which meant my cigarette cravings had gone up due to the alcohol involved, and I hated being "that guy".


This time around, I'm starting out with an Eonsmoke Vapor Pen. It was cheap enough and I was able to buy it at the same time as I bought my cigarettes, so it required very little effort on my part. I'm really enjoying it so far and am very happy that there are endless possibilities of flavors as they can be mixed since they are liquid. I'm now a week and a half in to owning my pen and am now down to 4 cigarettes a day. I have continued to follow the LIVESTRONG app, with my cigarettes slowly being replaced by the pen as each day goes by, and plan to see it through to the end to faze my body from getting nicotine from one form to the other. I'm hoping that the variety of e-juices and other available products combined with keeping this blog will help me to become and stay a vaper rather then a smoker. There is still a lot about vaping that I don't know, and I was confused about some terminology in the beginning, but simply reading the meaning of vaping Jargon here, I gained a much better understanding. Through this blog, I welcome you to join me on my journey as I delve into the world of Vaping, sharing information as I continue to expand my comprehension of it. I will write reviews as I try new products and I intend to follow and comment on news as the vaping industry continues to grow and starts to become regulated. I am going to make every attempt to post to this blog at least twice a week, with one of the posts being a review on whatever I am trying out next. I will also chronicle, through my reviews, places in Northern New Jersey where you can buy vaping products and at the best prices.


This is Jakk, part smoker, part vaper, signing off for now. Please be sure to read my next post, where I will talk more about my new Vapor Pen and provide my many musings about it!