Which vape is right for you?

How do you choose your vape?

  1. Decide what type of vape you want to use

    Pod vape are particularly discreet and easy-to-use. Their only downside is that they lose their battery charge sooner than boxes. Boxes are generally bigger but offer more options for personalising the settings and a longer battery life.

  2. Choose your clearomizer

    The clearomizer is the key component in your vape. It determines how e-juice flavours taste, the draw type (either indirect, like tobacco cigarettes, or direct like hookahs), as well as how much vapour you can make. It should be easy to use.

So which vaping device is best for you? There is often no easy answer to this question. Here’s our guide to help you choose and answer the big question:  which vape should I buy?

Technical aspects

Some smokers want a small device about the size of a cigarette. But since boxes were introduced, so many vapers have taken to them that it’s getting easier to convince smokers to go for boxes.

 

Although small tube vapes like the eGo were all the rage for a few years, nowadays these have been replaced by a newer format called the pod.

The upside of these electronic cigarettes is that they are really easy to use and very small. The downside is that their battery charge doesn’t last as long.

Clearomizers need to be the right size for those new to vaping, as well as being user-friendly. More experienced vapers may decide to try an atomizer, a piece of kit that requires you to make your own coils, or a dripper which is designed to deliver better flavours. Unfortunately, we still see a lot of beginners who are wrongly advised to try kits that are designed for more experienced vapers.

Fortunately, the EU Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) which came into force on 20th May 2016 is mostly favourable towards devices here in France. But restrictions could be imposed at some point. Smokers looking to switch to vaping are spoilt for choice when it comes to the extensive range of products on the market, so they’re sure to find the right device for them.

Flavours and nic levels

Flavour and nic are the keys to successfully giving up smoking through vaping. It’s crucial to be able to try e-juice before you buy. You need to enjoy the flavour you choose, otherwise you may get bored of it and abandon your attempt to quit smoking. We also recommend finding at least two flavours you like, so you can alternate them throughout the day or use them on alternate days for maximum enjoyment. Pleasure is a crucial factor when trying to quit smoking through vaping. Vaping must be more pleasurable than smoking (and it can be, believe it or not!).

The second aspect, which is even more important when you want to stop smoking but not feel deprived, is of course nic. There’s no need to fear nic – smoking is dangerous because of smoke inhalation, not because of the nic (its effects are similar to caffeine). Burning any plant-based material produces tar, which causes cancer (around 70 carcinogenic substances), carbon monoxide (due to incomplete combustion) which is toxic to the cardiovascular system, and solid fine particles which can cause respiratory issues.

Although nic is not the only factor that causes smokers to become dependent on tobacco, it is still a major contributor. So, trying to stop smoking with a nic-free juice will almost inevitably mean you go back to regular cigarettes.

Choose your PG/VG ratio

The amount of PG and VG has a direct impact on whether you enjoy vaping.
One last important detail is the ratio of vegetable glycerine (VG) and propylene glycol (PG). Some people are sensitive to PG and need a liquid with a higher VG content to reduce the irritation caused by PG. A 70:30 ratio of PG to VG is a good starting point, whilst a 60:40 or 50:50 ratio may solve the problem for people who are sensitive to PG.

Something you should remember is that VG creates more vapour but delivers flavours less well. Reducing your PG level might mean you lose some enjoyment of the flavour.

But don’t assume you are sensitive to PG just because you cough when you first start vaping. This happens to all smokers, but it’s caused by tobacco smoke rather than vapour.

Tobacco smoke is highly irritating to the respiratory tract, but it also contains anaesthetising substances such as menthol (found in all cigarettes, even those not labelled as menthol), which inhibit the urge to cough (making it easier for young people to start smoking).

None of these substances are found in vapour, so the irritation caused by nic will make you cough (that’s why smokers often choose a minty liquid).

But this will soon stop, often within five to ten minutes. Unfortunately, it will happen again each time you smoke another cigarette. That’s why it’s best to stop using tobacco as quickly as possible. Otherwise, you may not enjoy vaping and give up.

Plus, every cigarette you smoke will just remind your brain that it gets a better nic hit with tobacco than from vaping. You’d need to vape for 30 to 45 minutes to obtain the same amount of nic as from smoking a cigarette for 5 minutes.

Finally, don’t beat yourself up if you feel like you’ve always got your vaping device in your hand or in your mouth. This is because vaping delivers nic less effectively, so you’ll need to vape more often than when you smoked cigarettes.

Cigarettes are also expensive, so you tend to smoke them right to the end. Vaping lets you get a dose of nic more regularly – a puff here, one or two puffs there.

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