When to change a vape coil?

Vaping – it’s more than just a mindless puffing of watermelon or bubblegum liquid. Electronic cigarettes must be well maintained, or they may be permanently damaged. The key is to replace the atomizer head or coil in a timely manner. But why and how to do it?

Disclaimer: All information provided in this article is for educational purposes only and is not intended to encourage the use of any addictive substances. This content is not suitable for individuals under the age of 18. The article includes subjective opinions of the author. Nicotine is highly addictive.

In the article you will find out:

1. What is an atomizer head
2. Signs that it’s time for a replacement
3. How often to change the atomizer head?
4. How to replace the atomizer head?

They say that we learn from our mistakes. Perhaps you’ve had the unpleasant burnt taste coming from your vape kit. Or maybe it leaked out into your pocket or backpack. Of course, all this can get really annoying. But it may have been entirely your fault – you may have neglected replacing the atomizer head. So let’s take a closer look at how to prevent these mistakes from happening again.

What is an atomizer head?

Before we replace the atomizer head, we need to understand what it actually is. It’s also useful to be familiar with how it works. To put it simply, in modern e-cigarettes, an atomizer head is part of the clearomizer – a transparent container in which – among other things – you can check the amount of e-liquid you have poured in.

The principle of its functioning is relatively simple. Its foundation is the coil, and depending on its presence we can distinguish two different types – single coil or dual coil. This coil is essentially a resistance wick set in a metal casing. It is coiled on a wire or cotton wool and connected at its end to a contact directed towards its battery.

To get the atomizer head working, you need to do one of two essential steps. In most cases, you give the e-cigarette the command to work using a button on its body. You then send a signal to the battery, which provides the energy required to heat the coil. The e-liquid in the tank heats up to a temperature of approximately 100 to 250 °C (note: the temperature varies depending on the type of liquid; glycerine will vaporize at a higher temperature than a combination of propylene glycol-glycerine), producing aerosol. And that is exactly what you inhale from an e-cigarette.

The second method of heating the spiral is by inhaling, particularly famous for disposable e-cigarettes. In this case, nothing needs to be pressed, the coil begins to heat up automatically. The main goal is to heat up the entire inside of the clearomizer, including the cotton. However, back in the day, it was not necessarily cotton. Inside the atomizer head, you may have also found silica, cotton wool, rayon, porous ceramics, hemp, bamboo yarn, oxidized stainless steel mesh, or even wire rope cables.

Signs that it’s time for a replacement

Are you worried that you won’t be able to recognize a bad condition of the atomizer head in time? Don’t worry, in fact, it’s not really that much of a problem. You can observe these five signs that something is not right.

Burnt taste in mouth – of course, there can be several causes responsible for it. So be sure to check your clearomizer to make sure you have enough e-liquid. If you do, proceed by adjusting the power setting (if your device has one). If it’s not too powerful, you’re left with the final – and most likely – scenario, which is excessive wear and tear on the atomizer head. It is no longer capable of absorbing enough liquid and will simply burn.

Overflowing clearomizer  – have you ever had your vape leak into your pocket, bag, or you may have drawn the liquid directly into your mouth? This could be due to several reasons. But once you have eliminated the incorrect density of e-liquid in your vape, a bad atomizer head condition is most likely to be responsible for the overflow. That’s because this one can’t create enough heat to evaporate the liquid. It’s not just annoying, but also dangerous – for example, the contacts on the battery could be damaged.

Less vapour – have you noticed that you create less vapour when you puff? Wear and tear on the atomizer head could be the reason. Of course, this is a perfectly normal occurrence, things do wear out with use, after all. But this factor is treacherous in its progression. Each atomizer head handles things differently – some handle more, some less. There’s no general rule that vapour begins to diminish after a day or a week. We recommend, however, not to wait until the vapour is at its minimum and to replace the atomizer head sooner rather than later. Ultimately, it’s also about your usage experience.

Loss of flavour – similarly to the previous point, this is also highly individual. Still, are you able to detect the intensity of the taste quite accurately? It may be, however, that the e-liquid is suddenly not so noticeable. Possibly you will get an aftertaste that has nothing to do in it. This too is a sign of an irretrievably burnt atomizer head ready for replacement.

Bubbling in the clearomizer – since the absorption of cotton is reduced, it fails to properly react to the heating of the coil. E-liquid evaporates incorrectly, if at all, and starts to bubble in the “container”. This is a definitive sign that it’s time to replace the atomizer head.

How often to change the atomizer head?

Possibly after a week and perhaps after a month. Truly, nobody can really answer this question definitively. Because there are a lot of variables that have a direct impact on the endurance of the atomizer head. For example, the flavours themselves – if you favour thicker e-liquids with a higher VG ratio, you must expect the atomizer head to wear out faster.

This is also the case if you’re an avid and active smoker. Then you easily forget and draw longer and stronger than you should. That’s when the mechanical parts of the e-cigarette – including the atomizer head – can suffer. You should also be careful when replacing any parts with non-original ones. For instance, the manufacturer might not have anticipated a more efficient battery, which could be more of a liability for the atomizer head.

And last but not least, we advise you not to neglect the care of your atomizer head from the moment you buy it. Once you fill the clearomizer with liquid, it’s not ready to be used just yet. You should let the cotton absorb the liquid for at least 10 – 15 minutes. Otherwise, the vaporization of the liquid might not be done properly. Doing so you risk not only damage to the atomizer head, but also an unpleasant burnt taste in the mouth.

How to replace the atomizer head?

If it comes to that, replacing the atomizer head should not be postponed. Do you think you can’t repair it at home? It’s really not hard at all. Replacing an old atomizer head is extremely easy. For units with bottom-heating simply unscrew the bottom of the clearomizer, swap the defective part, and snap it back together again. Done.

Do you own a modern All in one system? If so, you have even fewer problems. You avoid unscrewing the clearomizer; the defective atomizer head is simply pulled out with the cartridge.

Resources

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4993660/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4683316/

https://forum.bradleysmoker.com/index.php?topic=32637.0

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