If you’re new to vaping and you’re unfamiliar with the mechanical working of e-cigarettes then you might be wondering what a vape coil is, what role it plays and how to look after them.
If so, luckily you’ve come to the right place as here we’ll go over everything you need to know about vape coils, answering any questions you have to ensure you’re armed with all the knowledge you need.
What Is a Vape Coil and What Does It Do?
So first let’s answer the most important question: what are vape coils and what purpose do they play? Vape coils are pieces of wired metal that are wound into a coil.
Typically made from kanthal, nickel and stainless steel, vape coils are heated up by the battery before they vaporise your e-liquid. With the coil, your device would not produce any vapour.
Coil Resistance And Ohm’s
So now we know what vape coils are and the role they play, let’s dive into the different resistances they come in and see how this can affect the performance of your vape.
The resistance of a coil is measured in ohms. The thicker the coil, the higher the ohm and resistance. For instance, a coil that is 0.1-ohm will have much less resistance than a coil that’s 1.0-ohms (ten times less resistance, in fact).
So what does this matter? Well, some devices generate a lot more power than others. If you’re using a device that reaches an output of 200w, for instance, you’ll need a coil with lower resistance to allow enough power to pass through the coil to heat the e-liquid.
For high-powered devices, you’ll usually use a thicker e-juice like a 70-30 or 80/20, so if your vape device fails to heat up the e-liquid properly, this will result in blockages and a less-than-ideal vaping experience.
On the flip side, if you’re using a low-powered device such as a vape pen, you’ll be using a thinner e-liquid which should be vaper with a coil with a higher resistance. If you vape a 50/50 juice with a thinner, low-resistance coil, your device is likely to leak.
So as you can see, it’s important to use the correct vape coil with the right device and e-liquid. Failure to do so can cause issues.
Different Types Of Vape Coils
As mentioned already, vape coils come in a spectrum, usually ranging from about 0.1-ohms all the way up to around 3-ohms. As you can see, there’s a huge difference between these, so how can we be sure which ones are right for us?
As a rough guide, you can split this out into three categories: sub-ohm (0.5-ohms or below), restricted direct to lung (RDL) (0.5-1.0-ohms) and mouth-to-lung (1.0-ohms and above).
As stated, you don’t have to stick to this religiously. You may find that you prefer using a coil that’s slightly above or below the ohms in our recommended guide. But try not to stray too far away from what we’ve suggested as this will start to negatively impact your vaping experience.
What Power Level Should I Use With My Coil?
Once you’ve become familiar with your device and you know you have the right coil for the one you’re using, you may start to wonder what wattage to vape it on. This may be especially true if you’re using a device with adjustable power.
Thankfully, this is usually easy to find out as it’s usually found in two locations. Firstly, you’ll usually see the coil’s suggested wattage range on the package, so look over the packet as it should be on there somewhere.
Secondly, you should also see it etched into the side of the coil itself. The coil should operate efficiently at any power level within that range, so once you’ve found that you’re free to experiment and find the power you prefer.
When And How To Change A Coil
Once a coil has expired, it needs to be changed promptly, or this will seriously affect your enjoyment. Thankfully, there are some telltale signs that will notify you when your vape is ready for a new coil.
Bad Taste
After a few puffs, you generally have a good impression of the taste vape juice is going to provide you, but if the flavour seems to have lost a sense of robustness and instead tastes harsher and more bitter, it may be the case that liquid has built up on the coils and constricted it.
Regularly changing coils will often result in a much better taste.
Gurgling Sound
Possibly the best sign to listen out for if your coil has been regularly used for a while is a distinct curling sound, which typically is a sign that your coil will need to be replaced exceedingly soon, and whilst an off taste can happen quite early, gurgling is very difficult to miss.
Spit-Back
Nobody vapes like spit-back, where instead of liquid coming out as a comfortable cloud it comes out as searing-flavored droplets.
Thankfully, as long as the vape has the right components and the juice is at the right concentration, spit-back is rare, but the older the coil is, the greater the chance that it can cause spit-back.
How To Maintain Your Coil
If coil life is important and you want it to last as long as possible, you’ll be glad to know there are a number of ways you can do this.
Remember that regular cleaning and care are crucial. After every refill, gently dry-blowing through the mouthpiece can clear excess liquid and prevent flooding. When switching flavours, consider cleaning the tank thoroughly to avoid flavour residue.
Likewise, periodically cleaning the coil itself by rinsing it gently under warm water and allowing it to dry completely before reusing it will help to extend its lifespan.
Vaping within the recommended wattage range for the coil type and avoiding chain vaping prevent overheating and coil burn-out.
Lastly, many people don’t know that, as well as the temperature you vape at and the amount you’re using your device, another factor that can significantly affect coil life is the e-liquid you’re vaping. In particular, the sweeter flavours tend to be more taxing on your coils, as do those with colourings in them.
So if you’re trying to extend coil life then it’s probably best to avoid the sweeter flavours such as dessert or candy as these are guaranteed to go through coils much faster than some other varieties of e-juice.
Conclusion
So that’s pretty much everything there is to know about vape coils. Hopefully, you now have a full understanding of what they are, what they do and the important role they play in your vaping experience.
We stock a wide range of coils, for sub-ohm tanks, mouth-to-lung tanks, and everything in between. So if you’re on the lookout for some premium-quality coils then you’re in the right place!
