Modified on: 01/12/2022
Every vaper gets a good coughing fit. Here are the causes and how to make sure it never happens again
If you are a vaper, there will inevitably come (or, perhaps, has already come) a time when your authentic electronic cigarette will give you a terrible burning taste.
It is the proverbial cue and has become like a sort of baptism among vapers: if you really vape, you can’t have experienced it.
Often, that bad taste is caused by the heating element’s end of its life cycle and having to be replaced with a new one. Of course, everyone knows this, and the shopkeeper who sold you your first electronic cigarette has probably already explained it to you.
In this case, the solution is simple: insert another coil into the atomiser and off you go vaping!
But, what to do when the corks arrive, even when the resistance has been changed recently or is perhaps brand new?
I explain this in the following article.
Did you remember to activate the new resistance that you fitted in the atomiser correctly?
A classic mistake that vaping beginners make is to activate the atomiser immediately after inserting a new cartridge. And that foul smell is nothing more than the cry for help from the cotton that has not had time to absorb the electronic cigarette liquid and is burning.
Here is how to avoid this annoying inconvenience. First, when you insert a new heating element into your atomiser, drop a few drops into the cotton feed holes before activating it. Then, fill the tank and let it rest for an hour, giving the resistance time to absorb a good amount of liquid.
To be on the safe side, even after this rest period has passed, do not immediately push the coil to the maximum. Instead, start with quick activations at low wattages, interspersed with a few puffs with the device switched off to further facilitate the absorption of e-liquid.
Continue by increasing the wattage until you reach the ideal watts for that type of resistance. Once this is done, cues should become just a bad memory.
Read also: Vaping neutral base: is it a good idea?
Never leave the tank dry if you want to say goodbye to corks!
Now, let’s talk about a mistake we all make, even as veterans: not refilling our tanks often enough.
Who hasn’t been caught up in the pleasure of vaping without checking the liquid level in the tank? Unfortunately, when it drops too low, there is a risk that the resistance will not feed sufficiently, and at that moment comes a terrible coughing fit caused by the dry cotton burning!
It may sound trivial, but the recurrence of this problem makes it an unexpected occurrence that should not be taken lightly. To avoid this, refill your atomiser whenever you realise you are running out of liquid. Even if there is still some left, don’t think, ‘That’s OK, I’ll do it later.
You might forget, take a memorable cue and ruin your heating element. At that point, you will be forced to fit a new one, even if the old one could have held out for several more days.
Too much power = burnt cotton, for sure
Let’s face it: every vaper likes big clouds, bar none!
Many tend to push their devices to the limit, setting very high wattages to produce more vapour. Each resistor, however, is designed to operate at specific wattage ranges: if you set it too low, it will not emit vapour. Conversely, coughing is guaranteed (or almost guaranteed) if you set it too high because the coil wire can’t handle that many watts.
If you find that you taste a burnt flavour despite having correctly activated the resistance and filled the tank, this could be the cause. Perhaps, you are using a coil designed for cheek vaping by delivering a wattage more suited to resistance for a lung shot.
To remedy this, gradually lower the wattage of your mod until that foul taste disappears.
Fear not: you will not risk diminishing the aromatic performance of your e-cigarette liquid. On the contrary, if you exploit the resistors by delivering the manufacturer’s recommended wattage, you may significantly improve your vaping experience.
Perhaps, the problem is either you or the liquid you are vaping.
Sometimes, even though you have taken all the precautions I have indicated, the cue may still come.
In this case, the reason could be the way you vape or the e-cigarette liquid you use.
Perhaps, you take too many puffs in a row without giving the resistance time to absorb e-liquid between puffs. Or, the liquid you are using has too high a percentage of VG for the type of coil mounted on your atomiser.
Vegetable glycerine is very dense and can clog the feeding holes of the resistance if these are not large enough and reduce the speed at which the cotton soaks up e-liquid.
If you think that the cause of the corks may be one of these, reduce the frequency of puffs and check that the coil you are using is suitable for the liquid you are vaping. If not, change the e-liquid or replace the resistance, and you should not have any more problems.
Read also: “Atomizer short”: how to solve this problem even if you are a beginner
In conclusion
In this article, I have explained the causes of that burning smell you might get during your vaping sessions and how you can avoid those annoying corks that all vapers have experienced at least once.
With this information, you should finally be able to enjoy your e-liquids to the fullest, tasting only their aroma and not that of burning cotton.
Before I say goodbye, I invite you to have a look at the products available in the Terpy shop: we have plenty of electronic cigarette liquids to suit all tastes, among which you are sure to find one that suits your palate!