What is eliquid?
For starters, be aware that eliquid, e-juice, and vape juice all refer to the same thing. Those are just different names for the same stuff. The e-liquid itself is simply the liquid that is converted into vapor by an e-cig device. However, there are many different types of e-liquid that we will cover. Different types of vaping require different types of vape juice. Plus, we will cover what is in e-liquid and a bit about how it is made.
Vaping has come a long way in a short time. In the beginning, the e-liquid used in e-cigarettes was contained in disposable e-cig cartridges. With the advent of vape mods and vape tanks, eliquid became an industry unto itself. There are now well over 100 e-liquid brands operating in the World . And counting! Of course, not all are equal. In fact, it is very important that customers ensure that the e-liquid they use is made to the highest standards. The sad fact is that many e-liquids are poor quality. More on that later.
Vape juice, e-juice- or e-liquid, whatever you want to call it, must be made in a professional lab setting. The blending of e-juice ingredients requires training and expertise in chemistry. Most of the ingredients in vape juice are food grade. That is true. Nonetheless, not all ingredients are equal. To begin the discussion on what is e-liquid, we will start by looking at what is in eliquid.
What is in e-liquid? And what is it that makes all that vapor? There are two ingredients that make the vapor. Those two are propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin. The other ingredients are nicotine and flavoring. The nicotine and flavoring account for about 8% to 10% of the total composition of e-juice. The rest of the liquid is the propylene glycol, PG, and vegetable glycerin, VG.
- Vegetable Glycerin (VG)
- Propylene Glycol (PG)
- Nicotine
- Flavor
As mentioned, three of the four ingredients in e-liquid are food grade substances. As for the nicotine in e-liquid, that is typically pharmaceutical grade and extracted from tobacco plants. Because the nicotine in vaping liquids is extracted from tobacco plants, the FDA has classified electronic cigarettes as a tobacco product. Now, let’s take a closer look at e-liquid ingredients.
Eliquid Ingredients
Whenever you talk about it any compound and call it by its scientific name, it sounds kind of sinister. For example, did you know your could be drinking dihydrogen monoxide right now? Well that sounds scary doesn’t it! Well as a matter of fact it’s just water. So when you hear about the ingredients in e-liquid, you might think what the heck is that? So let’s talk about it.
Propylene Glycol
Propylene glycol, and formerly referred to as PG in the vaping community, is an organic substance that our civilization has been using for over a century. PG is found in everyday products from toothpaste to shampoo to medications. If you wash your hair and brush your teeth, chances are that you use PG every day. It has been deemed to be safe for human ingestion. The vaporized form of propylene glycol looks like smoke. If you have ever been to a rock and roll show or any stage show, you may have seen a fake mist or smoke used in the production. This effect is produced by stage foggers that vaporize propylene glycol.
Stage hands have been working around aerosol forms of propylene glycol for years and the CDC says that there is no risk of long term health damage as a result. However, PG does absorb water. That means it has a dehydrating effect. As a result, some PG e-liquids can be harsh.
When the industry first began, almost all e-liquids were at least 90% PG. Many smokers found e-liquid with too much PG to be too harsh. The dehydrating effect made it necessary for vapers to compensate by increasing water intake. The e-liquid in the e-cig cartridges of the time were also almost all PG. But that has changed.
Today, PG is still used in vape juice and e-liquids. But not as much as it used to be! PG is still needed to some extent because it carries flavor very well. However, most e-liquids on the market today have no more than 50% PG. A few may have 70%. But for the most part, all PG e-liquids are largely balanced by vegetable glycerin, or VG.
Vegetable Glycerin
Vegetable glycerin is thick, viscous substance that is extracted from the palm plant. There are other ways to get vegetable glycerin, but the palm plant is the main source used by companies that make vape juice and e-liquid.
Vegetable glycerin, also called VG, is used in food production, Cosmetics, Medicine, and More. VG can be used as a sweetener because it has a sweet taste. Also, VG is a preservative and is used in many different types of foods. You will also find it in most lotions and cosmetics. Vegetable glycerin has been deemed safe for human consumption.
Almost every vape juice on the market today has at least 50% VG content. What makes VG such a good liquid for vape juice? The simple answer is that it makes a lot of vapor. Moreover, a nice gentle vapor in comparison to PG. In addition, VG can make mass of clouds of vapor. However, even in Max VG e liquids there’s still some PG needed to carry the flavor. That is the one weakness of VG does that it does not carry flavor as well. But the vapor production is amazing.
E-liquid Flavors
The flavors used in e-liquid are food-grade. But not all food grade flavors will work in a vape liquid. For example, some ingredients may not be suitable for vaporization. Therefore it is very important to buy and liquids from a professional company the blends and bottles e-liquid in a professional lab setting.
Nicotine In Eliquid
The nicotine used in e-cig liquid is pharmaceutical grade and extracted from tobacco plants. Nicotine is considered an addictive substance. E-liquid with nicotine is made for adult tobacco consumers only. eliquid uses the latest age verification technology as we diligently work to prevent teen vaping. We understand that nicotine is not the chemical in cigarettes that causes disease, nonetheless it is a recognized stimulant and should not be used by kids or expectant moms.
More recently, a new type of nicotine has emerged. Nicotine salt E-liquid is not extracted from tobacco leaves, rather it is extracted from the salts in the stems. The advantage of using a nicotine salt e-liquid is that you can vape a much higher nicotine content without experiencing harshness. Nicotine salt is smoother than regular pharmaceutical grade nicotine. The real advantage is that you can get a lot of punch and little bit of vapor. That’s why nicotine salts are often the preferred he liquid for smokers.
Mature smokers please note that you can now get a nicotine salt vape juice in a cigalike cartridge. That is a 50 mg nic salt cartridge for a cigalike, the type of e-cig that looks like a cigarette. Ulta is new and has been a game changer for smokers.
NOTICE: There are reports that some e-juice companies are getting their nicotine from overseas. The cheap, imported nicotine may not meet the standards of American pharmaceutical companies. Furthermore, independent random testing has shown that over 50% of e-liquids tested have the wrong nicotine content. Once again, making vape juice is not a hobby. It takes a professional lab to do it right.
Nicotine In Different Types Of E-Juice
The level of nicotine in e-liquid varies depending upon what type of vaping and what type of e-liquid is being used. For example, when using a vape device that has an atomizer above 1.0 ohms, the user needs to use a e-liquid at least 50% PG.
Conversely, for sub ohm vaping the user has to use any liquid with at least 70% VG. Or better known as VG e-liquids. Most of the VG liquids today or at least 80% VG.
Vaping e-cigs or vape mods with atomizers 1.0 ohms is also called MTL vaping. MTL stands for mouth to lung, as in you draw the vapor into your mouth and then inhale. That’s the same way you smoke a cigarette. Sub ohm vaping with atomizers less than 1.0 ohms uses a style of vaping called DL. Direct lung, DL, means that you inhale a vapor directly into the lungs from the device. The main difference is that DL vaping with a sub ohm device produces much more vapor than MTL device.
As a result, when sub ohm vaping with VG e-liquids less nicotine is required. In fact most VG liquids have no more than 6 mg of nicotine. On the other hand, PG e-liquids have nicotine levels ranging from 0 mg to 50 mg.
Nicotine Levels For Vaping
Choosing the best e-liquid nicotine levels for vaping depends on the individual. Smokers are aware of the their current tobacco use and can draw a correlation with the available nicotine levels. For example, a heavy smoker would probably require a stronger nicotine strength in e-juice. Here are the most common nicotine levels?
PG and 50/50 E-Liquid
- 0 mg
- 6 mg
- 12 mg
- 18 mg
- 24 mg
VG Vape Juice
- 0 mg
- 3 mg
- 6 mg
Nicotine Salt E-Juice
- 25 mg
- 35 mg
- 50 mg
Nicotine Salts
The game changer was nicotine salt e-liquids. Nicotine salt e liquids typically have anywhere from 25 mg of nicotine to 50 mg of nicotine. 15 mg is the level recommended for smokers. Amount of nicotine as strong so it doesn’t take a lot of vapor. The best advice is the mix egg with other cartridges.
There are two types of agents that can be used to create vapor:
PG – Propylene Glycol is the most common.
VG – Vegetable Glycerin
The majority of e-liquid you will find to be PG based. Propylene Glycol generally produces sweeter juices and less vapor. Vegetable Glycerin produces more vapor, and tends to be less sweet. Sometimes you will find both types mixed together to even out the mixture.
E-liquids are also available in different strength levels of nicotine ranging from zero nicotine up to levels as high as 2.4% nicotine. The nicotine level is usually expressed in milligrams per milliliter but can be converted to an approximate percentage by placing a decimal between the digits. 24mg strength would be roughly 2.4% nicotine. This is simply due to perception that a percentage is less strong.
Different Types Of E-Liquid
There are many different types of e-liquid. The most common types of e-liquid are:
- PG e-liquid
- VG e-liquid
- Salt nicotine e-liquid
Will it taste like a real (traditional tobacco) cigarette?
The liquid that tastes most like a real cigarette is… there is none. No liquid tastes like a real cigarette because there is no combustion. However, eLiquid.ae Cigs offers many tobacco flavors such as Don Cristo and Ripe Vapes. Our tobacco flavors are some of the most popular flavors that we carry. However, keep in mind that different flavors will taste different from other e-juice brands. As a result, while you may not like blueberry from one company, you may like blueberry from another.
Is there a special way to store e-liquids?
E-liquids should be stored in a cool, dry place that is not exposed to direct sunlight. Many suppliers use colored glass bottles to help reduce exposure to sunlight, but it is not a bad idea to keep any vape liquids that you are not actively using stored in a closed box. Others also store them in the refrigerator. Most e-liquids will have an expiration date and manufacture date on the bottle. It is assumed that most juices expire 2 years after date of manufacture. Be sure to keep e-liquid out of reach of children and pets.
So there you have it. E-liquid is a simple mixture of these 4 basic components: Propylene Glycol and/or Vegetable Glycerin, Nicotine and Flavorings. Since there are so many flavors to choose from it’s best to buy in small quantities until you find the perfect flavors that appeal to you the most. Sometimes you want something fruity or refreshing and sometimes you want something that tastes as close to a standard cigarette as possible. For cravings like that we heartily recommend our Red Zeppelin flavor.
E-Liquid In Ecig Cartridges
All of our e-cigarette cartridges and clearomizers can be refilled with any e-liquid. The cartridges can be refilled up to 3 times before replacing with a fresh one. And the clearomizers can be refilled up to 20 times before you should replace with a fresh one.
What Is E-Liquid Summary
I think we have answered the question of what is e-liquid! Ultimately, e-liquid is the liquid that is converted into vapor by an electronic cigarette or vaporizer. That’s about it. E-liquid, e-juice, e-cig liquid, vape juice, and all of the rest of the names all refer to the same thing. Don’t be confused by the different terminology. It’s just like how some parts of the country say pop and other parts say soda. Same thing.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We are here to help!