Vape Town Blogs And Guides

E-liquids are the beating heart of any vape device, as they’re what you heat up to turn into vapour. The thing is, most vapers find the differences between various types of e-liquids a confusing subject, so we’ve created this guide to tell you everything you need to know. It will help you choose the right e-liquid for your device and understand more of the finer details so you can vape with more confidence. 

E-Liquids Explained - What Are They?

To start things off, let’s quickly go over what an e-liquid is. As mentioned in the intro, they’re a special type of liquid - sometimes called vape juice - that forms part of your vape. For single-use vapes and disposables, the e-liquid was built into the device, these devices are no longer available in the UK and have been replaced with Pre-Filled Vape Kits. For Pre-Filled Vape Kits, the e-liquids come in little cartridges that you can swap in and out of the vape itself. 

But what exactly is this “liquid” made from? Primarily, all e-liquids will contain three key ingredients: 

• Propylene Glycol (PG): This is an odourless liquid that’s used to carry the flavourings an e-liquid contains. It’s also quite thin in its texture, which allows it to hit the back of your throat and create a sensation similar to smoking a cigarette - only without any smoke. 

• Vegetable Glycerine (VG): This is a thicker liquid that’s naturally sweet and carries huge importance in the world of vaping. When you heat up VG, its thickness means it creates a very dense vapour cloud - which is what you typically associate with vaping. So, without VG, you won’t get those big, puffy clouds you’re used to. 

• Various Flavourings: Depending on what type of vape juice you’re buying, it will contain some flavouring that gives it a distinct taste. These flavourings have to pass food safety tests to ensure they’re safe for consumption, and they’re normally the same things found in other food products. 

Additionally, some e-liquids will contain nicotine - though this is optional. All of these components blend together to create your vape juice, which is then heated up by the vape's heating system. This creates the vapour that you can inhale and blow back out - simple! 

Understanding E-Liquid VG/PG Ratios

Beginner vapers aren’t always aware that different e-liquids are manufactured with varying VG/PG ratios. You’ll likely find two options when shopping for your next vape: 

• 50/50 VG to PG ratio

• 70/30 VG to PG ratio

The first is commonly referred to as a “high PG ratio”, while the second is a “high VG ratio” - for obvious reasons. If you don’t know what any of this means, then you could easily buy vape juices that don’t quite hit the way you hoped. So, what’s the difference between these ratios?

70/30 e-liquids are typically characterised by their thicker consistency. As you’ll remember from our brief explanation earlier, VG is a thicker liquid that creates a denser vape cloud. So, when you increase the ratio of VG to PG, you’re getting the biggest and most dense clouds possible. The other thing to note about VG is that its natural thickness gives a smoother throat hit. Some people prefer this as they don’t want a vape to hit the back of their throat and cause a slight burning sensation - usually popular with vapers who’ve not smoked cigarettes in the past. 

50/50 e-liquids take on different characteristics because of the increase in PG. PG has one key role in a vape device: it’s responsible for carrying as much of the flavouring as possible into your throat. Therefore, high PG ratio e-liquids will have much stronger flavours that hit with a higher intensity than high VG e-liquids. The trade-off is that you don’t get the best vapour clouds, and you end up with a harsher throat hit. However, this could be beneficial for people who are turning to vapes to wean themselves away from cigarettes. The feeling of a high PG e-liquid may replicate the sensation of cigarettes and make it easier for them to stay away. 

So, to sum up: 

It’s also worth noting that high VG e-liquids need more power to heat (because they’re thicker), so are mainly only suitable for sub-ohm vape devices. By contrast, high PG e-liquids are suitable for most refillable vape kits and standard devices. 

What about the nicotine content? Ah, good question, and very relevant when you’re looking at the different VG/PG ratios. When you increase the Vg content of an e-liquid, it’s harder to add in more components/ingredients. That’s why they’re not always as flavourful - but it also means you’ll see a much lower nicotine content in comparison to high PG e-liquids. If you want a high-strength nicotine vape, then choose a high PG vape juice. 

Get To Know Shortfills & Nic Shots

Shortfill e-liquids are a particular type of e-liquid that was born after a set of regulations in 2017 forced vape manufacturers to restrict nicotine-based e-liquids to a maximum of 10ml. So, to abide by these regulations, companies produced larger e-liquid bottles that contained no nicotine whatsoever, yet left space for a small shot of nicotine if required. 

You’ll find them in several sizes - we typically sell them in 50ml all the way up to 200ml - and you’ll notice that the bottle isn’t filled all the way to the top. That’s because you get, say, 50ml of nicotine-free e-liquid with space at the top for a nic shot. You can buy the nic shot separately (though all our shortfills do come with a free one for you to use) and then mix it into the e-liquid to add nicotine to your vape. 

Nic shots are smaller e-liquids that contain nicotine and fall within the 10ml limit, as set out by the current regulations. You can get them in different PG/VG ratios and flavours - though a lot of consumers prefer to buy a flavoured shortfill and pair it with an unflavoured nic shot. 

Now, the biggest question on everyone’s minds is how many nic shots should you use when mixing with a shortfill? It gets quite complicated, but here’s how you work it out: 

• Current e-liquid amount: This will be the size of your shortfill e-liquid without anything added to it. So, let’s say you’ve bought one of our 50ml shorfills, your current e-liquid amount is 50ml. 

• Target e-liquid nicotine strength: This is how strong you want your finished e-liquid to be. It is totally up to you, but most vapers are happy with anything 3mg or above. 

• Nic shot strength: Look at the current mg of the nic shot you’ve purchased. To give you some context, we tend to sell nic shots in 3mg, 6mg, 12mg and 18mg strengths. 

So, let’s say you’ve got a 50ml shortfill and wish to achieve 3mg of nicotine overall - and you have an 18mg nic shot. In this scenario, you’d only need one 10ml nic shot of 18mg strength to achieve this. 

You can work out the quantity of nic shots required by following this calculation: 

• Nic Shot Liquid Required = (Target E-Liquid Nicotine Strength x Shortfill Volume) / (Nic Shot Strength - Target E-Liquid Nicotine Strength) 

In our previous example, the calculation would look like this: 

• (3mg x 50ml) / (18mg - 3mg)

• (150) / (15)

• 10ml nic shot needed

You’re then able to use this to work out how many nic shots you might need to get the ideal strength you’re aiming for - let’s use a different example to demonstrate this. You’ve bought a 50ml shortfill and wish to achieve 6mg of nicotine after mixing in your nic shot. The nic shot you’ve purchased has a strength of 12mg: 

• (6mg target x 50ml shortfill) / (12mg nic shot strength - 6mg target strength)

• 300 / 6

• 50ml nic shot required

Based on that calculation, you’d need to buy 5 x 10ml shots in the 12mg strength to achieve the desired nicotine level for your final e-liquid. 

So, yes, it can be confusing when mixing shortfills and nic shots, but this calculation will help you figure everything out. You may also be able to find other calculators online that do the maths for you. The most important thing to consider is how strong you want the final e-liquid to be. Once you’ve got your desired strength, you can work out how many nic shots you need to achieve it. 

And of course, you can always vape shortfills without adding a nic shot if you want to enjoy a nicotine-free vape. 

Let’s Talk About Freebase E-Liquids

As you browse our site you’ll come across our selection of freebase e-liquids - but what exactly are these products? Is freebase a fancy name slapped onto the e-liquids to give them some more selling power? No, it actually refers to the chemical state of the nicotine within these e-liquids. 

Freebase nicotine has been around for decades, and it happens when you chemically alter nicotine into its purest form. This version of nicotine does not bind to any other compounds, and this makes it easy for the body to absorb. Many vapers prefer freebase nicotine because it’s a lot more akin to the nicotine hit you get from traditional cigarettes. 

You can also use freebase nicotine e-liquids in lower dosages yet feel a stronger hit than other nicotine-based e-liquids (which we’ll talk about in a moment). This means you tend to see them mixed with high VG liquids to get the dense clouds yet a strong hit of nicotine. It’s also known that freebase e-liquids carry more flavour than non-freebase ones, so they’re a hit with people who vape because they like the taste

All You Need To Know About Nic Salts

Nic salts represent one of the main alternatives to freebase e-liquids. Instead of treating the nicotine so it ends up in its purest state, you modify it with an acidic compound. In most cases, this will be benzoic acid - which is commonly used as a food preservative and is safe for human consumption. 

The addition alters the nicotine’s structure and turns it into something that’s chemically classified as a salt, hence the name. So, despite what it sounds like, nic salts don’t actually contain any salt at all, which is a very big misconception that can put people off. Nic salts end up with certain properties and characteristics that differ from freebase e-liquids, such as: 

• Much smoother on the throat

• A faster and more efficient absorption rate

• The ability to handle higher nicotine strengths with less discomfort

You get less vapour from nic salts, so they’re not popular with the cloud chasers out there. On the other hand, they are a great choice if you need a high nicotine mg - for instance, you have just stopped smoking and need to start off high before gradually working your way down low. Also, if you dislike the burning sensation that freebase nicotine makes in the back of your throat, then nic salts are the best alternative. 

Steeping E-Liquids - Improve The Taste

E-liquids can sometimes taste a bit strange when you take your first puff. This happens because the liquid needs a bit of time to settle, mix a bit, and find its true flavour. It should be fine and reveal its true flavour after a few uses of your vape, but you can unlock an even better taste with a technique called steeping. 

Steeping is a way of “ageing” your e-liquid so the different components mix together and create the perfect flavour. All you have to do is buy your next e-liquid a week or so before you want to use it, and then follow these steps: 

• Shake the e-liquid for about 60-120 seconds to mix everything up

• Store in a cool, dark, dry place

• Give your e-liquid a shake every day or so 

• Try it after a week

So, yes, it requires a bit of effort, but you’ll notice a difference from that first vape. A really good idea if you’re a flavour-enjoyer who wants to get the most from their e-liquids. 

And just like that, you’ve reached the end of our e-liquid masterclass. We hope you found it educational and interesting - for more tips and guidance, check out our other blog posts.