You may have noticed this fad called vaping. It’s everywhere, including Salt Lake City, and there is a lot to know if you want in on the game.
Let’s start simple, with e-juice. E-juice, also known as vape juice or e-liquid, is the viscous liquid that fills the tank of a vaporizer or electronic cigarette and delivers nicotine to the user. It can be found at any smoke or vape shop and the e-juice you choose largely makes your vaping experience what it is. It controls many factors ranging from taste to cloud formation.
The main ingredients in e-juice are vegetable glycerin, propylene glycol, flavoring and nicotine. Let’s take a deeper look into each of these ingredients.
Vegetable glycerin is a clear, thick liquid typically sourced from palm trees and soybeans. In the food industry, glycerol is used as a sweetener, a food thickener and to retain moisture in food. It can be found in cheese, yogurt, baked goods and also in cosmetics such as makeup, skin and hand creams, soaps, shampoo, toothpaste, eye drops and deodorant. VG, as it is often known in the vaping world, is responsible for creating large, thick clouds of vapor due to the fact that it adds viscosity to your e-juice. Some individuals purposely choose a juice with a high percentage of VG because of this. It is also known to give a smoother hit, but due to the thickness of VG, it can sometimes be harder to fully soak your wick and you may occasionally experience drier hits.
Propylene Glycol is also a fairly thick liquid, though less so than VG, that has a faintly sweet taste and is derived from petroleum. It is also a food additive that helps thicken foods, retain moisture and bond ingredients together in items such as salad dressing, ice cream, soft drinks, packaged frosting, boxed cake mix and commercial food coloring. Like VG, PG is used in cosmetics such as shampoo, lotion, mouthwash, ointments, toothpaste, and deodorant. PG is the vehicle through which your flavoring is delivered. An e-juice with a high PG content will give you a more intense flavor than one with a higher VG content. Because PG is less viscous, it often provides more of the throat hit that is typically associated with inhaling tobacco. On the other hand, the thinness of this ingredient also means it soaks your wick better, is easier to clean and creates less gunk.
Flavoring concentrates are a mix of natural and artificial flavors that replicate food or drinks. The same flavoring concentrates found in e-juices are also found in baked goods, soda, candy and many processed foods.
Nicotine is a highly addictive substance found in the nightshade family of plants such as tomatoes, eggplants, potatoes, and tobacco. Because nicotine is what makes it so hard to quit cigarettes, some users turn to vapes to help wean themselves off. You can choose e-juice with varying level of nicotine ranging from 0mg to 12mg. Higher nicotine levels create a harsher throat hit and can affect the taste of your e-juice because nicotine itself is a bit peppery.
As you can see, when you enter the world of vaping, there is more than what meets the eye. Stick with the latest from Smoker’s Guru, Salt Lake City’s premier smoke and vape shop, and you will learn all you need to know.
