Formaldehyde and E-cig - What's a safe setting to vape at?

[gotpardon]

for me, these are things to be considered:

1. vaping type (mounth-lung or lung inhale) ?
2. airflow capability of rda or tank ?
3. determine the wattage for that vaping style & airflow
4. make a plan with Steam Engine
5. no matter how high the wattage is, make sure that heat flux "somewhere between 120 and 350 mW/mm²".

 

[Thrasher]

Thanks for all the helpful responses! So it sounds like I got something fundamentally wrong: I originally thought formaldehyde comes from overheating the e-juice.

From the sound of the responses, seems like formaldehyde comes from overheating the wick, and not from overheating the juice. Is that right?

Thanks again guys!

Its easy to scare everyone saying "overheating the juice" and just leave it so vague.

But in reality every device requires a different amount of power to get there. And when they say they had to overheat the juice, we aren't just talking " oh that vapor tastes warm!"
Were are actually talking about " how do you like your French fries " that juice will taste so nasty your NOT going to keep doing it

Then like the other posters said add in the fact that the study was flawed on purpose and the fact is they don't really know if it was really what happens anyways

 

[Smeef]

There is a video on Youtube that Matt from Suck My Mod made where he vapes at the levels they tested at. It's clear that nobody would enjoy the same setup they used in the test at that voltage after watching him.

 

[Bunnykiller]

the temps required to make the chemical that creates the formaldehyde also make the vape so gross tasting and harsh I seriously doubt one can even inhale it without choking and other various adverse reactions.... think of extreme dry hit to the max.....

 

[DaveP]

It's heat that produces the bad stuff. Keep it cool and the vape will be safer. The key to keeping it cool at higher voltages is air flow. The more air the better.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/04/business/some-e-cigarettes-deliver-a-puff-of-carcinogens.html?_r=0

 

[Completely Average]

Lots of comments about heat, but no one has correctly answered the question.

ALL forms of vegetable oil and vegetable oil derivatives, which both PG and VG are, produce formaldehyde when they reach their smoke points. That is, when the liquid reaches the point where it begins to smoke the smoke will contain formaldehyde. Obviously this would be very bad for anyone vaping. No one vaping would ever want to puff on a product that is producing smoke rather than vapor. The temperature required to make that chemical conversion is far hotter than anyone using an ecig would be comfortable inhaling from. Not to mention it would burn up most wicking materials and would cause some like cotton to burst into flames.

Formaldehyde production is really a non-issue in ecigs. It doesn't happen. IF there is any formaldehyde produced at all it's in such a trace amount that it's unlikely to be harmful, and is far below the amount produced when burning tobacco.



If you're looking for something to be worried about in ecigs, be afraid of juices that use diacetyl as a sweetener. Long term exposure to inhaling diacetyl can cause Bronchiolitis Obliterans (Also known as Popcorn Lung), scarring of the lung tissue which is irreversible, and has symptoms very similar to COPD. So if you're worried about your long term health try to avoid flavoring agents that include diacetyl.

 

[Rsunderl]

Hi kenjai and welcome to the forum!

Here's a thought: Find a high school chemistry teacher. Have him/her show you how to safely smell a whiff of formaldehyde. Once you do that, you'll know that you'll NEVER be able to vape formaldehyde.

Hope it helps and Happy Vaping!

 

[Thrasher]

View attachment 423890
Hi kenjai and welcome to the forum!

Here's a thought: Find a high school chemistry teacher. Have him/her show you how to safely smell a whiff of formaldehyde. Once you do that, you'll know that you'll NEVER be able to vape formaldehyde.

Hope it helps and Happy Vaping!

+1
Formaldehyde is nasty

 

[Completely Average]

View attachment 423890
Hi kenjai and welcome to the forum!

Here's a thought: Find a high school chemistry teacher. Have him/her show you how to safely smell a whiff of formaldehyde. Once you do that, you'll know that you'll NEVER be able to vape formaldehyde.

Hope it helps and Happy Vaping!

In small amounts mixed in with flavorings you would never notice it.

Did you ever smell or taste the formaldehyde in a cigarette? I can assure you it was there.

 

[Robert Cromwell]

Thanks! How does temperature fit into this? Would it be amps??
Any idea at what temperature (or amps) does formaldehyde form?

The amps it would take to make formaldehyde would depend on the ohms of the heating coil, airflow over the coil, how wet the coil is and another item or 2 I think. Not a simple answer.

 

[Robert Cromwell]

In small amounts mixed in with flavorings you would never notice it.

Did you ever smell or taste the formaldehyde in a cigarette? I can assure you it was there.

Truth. We do not know yet how safe vaping is. I do believe it to be far safer than smoking though which makes it a viable alternative to me. However taken to extremes it might be just as bad as cigarettes in some ways.

 

[KattMamma]

I'm not a scientist, but reading some of the articles it seems you need to actually BURN something to get any measurable amount of formaldehyde. When you're vaping, you're not burning, you're vaporizing. If you burn it (wick or juice), you will notice because it will taste burnt -- right?

 

[DaveP]

Truth. We do not know yet how safe vaping is. I do believe it to be far safer than smoking though which makes it a viable alternative to me. However taken to extremes it might be just as bad as cigarettes in some ways.

Exactly. If your vapor is tasty with only a mild warmth you are probably in the safe range. There's no way to tell exactly when the bad chemicals are being produced in low levels, but it's likely that a wick approaching a dry state is beginning to produce formaldehyde in higher levels. No one likes a dry wick vape and that's likely to be the thing that keeps us from producing high levels of acetyl and formaldehyde, IMO.

Efficient wicking is key to safe vaping. Keep it wet.

If you want to look at actual chemical vapor levels measured over a three year medical school study of vaping, check out this report. The charts of chemical levels in the vapor compared to EPA limits for exposure are on pages 16, 17, and 18. Sure ecigs aren't as safe as breathing ambient air, but the chemical levels are far below EPA levels for industrial workplace exposure, most by magnitudes.

Peering through the mist: What does the chemistry of contaminants in electronic cigarettes tell us about health risks?
Igor Burstyn, PhD
Department of Environmental and Occupational Health School of Public Health Drexel University 1505 Race St., Mail Stop #1034 Philadelphia, PA 19102 USA Tel: 215.762.2909 | Fax: 215.762.8846 igor.burstyn@drexel.edu

http://publichealth.drexel.edu/~/media/Files/publichealth/ms08.pdf

 

[twgbonehead]

It should also be noted that the study found NO formaldehyde in the burnt vapor. They found "formaldehyde-releasing chemicals". And although formaldehyde itself is a known carcinogen, these compounds are not known to be carcinogens or otherwise harmful.