So I just got an order from a vendor where I picked a 20/80 PG/VG mix for 3 5ml bottles of menthol. I had ordered several flavors all in the same mix so I just kept it when ordering the menthol. It came and had large chunks which I am assuming are undisolved crystals. I can't blame the vendor because I am the one that picked the ratios. I did pop each one in the microwave for 5 seconds and the whole solution turned to liquid and the chunks dissolved but it started getting chunks back in it by tonight. I looked through other threads to see if there might be a way to fix this. All I could find was ways to prepare the crystals before mixing in the VG mixes but nothing about what to do to fix it. Would some PGA added to it to dilute the mix and dissolve the crystals? And if PGA would work, how much would it dilute the flavor? Any other suggestions? TIA
Help with menthol crystals in a 20/80 PG/VG mix. Keeps solidifying.....
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I have some disconnects going through my brain reading this.
You ordered a juice and it has menthol solids forming in the bottle?
The only way I can see menthol crystals reforming is with a PG/VG base that is saturated. A saturated base is a flavoring, not a juice. So, the question is, have you dared try this juice? If you have, are you able to taste anything after vaping it? (I mean anything including coffee, tea, or whatever is on your plate.) If the liquid is fully saturated, I would expect some numbing of the mouth and throat after a vape. (I also don't know if you could ever get the menthol out of that atty with any reasonably easy method if the base is fully saturated.)
Yes, PGA would help to increase the amount of menthol crystal that the juice can absorb, but if you have crystals in your bottle, I cannot imagine that the flavor would be reduced enough that it would be detectable as you are already above full saturation which does not sound like a juice to me, just a flavoring to be used to make juice.
You ordered a juice and it has menthol solids forming in the bottle?
The only way I can see menthol crystals reforming is with a PG/VG base that is saturated. A saturated base is a flavoring, not a juice. So, the question is, have you dared try this juice? If you have, are you able to taste anything after vaping it? (I mean anything including coffee, tea, or whatever is on your plate.) If the liquid is fully saturated, I would expect some numbing of the mouth and throat after a vape. (I also don't know if you could ever get the menthol out of that atty with any reasonably easy method if the base is fully saturated.)
Yes, PGA would help to increase the amount of menthol crystal that the juice can absorb, but if you have crystals in your bottle, I cannot imagine that the flavor would be reduced enough that it would be detectable as you are already above full saturation which does not sound like a juice to me, just a flavoring to be used to make juice.
What hoosier said, this is beyond weird.
Have you tried a drop of this liquid on the back of your hand (presuming it isn't very high in nic and you very un-used to nicotine)?
Yesterday I put a tiny drop of menthol dissolved in PGA on the back of my hand, just to be able to better sniff it. I then washed my hand casually. I still *felt* the menthol 10 minutes later! And this was a very very weak solution.
(OK, PGA in itself would have some cooling/anesthetizing/drying effects, and the high VG in your liquid might "insulate" the menthol a bit, but if it is really a saturated solution you should certainly feel the menthol, and feel it for a good long time.)
Have you tried a drop of this liquid on the back of your hand (presuming it isn't very high in nic and you very un-used to nicotine)?
Yesterday I put a tiny drop of menthol dissolved in PGA on the back of my hand, just to be able to better sniff it. I then washed my hand casually. I still *felt* the menthol 10 minutes later! And this was a very very weak solution.
(OK, PGA in itself would have some cooling/anesthetizing/drying effects, and the high VG in your liquid might "insulate" the menthol a bit, but if it is really a saturated solution you should certainly feel the menthol, and feel it for a good long time.)
I bought some Virgin Vapor Organic Menthol Moon Drops in 100% VG, 12mg nic strength. It has a ring of solidified menthol crystals around the dropper. It vapes fine, though. May not be dangerous, just aggravating. I've seen people compliment her juice because of this feature??? What makes it dangerous?
Nothing dangerous. Have you ever had a menthol fully saturated PG on your skin? (Think IcyHot or Bengay kind of feeling.) Too much menthol in vape has a numbing effect on the mouth and throat.
Also, the OP reads like the crystals are forming in the bottle which is unusual, to the extreme for a juice, not on the dripper which is common for any menthol containing liquid. The carrier can evaporate and leave the solids behind on the dripper's exterior to re-crystalize.
Also, the OP reads like the crystals are forming in the bottle which is unusual, to the extreme for a juice, not on the dripper which is common for any menthol containing liquid. The carrier can evaporate and leave the solids behind on the dripper's exterior to re-crystalize.
I've heard of this on VG based liquids containing lots of menthol. I don't think there's much you can do about it really as VG is not a good solvent for menthol. It's likely to be saturated so you should still have a fair amount of menthol in the juice even if you don't re-dissolve the crystals by warming it each time.
Sorry for taking so long to answer back and thanks for the responses. I bought it as ejuice so I can only assume that it is not just a flavoring. It does start to solidify later after I had warmed it up again. It is labeled 5 ml and 18mg nic Menthol. Today I warmed it up using some hot water so it was all liquid again. I put a couple drops on the back of my hand. It had a nice strong smell of menthol like in vicks vapor rub but didn't numb or irritate the skin. I put about 15 drops into a spare cartomizer and gave it a couple puffs. Really nice very strong menthol flavor but not a "knock you on your azz" hit. And I still could taste other stuff afterwards. I still want to see if I can salvage these bottles even though they didn't cost much as they were samples but still... My intentions were to never vape the menthol straight but to combine with other ejuices. What if I got all 3 warmed up and back to liquid form and then poured all 3 into a larger bottle, if I add some PGA to further dilute it, do you think that would work?
And note to self, next time get 100% PG Menthol and I shouldn't have to go through this again....
And note to self, next time get 100% PG Menthol and I shouldn't have to go through this again....
I think adding some PGA would probably help it to dissolve the menthol. Remember anything you add to it will reduce the nicotine level.
I think what most DIY VG users do is make a menthol concentrate with PGA, which you can add to mixes and AFAIK it shouldn't re-crystallize. Just mix some crushed crystals and PGA and you can add the mix to other juices to suit your taste.
I think what most DIY VG users do is make a menthol concentrate with PGA, which you can add to mixes and AFAIK it shouldn't re-crystallize. Just mix some crushed crystals and PGA and you can add the mix to other juices to suit your taste.
Well I couldn't get my hands on PGA but I found some average 80 proof vodka. In one of the 5ml bottles, I had already used up about half of the menthol so I added about 10 drops of vodka to it after warming it up first and it stayed mostly liquid. On the other two 5ml bottles, I also warmed them up and had to add about 20-25 drops to each of them and they started slowly to crystalize again... I warmed them up again and added a few more drops to each but still a little bit of crystallization. Then I found that I had a 15ml empty bottle left over from earlier stuff. I once again warmed all 3 bottles up and immediately emptied all 3 into the 15ml bottle. After about an hour, I went to check on it and it was still looked completely liquid. I wondered if maybe I had diluted the menthol too much now so I tried vaping it. WOW!!!! It was pretty overwhelming. I don't know if I was tasting the menthol or the vodka but it was strong! I could only take light puffs. In total, I think I have added about 2.5ml of vodka. Does that seem like it might be too much? I went back after about 2 hours to check on the mix and again I saw some solids in it but just shaking it up would get it to dissolve. I will check on it later this morning and see what happens. This whole thing has been rather a pain so once this stuff is used up, I think I will try to get some menthol crystals, try and track down some real PGA and do it right....
Ya, with menthol crystals, dilute with pga then STILL use the resulting drops sparingly. As you've found (the hard way) a little goes a long way
Well I found some menthol already mixed from ecigexpress that was menthol crystals dissolved in PGA. I was able to buy a couple bottles and it is 66% crystals and 34% PGA. I thought the price was very good so I ordered several 30ml bottles of the stuff. It was a lot cheaper than if I had to buy my own crystals and a bottle of PGA locally as it is only offered in 1/5ths. It was also about 1/2 the cost of the 80vg/20pg menthol juice that kept crystallizing on me. This stuff stays fully dissolved in the bottle which is what I wanted. And this stuff is WAYYYYY strong. I discovered that adding just 1 drop to 10 drops of ejuice is almost too much. At that rate, I think I am set on menthol for quite a while. It seems to mix very well with my 80vg/20pg ejuices so I think my problem is solved.
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