Ultrasonic Cleaning of Atomizers - The VERY BEST way !!!!

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qccraig

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No, just plain water. Put it through 4 x 8min cycles, shook / blew out the water and heated the coil up to vaporize the water in the wick and put it all back.

75% water and a 25% vodka if a person did not want to use straight vodka in their cleaner. Use cheap vodka not Ketel One or Absolute. A while back I used to put a small touch of vodka in my dripping e-juice, it seemed to enhance the vapor. I don't know if a few drops of vodka in the e-juice is good for the atty; probably isn't but it sure vaped nice.

CraigW
 

tommycompton

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Oct 31, 2012
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Would using a heated ultrasonic cleaner with water work better or worse than a non-heated ultrasonic cleaner with alcohol?

The non-heated ones sell for around $30 whereas the heated ones sell for around $80. I'd pay the extra for the heat if it cleaned the attys better.

Thanks. :)

The sound waves of an ultrasonic do travel better through heated liquid, you can however use warm/liquid to start. In a quality ultrasonic the liquid in the tank will heat up on it's own eventually.
Not all ultrasonics are the same, you usually get what you pay for. I've had a cheapo that did nothing more than vibrate. An ultrasonic that is efficient and effective will actually put dents and small holes in a strip of aluminum foil when you submerge it, if it doesn't your cleaner is crap.

I have a quality one that I use for cleaning Cleartomizers/attys, I even use it for steeping my brews, it mixes the @#@! out of it.
 

Maconi

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The sound waves of an ultrasonic do travel better through heated liquid, you can however use warm/liquid to start. In a quality ultrasonic the liquid in the tank will heat up on it's own eventually.
Not all ultrasonics are the same, you usually get what you pay for. I've had a cheapo that did nothing more than vibrate. An ultrasonic that is efficient and effective will actually put dents and small holes in a strip of aluminum foil when you submerge it, if it doesn't your cleaner is crap.

I have a quality one that I use for cleaning Cleartomizers/attys, I even use it for steeping my brews, it mixes the @#@! out of it.

I went ahead and bought the non-heated one (I figured I can boil my own water and pour it in if the heat really helps). I can use distilled water as well to avoid the mineral build-up mentioned before (although I don't object to the Vodka idea, just a bit more expensive if I want to clean it regularly lol).

Amazon.com: New Trent CD-7810 Professional Ultrasonic Watch, Jewelry, CD and Eyeglass Cleaner: Electronics

I'll try the foil test on it tomorrow to see how it does. :2cool:
 

tommycompton

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Oct 31, 2012
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probably not on the same level as mine,
Branson 1510MT 0.5 Gal Ultrasonic Cleaner | getMedOnline.com
hopefully it works though.
I wouldn't dump a few hundred for one like mine just for cleaning attys.
I just happened to have a spare from work that i never used bio-medical cleaning, but sure works wonders on tons of other stuff, like attys :)
it has a tray for holding small cups, so i only need to fill a cup full of solution and not the whole tank (more vodka for me)

fyi If you can find a way to suspend your items being cleaned from resting on the bottom of the tank you will get better cleaning action. anything touching the tank can baffle the ultrasonic cavitation.
 
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Dnerve

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Over here in Ireland I can find this one, the JPL Ultra 7000

Will it work? It is rated at 42KHz/50W. Im thinking on using it on my rebuilded coils full of gunk instead of recoiling all the time. They come with ceramic cups like the picture here.

Will it destroy the silica wick? Or the Ceramic Cup?


Nobody huh? I guess I'll have ro take my chances then...
 

Thepinfamily

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I've been using an US cleaner for years while doing restorations and I clean anything that will fit inside. When cleaning old parts I use 91% IPA all the time. When cleaning e-cig parts I use 70% water and 30% IPA. With the diluted mixture there is almost no chance(or none) of fire. I fill the US with about an inch or two of tap water and put my 70/30 mix in another container and place it in the US Cleaner. Kind of like a double boiler. I use a container with a lid and place it loosely on top then close the lid on my US cleaner. You don't want the lids tight. You want the vapor to be able to vent so it doesn't accumulate. After running the parts for 1-3 cycles depending on their need I drop them in the 100% water in the cleaner and run them one more time. I do this about every 3-4 fills and nothing ever has time to cake up on the coils. I use CE5's and keeping them clean like this prevents any leaking or burnt taste completely. All US cleaners can be harsh and damage parts and their finishes. Over use or harsh solutions will speed this up. If your part needs any more than 15 min you are not cleaning enough or your cleaner is not strong enough. You can clean with straight water but it will take longer. It will take to long. Once you get into 20-30 min of cleaning you may start to have trouble with connections breaking free, glue working loose, wicks breaking apart, etc. Even with these hazards IMO its still a safer method of cleaning than many of the other methods I read about like boiling, long soaks in alcohol, etc. I've never cleaned a cartomizer since I don't use them but logic tells me that they would be best cleaned standing up on their threaded end so the cavitation can do its job and push the trash up and out. If it were me I would rubber band several together and stand them up. I'm new to vaping but not US cleaners so I thought I would post my two cents in an attempt to give back to a forum that helped me through a steep learning curve. It's nice to post some info instead of asking for some.
 

Thepinfamily

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One other thing. If you want to find out if your US cleaner is working properly and you have good cavitation this is what you can do to test it. Take a piece of aluminum foil and hang it inside the US cleaner. Submerged about halfway into straight water. Run the cleaner for 10 min and check the submerged edge of the foil. Somewhere between 10 and 15 min of cleaning you should start to see the foil edge is damaged. Any less than 10 min and its a very strong and harsh cleaner so be careful how long you leave things in. Any more than 15 min and its not strong enough. Just a guide to see where your cleaners at. If it doesn't break apart no matter how long you leave it in than is not working properly.
 
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