Wicking Material Options?

[CadetOfVapour]

I have been using organic cotton for a while then tried rayon and started having issues with a scratchy throat and a choking sensation. I started using silica wick and was wondering if silica was safe? I have read around and it seems that silica could cause health risks. Any information on this subject would be helpful.

 

[Renuzor]

Sorry for bad english but are you sure your not "allergic" for pg? Have you changed juices on other wicks you have tried? Friend at work thought he had flu and throath hurt for 2 weeks when he started vaping and used high pg, he changed to pure vg and he doesnt have any issues anymore.

 

[CadetOfVapour]

I tested to see if it was pg, but the pg didn't seem to bother me. I'm also sure that's it not the flu because I have been noticing this for about the last month. I'm questioning the safety of silica and other possible wicking options I may have.

 

[Renuzor]

There is mesh wick you can try but i think it needs own special atty to work but not sure, try googling around or use search option on this forum

Edit. And i think theres not safe thing to inhale to your lungs except for air sry, bad joke

 

[CadetOfVapour]

I tried gennys a long time ago and I couldn't stand the taste of mesh. I don't want to seem picky because I will vape almost anything, but I read some old threads on silica and I couldn't make out an answer. The supposed problem with silica is that small shards may break free from the wick and be inhaled.

 

[Matthew Shelbourn]

I've heard a lot of things about the different wicking materials used in e-cigs. I don't know whether it's been proven or not, but supposedly the issue with silica is that it produces small particles when heated which may then be inhaled. These particles are said to have negative effects on the respiratory system. Who knows if it's true, but when this news surfaced it was enough for the vape shop I used to work for to not sell silica anymore.

A "safer" alternative to normal silica is Ekowool. Ekowool is braided silica and its physical structure prevents small particles from becoming airborne while vaping.

I've used rayon (cellucotton), organic cotton, and organic Japanese cotton regularly for at least 6 months now. I use rayon more than the other two and have never had any issues. I find that rayon lasts longer than organic cotton. But if flavor is your thing, then I would definitely go with Japanese cotton because it tastes the best in my opinion.

What kind of build are you using? What resistance are you vaping at? These may have something to do with your experience with Rayon.

 

[CadetOfVapour]

I'm using standard micros with 28ga Kanthal at around 1.0-1.2 ohms in my rose and kayfuns and around .4 on all my drippers.

 

[Renuzor]

Sorry but my knowledge ends here, all ican say what i have heard from my parents (both have been doctors 30+ years) is it can be too soon to say what is healthier than other because it can take 10-30+ years to see effects on body and lungs, but i also have heard cotton may be healthier than silica, i have also heard light cola is healthier.If you want my opinion its Life is too short to think things like these, i eat, drink, smoke and use what i want, when i want and how i want, at least im enjoying my Life how i want and not how somebody else wants. i hope i helped you even little.

 

[CadetOfVapour]

Renuzor, I appreciate all of your help and I completely agree with what you said. Life is too short. I'm just trying to keep my lungs as healthy as possible while I can before global warming gets us all .

 

[Lessifer]

It's been awhile since I looked at silica, but I remember reading that the kind we use doesn't fragment into small enough pieces to be harmful, but then there were others who argued otherwise. If you're worried about silica, you can look into braided ceramic, it's xc-116 for the 1/16" version. There's a vendor that treats it by kiln firing it and curing it, I can't remember their name but they branded it as ReadyXWick I think.

Other than that, you can try the other types of cotton, or hemp fibers. Popular are organic, rayon, and japanese pads like KGD.

 

[CadetOfVapour]

All right I might try that ceramic wick. Why does it have to be kiln treated where silica doesn't? I know it seems like I'm asking a lot of questions, but I'm curious for my health as well the health of others.

 

[Alter]

I first used rayon and was unhappy with its results(drier feeling hits but not dryhits) enough to be harsh and give me a sore throat so I reverted back to hemp fiber builds. I read a bit ago somewhere I forgot but it said that rayon contracts when wet or juiced. I then overstuffed my 1.4 ohm kayfun build, thinned out the tails to loose some of the bulk and it performs wonderfully now. I assume my problem was that I was treating the rayon like cotton/hemp with just enough wick to slide back and forth with little restriction and getting poor results.
I will get some use out of that 500' box I've had sitting in the closet for months now.

 

[CadetOfVapour]

AlterUrEgo, did you also get a choking sensation when you had problems with rayon?

 

[Matthew Shelbourn]

Well... the 1.0-1.2 ohm builds shouldn't be an issue and the 0.4 ohm builds shouldn't be too much of an issue either. However, heat could be a factor. Did you notice the problem just when you switched to rayon or when you started using sub-ohm builds?

To be safe, I would use organic cotton, Japanese cotton or Ekowool. Make sure you drink plenty of water because vapor will dehydrate you. If the problem persists then I would only vape on builds with a resistance of 0.8 or higher. I'm only saying that because I can't handle the super low resistance builds. I used them for a few weeks and started waking up with a sore throat and was coughing more. I now run a 0.8 ohm build and don't have any issues.

 

[williamclarkonet]

I have been using organic cotton for a while then tried rayon and started having issues with a scratchy throat and a choking sensation. I started using silica wick and was wondering if silica was safe? I have read around and it seems that silica could cause health risks. Any information on this subject would be helpful.

PBusardo has a REALLY good video on this subject https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcZjaG9RPZ4

 

[CadetOfVapour]

I have vaped on sub-ohm builds for a while, but honestly I rarely drip so the super low ohm builds aren't an issue for me lol. I tried going back to cotton, but had the same problems as I did with rayon for a good week. Water is no problem for me, in the Marine Corps they make sure you have plenty of water daily. I've heard great things about Japanese cotton, whats the difference between that and say organic cotton balls.

 

[Lessifer]

All right I might try that ceramic wick. Why does it have to be kiln treated where silica doesn't? I know it seems like I'm asking a lot of questions, but I'm curious for my health as well the health of others.

From their site: READYxWICK™
Is a ceramic based wicking material that has been heat treated to well OVER the suggested heat treatment schedule of 1652°F for 12+ hours to ensure that we are producing the safest product possible on the market today. Our exact and proprietary heating method and schedule (Time, Temp, and Steps) is a protected secret, but we have spent months and treated thousands of feet of ceramic wick perfecting and producing the absolute best results with our unique and proprietary treatment schedule and method.

During this process the toxins are released from the material and the fibers are bonded together. This process is absolutely necessary. Any untreated Ceramic Wick should never be use

READYxWICK® ~ Premium Soft Ceramic Wick

 

[Lessifer]

The japanese cotton is organically grown, untreated cotton, no pesticides or chemicals used at all. It's also kept in long fibers when it's formed into pads, so it wicks better as long as you don't cut across the grain.

 

[CadetOfVapour]

That's very interesting. I wonder if silica is considered a ceramic wick?

 

[Alter]

I'm a avid protank user, rebuilding my own coils for a long time now and know exactly how my builds perform, once I feel that performance starting to lax its time to rewick. With my protanks and hemp it would take @ 5 days at 6-8 mls a day before I could feel the coil begin to lax.
Rayon would vape just fine until the 2nd tank full then begin to feel like I had to pull harder and harder to get a reasonable vape, thus by the end of the 2nd tank my throat would feel raw along with vapor production would be noticeability decreased. I wrote the rayon off as a fad and back to hemp.
I usually vape 50/50 and have no issues but get a slight headache from 70/30vg so I could have some intolerance to PG.
Bottom line IMO if your wicking the rayon like cotton/hemp along with the rayon contracting your vaping what can be said as a "hotspot" but its the entire coil since there isn't enough wicking making contact with the coil to vaporize the juice properly thus your getting a sore throat from the hot metal coil, as for the choking sensation I can only say that you might be somewhat dehydrated but I actually don't know.