Do you vape? If you do vape, do you use a device like the JUUL – and if the answer to that question is “yes,” are you tired of using nothing but tobacco and menthol e-liquids all of the time?
Well, there’s a relatively simple solution to that problem.
In case you weren’t aware, the United States government made a fairly major change to this country’s vaping regulations at the beginning of 2020. Hoping to make e-cigarettes like JUUL less appealing to teen vapers, the government banned pre-filled pods and cartridges in sweet flavors like mango, mint and vanilla, leaving just tobacco and menthol available with the hope that only adult vapers would want to buy those products.
Bottled e-liquids, however, are still available in all flavors. If you’re a pod system user and are missing flavored vaping products, then, the solution is clear: You need to buy a refillable vaping device, so you can start using bottled e-liquid instead of pre-filled pods. To put it more specifically, you need to buy a refillable pod vaping system if you want to use a device that doesn’t limit your flavor selection but feels basically the same as the device you’re using now.
So, what’s the experience like for owners of refillable pod vaping systems? Are they hard to use? You’re going to learn the answers to those questions now.
What Comes With a Refillable Pod System?
A refillable pod system is essentially a complete vaping starter kit, and it includes everything that you need except the e-liquid, which you’ll need to buy separately. A typical pod vaping kit includes the pod system itself along with one or two empty pods and a charging cable. The kit will also include an instruction manual and may come with a small bag of spare parts like silicone o-rings.
When you’re ready to shop for a refillable pod system, all that you’ll need is the starter kit and one bottle of vape juice.
How Do You Buy E-Liquid for a Refillable Pod System?
Although you can use just about any e-liquid on the market with a refillable pod system, you’re going to have the best experience if you use nicotine salt e-liquid. You’ll have no trouble finding it at your local vape shop. Nicotine salt e-liquid usually comes in a small bottle, and it always says “salt” on the label.
Where flavor is concerned, your best bet is to start with any flavor that sounds like it would appeal to you. That’s the beauty of using a refillable vaping device – you get to choose from hundreds of different flavors. You should never stop trying new e-liquids, because that’s a big part of what making vaping as enjoyable as it is.
The one very important thing about buying e-liquid for a refillable pod system, however, is making sure that you choose the right nicotine strength. Most of the time, nicotine salt e-liquids come in two different strengths. The higher of the two strengths will be in the range of 40-50 mg/ml, and the lower strength will be around 20-25 mg/ml.
If you already vape, choosing the right nicotine strength when you begin using a refillable pod system is actually quite simple; you should choose the strength closest to what you already use. JUUL pods, for example, are available in two different nicotine strengths in the United States, and those are very close to the nicotine strengths that you’ll find when you shop for bottled nicotine salt e-liquid.
If you have never vaped before, you should generally choose the highest available nicotine strength because that’s the strength that will come closest to matching the nicotine delivery of the cigarettes that you currently smoke.
How Do You Use a Refillable Pod System?
Finally, we’ve reached the point where we’re going to answer the question that brought you here in the first place. Are refillable pod vaping systems hard to use? As a matter of fact, a refillable pod vaping system is one of the most user-friendly vaping devices that you could ever hope to own. Although refillable pod systems might look a little complicated on the surface, the fact is that using one feels just about the same in practice as using a pre-filled device like the JUUL. The only difference is that you’re going to fill your own pods, and you’re going to learn everything that you’ll ever need to know about filling a vape pod the very first time you do it.
When you open up your new pod system, the first thing you’ll want to do is charge the battery by connecting the included USB cable to the device and to your computer. The indicator light on the device will tell you that the charge cycle is complete by either changing color or turning off.
Next, you’ll fill your pod. Depending on the design of your vaping device, you’ll open the pod either by removing the mouthpiece from the top of the pod or by opening a rubber stopper on the side. Insert the tip of your e-liquid bottle into the opening and squeeze the bottle until the pod is almost full. To help prevent the pod from leaking, you should always leave a little room for air at the top of the pod.
After filling the pod, close it and wait several minutes for the pod’s wick to become completely saturated with e-liquid. This is really the most important aspect of filling a vape pod. If you start vaping right away, you risk burning the wick. If that happens, you’ll never get a good flavor out of the pod.
After waiting several minutes, insert the pod into your vaping device and inhale gently. You’re vaping! That’s all there is to know about using a refillable pod vaping system. Although learning to fill your own pods does mean that owning a refillable system requires just a little more effort than owning a device like the JUUL, the fact that you can now use every e-liquid flavor on the market will make the effort more than worthwhile.