What is a pod system?

 

It is a type of vape system that generally has an internal battery and a pod (refillable or pre-filled). It consists of a coil (your heating element that turns the e-liquid into vapour) and a casing that can either be refillable or it can come pre-filled. The pod and coil tend to come in one sealed unit or you can have a pod with and interchangeable coil.

 

What is a coil?

 

Put simply, it is a metal shell that contains both cotton, which absorbs the liquid, and a coiled wire or mesh wire, which heats up the liquid that has been absorbed into the cotton.

 

What are pod systems generally used for?

 

Pod systems are generally used for e-liquids containing nicotine salts. They can be used for freebase e-liquids, but for cloud-chasers it is a bit of a disappointment. Your pod systems are typically used by people who are trying to quit smoking. They give the illusion of smoking a cigarette as they are generally quite small with a small mouth piece.

The ideal way of vaping a pod system would be to use the mouth-to-lung method. This is where you pull vapour into your mouth and then inhaling it into your lungs, similar to how most people would smoke a cigarette.

 

Nicotine Salts

 

Nicotine salts or nic salt, as most people would refer to it, is ideally used by people who are trying to stop smoking as it absorbs faster into the bloodstream with a longer lasting nicotine hit. It comes in medium to high-strength options. It is most satisfying in higher concentrations. It has a moderate flavour complexity. Optimum for mouth-to-lung vapers. It is best suited to lower wattage devices. Maximum 15 watts. It feels much smoother on the inhale than freebase.

 

Freebase Nicotine

 

It absorbs slower into the bloodstream. It also comes in medium to high-strength options. The higher the freebase nicotine concentrate the more of a throat-hit you will experience. This is when you feel a scratching or burning sensation in your throat. It has the highest flavour complexity and is the highest in cloud production (depending on your VG and PG ratio, more on that in later posts). It is optimal for direct-to-lung users (this is where you inhale the vapour directly into your lungs). It is best suited to your higher wattage devices, but can still be used in your low wattage devices. If you have low nicotine requirements, then using freebase nicotine is your best option.

If you are purely a flavour and cloud chaser with no desire for nicotine, then you can opt for a 0mg freebase e-liquid (an e-liquid that contains zero nicotine).

 

-Sam Beukes