With ever improving technology comes complexity and, like it or not, that’s part of the deal with vaping. Or, at least, it is when you get deeper into the activity and seek to personalise the experience so you get the very most out of it as possible. For instance, when it comes to e-liquid, you’ll find that, ingredients-wise, the ratio varies between high content of vegetable glycerin (VG) and low content of propylene glycol (PG) – and vice versa. But why? Or, to put it another way, which ratio is best to choose for different vaping priorities…?
First class for throat hits
For great throat hits your ratio of choice ought to be high PG/ low VG in a e-liquid (wherever you may buy it from; like, say, a highly recommended vape shop London). This is because of the relative thinness of PG compared to VG; should the e-liquid you’re consuming thicker it’ll make for a thicker, more luxuriant, smoother and far less ‘throaty’ experience. Additionally, natural flavours such as menthol could be relied on for decent throat hits. When it comes to a fairly mild throat hit, though (a hit that feels pretty balanced, that is), go instead for a fluid with higher VG content – and practically no throat hit, you’ll be wanting to opt for something close to 100 percent VG.
Fantastic for flavour
Similarly, higher PG content is also good for bringing out the flavour in your e-liquids – again, because the thinness of the fluid enables the taste to transport its way to your mouth (and taste buds) without the impediment of relatively thick, rich liquid to fight its way through. Moreover, PG has the added advantage of carrying no natural taste of its own; thus, flavour-wise it offers up nothing that can get in the way of the any and every inkling of flavour whatever e-liquid you’re vaping offers up.
Great for reduced tank gunk
Once more, the better ratio choice for keeping your vape tank clear of gunk – thereby helping to clean it and ease of all-round use of your e-cig device – is higher PG/ lower VG. And, again, it’s because the thicker the consistency of the fluid the more likely you’ll experience gunk build-up – and quickly, at that. So, even should you prefer higher VG/ lower PG ratios in your e-liquid, it’s maybe worthwhile switching that around sometimes to ensure the tank isn’t always getting clogged up.
The choice for cloud chasing
One area in which higher VG content/ lower PG content comes up trumps, however, is in facilitating cloud chasing. The art of producing the maximum amount of vapour on the out-breath of a vape, cloud chasing is all about generating as big and impressive clouds of vapour as possible, often to impress judges in competitions here, there and everywhere around the world. And, yes, that’s all because the thickness of VG-dominated fluids increases the density and, thus, the thickness and size of the clouds you can make.
What ratio’s best for different device types?
Finally, a good question to end on, this one. The fact is if your e-cig device is beginning to age or, especially, if it’s one that possesses smaller coils than many up-to-the-minute devices to, then a higher-PG-ratio e-juice ought to be your pick. The reason? Again, it comes down to wanting to avoid a build-up of unnecessary gunk in your tank and an easy clogging up of the smaller coils. Meanwhile, if you own a device with a rebuildable atomiser then you’ll find it easy to vape with higher-VG-ratio liquids, as it lends itself to customisation; thus, it becomes possible to personalise the device to accommodate VG-vaping over PG-vaping.
Yet, with devices that possess sub-ohm tanks, you arguably have the best of both worlds because, owing to their ability to operate at higher voltages, heavy VG-vaping’s no problem as the gunk build-up issue’s unlikely to be serious – the greater power results in greater heat, which in turn results in a burning through of gunk.