No matter how long you’ve been vaping it’s still easy to come across a term somewhere and scratch your head thinking, “What’s that mean?” So with this in mind we’ve decided to help you out with this complete list of e cigarette jargon.
510
The 510 is a type of e cig that’s hugely popular for its small size and cheap price. It was developed by JoyE and is one of the biggest selling e cigarettes on the market.
Analogue cigarette
Some vapers refer to tobacco cigarettes as analogue.
Article 20
A EU Tobacco Products Directive, introduced in 2014 that wants to see electronic cigarettes treated with the same stringent rules as tobacco.
Automatic / manual switches
Some e cigarettes have automatic switches where the air pressure when you start drawing triggers the electronics. Most e cigarettes are manual version and have a button which is pressed to start the heating.
Atomizer/ Atomiser
The atomizer is similar to a cartomizer and contains the e liquid. The majority of atomizers have a heating coil on the bottom with metal mesh on top of the coil.
Box Mod
A box mod is a mod that is box shaped and larger than standard sized mods. Some vapers prefer it for its versatility and higher voltage.
Cartridge
A cartomizer is usually referred to as a cartridge for cig-a-like e cigarettes.
Cartomizer
Cartomizer is similar to an atomizer combination but have polyfill wrapped around a heating coil. They usually come pre-filled and weren’t not meant to be refilled.
Cig-A-Like
An electronic cigarette that is designed to look like a traditional cigarette.
Clapton Coil
A type of coil that is similar to guitar string and named after Eric Clapton.
Cloud
The cloud is the amount of vapour exhaled and has the appearance of smoke.
Coil
The coil is the heating element within an atomizer.
Custom Mod
A custom mod is a handmade e cigarette.
Cut-off
A cut-off or automatic shutdown can happen if you take too long a puff from your e cigarette. It’s a safety device and can happen after a 5-8 second puff and will prevent the atomizer from overheating.
Drip Tip
Used instead of a regular cartomizer to directly drip e liquid on to the atomiser.
Dry hit
This happens when you take a puff of your e cig and no vapour is exhaled.
Dripping
Dipping is a method of adding e liquid directly on to the wick of an atomizer. The wick is moistened by dripping small amounts of e liquid. This is popular with advanced vapers as it generally produces more cloud.
Disposable E cigarettes
Disposable e cigs are designed to be used and discarded and generally aren’t refillable.
Dual-Coil Cartomizers
Cartomizers that have two coils to provide resistance instead of one. Generally these provide a greater hit.
EGo
A style of electronic cigarette that uses 510 threads and 510 components but with a larger battery.
EGo Threading
Standard threading based on the Ego battery.
E Liquid
Can come in a multitude of flavours and is the liquid the e cigarette heats.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
An branch of the United States government that oversees regulations pertaining to the safety of food and drug products sold in the USA. They’ve caused some controversy around e cigarettes and have a large say in their future in the USA.
Flooding
This can occur when too much e liquid is put into the atomizer. It usually results in a gurgling sound and the performance of the atomizer can be negatively affected.
Glassomizer
A clearomizer that uses glass rather than plastic for the tank. Examples would be the Kanger Protank.
Jig
A device used by enthusiasts that make their own e cigarettes. It makes rebuilding coils much easier.
Lithium Ion Batteries (Li-Ion)
Considered the most powerful batteries in the electronic cigarette market.
mA
An electronic unit 1/1000th of an amp. It’s often used in reference to the output of chargers.
mAh
Abbreviation for Milliamp hours, which is used to describe amount of charge a battery can hold before it needs recharging.
Mechanical mod
A vaping device that contains no electronics and popular among advanced vapers.
Micro
A very small e cigarette, usually between 50mm and 99mm long.
Mini
Larger than a micro, and usually 116mm to 139mm long.
Mod / Modification
A Mod is a modification done to a regular e cigarette to improve its performance. Can also be used on homemade e cigarettes.
PCC (Personal Charging Case)
A case that recharges some cartridges and atomizers. With one charge of the PCC unit itself you can usually fully charge up to 3 or 4 e cigarette batteries.
Penstyle
A type e cigarette that is 140mm to 160mm long. The ‘Penstyle’ name comes from the ballpoint pen-like appearance.
PG
Propylene Glycol, is an organic compound used in food processing as the E-number E1520. It’s a main ingredient in the production of e liquid.
Primer
Sometimes used a VG based primer for preservation and shipping. The primer is used inside the atomizer and on the coil.
Primer Puff
A primer puff is a quick puff to start the atomizer heating before the actual draw.
Rebuildable Atomizer
An atomizer that comes apart into its separate components.
Single Coil
A cartomizer that only uses one coil.
Silica
A material used for building wicks. Silica has a very high melting point, so it can be cleaned with an open flame.
Starter Kit
A kit that contains everything you need to start vaping. Most starter kits come with one or more atomizers, one or more batteries and a charger.
Steeping
Allowing your e liquid to sit either open to the air, or in a sealed container. This is generally not necessary e liquids that are high in PG.
Super Mini
A super mini e cigarette is usually 100mm to 115mm long. Sometimes referred to as a “Super”.
Tank
The container used to store the e liquid.
Throat hit
The sensation in the back of your throat when you inhale. E liquids with a higher PG ratio will tend to create a stronger throat hit.
Topping off
Adding few drops of e-liquid into a cartridge.
USB-pass through
A cable connected to a USB port that allows continuous power supply for the e cigarette.
Vaper
Equivalent to the word ‘smoker’.
Vaping
As above but vaping replaces the word smoking, and only used for people that vape e cigarettes.
Vapour drop-off
Where the amount of vapour produced by an e cigarette is significantly reduced. This may be due to a lack of e liquid, low battery, worn or broken atomizer.
Vaper’s Tongue
This is a common problem among vapers when vaping too much of one flavour, and taste buds can become desensitized. A common solution is to switch to a menthol e liquid for a period of time.
Variable voltage (VV)
A battery that allows the user to change the voltage.
Variable wattage (VW)
A battery that allows the user to change the wattage.
VG
VG stands for Vegetable Glycerine and is a basic ingredient in all e liquids. It is a simple polyol (sugar alcohol) compound which is colourless, odourless and widely used in pharmaceutical formulations.
Wick
The component of an atomizer that soaks up the e liquid. Usually made from silica but can also be made from rolled up steel mesh, fiberglass, cotton, and sometimes ceramic materials.
Wrap
One revolution of a wire during the process of building coils.
This is not an extensive list and we’re sure there are lots of vapers that would like to add more terms. E cigarettes are so popular now we could almost build our own dictionary! If you have an terms you’d like to see added, drop us a line in the comments below.
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