Smoking never bothered me. As long as I had that pack of tobacco. I would get grumpy and restless if it wasn't there. I would even sell a kidney to have tobacco. It all changed three years ago. Thanks to a simple, yet complicated solution.
The oxymoron
Did I just say "complicated"? What is complicated by vaporizing liquid by applying the right amount of heat? No, it's not complicated. It's easy. But like everything else, there is doing it and overdoing it. And I guess I overdo to a certain degree.
Vaping is not smoking
To the outsider, it might look far worse than smoking. Oh yes, I like to make massive clouds sometimes and I have seen all kinds of reactions to it. The fact is that the clouds are just that -not smoke. Compare it to fog. It disperses after a minute or two too. The sad thing is that it has the potential to set off fire alarms, especially the older ones. Something I have been forced to take into consideration.
It's all about nicotine
I have learned a few things about this mysterious molecule by eliminating the thousands of other chemicals found in tobacco smoke. And it's fascinating. I think clearer and relax better when it enters the blood stream. Vaping is in fact terribly ineffective at this, compared to traditional cigarettes or chewing tobacco. To compensate, careful calibration of nicotine concentration in the liquid is required. As a rule of thumb, start high and reduce as you learn. Take into consideration what equipment you use. High powered devices reduce the nicotine requirement since they go through liquid quicker than low powered ones.
Another fun fact I have learned from eliminating smoke from the nicotine consumption is that it is not as addictive as one would think. I can let it sit for hours and not touch it nowadays. While I would need a cigarette every 20-30 minutes before. And I can even sleep the night through without waking up for a trip to the balcony.
The concentration of nicotine has also diminished. From 24 mg/ml to 1,5 mg/ml nowadays. Do the percentages on that, its massive. And I'll continue to slash the concentration to prove a point. Not that I really care, nicotine is not as harmful as tobacco research shows. It does not cause cancer and is most probably good for learning and most certainly well being.
If I would choose something to compare nicotine to, it would be tea or coffee. Sure you get ill from too much. I used to overdose on coffee all the time. The jittery feeling from coffee is almost like overdosing the nicotine. In addition I get headaches. So adjusting the concentration is crucial to a pleasant vape.
There is bad chemicals in the vape. Science says...
Yeah right. You have probably read it somewhere about formaldehyde in e-cigarettes. The fact is that used correct, they don't produce much harmful chemicals. And studying the "science" reveals that is just what they did. One highly publicized study showing formaldehyde used as much as 3 times as much power than normal to produce the numbers they got. So the potential for harm is there, but who in their right mind would have a unpleasant vape? Not me.
There are some other concerns about chemicals. Especially when it comes to flavoring. Not all flavorings are suited for heating and like much else, certainly not over heating. My way of dealing with it is to mix my own liquids to have full control of which flavoring is used. So far the only problem I had with that is that some flavorings lose potency. And some tend to be irritating in the throat. I get rid of those.
Vaping as a exercise in physics and chemistry
While it's not necessary to go full nerd on a hobby, it certainly has its advantages.
What resistance should my coil have at 40 amp?
A question the advanced user has to know. Ohms law has to be in the equation or it will be a massive fail. Luckily you can choose to let others deal with the equations. But when building your own, it is necessary at least to look up a ohm calculator when installing a new build.
Material knowledge also comes into play. Personally I don't like the iron based wires wires. I can taste them and it's not what I want. Titanium gives me the cleanest taste and I use it all the time. One has to take extra care to not overheat it, I have experienced titanium "explode" and that is not good. But I'm most certainly one of the two percents that choose to use a different material than the norm.
Mixing liquids has become a dear hobby. There are thousands of different flavors to choose from and getting it right not always easy. Again, this is something I choose, the easy way would be to let someone else tease the taste buds. But I could go on and on on about the different qualities and quantities of flavoring and the perfect viscosity for the different atomizers.
Three years without the stinkies
Time flies. Especially when having fun.
The truth is that I didn't just quit cigarettes over night. It was a transition phase where tobacco gradually just tasted more and more grose. The sense of smell and taste returned from a comatose. It was a strange time.
The most important takeaway is that smoking can be eradicated with simple means. I was told it wasn't "scientifically proven". Well I am proof that it can be done. And I use scientific principles when handeling high powered batteries, making my preferred resistance and in my e-liquid mixing. I know there are different preferences on how to best apply that knowledge. And it is not one size fits all.