You’re Vaping Wrong: 5 Vaping Mistakes You’re Making & How to Overcome Them

A look at the top 5 biggest vaping mistakes people make and how to avoid them yourself.

Do your coils burn out in a few days? Does your vape pod constantly leak juice? Do your kits always end up broken or damaged? Do you vape endlessly without any fulfilment?

Newsflash: you’re vaping wrong.

We don’t expect you to know everything about vaping. But knowing how to use your vape correctly will save you time, money, and dignity in the long run.

Let’s take a look at the top 5 biggest vaping mistakes people make and how to avoid them.

We’ve gathered this list from years of customer support and thousands of individual reports—so, if you’re making any of these errors, you’re not alone. In fact, a large percentage of vapers are doing something wrong. There’s nothing to be ashamed of.

We can’t all be vaping experts, after all.

Top 5 Vaping Mistakes

1. You’re Using the Wrong E-Liquid in Your Device

This is likely one the biggest vaping mistakes people make, and it happens every day. Just a few days ago, my friend texted me a picture of her pod kit next to a shortfill bottle, asking, “can I put these together?”

I replied, “Nope. Rule of thumb: no big juice bottles go in that device. Leaky, burny, bad news.” Of course, I get to be the vape expert now, but it wasn’t always that way.

Until about a year ago, I thought the only difference between shortfills and freebase 10ml liquids was the nicotine content—I knew nothing about PG/VG ratios.

When I used shortfills in my MTL device, it would always leak, to the point that I had to keep my vape wrapped in kitchen roll whenever I went out. My coils came and went like the tides, to the point that I was burning through one every other day. I just thought I had a faulty kit.

Of course, I was vaping wrong. More specifically, I was vaping the wrong E-Liquids for my kit.

So, if you find that your E-Liquids aren’t agreeing with your vape kit or that you’re burning through coils almost immediately, you should probably look up the product information for your specific device to see if you’re vaping the right type of E-Liquid. Chances are you’re making one of the world’s biggest vaping mistakes, just as I was.

Remember: thicker E-Liquids like shortfills, CBD E-Liquids, and 100% VG E-Liquids (or, any E-Liquid with a VG ratio above 70%) should only be used in a sub-ohm or DTL kit capable of firing at higher wattages. These kits usually have coils with a resistance below 1.0Ω (ohm): hence the term sub-ohm.

Conversely, E-Liquids with a higher PG ratio (50% or more), including nic salts and freebase 50/50 E-Liquids, should only be used in an MTL kit—this includes most starter vape kits and pod kits. These devices generally have coils with a resistance above 1.0Ω (ohm).

Again, if you’re unsure which type of E-Liquid is compatible with your specific device, you should consult the User Manual or the device’s product information. At Vape Green, we always list compatible E-Liquid types in the device’s product description.

2. Your E-Liquids Are Too Sweet For Your Coil

I myself am a big fan of sweeter E-Liquids, and this is a tough one to remedy. Unlike other vaping mistakes where the solution is clear-cut, the answer to this is to either vape less sweet juices, or simply accept the fact that you’re going to burn through coils faster than other vapers.

What I will say is that you may find that some coils last longer with sweeter E-Liquids than others, which comes down to the structure of the coil and the coil’s materials. For more on this, check out our coil life guide.

For instance, I’ve found that the pods (which have integrated coils) for the OXVA Xlim Pro tend to last longer with extra-sweet E-Liquids compared to those of other similar pod kits, though I couldn’t exactly say why. The same goes for Vaporesso XROS pods.

3. You’re Overcharging Your Vape

Does your vape battery die much faster than it did when you first got it? Does it feel hot to the touch when you vape? If your answer to either question (or both) is yes and it’s been less than 6 months to a year since you first got the vape, you’re probably overcharging it. This is one of the biggest vaping mistakes you can make, but it’s also the easiest to remedy.

You’ve likely heard this said about mobile phones and laptops: that leaving them plugged in when they’re fully charged will only kill the battery. Well, vapes are powered by the same type of battery—a lithium-ion battery—which means that your vape will suffer the same fate as a phone or laptop when overcharged.

The solution for this one is simple: just don’t leave it plugged in unattended. When you charge your vape, make sure to only charge it until the battery is full—which means not leaving it plugged in overnight, as convenient as it is.

Similarly, it’s good practice to allow the battery to be fully drained (or, completely dead) every so often; keeping the battery “topped up” at all times can cause it to bloat inside the device, which can lead to power issues.

Overcharging your vape just shortens the life of the device, and no one wants that. Thankfully, many newer vape models charge faster than older ones, so you won’t be waiting for long. If you’re too impatient to wait, you should check out the Aspire Flexus Q Pod Kit, which reaches full charge in just 10 minutes!

The bad news is that if this is already happening to your vape, your battery may be beyond repair. If your kit houses an internal battery (one that you can’t remove yourself), then you’ll have to replace the entire kit and start fresh—but at least now you’ll know better.

Something that’s important to note here is that devices with an internal battery aren’t designed to last more than 2 years maximum anyway, so if this is happening to a vape you’ve been using for over a year, the battery has likely just reached the end of its life cycle. At that point, it’s not a matter of overcharging—it’s simply an age issue.

4. You’re Vaping the Wrong Nicotine Strength

Do you find yourself glued to your vape? Does the very thought of a dead battery give you palpitations? Probably not. But if you find yourself chain vaping, or vaping a lot—more than the other vapers you know—you’re likely not getting enough nicotine from your E-Liquid. This is another of the big vaping mistakes people make, but again, it’s very easy to remedy.

When shopping for E-Liquids, chances are you try to get the lowest nicotine strength you think you’ll need. While this is generally good practice with most chemical substances, with nicotine, you need to ensure that you’re getting enough to satisfy your cravings—particularly for vapers who have recently quit smoking.

When I was a smoker, before I knew any better, I was a dual user who vaped 3mg or 6mg freebase 10ml E-Liquids because that was all I thought I needed. I was glued to my vape all day long, and I still continued to smoke about 5 cigarettes a day. Little did I know that if I had simply switched to a 20mg nic salt, I’d have quit smoking in a jiffy.

In fact, that’s what I did—and I quit smoking in a week.

The other important key to my personal experience here is that the day that I switched to a higher-strength nic salt, I immediately realised that I was no longer chain vaping. I could put the vape down and leave the room without feeling bereft or anxious.

Getting enough nicotine, especially when you’re trying to quit smoking or have recently quit, is crucial, because it prevents you from going back to those tarry cancer sticks. Eventually, your body will start to disagree with the cigarettes, and soon after, the very smell of a burning cigarette will put you off.

So, if you’re making this common mistake, it’s probably time to try a higher nicotine strength.

For a more in-depth guide to finding your perfect nicotine strength, check out our article: What Nicotine Strength Should I Buy?

5. You’re Not Taking Advantage of Airflow & Wattage

Now, I prefer a smaller MTL hit myself, but even so, this still applies: if you find yourself uncomfortable or coughing a lot when you vape, you should consider how you inhale and where your airflow valve is set, if your device has adjustable airflow. When you inhale vapour without letting enough clean air in, the vapour isn’t as diluted and is therefore more likely to irritate your throat.

Of course, if coughing or discomfort persists beyond simple adjustments to your vape and vaping style, you should consider the possibility of a Propylene Glycol (PG) intolerance or sensitivity. Contact your GP or medical provider with any concerns, and in the meantime, check out our article: Causes of Vaper’s Cough.

Similarly, not taking advantage of adjustable wattage is another of the big vaping mistakes people make, often without realising. Your device may or may not have adjustable wattage, which can look anything like a series of different-coloured LED lights on a simple pod kit to the minute, watt-by-watt adjustments you can make on a more advanced vape kit menu screen.

How you set your wattage should come down to your vaping style. If you feel that you vape is too strong or your throat hit is too harsh, try turning your wattage down. Conversely, if your vape feels too weak on the throat or isn’t delivering the throat hit you’re hoping for, crank that bad boy up.

The most important thing to note with regard to wattage is that with most advanced vape kits, the coils you use play a big role in what wattage you should set your device. Most coils will have a recommended wattage range, so you should pay close attention to this when setting your power output.

Takeaway: Vaping Mistakes No More!

So, now you know that you’re vaping wrong—or, at least, you know which vaping mistakes you’re making (and I know I’m guilty of at least one or two here). Know that you’re not alone, and that no one expects you to be a vaping expert.

Still, taking care of your vape and ensuring you’re not making these big vaping mistakes will guarantee the long life of your device and a better vaping experience for yourself in the long run. It’ll also ensure the success of your quitting journey, which is probably the most important facet of all.