Boiled Cartomizers Not Working As Well

[annhat]

I've had my Smoke Stik over a week and after refilling my Smoke Stik and AzSmokefree cartos several times, I boiled them. They just don't seem to be working that great anymore. I blew out all the water and dried them for 24 hours then refilled. The draw is really tight and I'm not getting much of a throat hit it seems. Are the cartos just dying or did boiling do that to them?

[Brian]

Welcome to Vapor Talk! I haven't heard of very many people boiling cartos. If you're going to try and clean them, I would just run hot tap water through them and let them dry. Some people let them soak in a glass of Everclear or Vodka. Keep in mind that cartos are disposable.

I'm not familiar with how the Smoke Stik cartos are made, so I'm not much help, but I'm sure someone will be along with some tips.

[Christopher]

Atomizers can usually be boiled and will be ok. Cartomizers however cannot. They are cheap, disposable and not really meant to be cleaned. It's not to say that you can't but you risk damaging them.

[snubber]

I've tried to clean a couple and believe me it just isn't worth it.

Take it from an old cheapskate there are just some things that you can't skimp on,

And they were meant to be disposable any way so at the cost they really aren't that expensive to begin with.

So, when they start to go bad just chalk it up to they had a good life and toss them.

[JayH503]

I vape Kretek and its pretty thick liquid. When my 510 cartomizers seem a little clogged and they don't want to absorb fresh liquid, I just run hot tap water through them. Blow the excess water out of them then let them sit over night. I've been doing this with good results. I've never used smokestik before. I use eGo and 510 products. The best 510 cartomizers I've found are the low resistance ones from vaporkings. I bought some a while back and they are still goin strong. I'm not going to buy anything else as long as I can get these!

[owutaqt]

When you boil cartos you shrink the filling inside of them and although they will work they certainly do not perform like they did. I keep about 5 old ones that I have cleaned to try new flavors in but other than that, they are still cheaper than analogs.

[DerStadtschutz]

Has anybody ever tried soaking them in rubbing alcohol? I know that works for atomizers, but will it work for cartos as well? I know they're still cheaper than analogs and atomizers, but I'm a big cheapskate and like to get the most out of everything.

[DAYVAPE]

Has anybody ever tried soaking them in rubbing alcohol? I know that works for atomizers, but will it work for cartos as well? I know they're still cheaper than analogs and atomizers, but I'm a big cheapskate and like to get the most out of everything.

No, no, no.... throw them away when they get that damn bad!!

[Christopher]

Yea it's really not worth it.

It's like trying to clean a used paper towel...

[Jolly]

boiling cartos and attys is always a bad idea.

most people don't get that and think just because cleaning with super hot water works well that it applies to everything.

soaking them is the largest factor of cleaning both. sure heat helps but the heat you get from the hot tap is more than enough.

i do not advise using anything other than water to clean, unless it is citric acid, (something not harmful to us)

[DerStadtschutz]

well the way I see it, if it's "broken" and needs to be thrown out, how much damage can I really do by trying the rubbing alcohol? The worst I can imagine is it'll taste bad or just not work, but it will already be bad anyway. If it works, I extend the life of my carto, and if not, well then I just throw it out, which I would have done anyway. Rubbing alcohol is only harmful to humans if ingested, and it evaporates faster than water, leaving nothing behind.

[Jolly]

rubbing alcohol leaves a residue behind.

just because it evaporates quickly doesn't mean that it also takes away the chemicals.

again this is why you don't use chemicals. sure your atty/carto might be clean but you are taking in harmful chemicals.

[DerStadtschutz]

if it leaves behind harmful chemicals, then why do they use it to sterilize things, and why would you use it as an antiseptic for wounds? I've only ever noticed a residue left behind by ethyl rubbing alcohol(and a terrible taste), but not isopropyl rubbing alcohol. Also, what chemicalS? The only thing in it is isopropyl alcohol and water. That's only one chemical.

In fact, most tap water would contain more chemicals than the alcohol anyway. There's at least fluoride and chlorine in most tap water, not to mention calcium and lime. Fluoride and Chlorine aren't good for you either. And I rinse my atomizers before using them after soaking in alcohol anyway.