How often do you replace your coils?

[conanthewarrior]

Hi people, I was just wondering how long, in general, do your coils last? Mine are usually only in for a few days before I want to try something new as I am still new to this building malarky and RDA's, only a few weeks been doing it.

But, in my SMOK RBST 2 I made a coil, and have left it in there, that still works fine. I haven't changed the coil I put in there as it produces a nice vapour, and tastes great with a thinner drip tip at about 12-14 watts.

Thats been in there about a week and 6 days, how long do they usually last before they break, or theoretically could you use the same coil for a very long time?

 

[zaroba]

hmm

My current setup is a 0.12 ohm Mutation X v2 clone which is only a few days old since I just got a new sigelei 150 watt and wanted to try a lower build then my Sigelei 100 watt could take. My sigelei 100 watt still has the 0.18 ohm Yep RDA on it that I was using prior to my current setup. It's around a month old. Before the Yep RDA, I was using the Mutation X v2 clone daily with 0.14 ohm coils that were nearly 4 months old when I finally retired them.

Theoretically ,you could use them until they eventually breakdown (rust) and the wire physically breaks.
How long that takes depends on wire gauge and usage though. A thin wire like 28 gauge would fail a lot sooner then a thicker wire like 20 gauge.

 

[rolltidevaper]

With Kanthal I use the same coil till it breaks or won't fire. I have a couple (micro coils) that are several months old. I re-wick every few days, but if I like the coil I keep it. I do check to make sure the screws are still tight, but that's not usually a problem.
Now, with Nickel, I generally change it each time I re-wick. I might get lucky and be able to use it a couple of times, but it's so soft that removing the old wick will usually make it unusable. Haven't built with titanium yet, so have no opinion on that one.

 

[conanthewarrior]

Ahh that is good to know, as a few coils I've built stand out from the others (No idea why, I make them all the same) and knowing they will last a while is good. I have a couple of bags with pre-made coils of different gauges in different bags, plus loads of wire for when I feel like building, it gets a bit addictive lol. I find the turning the coils therapuetic in a way.

 

[Fenris4024]

Building coils to me IS very therapeutic. It for me, takes up part of that "fiddling" we used to do with out lighters and everything when we smoked. I'm also a detail whore, so if my coils aren't performing how I want them to, I rip em out and make new ones.

That being said, I've had coils I've made last from a measly week, to a month. A lot depends on the coil, and the juice.

I re-wick every 2-3 days (unless I screw up wicking on the build, then of course I change it, adjust it, fiddle with it, vape it, fiddle some more, etc )

I've gotten into the habit of rebuilding the coils on my daily driver on Sunday AMs unless I have a absolutely stellar performing coil... then it might get a stay of execution. I don't need to rebuild them so often (usually!) but something about that fresh coil... That and I have probably 8 miles of 24ga (in both Kanthal and nichrome) so rebuilding frequently isn't that big of a deal.

 

[UncleRJ]

I normally get a couple of months out of them minimum.

Its been a while since I have had a coil die on me but at about the 3 month mark, I take the whole device apart for a deep clean and a new coil.

 

[KaBoomStick]

I change coils all the time mainly for the fiddle and test factor. Rewick every day or two tops cause I change juice alot.

Rebuilding and cleaning is enjoyable for me. The fact pretty much all wire is affordable makes it fun to try all different levels of builds.

 

[cthulhufan]

Kanthal user here; I change every few months maybe unless I get an idea that I want to test. I have never replaced a coil due to a performance issue. I replace the wick when the flavor profile goes downhill, dry burn the coil to get the cruft off and just keep on keepin' on.

 

[TwistedWires]

when i rewick i just clean my coils and readjust any part that needs it. after awhile stuff builds up on the coils and effects the taste so cleaning them when you rewick is good to do. to clean i just heat it up several times to where it faintly turns red and i do this till smoke stops coming off the coil then i dunk it in 97% rubbing alcohol then fire one more time to make sure all the iso residue is gone. then off to a rewick! the look so pretty with their blued finish after cleaning!

 

[malachi]

Ive been building for a couple of month, the first week or two i was going through a coil everyday just to practice but now that im done messing around ive had my current coil for about a month now and its fine i clean it and rewick it every couple of days.