Vaping in Winter: 5 Useful Tips for Vaping in Cold Weather

by Martin B. · January 17, 2016

It’s January again, and a considerable part of the Northern Hemisphere is enjoying (or enduring?) winter. Apart from the fact that this time of the year, precipitation is falling down in the form of gorgeous snowflakes, winter comes with plenty of hassles. Although we will not be talking about your car stuck in a heap of snow here, which certainly is also an unpleasant situation, let’s take a look at what electronic cigarette users need to be prepared for and provide a few tips for vaping in winter.

Vaping in Winter: 5 Tips for Vaping in Cold Weather

Avoid Using Metal Drip Tips

In winter, frostbite is something almost everyone fears, and you’ve also probably heard or even experienced how easily human skin sticks to cold metal surfaces. Well, the same fate awaits your lips and tongue when using a vaping tank with a metallic drip tip at sub-zero temperatures. To avoid such mishaps, simply get some plastic, rubber or even glass (yes, that also works better than metal) replacement mouthpieces for a few dollars or spend approximately the same amount of money on a protective lip balm.

When vaping in winter, avoid using metal drip tips

Look After Your Batteries

Cold weather and batteries simply don’t mix well. In fact, at –20°C (–4°F), most batteries stop functioning. And even if your beloved vaping mod most probably will not be exposed to temperatures that low, you still need to take some precautions when vaping outside.

Due to the chemical processes in your batteries occurring more slowly in cold weather, their energy levels tend to decrease. This usually means decreased battery life and weaker performance, which might be quite annoying for a passionate vaper. One can avoid this from happening simply with the help of common sense – keep your mod in an inner pocket of your clothing and don’t leave it overnight in a cold vehicle. Also, make sure to carry your charger and even some spare batteries with you at all times, especially if going for a longer trip – because you will need them much more often than in summer.

Stay Away from Pure VG E-Liquid

If you are allergic to propylene glycol (PG), skip this step and just try to keep your e-liquid always in a warm place. Otherwise, it is a nice idea to switch to an e-liquid with higher PG content when it’s cold outside – this will simply save you from many issues. Why? Vegetable glycerin (VG) is much more viscous and it also starts to crystallize at higher temperatures than PG, which means that pure VG or high-content VG e-liquids tend to become quite syrupy in cold weather, hindering proper wicking of the coils.

Kanger Subox Mini kit with a bottle of a tobacco & chocolate blend called Alchemy from our beloved SteamWorks line

Quite a number of vaping tanks are notoriously known for their ‘winter issues’ – aside from possible leaking of the tank, many pre-made coils also do not handle low temperatures very well. However, e-liquid with high PG content (at least 50% or even 70%) usually improves vaping performance in cold weather.

If you’re still getting dry hits with an unbearable taste, there is a couple more things you can do to make it all better. First, you can, of course, carry your vape gear in an inner pocket or in a nice, knitted pouch, made with love by your grandma. Secondly, try to at least warm your e-liquid bottle with your hands before filling the tank, and thirdly, take a few ‘primer puffs’ to help warm up the coil and e-liquid around it.

Also, if you happen to leave your e-liquid in the car overnight, don’t worry much – it will take some time to unfreeze, but the flavor and other characteristics of the e-juice are usually not affected by freezing.

Keep Your Devices out of Moisture

In winter, everything tends to be wet – your clothes, your hands, your dog, and even your vape gear. As snow consists of water in solid state, it might seem quite harmless to electronic devices. However, sometimes it melts faster than you can blink – especially when it lands on a warm vaping mod. This obviously means unwelcome water on your vape gear, which even may prove to be deadly to it. Therefore, once again, be always sure to put your devices in a warm and covered place, protected from all the elements.

Be Careful When Wearing Gloves

When temperatures drop and snow starts falling, gloves become a mandatory accessory. Many people have gloves on when working outside, handling household duties and even when driving, so in winter, vapers naturally tend to also use their cloud chasing devices with the extra protection layer on their hands.

That itself, of course, is not an issue, and if you feel comfortable doing so, go ahead. However, remember that things can very easily slip out of your fingers when you have gloves on, and it’s definitely not a nice idea to drop your setup, even if there’s ‘only’ snow below.

Also, gloves make not only tinkering around your mod settings, coils and dripping more difficult, but sometimes also hinder your ability to do the primary thing – press the fire button. If the latter issue has already exhausted you, there are plenty of mods with laaarge firing buttons. And by ‘laaarge’ we mean, for example, the Smok X Cube II 160W TC mod, which, in fact, is fired with a whole bar instead of a button. This is a really nice device to have in cold weather – the bar on its side can be pressed even with the whole base of your palm, and the relatively large size factor makes it easier to handle with gloves on.

All in all, vaping in winter is not all that bad, though. If the cold weather is approaching your area, get ready now by following our tips, and you’ll be able to enjoy heaps of vapor without any issues. Also, let’s not forget what does vaping offer to us: the possibility to get a nicotine fix without the need to go out and freeze with a nasty cigarette in your hand.

Also, make sure to read our tips on vaping in the car, because you are probably going to spend a lot of time chasing clouds in your vehicle during this time of year.

Have some other winter tips to share with other vapers? Feel free to comment below!

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Martin B.

Ex-smoker, passionate vaper who loves to tell the world about the life-changing potential of vaping. Co-creator of Ecigclopedia with a background in Business & Finance. Prefers a dessert flavored vape and loves to innovate.