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Get the most out of your Vape: Pod Mod General Maintenance Guide

Pod mod devices have redefined convenience in the vaping world, offering a perfect balance of portability and performance. However, because these systems are more compact and integrated than traditional sub-ohm setups, they require a specific touch when it comes to maintenance. A little bit of proactive care goes a long way—not just in ensuring a consistent flavor profile, but in extending the overall lifespan of your hardware. Let’s explore a few tips that will help you get the most out of your pod-style vape

Looking for more specific details regarding pod-style vapes? Be sure to take a look at our guide to pod vapes here!

1. Maintain Good Hygiene Practices

Good vape hygiene also improves the performance and longevity of your vape by preventing issues caused by leaking e-juice, dust, and debris. Here are a few tips for maintaining your vapes hygiene.

Bacteria can grow quickly, especially if you share your vape with others. In addition, your keys, cash, cellphone and other items you carry in your pocket carry a bunch of dirt and bacteria that may come into contact with your vape which ends up in contact with your mouth. Giving your vape a quick wipe with a disinfecting wipe can help reduce the risk of illness caused by the spread of bacteria.

Regularly changing your pods is crucial for maintaining good-hygiene practices and improving the performance of your vape. While you should change your pod whenever it begins to taste off (muted, burnt, metallic), we recommend changing your pod at least once per week. Overusing a pod can cause leaking and spitback due to wear in the cotton and poor air pressure regulation. It can also cause output issues due to residue build up on the coils leading to clogs and poor vapor production.

2. Manage Your Battery Charging Effectively

With pod vapes, the battery is typically built into the device with no option to replace it once it inevitably loses the ability to charge effectively. While battery longevity within the vaping industry is steadily improving, it is not uncommon to start noticing a slight change in how long your charges last around 4-6 months of using the vape. Following the proper charging tips can help your battery hold a charge for longer and prolong the life-span of the battery.

Similarly to most cellphones, vapes will commonly use Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries due to their lightweight form factor recharging capabilities, and output efficiency. The battery life of your vape can be well-maintained by only charging between 20-80%. To maintain the best charging practices, avoid charging the vape for excessive periods of time.

It is also important to avoid fast chargers. While they are convenient to use, any charger that outputs more than 5 volts or 2 amps of power can harm your battery. Common issues seen when using fast chargers include:

• Rapid heating of the device, leading to leaking;

• Excessive power output which can cause burning pods;

• Charging malfunctions or loss of ability to charge; and

• Quicker charge & discharge cycles which leads to reduced lifespan of the vape.

A reliable option for a versatile pod vape charger includes the Avatar USB Wall charger which uses a safe USB-BC 1.2 port to charge vapes, cellphones and other devices.

3. Store Your Vape and E-Juice Properly

Proper vape and juice storage is crucial for maintaining your device’s performance and hygiene. Follow these simple storage tips to keep your vape in the best shape.

Vape Storage

Storing the pod separately from the device if you’re not using your vape for more than 24 hours can prevent slow leaks and condensation seeping into the airflow and internal components can prevent malfunctions and auto-firing.

Keeping pods upright can help prevent juice from pooling on one side of the coil which significantly reduces the chance for it to leak or spitback.

If the device has the option to turn off (commonly seen on vapes with buttons), it is recommended to turn the device off when storing in your bag or pocket to avoid accidentally firing the vape.

Avoid storing your vape in places that experience extreme and fluctuating temperature conditions. This can include places like your car, garage, outside for long periods of time, and even in your bag/pocket near devices that give off heat. 

E-Juice Storage

The exposure to light, heat, and air can cause nicotine in your e-juice to oxidize. This will alter the flavour, typically causing a peppery, metallic, or muted flavour, and can increase the harshness of the throat hit. These factors also contribute to how dark a juice will appear. In most cases, darker juices means the nicotine has oxidized, however darker juices can be the result of the types of sweetener used in the flavour. To prevent oxidization, make sure that your bottles are sealed tightly and practice storing your liquids in a cool, dark space.

The tasty flavours and sweet scents can also interest children and pets. As such, store your e-liquids in a place that children are not able to access.

4. Create Good Pod Use Habits

Employing these habits can help you get the most out of your vape pods and save you money in the long-run. 

Prime your coils: This is letting your cotton soak up juice to vaporize. 5-10 minutes before taking a puff from a brand new pod is usually enough time to ensure that the first puff you take isn’t burnt cotton.

Keep Juice Levels Topped Up: Most pods will expose the cotton wick channels within the tank. Ensuring that your juice levels remain above the top of these channels significantly reduces the risk of taking a dry hit and burning the cotton.

Keep Pods Upright: Having your vape on its side for long periods of time can cause the juice to pool on one side of the tank which leads to the oversaturation of that side. This can cause leaking and spitback as juice isn’t able to vaporize quick enough. 

Avoid Opening and Closing the Juice Fill Port: This can ruin the pressure stabilization within the pod causing the cotton to oversaturate and leak.

Bonus Tip: Try Out Different Pod Resistances!

Different e-liquids can provide varying experiences with different coil resistances. For example, vaping flavours with high amounts of sweetener can burn coils out faster at lower resistances. Trying out each resistance can help you find which works best with your juice.

Key Takeaways/Final Thoughts

If you need a quick breakdown of the tips discussed in this article, take a look at our key takeaways below:

• You can get the most out of your vape and improve its longevity by regularly maintaining your vape and creating good habits.

• One of the most important habits to develop is proper hygiene. This can be done by regularly changing your coils and wiping the mouthpiece with disinfecting wipes.

• Cleaning the vape helps prevent the risk of illness due to bacteria coming into contact with the vape.

• Because vape batteries can’t be replaced, taking good care of your battery will help the device last longer and hold charges better.

• Vape batteries are similar to phone batteries in a sense that you don’t want to over charge the vape. Don’t use fast chargers or leave charging overnight.

• Make sure you store your vape and e-juice properly to avoid leaking issues, malfunctions, and accessibility for children and pets.

• Developing the right pod habits, such as keeping it topped up, priming your coils, and storing your vape upright will help your coils last longer and save you costs in the long run.

• Trying out different coil resistances and seeing how they change the taste of your juice can also be beneficial for finding your perfect puff!

If you are in the market for a new pod-style vape, take a look at the wide selection at Digital Imports today!