Disclaimer

This Safety Guide is intended to help our customers to understand, handle and use our products properly. However, it is up to you to follow it. In addition, reading and implementing the contents of this Safety Guide does not constitute any acceptance of liability on our part, especially in the event of personal injury, death or damage to property.
Please treat nicotine with the respect it demands!

The Vape Hut How-To

1. Nicotine

1.1. What is nicotine?

Nicotine is an alkaloid compound found naturally in tobacco plants. It is consumed, legally, and produces a lightly euphoric feeling in the user. Historically, nicotine has been consumed via smoking or chewing. However, this is associated with many undesirable health effects. In fact, studies have shown that tobacco smoke can contain up to 7000 different chemical compounds many of which are associated with cancer and other illnesses.

Now, nicotine can be extracted from tobacco and consumed via electronic cigarettes, so-called vaping, thus greatly reducing the exposure of the user to harmful substances. But more on that later.

Nicotine itself does not cause cancer, but it has been associated in at least one study with promoting the growth of cancers that form by other means. My friend, no one forces us to consume nicotine, but as we know it is highly addictive. Tobacco is potentially dangerous, expensive and controlled by big cartels. Vaping can help you break that cycle of dependence and has been shown to be a very useful aid to smoking cessation. But whether you choose to vape, smoke or quit altogether is a choice you’ll have to make yourself!

1.2. Is nicotine dangerous?

Nicotine itself is toxic to many living organisms including humans and overdose can lead to death. However, it is difficult to state a conclusive figure for a fatal dose in humans. The traditional lower bound is often stated as being 6.5 mg/kg. This means that the effects of nicotine are dependent on the user’s bodyweight but, for example, a person weighing 80kg may possibly experience a fatal overdose after consuming just 520 mg of nicotine. For comparison, this is the amount of nicotine contained in around 50 cigarettes. However, in terms of volume, this is a tiny amount, and children are far more susceptible to nicotine poisoning!

In addition to inhalation and swallowing, nicotine can also be absorbed through the skin very easily. That’s why it’s so important to handle nicotine bases with the utmost care and to employ proper precautions and equipment. This includes both safety and measuring equipment.

2. Vaping

2.1. What is it?

Vaping is a method of nicotine delivery that provides an alternative to traditional tobacco consumption. In contrast to cigarettes, nothing is burnt, thus eliminating the risks associated inhaling tobacco smoke and the many substances it contains. Instead a liquid containing nicotine, so-called e-liquid, is vaporized in a device called an atomizer. This offers a very different experience to tobacco and some long-term smokers may find it takes some getting used to, but most vapers would agree that it is overall a more pleasant experience.

2.2. What is e-liquid?

E-liquid is the consumable component of vaping. It is liquid made of nicotine that has been dissolved in a carrier substance. This almost always a mixture of propylene glycol (PG) and vegetable glycerine (VG). Both these substances have been used in the food and pharmaceutical industires for decades and are viewed as being harmless to health by health authorities the world over.

VG is slightly thicker than PG and so e-liquids richer in VG require more powerful vaping devices (vapes) as the coils of low power devices can become clogged. In contrast, bases that a too rich in PG are very light and can often lead to improper atomization and liquid being emitted from so devices. For this reason, we recommend a 50PG/50VG mix to beginners as this is creates a thickness which can be easily accommodated by the majority of vapes.

2.3. Flavourings

As neither PG nor VG taste particularly pleasant, it is very common for most e-liquids to also contain an artificial flavouring. These come in many varieties such as tobacco, fruit, candy and even vegetable! However, many readymade e-juice brands use inferior flavourings intended for the food industry. Some of these contain substances that can be very harmful upon inhalation. These include diacetyl, acetylpropionyl and acetoin. For that reason, it is essential to only buy flavours and e-juices that have been certified as being free from such contaminants.

At Vape Hut we only sell ingredients that have been produced in the Europe Union according to the applicable legal standards and which are certified as such.

3. Making Nicotine Products at Home

3.1. What equipment do I need?

You will need the following safety, measuring and storage equipment.

SAFETY EQUIPMENT

Tight-fitting silicone gloves (to prevent skin contact and absorption of nicotine through hands)
Safety glasses or face shield (to protect eyes from spills/ splashes)
A breathing mask if handling nicotine powders
Always handle nicotine liquids in a well ventilated room. However, this is more important for powders that require proper fume extraction systems.

MEASURING EQUIPMENT

Medical syringes with millimetre precision. These can be plastic but as the markings wear out with time, you will have to replace them periodically. You will need at the very least a 5 ml syringe, but you will also find 10, 20 and 50 ml syringes very useful.
A calculator or computer for calculating doses.

Disposable syringes in 5, 10 and 20 ml sizes are re-useable if the markings are still visible. Note, needles are not required.

Generic Gorilla bottles with child-safety cap in typical sizes.

STORAGE EQUIPMENT

Gorilla bottles for your finished e-liquids. These are cheap and secure. Please do not skimp here. You may re-use old bottles if the seals and caps are in good condition. E-liquid is water soluble, so just use tap water to clean them thoroughly. No need for soap. But allow them to dry fully as vaping water can be dangerous.
A secure (preferably lockable) cupboard to store your ingredients in. As we said, nicotine is toxic and must kept out of the reach of children. It is also important that any bottles containing nicotine are labelled as such!

3.2. Dosages for your e-liquid

To make your e-liquid you’ll need Nicotine Base, PG/VG Base and a flavour, in addition to the equipment listed above. Now you will need to decide how much finished e-liquid you want to make as well as its nicotine strength (concentration). In addition, we’ll also need to know the recommended dose for our chosen flavouring. Usually we measure liquid volume in millilitres (ml) and strength in milligrams per millilitre (mg/ml). Typical Gorilla bottles come in sizes such as 30, 60 or 120 ml. So, firstly, you need to have the appropriate bottle to match the quantity you want to make. Next you need to choose the nicotine concentration. You should never make an e-liquid with a concentration greater than 20 mg/ml. Ever! Doing so maybe lead to adverse effects including nicotine poisoning. In fact, we recommended using a maximum concentration of 18 mg/ml. This is a good strength for heavy nicotine users such as smokers. As you ween yourself off of cigarettes you can start making weaker e-liquids. Now, 18 mg/ml means that for every millilitre of finished e-liquid, you should 18 mg of pure nicotine. In the case of a 60 ml bottle that equates to 1080 mg of nicotine. Remember what we said about the toxicity of nicotine? So remember that there is enough nicotine in this bottle to cause serious injury or death. That’s another reminder of why we need to use safety equipment and take sensible storage seriously. In order to calculate the exact quantities of Nicotine Base, PG/VG Base and flavour, please use our E-Liquid Calculator. But if you want to know how this calculator works, an explanation follows:

The volume of nicotine is V_N = C_N / 1000 x V x A, where C_N is the nicotine concentration of the finished e-liquid, V is the volume of the finished e-liquid and A is a scaling factor that depends on the concentration of the nicotine base used. For example if a nicotine base with a concentration of 100 mg/ml is used, then A = 10.

The volume of flavouring is V_F = P_F / 100 x V, where P_F is the recommended dose (in %) of the flavouring. This can be found in the green table below, as well as on the shop page of the respective flavouring. (It should also be written on your bottle of flavouring.)

The volume of PG/VG base needed is then V_B = V – V_N – V_F

The volumes of nicotine V_N are calculated for you in the blue table below for various bottle sizes and nicotine concentrations. In general, however, we strongly advise you to use a readymade E-Liquid Calculator.

The values show the volume of nicotine base to add for a given bottle size and e-liquid strength starting with a nicotine base strength of 100 mg/ml

Out of interest, you can calculate the percentage of nicotine P_N from the concentration C_N by dividing the mg/ml value of the nicotine base by 10. For example 18 mg/ml = 1.8% nicotine.

The recommended doses for our flavouring concentrates can be taken from the following table:

Recommended minimum and maximum doses of our flavourings as stated by the manufacturer

3.3. Mixing your e-liquid

Once you have calculated the amounts of flavouring, PG/VG and nicotine base for your e-liquid. Find a suitable table to work on and put on your safety gear:

– Wear tight fitting silicone or latex gloves

– Wear safety glasses
– Wear a face mask that covers your mouth

Measure out the respective amount of PG/VG base using an appropriately sized syringe and deposit it in the Gorilla bottle. Repeat the process for the flavouring and finally the nicotine base.

After you take the nicotine base out of its bottle with the syringe, put down the syringe and close the nicotine base bottle securely before injecting the nicotine base in your Gorilla bottle.

Don’t rush! Take your time and check your amounts carefully.

When the Gorilla bottle is full, secure the lid and shake vigorously.

Don’t forget to label your bottle with a self-adhesive label, perhaps writing the flavour and strength and a warning that it contains nicotine.

Always store your ingredients in a cool, dry and dark cupboard, which is out of reach of children and preferably locked. Remember nicotine is a deadly poison.