Our guide to the world of e liquid

What is e liquid and how is it made?

E liquid is a product used to carry liquid nicotine from a vape kit like the Argus Z to the users lungs where it can be absorbed into the blood stream. The composition of e liquid is fairly simple and consists of a few major components:

• e liquid flavour concentrate
• Nicotine, either nic salt or freebase
• VG (Vegetable Glycerine)
• PG (Mono Propylene Glycol)

The e liquid flavour concentrate is typically used at 20% in the final product and itself is made up of a host of different esters and suspended in Propylene Glycol. The PG is the carrier and the various different chemicals that make up the flavour profile (cherry or watermelon for instance) make up a small amount of the flavour itself.

E liquid is made by mixing these four main components together and steeping it for a suitable amount of time. On an industrial scale this is done in stainless steel vessels or UN approved plastic jerry cans.

Can I make e liquid myself?

Of course! Making e liquid yourself is very easy, especially when using one of our Hackshots as this gives you an oversized bottle in which to mix, containing the correct amount of e liquid flavour concentrate to make 250ml. Using a Hackshot to make e liquid is simple and we outline this on each product page, plus each Hackshot has basic instructions and a table of volumes on the label which can help you. Making your own e liquid needn’t be a taxing chore and the Hackshots alleviate the difficulty of doing so.

Of course, if you’re willing to make your own flavours from scratch and not use our one shot flavours, you can purchase single flavours to make your own. This is a more complicated method to make e liquid but can be very rewarding due to the fact that you can completely customise your flavours depending on your preference.

If you like strawberry flavour e liquid but haven’t found one that suits you, you can make your own using TFS flavours and finely tune the taste of your e liquid by adding certain additives like koolada ws-23 for a cool hit, sucralose for extra sweetness and even multiple different types of Strawberry. For the full range of e liquid flavour concentrates, visit The Flavour Smiths.

What steps do I need to make to mix my own e liquid?

We’ve made a few simple steps to help you understand how to make your own e liquid.

1. Remove the caps and nozzles from your Hackshot, Nicotine, VG & PG.
2. Add the required Nicotine and Vg/Pg to the Hackshot depending on the strength you desire (see below)
3. Put the cap back on the Hackshot and shake well to ensure the ingredients are mixed and well distributed throughout the bottle.

Easy! Now that you have 3 steps to complete before you can mix your own e liquid, you can get started by choosing a Hackshot or even buying the Hackshot as a starter kit to include the nicotine & vg/pg. In order to buy the Hackshot as a starter kit, simply visit the product page and choose which variation of the product you want to buy.

The above steps demonstrate how easy it is to make your own e liquid using a Hackshot. But what if you wanted to make the flavour yourself? This is a more involved task and in todays market of convenience and single use disposable vapes like the elf bar 600, very few people have the time or energy for such things, but it’s still worth taking a look at considering how much it can save you in the face of the cost of living crisis we’re currently living in.

What is the benefit to mixing my own e liquid?

Mixing e liquid using your own flavour creation involves a few more steps and can be a matter of trial and error. It’s not as simple as just throwing a few flavours together and expecting a good result (this is exactly why the Hackshot is so popular). Making a nice flavour comes with experience and trials. Firstly you’ll need to consider what flavour eliquid you like the most, then obtain the flavours you think will work well to create that profile along with any additives you may desire such as koolada ws-23 for a cooling hit.

Once you’ve obtained the necessary flavours to make your e liquid, you can begin mixing them. Always start with the flavour and test it on it’s own before committing to adding nicotine. You may wish to taste test the liquid before vaping it (once Vg has been added of course) as it can often be immediately obvious whether or not you’ll like the flavour.

This practice of trial and error is the reason that diy vape juice has died down over recent years, with many turning to nic salts juice or disposable vapes simply for the convenience they offer. But mixing your own e liquid has a number of benefits many are not aware of and perhaps the most important of these is the savings it will provide.

Mixing e liquid using a Hackshot will save you a lot of money and effort, but mixing from scratch using single flavour concentrates will go the extra mile, so long as you’re willing to put some time into it. It may be that you end up with a flavour that beats anything you’ve tried before, in which case you’ll be able to make your e liquid cheaper than you’ll ever by able to buy it ready made.

What device can I use DIY E liquid in?

The obvious answer is any device, that’s sort of the point of doing it yourself: it’s tailor made to your requirements. If you’re using a pod kit or an MTL device, you’ll need to mix your eliquid at a lower VG/PG ratio such as 50/50, so your device can properly absorb the liquid and atomise it effectively. If you’re using a sub-ohm device then you can potentially omit the PG and go as VG heavy as 100%. Sub Ohm tends to be around 70/30 whilst Pod kits and MTL vapes use 50/50, this is a good rule of thumb to follow if you’re unsure.

Can I make my own nic salts juice?

Yes you can, but lets first consider what we mean by the term “nic salts juice”. This term usually refers to high strength eliquid with nic salt in it, which is suitable for pod kits and is exactly what disposables like the elf bar 600 use.

It’s very much possible to make your own nic salts juice but the important thing to remember is that as a member of the public and not a company, you’re limited to buying nicotine in strengths up to 20mg, which means you can’t actually make your own flavour nic salts juice at this strength; if you add anything to nicotine at 20mg, you bring this value down as you’re effectively diluting the concentration of nicotine.

It’s still very much possible to do this if you’re looking to make nic salts juice at 16mg or lower. It’ll be more time consuming than mixing lower strength e liquid as most of the finished product will have been nicotine shots you decanted into the bottle. If you’re looking for nic salts juice in strengths 3mg, 6mg or 16mg, our Hackshots already allow for this if you buy them in starter kit form. The Hackshots are supplied with nicotine salts when you buy them as a kit, meaning the finished e liquid will be extra smooth without the harsh throat hit of freebase nicotine.

Is it safe to mix my own e liquid?

Mixing your own e liquid is safe so long a you follow best practices and use common sense. When handling nicotine it’s best to wear gloves and wash any area of skin that comes into contact with it quickly and with plenty of warm water. Nic shots used to make e liquid are normally 20mg which is as strong as you’re legally able to buy, and this can cause skin irritation if you’re not careful but it is also absorbed into the body in a similar way as when vaped, so you may also feel the nicotine hit from absorption through the skin.

Wearing gloves and eye protection is a great safety measure but not totally necessary. Despite the warnings on the label about 20mg nicotine being toxic to aquatic life etc, a drop of 20mg on the skin shouldn’t cause any real issues, just remember to be careful when mixing you e liquid.

Another very important aspect of safety is where you buy your flavours from. Do not assume that any flavourings are suitable for use in e liquid as anything suspended in an oil can cause serious physical harm. Ensure that any flavour concentrate you purchase is from a reliable, reputable source and intended for use in vaping.

Conclusion

Mixing your own e liquid has more benefits than drawbacks including environmental, customisation, financial and even satisfaction.

It is perfectly safe to mix your own e liquid provided you’re careful when doing so.

DIY eliquid can be used in almost any device out there.