Choosing your first device can be overwhelming when first switching to vaping. We generally recommend first timers to start with a good quality starter kit, or all-in-one device.

Starter kits range from low powered pen devices, to larger kits which can provide more vapour at higher wattages. Choosing between starter kits will come down to your preference in portabiity, battery life and amount of vapour you wish to produce.

Click here to see our range of starter kits, or click here to see our range of high wattage kits. If you need some specific advice on purchasing your first device, please get in touch.

Mods are the battery section of a vapouriser. They come in many variations, but can typically be broken down as either 'regulated' or 'mechanical'.

Regulated Mods

These devices contain a chip which regulate the amount of power that's sent to your tank or atomiser. Regulated devices will commonly have a screen displaying your wattage, the resistance of your coil, battery life etc. A regulated mod will include safety systems such as low resistance, reverse battery and overheating protections. Choose these mods if you're new or unsure!

Mechanical/Unregulated Mods

A mechanical mod has no chip or safety protections. It is a device which completes the circuit between your battery and atomiser when the fire button is pressed. The power output is determined by the resistance of your atomiser in relation to the voltage of your battery. These devices should not be used by beginners. Sound knowledge of Ohms law, battery safety and coil building is essential for your safety.

Vaping atomisers screw on top of your mod and are responsible for vapourising your e-liquid. They can typically be categorised as either tanks, rebuildable dripping atomisers (RDA) or rebuildable tank atomisers (RTA).

Tanks

These are the most common form of atomiser. Tanks hold your e-liquid, are refillable, and use pre-built replaceable coil heads. Coil heads are comprised of resistive wire and organic cotton which wears down over 1 - 2 weeks of use.

RDAs

Rebuildable dripping atomisers are a rebuildable device without a refillable juice reservoir. An RDA user will build and install their own coils and their own cotton wicks. RDAs require you to either drip e-liquid directly on to your coils, or feed your e-liquid to the atomiser via a squonking device.

RTAs

Rebuildable tank atomisers are a combination of tanks and RDAs. An RTA is a refillable tank, though the user must install their own coils and wick like an RDA.

All vapourisers use either removable or in-built high drain batteries which can cause damage if improperly handled. There is always a risk of your batteries malfunctioning, whether using a regulated or mechanical mod. The main considerations are the physical condition of your batteries and the current (Amps) you are putting through them.

Choosing The Right Battery

You should only use Li-Ion cells that are suitable for vaping, without exception. You need to use batteries with a continuous Amp discharge rating above the levels you'll be vaping at. Tools like Steam Engine's Ohms law calculator are great for checking if you are vaping within safe levels.

Taking Care Of Your Wraps

Battery wraps and the small insulator at the positive end keep your battery from shorting. If your battery wraps show any signs of wear and tear, always err on the side of caution and get them re-wrapped. We offer battery wrapping free of charge at the Nimbus retail store. This can also be done at home with the correct size battery wraps and a heat source.

Mech Mod Considerations

Using mechanical mods (hybrid tubes in particular) increase the risk of battery failure. Unlike a regulated mod, these devices offer no short circuit or overheating protection. Being diligent with your battery wraps, coil resistance and Amperage is essential for your safety.

If in doubt, always pop in to your local vape shop to make sure you're vaping safely!

The downside to using RDAs is the constant need to be dripping on to your coils as you vape. A squonk mod gets around this by having a refillable bottle inside the mod, allowing you to squeeze your e-liquid up through the 510 pin to saturate your cotton.

Doublers are simply bottles of e-liquid made with double the concentration of flavour. This is a uniquely Australian e-liquid solution in response to our nicotine laws. All our doublers are mixed in bottles twice their size, so all you have to do is fill up the bottle with a nicotine solution of your choice and you’re ready to vape! Essentially, if you were to buy a 15ml doubler, you would receive a 30ml bottle filled with 15mls of e-liquid.

When using doublers, you should be filling it with a nicotine solution at twice the mg/ml level that you want the final liquid to be. For example, if you wanted your juice to be at 6mg, you would be topping up your doubler with 12mg unflavoured nicotine.

You can think of our Quick-Mix option as a tailor made bottle of e-liquid, leaving you the exact space in the bottle to top up with your nicotine. When ordering Quick-Mix, just give us the details of your nicotine solution and what strength you want the final mix to be. We will do all the calculations for you and leave you a note on your invoice with the amount of nicotine required. No more flavour diluting or additional VG/PG!

Click here for more details.

Vegetable glycerine (VG) and propylene glycol (PG) are the two main ingredients in e-liquid, with the remainder being flavour. Both are non-toxic compounds.

VG is a clear, viscous liquid produced from plant oils. VG produces the majority of the 'cloud' emitted from vapourisers. It is commonly found in food and cosmetic products.

PG is also found in thousands of food and cosmetic applications. It is thinner than VG, but carries flavour better and produces less of the visible 'cloud'. PG can also provide a slight throat hit in higher percentages. 

The most common ratio between these is 70% VG, 30% PG. Vapers using smaller pen devices often vape up to 50% PG as it tends to wick faster.

Nicotine laws in Australia differ slightly state by state, though selling nicotine within Australia is illegal as it is classified as a schedule 7 poison. Exceptions can be made with a prescription. 

The sale of vaping devices and nicotine free e-liquid is legal, with some restrictions depending on your state. For more information please refer to your state or territory's individual laws.

The nicotine strength you should be vaping will depend on the device you're using and how heavy of a smoker you are. Finding the right nicotine level varies between users, but is crucial to give yourself the best chance of successfully making the switch.

For higher wattage devices (30W+), you can use this general guideline:

• Heavy smoker: 6 - 9mg
  
• Moderate smoker: 3 - 6mg
  
• Light smoker: 0 - 3mg

For low wattage devices (<30W):

• Heavy smoker: 9 - 12mg
  
• Moderate smoker - 6 - 9mg
  
• Light smoker: 3 - 6mg
  

Having a leaky tank is unfortunately a common issue with vapers. While it can be frustrating trying to find the issue, here are a few things you can try to fix the problem:

• Take apart the tank completely, give it a clean out and re-seat the coil. This will ensure the threading is all aligned and o-rings are intact.
• Install a brand new coil. In some circumstances the e-liquid can make it's way through a damaged or faulty coil in to the airflow channel.
• Check and replace any damaged o-rings. Most manufacturers will include spare o-rings in the original packaging.
• Keep the tank upright as much as possible. Leaving a tank on its side or upside down will encourage leaks.

If you've noticed your battery life between charges has dramatically decreased, your batteries are most likely at the end of their life cycle and need replacing. If you are using a mod with replaceable batteries it's as simple as purchasing new batteries and installing them. Mods with in-built batteries don't have this luxury and must be replaced completely.

We always recommend charging removable batteries via a dedicated charger rather than through the provided micro USB port. Doing this will extend the life of your batteries, charge faster and provide additional safety. Mods are not designed to be chargers and can malfunction when charging internally.

Here's some steps to take if your mod can't read/recognise your tank:

• If possible, try the tank on a different mod. If it works fine then the problem is likely with the original mod. If the tank can't be read on either device then you know the issue is with the tank.
  
• Install a new coil in your tank. The coil is the most common cause of this issue.
  
• If it's still not recognised, use a small screwdriver to push the 510 pin towards the center of the tank a little bit. This will hopefully allow the coil to make contact with the 510 pin.