4 Things You Didn't Know About Vaping

E-juice is the liquid you put in a vape. At its core it's just a few ingredients: propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, flavor concentrates, and usually nicotine if you want it. Type "ejuice" into Google and you'll get millions of results, hundreds of flavors, and a catalog that's grown enormously over the past decade. Here are four things about e-liquid that even regular vapers tend not to know.

1. The first e-cigarette patent dates to the 1960s

Vaping feels modern, but the idea is old. In 1965, Herbert A. Gilbert patented the first device resembling an e-cigarette, which he described as a smokeless, non-tobacco cigarette.

"There is no electric cigarette today, that I have seen, that does not follow the basic road map set forth in my original patent," Gilbert said in an interview. "If you remove any part shown in my original patent from their electric cigarette, it will not function. It may be positioned differently, sized differently, controlled differently, but it still follows the road map set forth in my patent drawings."

Gilbert's version never reached the market. It took roughly 40 more years for the modern device to arrive: in 2003, Chinese pharmacist Hon Lik designed a new vaping device, and the first contemporary e-cigarette went into production a year later. Sales took off from there. E-liquid alone generated $1.35 billion in sales in 2015.

2. Tobacco is one of the most popular flavors worldwide

Blueberry peach, chocolate orange, classic menthol, dessert blends. There are hundreds of e-liquid flavors out there, but tobacco-style flavors remain among the most popular, both in the United States and abroad.

One study of vapers across France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Russia, South Korea, and the United Kingdom found tobacco was the most popular e-liquid flavor by a wide margin, with nearly a third of participants choosing it. Regional tastes varied after that: botanical blends ranked second in Poland, while fruit blends came second in the UK. Caramel and honey notes showed up as favorites too.

3. E-liquid comes in a wide range of sizes and prices

One reason the category is so big is choice. E-liquid is sold in everything from small 10 ml and 30 ml bottles up to 100 ml and larger, in a huge spread of price points and nicotine strengths, so you can match a bottle to how often you vape and what you're willing to spend.

Price varies by brand, bottle size, and flavor. A larger bottle usually brings down the cost per milliliter, which is why frequent vapers often buy bigger. If you want to keep the cost down further, watch for online sale prices and coupon codes. That's an easy way to save on the blends you reach for most.

4. Most e-juice is built on either PG or VG

Nearly every e-liquid is built on two diluents, the substances that carry the flavor and nicotine: propylene glycol (PG) and vegetable glycerin (VG). The ratio between them shapes how a juice performs.

PG is a clear, odorless liquid that carries flavor sharply and gives a firmer throat hit. (PG and VG are both FDA-recognized as generally recognized as safe (GRAS) for use in food — that's a food-additive status, not a claim about vapor products.) VG is thicker and slightly sweet, and it produces noticeably bigger, denser vapor. Most juices blend the two: a 50/50 mix is common in pod systems and starter kits, while higher-VG ratios like 70/30 lean toward bigger clouds and a smoother draw.

When you pick a bottle, you'll usually see the PG/VG ratio listed. "High VG fluid tends to give a much smoother feeling on the throat, with a more substantial, thicker mouthfeel," says journalist Ian Jones. "The flavor is slightly muted in VG fluids, but this can be countered by using more power to produce more vapor. Be careful to stay within the voltage and wattage limits of your atomizer, or you risk dry hits, or even damaging your equipment."

Match the ratio to your hardware and you'll get the best out of both. Central Vapors stocks premium blends and house-made vape juice across PG/VG ratios and nicotine strengths. Browse our e-juice selection to find your next bottle.

Frequently Asked Questions

These products are intended only for adults 21+. Nicotine is an addictive chemical. This article is general product information and is not a smoking-cessation claim.