You may well have heard about it, read about it or even perhaps have a friend who does it but what is vaping and what’s it got to do with you?

The answer to that question is a long one so we are breaking it down for you, nice and simple so you can actually get your head around all the hype when it comes to this new word (vaping) and make your own informed decisions.

For that matter, you might ask “what is vape,” “what is a vape,” and are those things any different from actually vaping itself?

Being that vaping is a relatively new thing, most people don’t even know how to refer to it, and anyway, what is the difference between “a vape” and just plain “vaping?”

So let us begin at the beginning and answer the million dollar questions one by one:

What Is Vaping?

Vaping, as defined by the Oxford dictionary is: Inhaling and exhaling the vapor produced by an electronic cigarette or similar device. Well that sounds simple enough, but of course there’s a lot more to it.

First of all there is the world of dry herb vaping (you can deduce your own conclusions on the “dry herb” thing.)

Then there’s the more common practice of vaping what is known as “E Juice” or “E liquid” which is a liquid based substance consisting of four ingredients: propylene glycol (PG), vegetable glycerin (VG,) nicotine and flavorings. The first two substances are food grade materials used in the production of anything from hard candy to pharmaceutical formations, while the last two are pure liquid nicotine, extracted from the tobacco plant, and artificial flavorings also used in the production of sweets and other food items.

These days many smokers are choosing to “vape” E liquid over smoking tobacco cigarettes as a healthier option and as a gateway to giving up the dreaded weed.

What Is Vape?

“Vape” is technically the stuff produced when dry herbs or E Liquids are heated to a certain temperature, usually with heating from an element such as a metal coil. When one exhales a large amount of vapor is produced and this is really what “vape” is.

The main difference between vape and smoke is that the former undergoes no form of actual combustion, and certainly nowhere near the high temperatures required for combusting tobacco or indeed any material.

Vape neither lingers in the air nor sticks to fabric, making it a far less stinky option than cigars, pipes, or cigarettes.

So, in short, in answer to the question: “what is vape?” one could equally ask: “what is vapor,” both being considered language-wise to be nouns. There is then the form of the word as a verb, as in: “I’m just going upstairs for a quick vape.” In the vaping world, the word is used interchangeably, in different forms.

Ohms, Coils and Japanese Cotton?!

So you thought it was as simple as just grabbing an E Cigarette, tossing some juice inside and vaping it? Well the answer to that is yes and no…

The yes is that there are straightforward, easy to use E Cigarettes out there which you can more or less just pick up and vape. Then there’s the wonderful and complex world of ohms, self-built coils and organic Japanese cotton, probably not things you have really heard of before, especially if you are new to vaping.

So in order to deal with the “no” part of the question we are going to break it down for you, so you can have an understanding of what vaping jargon is all about.

The Ohm Chart

The resistance of the coil in an E Cigarette which actually turns the E Juice into vapor is determined by the thickness of the metal wire used to create the coil as well as how many turns it has, as well as a number of other factors.

In order to know the right ohm resistance for your E Cigarette, to get the optimal experience from your E Juice, you would want to look at an ohm chart which shows the ideal battery output, in terms of volts and watts, for the coil you are using.

This stuff is way more suitable for more advanced vapers, especially those who like to build their own coils and assemble their own tanks, so if you are a beginner this doesn’t really apply to you.

Nevertheless, the ohm chart is something you may become interested in as you get more into the world of vaping, and if that happens, here’s a link to that chart.

The ohm chart, (also known as the vape ohm chart) is certainly a useful tool and one you may want to look at if you decide to purchase an RBA (rebuildable Atomizer) and start building your own coils.

Coils And Japanese Cotton

When you get into vaping you may hear a bunch of stuff about coils and cotton, which is used as wicking material to go inside the coils.

When it comes to coils, which are made from Kanther wire of varying gauges, there are nano, micro, and mini coils, and that basically just represents the thickness of the wire and the size of the coil once it’s built.

Different coils heat the E Liquid to varying temperatures which then change both the intensity of the flavor and the amount of vapor produced.

Japanese cotton is the preferred choice of wicking material for many experienced vapers, and to be more precise, it is know as “100% organic Japanese cotton.” Normal cotton wool is bleached and therefore not considered to be great for vapor smoke (which is really vapor) or taste.

The organic Japanese cotton doesn’t come cheap though and is often sold in the form of make up pads which many Japanese women use as part of their beauty regime.

So there you have it, our definitive yet simple guide to “What is vaping?” There is of course a lot more information available online for people wanting to give up smoking, as well as for those who want to start vaping.

A great place to start is online forums which are dedicated to the everything to do with vaping. Many of these forums have a specially dedicated section for new vapers who can post any newbie questions they might have when it comes to vaping.

As a well-know saying in the vaping world goes: “Smoking is dead, the future is vaping… and the future is now!”