Let’s use this topic to discuss the use of materials other than Kanthal to build coils for your RDAs RBAs, and RTAs. Let’s gather information of available wire types, it’s safety, and it’s safe use. At this time the most common wire types being used for coils are Kanthal, Nickel, Titanium, and Stainless Steel. Let’s hear your thoughts Guys, Gals !!!
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This vid seems to be backed up in this statement from Wikipedia, and I quote…
“Titanium readily reacts with oxygen at 1,200 °C (2,190 °F) in air, and at 610 °C (1,130 °F) in pure oxygen, forming titanium dioxide.[8] It is, however, slow to react with water and air, as it forms a passive and oxide coating that protects the bulk metal from further oxidation. When it first forms, this protective layer is only 1–2 nm thick but continues to slowly grow; reaching a thickness of 25 nm in four years. Related to its tendency to form a passivating layer, titanium exhibits excellent resistance to corrosion. It is almost as resistant as platinum”
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This video discusses Nickel wire. I have suspected that it is not a good idea to vape using Nickel wire. This video tells me there is a grade of Nickel wire we may be able to consider safe for vaping. That being Ni201. I am doubting the Chinese are using Ni201 so technically they may be killing us off slowly. We can also gather from this video that vaping with Ni200 IS NOT SAFE. Safe use of Ni200 is at temperatures less than 425 degrees and actually can be considered possibly dangerous above 315 degrees. This says even in TC mode there are great concerns when using Ni200 wire. Most of us use a minimum of 425 degrees and many over 500 degree. Want to use Nickel, better use Ni201 !!!
The is a update of the above video
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Stainless Steel wire. Is it safe? This video discusses it’s safety. The one concern when using Stainless Steel wire is Hexavalent Chromium. Here’s a quote from Wikipedia…
“Hexavalent chromium can be formed when performing “hot work” such as welding on stainless steel or melting chromium metal. In these situations the chromium is not originally hexavalent, but the high
temperatures involved in the process result in oxidation that converts the chromium to a hexavalent state.(29 CFR OSHA General Industry 1910) Inhaled hexavalent chromium is recognized as a human carcinogen. Workers in many occupations are exposed to hexavalent chromium. Problematic exposure is known to occur among workers who handle chromate-containing products and those who weld, grind, or braze stainless steel”
Now honestly listening to this video it did not seem to me that this person felt completely safe with SS wire. We can assume that temperatures above the melting point of SS wire can produce Hexavalent Chromium. What we can also presume is there are possible dangers at lower temperatures when using SS wire. Honestly, this is not clear to me and feel we need to research this subject much more if we want to consider SS wire safe for coil building. I’m certainly not satisfied with the information we know at this time…
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So I have had a handful of very odd experiences and I am by no means saying it has anything to do with coil materials but I have on occasion experienced issues with my fillings when i vape. The biting into tin foil type experiences…
Now this could be due to maybe having the drip tip too close or shit I may even have a cavity I dont know about but nonetheless I have felt that mild twing in the filling.
Like I said I have no idea why, I just find it strange and I only feel it when I vape and not that much
maybe 2-3 times a week…
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Are you considering this to be taste issues? If so is this usually in the morning with your first vapings or after a filled tank that has been idle for numerous hours?
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No it’s not a taste thing, it’s physical…just a mild filling pain. I think it is the tip of my naut’s drip tip coming to close to the filling because I don’t feel it on any other tanks, either that or it’s the kanthal but I find this very unlikely.
Its an interesting drip tip and it does rest a little bit deeper in the mouth than the others
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OK, just asking because I have experienced metal taste issues. That’s why I asked. OK, happens on one tank only. Why not try a shorter and plastic drip tip for grins and see if the problem stops with the tank. Maybe you can confirm your suspicions…
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Remember this video. When this video came out everyone thought this guy was full of sh@t. I’m not so sure these days. One thing he mentions is that between 10-20% of people are literally allergic to nickel. I know this to be true being I use to sell sterling silver jewelry. Sterling silver jewelry is 92.5% silver and the remaining 7.5 percent is a alloy which hardens the silver so usable as jewelry. The nickel content is around 2% if I remember correctly but even with that low amount of nickel in the jewelry some people who are allergic to nickel had severe rashes and the like just by touching it to their skin. Imagine inhaling it. Turns out my buddy at that Vape Shop I frequent is allergic to nickel. He had a bad reaction to vaping with nickel wire. This guy also mentions Nichrome and does not come out and say it is safer but sounded though he implied so…
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Follow up discussion on nickel wire safety…
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Titanium wire, is it safe? According this this guy, titanium is not safe being used in devices running in wattage mode. Titanium should only be used on devices that support temperature control mode and the use of titanium wire. Another point made which has been questioned here on ELR is what exactly does Titanium Oxide look like on our wire. Apparently Titanium Oxide is used as a whitener in foods. Titanium Oxide will appear as a white powdery substance on the wire when present. This guys main concerns are of titanium coils produced by manufactures and the possibility of fine powders or shards of titanium. Titanium is actually combustible in the 300 degree range in temperature…
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I don’t know if this kid knows what he is talking about - if he’s some kind of chemistry student, metallurgist or what. But in the video he specifically says 315 celcius is where graphitization starts to form in Nickel. That’s 599 Fahrenheit.
I had some back and forth with Ron via email. He’s a nice enough guy, but even he had to admit that there is a lot of worry here and really had no supporting facts. In the second video he says “it could be leeching, it could be breaking down” and “there is very little research on this.” It’s more of a public service announcement based on hunches and what if’s. I don’t know if any individual, company, government or university will do studies on how these metals are used in vaping, but it would sure be great to get some actual scientific facts rather than all the worrisome stuff. Reminds me of someone who just smoked some good sticky icky who’s gotten paranoid and imagining cops at the door Or…Aunt Josephine…
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Honesty, there’s no way he or anyone else can have supporting evidence on nickel wire and vaping. We really have not been using nickel in coils very long. There is however lots of evidence of nickel allergy. I’ve seen the evidence 1st hand. I don’t know how many vapers are out there but if 15% of them have nickel allergies then we are talking about 100s of thousands of people. Should these manufacturers be producing nickel coils without warning of possible allergic reaction? Should they be making them at all with such a high rate of allergic reaction? Don’t know if you have vaped using a nickel coil but I can say I did shortly. One thing I noticed, and others have said too, was there is a metallic taste to the vape. That being said the nickel must indeed be reacting to the eliquid in some way. I have no evidence but should I not assume that material that is included on the hazardous materials list that appears to be depositing a metallic flavor to my ejuice is safe. You know what, I don’t think so. I feel if I can taste it, I’m vaping it. Though he has no proof we can not just discard his rant as pure nonsense. With nickel wire, I have a uneasy feeling about it. It’s my opinion also that we should not take the chance with this wire…
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I’m one of those, even when it doesn’t touch the skin. I came home with a bad rash once from a zippo I had in the pocket of my jeans 
I have a spool of Nichrome but I’ve only used it once or twice. I didn’t have any problems but I just don’t want to risk it, I’ve got plenty of TI and SS.
[quote=“SthrnMixer, post:13, topic:31824”]
.Aunt Josephine…
[/quote]Yes my boy??
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Good point. One of my kids has a nickel allergy. We found out when he was old enough to start wearing blue jeans. The top snap has the inside rivet that touches the skin and it was made of nickel - or at least that’s what the doctor figured out. We never sought to confirm this allergy but he’s now 21 so I know he just avoids it.
Good question. I don’t know if there is one answer that is better than others. Seeing how there is no testing yet, well I think my initial thought is just something small and not necessarily in-your-face on the packaging of manufactured coils. Something like this product contains nickel which is a known allergen in some people. Anything beyond that would be based solely on speculation. As for should they be making them at all…well I don’t think it’s necessary for business to avoid selling items based on 10% of the population. If any science comes out that proves Nickel to be dangerous to humans, then no they should not be manufactured.
I did find this though, which kind of squashes a few worries about allergies.
http://www.nickelinstitute.org/NiPERA/HumanHealthScience/FS1-AllergicContactDermatitis.aspx
The allergy is known as Allergic Contact Dermatitis (ACD). It is said to be caused from “direct and prolonged contact with the skin.” Back to my son’s allergy. He wouldn’t put on a pair of pants and suddenly have a reaction. It would be at the end of the day we would notice the rash where the snap made contact with the skin. But we didn’t get all hysterical over it. My wife would just coat it with fingernail polish and send him on his way.
From NiPERA -
Exposure to nickel ions through inhalation and oral exposure has not been shown to induce nickel-sensitization in non-nickel-sensitized individuals. Rather, oral exposure in some cases has been demonstrated to reduce susceptibility or even result in immunotolerance to dermal nickel sensitization
So who knows, vaping Nickel (if indeed there is some type of transference to the vapor) could be acting as a type of vaccination. I doubt it, but we just don’t know.
I have vaped Nickel. I didn’t care for it much because I did notice an aftertaste. It was rather faint but it was there. I later used it again on a dripper build but that time I didn’t notice any aftertaste. I’ve always wondered if it was because I cleaned my wire thoroughly but maybe the manufactured coil didn’t get the same treatment and what I was tasting was some sort of fine residue. Don’t know. As for nickel reacting with the liquid - I can’t make any claim one way or the other but I really doubt that’s the case…but I’m no expert and don’t know.
So as far as people vaping with Nickel, my opinion is there’s no need because we have Titanium and stainless steel. What’s the point when nickel is so much harder to work with and you can’t really do dual coils with it? But I don’t really have any worry over it until some science surfaces with vaping being the testing application. As for people building their own coils and warning labels with bulk wire, to me that would be like putting a warning label on a can of peanuts and saying this product contains peanuts, a known allergen with some people. Consumers must assume some risk for sure, and anyone vaping anything at all is doing that with each puff…until actual science comes in.
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Me too. But it wasn’t from a Nickel allergy and I doubt yours was either if it wasn’t making contact with the skin. Nickel isn’t there just emitting vapors or fumes, and the reactions do rely on direct contact. No, I’ll be you it was the same that has gotten me with a Zippo - dang lighter fluid seeped out some. That stuff is a bitch on the skin. But I didn’t even know Zippo made them out of Nickel. I thought they were stainless. Hmmm, learned something today 
Oh and guys, please don’t take anything I’m saying as being in support of Nickel. I’m not trying to win a fight. My point is only that I’m swayed by fact alone and not people’s fears. I don’t think Ron’s video is complete bullshit, rather I think it and others - while certainly based on valid concerns - is sounding an alarm bell and there may be something to it, may not.
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I don’t concern myself with which wire is the safest. There is no evidence that one wire is safer than the next. I decide which wire to use from experience and performance. From my experience I know which wire delivers the best flavor and vapor. So I prefer Titanium.
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In my opinion the best choice as long as being used in TC mode. You have chosen well…
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I use it before TC and it was best then. Just don’t dry it out…
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It was a copper coloured zippo and I do have the same thing your son has with buttons, belts, jewellery, even holding on to coins too long. The inside of jeans pockets are very thin and I’ve had similar problems with braces from bra’s who are also covered with cloth and I’m pretty sure those braces didn’t leak lighter fluid 
I might be a little more allergic than your son since I will have a button rash after an hour or so. I find it to be a royal pain in the ass, which by the way is a great name for a recipe! I will get to work on that one soon.
[quote=“Pro_Vapes, post:18, topic:31824”]
I don’t concern myself with which wire is the safest
[/quote]Any wire is probably a lot safer than the shit we used to smoke before!
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