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So I am about to be real as possible here. People when you are doing NETS the real key ingredients is time and patience. You do not not need all this bullshit equipment to make a good NET. All you need is a good tobacco i.e. tobacco leaves, pipe tobacco, whatever it is make it quality. Now get a Tupperware container some quality PG (I recommend Nic River) put your tobacco in and let it set for six months. When you feel it is right strain it and filter it a couple of times (I use coffee filters). That is the key ingredient to a good NET. You do not need all the bullshit equipment people are spouting on about here. I am sorry but too many times I see the push for speeding up the process. To me it is bullshit and does not give you a good NET to be used. But what do I know. Take it or leave it.
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Does what may leach out of, or happily grow upon, plastics impart flavors that glass alone cannot provide ?
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@50YearsOfCigars … Thank you for sharing your opinions and techniques of NET reduction, when employing EA or H2O. I’m sure that the curious NET individual will appreciate the time and effort you put towards experimentation. 
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Plastic, no… water (distilled or other) no… (carries bacteria in any form, want to talk about mold?)
Still… for the knowledge here and elsewhere, always evaluate how bad you need a net when there is a safer way to obtain better tastes. 
IMO JS know what you are doing, what to expect, what to watch out for, and stay safe!
btw I am all for water reduction… as far as alcohols… given time you do not notice as much as some flavors do need the gases to mature. Food for thought.
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Safer?.. maybe.
Better tastes?.. not by a mile, in my opinion.
Taste is subjective… but, for my tastebuds, IMO there is no synthetic tobacco concentrate on the market that can equate to the true tobacco flavor/taste of NET.
Could I equate the possible dangers
of NET to the possible dangers of DAAP in other DIY Flavor concentrates? Yes… but, the findings are inconclusive at best, it’s tiring, and talking about it bores me. 
So… bring on the DAAP and NET! 
Let’s vape what we love and we’ll love what we vape.
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@Kinnikinnick Taste is highly subjective… I agree with ya, but if it will make me sick, I will keep sticking with the lab created flavors. I do not want to take my chances… 
If anyone recalls… Alterna… yeah bringing that one up yet again… I hear thru the vine that it now has yet another name… what, I haven’t a clue…
I had a lab run testing on it… not sure now if I have the images or… but it did come back with results that it was over!!! [[60%]] distilled water. [From a veterinarian’s office in Hawaii (was traced there)].
After mixing it with just base and flavors, it was fine up till 10 days and developed what was called “floaters” that grew over time. Sometimes it did not happen, other times it did. Was it the flavors that kicked the mold up as the other ingredients were questionable as well, so it could have come from those also. Just the fact of Alterna having 60% water? I did not wish to pursue it any farther.
I know my experiences with all kinds of diy for vaping. I can only speak for myself.
I have seen things one would really question… but I speak out because no matter what kind of water is used, one does not add it to vaping. I stand there on this. Water in indeed a pusher for bacteria, nothing in it to “help fight off bad growths or to stabilize anything”… You will ruin your extract.
As far as the alcohols… you do need them as the gasses do make things more complete…
I would recommend, without spending 100k+ by lab testing, to do the right thing and forget adding water in any amounts. Should you want testing, I know a few labs that can, as long as you are willing to pay the bill.
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Ya, unfortunately, it has come back as Bot an ika (I have placed spaces in the name so they don’t get exposure). I am not going to post a link to snake oil.
Sorry for the slight derail please return to our regularly scheduled programming
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It kind of looks that way - when free water in solution has a Water Activity greater than 0.6 (relative to that of distilled water at unit value of 1.0). Dry uncooked pasta has a Water Activity of ~0.5 that of distilled water. “Most spoilage moulds” flourish by WA ~0.8, and “most spoilage yeasts and bacteria” flourish by WA ~0.9 .
Regarding the efficacy of PG and Glycerine as bactericides in cultures, this study reports required % concentration levels for PG and Glycerine to exhibit antimicrobial activity. The lower the % concentrations in solution reported below, the higher the effectiveness as bactericides against the indicated bacterial strains.
Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4415329/
Am finding Ethanol being referred to as having some “anti”-bacterial activity (more than that of PG or VG). Hopefully serving as a “saving grace” in aqueous solution - as high temperatures may be contraindicated ?
A “handy dandy” graphic relating to various mechanisms of breakdown and spoilage:
http://aqualab.decagon.com.br/assets/Article-Graphics/_resampled/resizedimage539384-Water-Activity-for-product-safety-and-quality-figure-1.JPG
Source: http://aqualab.decagon.com.br/educacao/water-activity-for-product-safety-and-quality/
Each substance (may, and if so, does) have a unique “Moisture Sorption Isotherm” curve associated with it - which relates proportional Water Content to Water Activity. As Water Activity relates to energy, it alone determines the characteristics. Mustard (that from listings provided seemed the closest to a macerating “goo” solution) reaches Water Activity of ~1.0 at not more than 30% Water Content. Food for thought.
From white-paper linked-to at beginning of this post here are Water Activity thresholds for (some) microbes:
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The beauty is that we are all entitled to our own opinions. Sorry if this was off putting, just see a different way of doing things. Just my two cents with a dash of profanity sprinkled in. You do you and good luck with your experiments.
P.S. Your doing something right, you got me to read it, lol.
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*steps out of convo/thread I should not have been in, in the first place.
I posted what I know, if you want more proof, pony up funds for lab testing, or keep doing what you are assuming is good for you. Assumptions are the mother of all evil. When in doubt, go get it checked out.
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Unfortunately, that describes a VAST portion of our society today. … and it is really dishearteningly sad.
Sad too… that many discussions, such as this, are kept within the confines of PM threads between members who are open minded and like to ponder new ideas. To them, I say… “Welcome!”
PM me for the password! 