Rebuildable Tanks FAQ

• What will I need? Unfortunately, quite a few items. See these pages for Vape Kit, Tools, and Djuice Kit

• I have a tank with a dual coil deck, should I install two coils or just one? As explained in the tank buyer's glossary, most find that one coil is adequate for Dimitri when using DTL "sub ohm".  A coil needs a certain minimum Wattage to produce vapour at the right temperature/concentration so for most, it's generally preferable to have the Wattage dissipated by one coil rather than split across two. One coil will work generally more more efficiently for most, reducing juice consumption as well as minimising juice soaked up by wicks. Of course, if installing a single coil in a dual coil deck make sure that there's sufficient cotton in the juice wells (which will be designed for two wicks, not one), as any juice escaping through gaps in the juice wells will cause gurgling and leaking.

• Is there ever a situation where two coils might be preferable?  Yes, two coils can provide exceptionally smooth and high potency vapour when the extra Wattage headroom is utilised.  So if you're insensitive to dmt effects, or simply wish to explore at higher levels then you'll find a dual-coil setup capable of safe & massive punch when using its higher Wattage capability.  Also, some tanks (e.g. the Merlin Mini RTA) are restricted Direct To Lung tanks with a small dual-coil deck, which I've had impressive results from a two coil setup, albeit with finer MTL wires - e.g. single cored (28)+40.  As always, experiment around and see what works for you.

• Is there a different setup and technique to using a dual coil vs single coil? Yes, if we take two identical dual-coil RTAs and set one up for a single and the other in an otherwise equal but dual coil configuration then then expect the following differences..

1. The dual coil setup will have roughly double the maximum useable wattage limit

2. Using the extra Wattage headroom of the dual coil setup, it will be capable of much greater (way more than double ime) single-toke potency without overdriving the coils

3. The dual coil setup will likely need a slightly harder toke to obtain optimum airflow for the coils.  This can take some practice to become proficient.

4. With the dual coil setup, the combination of sheer potency/smoothness of the vapour can be very deceptive and result in easy overshooting of trip intensity levels.  Therefore, extreme caution with a gradual approach is highly recommended.

5. If the extra punch of a dual coil setup is not used, it will likely be considerably more juice-efficient to use a single coil setup instead.

• What's the simplest way of winding a good coil that works well for dimitri?  For a single-coil DTL setup, I suggest starting off with 6 turns of a 1-1.1mm wide clapton for example (26x2)+36 fused clapton or a similar arrangement to achieve a similar inner diameter surface area of 60-80mm² and experimenting from this. Wind a coil to physically fit your build deck, making sure it's neat with no adjacent windings touching. Use Wire Buddy to help you decide.  For a dual coil DTL setup, I suggest trying two coils of the above but using only 5 turns.  Obviously, ensure this is capable of fitting your tank OK.

• Can I use pre-made coils rather than winding my own? If you have a favourite pre-wound coil for your tank then there's no reason to change. Personally, I wind my own because many pre-made coils are 4.5 turns with offset legs, but I almost never want this as my pref for DTL single-coil tanks is normally 6 turns inline legs (depending on the wire), but the leg length on a pre-wound generally won't have enough spare to add the extra turns. Also pre-wounds are not always specific on wire type used, often quoting a material, say Ni80 or KA1, and a resistance - say 0.37 ohms. But I need to know exact core/kernel windings to calculate the coil width etc. Also, pre-wounds seem to come in exact 3.0mm inner diameters. So if I buy one and wish to put an extra half turn in and keep it neat, I have to use a rod which is slightly less than 3.0mm diameter - nominally 2.8mm (most coil winding kits use exact size rods - for example the 3.0mm rod used will actually wind a 3.2mm inside diameter). No big deal, but a bit of a fiddle. Also I just find it trivially easy to wind a neat coil off a reel now I've became used to it, the biggest annoyance is getting the kit out and putting it away again. 

• If non-rebuildable tanks are simpler, why not just use one of these?  They're an option for some, simpler to set up but generally much less foolproof in use, with many crucial dos and don'ts to get the best performance and avoid burning the coils, which can have extremely unpleasant consequences.  Once set up properly, rebuildables tend to be far more foolproof, capable of much greater potency with far less risk of scorching wicks, and the consequences of any scorching generally far less serious.

• How often will I need to change the coil and wick? If you're happy with the electrical integrity of your coil (i.e. no inter-wrap electrical contact etc), and it physically appears OK then IMO there's no need to replace it.  However, I recommend replacing the wick every 4-5ml of juice, depending on how hard you're driving it, juice quality, etc. Removal of an old wick without mangling the coil can be tricky so I normally replace the coil as a matter of course when replacing the wick.  But if you want to re-use your coil then be careful removing the wick, and perform the red heat checks described above before re-wicking. 

• Don't I need to know Ohms Law?  No. This was crucial in the old days of "mech mods" (little more than a battery and on/off switch) but not since the advent of "regulated mods" - i.e. ones that can be set by Wattage. With mech mods, the only way of setting power (Wattage) was by using coils of exact known resistance.  Thankfully, nowadays we simply dialled the Wattage into the mod, which calculates & applies the correct Voltage to achieve the desired Wattage, irrespective of coil resistance. Very basic devices like cart batteries, APX Volt, etc only have adjustable Voltage (not Wattage), but these use atomisers which have standard known resistances, so the power is predictable. Mech mods might be quaint, but have only disadvantages for Dimitri - I suggest avoiding them at all costs.

• But I heard that lower resistance coils need or can handle more power For non-rebuildable coils of the same material/design type/manufacturer, there can be a rough correlation between resistance and power handling capability. However, for rebuildable coils this definitely doesn't apply as there are many other factors which affect coil resistance, e.g. the metal it's made from, the thickness gauge and the length of the wire used to make the coil. Don't overthink resistance - just use a recommended wire, wind an accurate coil of the recommended specifications to fit your deck, stay within the max wattages shown on WireBuddy and you'll be fine.

• What d-juice mix do you recommend? For Direct To Lung tanks 1:4 between 60PG/40VG or 70PG/30VG can usually obtain good results for me, and weaker mixes of 1:5 or 1:6 may be used by some, especially if dual coil DTL is used. The actual djuice strength isn't too critical because vapour potency is easily tuned by adjusting the set Wattage and toke rates/duration. If you need further detail about Djuice see this section  For Mouth To Lung tanks I tend to use a little stronger, say 1:2 or 1:3, which seems to work better with the more restricted airflow, smaller coils and lower Wattages.

• How do RTAs compare with emesh? Many seem to find RTAs generally much smoother to vape, can be toked many times without reloading and are far better suited to a wider range of vapour potencies. If desired, a well setup RTA can deliver a single-toke punch which is IME comparable to an powerful emesh toke (by taking a slow and long toke with ample wattage). Never underestimate the power of a well-setup RTA. The only potential downside for most is that they can be less vape-efficient than emesh

• How do RTAs compare to cart vaping? Direct to lung RTAs tend to be more juice-thirsty, have a much more abundant airflow, capable of a much wider range of vapour potencies, and tend to produce a much smoother vapour at higher potencies. But carts only require very simple & cheaper devices to drive them (e.g. the Yocan Uni Pro), are more convenient, portable and easier to set up with much less additional kit required

• Tell me more about how RTAs handle waxy/yellow product? If djuice is made from waxy (which will likely be yellow or or even orange) Dimitri and not filtered, the cotton wick gradually become clogged, resulting in a smokey weak odorous vapour which can leave a slight aftertaste in the mouth. However, RTAs seem far more tolerant to clogging than vape cartridges (carts). Basically, after a few ml of juice, yellow contaminants appear to concentrate in the vertical parts of the wick, eventually starving the coil of fresh ejuice. I'd suggest replacing the wick well before this starts to occur. Also, see our section on Djuice filtering.

• Can I use temperature control?  Well, I no longer recommend it. If your RTA is properly coiled/wicked and you're using one of the often-quoted blends of dimitri/PG/VG then temperature control will be accurately provided by the boiling point of your ejuice (which will be around 180°C). For me, the ONLY advantage of using electronic temperature control is protection against dry hits, but hard experience shows that even with the best kit, TC is nowhere near reliable enough to depend on for this.  One big problem is that TCR is variable/unpredictable when non-plain (e.g.clapton) wire is used, which adds yet another issue to an already extremely finnicky principle.  I've totally abandoned the use of it and suggest you do the same.

• Are there any disadvantages to temperature control Yes, for any hope of success, you'll need a mod with credible TC performance - but experience shows that few are capable. And even assuming it can be set up perfectly, it still can't be relied upon because external factors can easily screw it up. Also TC tends to be hard RTAs because you'll be repeatedly tightening the terminal screws to their limit in an attempt to get perfect connections. Also, if you're not using temp control, you have a much wider variety of vaping wires available, as you won't be restricted to using SS316L stainless steel. 

• How spice-efficient is the RTA method? As mentioned, it's generally not great when all aspects are taken into account. Firstly, the wick retains a resident amount of "dead" ejuice that it will only give up in very shallow, weak tokes. So when the wick is replaced, we accept the loss. Also RTAs can easily be set up to produce the type of vapour which much less vape efficient. Sure we can turn up the Wattage and/or slow down the toke - which warms up the vapour and greatly improves vape efficiency but perhaps with the trade-off of reduced controllability/predictability

• To minimise loss, is there a technique for wringing the most out of a nearly-dry wick? Kinda, but It's not easy and I don't recommend it. If the wick is in good condition then you can refill the tank with more d-juice although personally I replace wicks after 4ml or even less. If you don't have replacement dimitri juice, or if the wick is either burned or contaminated it's easier just to toss it and start over.  If you want to rescue the juice from a clean wick then come try compressing it in a syringe and retaining the juice that's squeezed out, but for me it's not worth it.

• Are mesh RTAs any good? RTAs come in two main types - wire and mesh.  I've tested five different Mesh RTAs with Dimitri and found that with wire RTAs I can far more easily produce vapor at the correct concentration and temperature for vape efficiency. Mesh RTAs do appear have a few minor advantages but overall I do not recommend them for Dimitri. For more details/pics, please see the Tank Buyers Guide/Glossary

• I can't decide whether to go for a Direct To lung or Mouth To Lung Tank, please help! In short, if you're not sure then go for DTL.

In general terms.....

• 1. MTL will generally be more critical over vaping Wattages/toke rates and general vaping technique

  2. MTL tanks have smaller build decks and take finer wires, which can them more tricky to set up properly

  3. Most users achieve the best performance from MTL tanks using lower Wattage (typically low teens), stronger juice mixes (maybe around 1:2 60PG/40VG), and the slower airflow that these tanks are designed for

  4. MTL tanks tend to stress the wick harder in normal use, which makes correct wicking more critical and even if perfect they seem to deteriorate faster and provide a lesser experience as more juice is vaporised through them

  5. MTL tanks tend to use the smaller bore 510 driptips (rather than 810 of DTL) which can be wobbly and become easily detatched, often seemingly at the most critical moment

  6. MTL tanks can have an advantage over DTL with vape efficiency, often resulting in lower juice consumption

  7. MTL tanks can usually provide sufficient punch (for most people) when used correctly, perhaps using multiple tokes, but generally have limited toke punch, often needing mulitple tokes to safely achieve intense trips. On the other hand, DTL tanks (when set up appropriately) can effortlessly produce colossal single toke blastoff if required, and with generally less fiinnicky setup and more foolproof operation.

  8. It will be easier for inexperienced users to over-drive MTL coils, which can result in unpleasant trip ambiences, which ime is certainly best avoided

  9. If you feel capable of handling the small deck and want to try both  (or at least a restricted direct to lung and a mouth to lung) then go for the Arbiter Solo.  But IMO, tanks like the Destiny will be preferable for anyone just wanting to explore the full range of Dimitri experiences in the most approachable RTA package.