E-cigarettes: A Beginner's Guide to Vaping
Welcome to our comprehensive beginner's guide to e-cigarettes and vaping. If you've just heard about e-cigarettes for the first time -- or you've dabbled and would like to learn more -- this vaping guide will provide the answers to all of the questions that you might have. There's a lot to absorb here. We encourage you to bookmark this page and return later if you don't have the time to read the full article in one sitting. If you'd like to investigate a topic further, click the link within the topic to view a more detailed article. Scroll down or click any of the items in the Table of Contents to begin.
Our Support Team is also available to assist you should you prefer to talk to an expert for guidance. Your can contact us or call us from Australia on 1300 662 689.
Table of Contents
- What Are E-cigarettes?
- What Are the Benefits of E-cigarettes?
- Are E-cigarettes Safe?
- Are E-cigarettes for Everyone?
- Can I Use E-cigarettes Anywhere?
- What Is E-liquid?
- Does All E-liquid Contain Nicotine?
- What Are PG and VG?
- What Is Throat Hit?
- Do Liberty Flights E-liquids Contain Diacetyl or Acetyl Propionyl?
- What Is Using E-cigarettes Like?
- Can I Buy E-liquid With Nicotine In Australia and New Zealand?
- How Do I Know How Much Nicotine I Need?
- Is E-liquid With Nicotine Dangerous?
- Why Should I Buy an E-cigarette From Liberty Flights?
- Which E-cigarette Starter Kit Should I Buy?
- How Long Until My Order Arrives?
- What If I Don't Like My E-cigarette?
- How Do I Charge My E-cigarette?
- How Do I Fill My E-Cigarette?
- How Do I Use My E-cigarette?
- How Do I Clean and Maintain My E-Cigarette?
- My E-cigarette Isn't Working! What Should I Do?
- Is My Battery Going to Explode?
- What is nicotine salt?
- Did you know all our e-liquid bottles can be recycled?
What Are E-cigarettes?
Electronic cigarettes -- or e-cigarettes for short are a delivery system for nicotine and non-nicotine liquids. An e-cigarette uses a heating coil called an atomizer to heat flavoured liquid called e-liquid. The atomizer turns the e-liquid into vapour.
The term "vaping" describes the act of using an e-cigarette.
Learn More: What Are E-cigarettes?
Learn More: Explore our Glossary of vape terms
What Are the Benefits of E-cigarettes?
There is positive research on vaping and many leading medical and public health bodies around the globe such as Public Health England who support vaping as an aid to switching from smoking. In January 2020 the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners endorsed vaping e-cigarettes as a second-line aid for smokers wanting to quit cigarettes.
Are E-cigarettes Safe?
Opinions about the safety of e-cigarettes vary within the scientific community. In the United States, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention says that e-cigarettes "have the potential to benefit adult smokers [...] if used as a complete substitute for regular cigarettes." The New Zealand Ministry of Health says that "there is a good rationale for people to use e-cigarettes to help them stop smoking." The New Zealand government has also endorsed vaping as a tool to help quit smoking and in 2019 launched an informative website explaining all aspects of vaping.
Overall, most health professionals seem to agree that switching from smoking to vaping can potentially reduce the harm caused by smoking. Research into the long-term safety of e-cigarettes is still ongoing.
Learn More: Are E-cigarettes Safe?
Learn More: The Top 6 Things the Media Won't Tell You About Vaping
Learn More: Vaping Saves Lives
Are E-cigarettes for Everyone?
E-cigarettes are not for everyone. If you are pregnant, nursing or have a health condition that makes nicotine unsafe for you to use, you should not use e-cigarettes. If you are not already a smoker, you should not use e-cigarettes. Ask your doctor if you aren't sure whether using to e-cigarettes is the right decision for you.
Learn More: Are E-cigarettes for Everyone?
Can I Use E-cigarettes Anywhere?
Check with your state or local government to see if there any laws applying specifically to e-cigarettes. Many regulatory bodies have ruled that people cannot vape in areas in which they cannot smoke. When you do vape in public, be considerate of those around you. Some people may prefer not to inhale the secondhand vapour.
Learn More: Can I Use E-cigarettes anywhere
What Is E-liquid?
E-Liquid contains propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, flavours and optionally nicotine and nicotine salts. Manufacturers create e-liquids using food-grade flavourings. Liberty Flights manufactures its e-liquid in a sterile laboratory in the United Kingdom. We use only pharmaceutical grade ingredients in the production of e-liquid.
Learn More: E-liquid Buyers Guide
Does All E-liquid Contain Nicotine?
No. If you prefer to experience vaping without consuming nicotine, you can buy nicotine-free e-liquid. With e-cigarettes, you have full control over the amount of nicotine that you want to consume.
What Are PG and VG?
Propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin are the two base liquids that make up the bulk of e-liquid's content. PG and VG are excellent emulsifiers, so they are common food ingredients. Of the two, PG is a slightly better carrier of flavours. VG is slightly thicker, so it contributes to a fuller mouthfeel and larger vapour clouds. Most people prefer e-liquids containing both VG and PG. E-liquids with a wide variety of different VG/PG ratios are available.
Learn More: What Are PG and VG?
What Is Throat Hit?
The throat hit is the sensation that you feel in your throat when you inhale cigarette smoke. If you use e-liquid containing nicotine, you'll feel a similar sensation when you use an e-cigarette. Some people need to feel the sensation of throat hit to derive full satisfaction from the vaping experience.
Learn More: What's a Throat Hit?
Do Liberty Flights E-liquids Contain Diacetyl or Acetyl Propionyl?
No. Liberty Flights take your safety seriously and use an independent laboratory to analyse their e-liquids with Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry.
Learn More: Do Liberty Flights E-Liquids Contain Diacetyl or Acetyl Propionyl?
What is Using E-cigarettes Like?
Although e-cigarettes may contain nicotine, they lack many of the other chemicals in tobacco smoke. When you discontinue your intake of those chemicals, it may take your body a few days to adjust.
Although many e-liquids simulate tobacco flavours, they do not taste exactly like cigarette smoke because they contain no cigarette smoke. With e-cigarettes, though, you can experience a variety of flavours that tobacco could never match.
Can I Buy E-liquid With Nicotine in Australia?
Under customs rules, it is legal to import nicotine e-liquid into Australia for personal use without a medical prescription. It is not legal to buy nicotine e-liquid on the ground within Australia.
How Do I Know How Much Nicotine I Need?
If you are a regular daily smoker we suggest buying the 20mg DOT PRO kit as this is the easiest to use vape device with no fuss, no filling and there is no replacing atomizer coils. The 20mg strength is also a sweet spot for most regular smokers which helps replicate the sensation of smoking or for vapers on a medium to higher strength nicotine.
If you are seeking the standard e-liquid bottles we recommend 1.8% nicotine strength as a starting point if you are a frequent smoker. Try a lower nicotine strength if you are an infrequent smoker. If you feel as though the e-liquid you've chosen contains too much nicotine, use your e-cigarette less frequently while you wait for a lower nicotine strength to arrive.
You can adjust the nicotine strength of an e-liquid by mixing it with an e-liquid of different strength. Mixing equal parts of 1.8% nicotine and 0% nicotine e-liquid, for example, gives you a nicotine strength of 0.9%.
Is E-liquid With Nicotine Dangerous?
Nicotine is a toxic chemical that is dangerous if swallowed. Keep nicotine e-liquid away from pets and children. If someone in your household ingests nicotine e-liquid, call a poison control centre immediately. Wash your hands after touching nicotine e-liquid.
Learn More: How to Handle Nicotine E-liquid Safely and What Are the Contact Numbers for Poison Emergency?
Why Should I Buy a Liberty Flights E-cigarette?
Founded in 2009, Liberty Flights is among the oldest and most respected e-cigarette companies in the world. Read their over 10,000 reviews on Trustpilot to see what customers are saying.
In the UK, Liberty Flights are among the founders of the non-profit Independent British Vape Trade Association. As a member of the IBVTA, Liberty Flights help to define the safety and quality control standards for e-cigarette and e-liquid companies in the UK and around the world. Liberty Flights products comply with the UK/EU Tobacco Products Directive (TPD).
Learn More: Welcome to Liberty Flights
Which E-cigarette Starter Kit Should I Buy?
Our selection of e-cigarettes is an ideal choice for complete beginners. The DOT PRO pod vape kit is the ideal starter kit for a regular smoking as it's the most simple and convenient kit to use. The e-liquid is pre-filled in the pod capsules which insert neatly into the battery ready to vape, similar to the pod coffee concept.
We ship our deliveries via DHL Express. DHL Express shipments include tracking and typically arrive in between three and five business days.
How Long Will It Take for My Order to Arrive?
What If I Don't Like My E-cigarette?
Every e-cigarette starter kit includes a 30-day money-back guarantee.
How Do I Charge My E-cigarette?
Your e-cigarette includes a charger that works with any standard USB port. To charge your battery, please follow the instructions in the vape kit. Connect the charger to a USB port. The indicator light on the charger turns red while the battery charges. When the light turns green or turns off, the charge cycle is complete. Disconnect the battery and charger. Never charge any lithium-ion battery unattended.
Learn More: Explaining E-Cigarette Battery Safety
How Do I Fill My E-cigarette?
How to Use a Liberty Flights Clearomizer
How Do I Use My E-cigarette?
On each product page of our website, we detail information about the vape kit you are looking to purchase, the specification of each device and what comes in the kit. Please read this information carefully. Each vape kit also comes with an instruction manual detailing how to use the kit.
How Do I Clean and Maintain My E-cigarette?
You can clean your e-cigarette by wiping the outside with a soft cloth to remove fingerprints and stains. If you spill e-liquid on the outside of your e-cigarette, you can dry it with a paper towel.
The constant cycle of heating and cooling stresses an atomizer coil. After a period of days or weeks, the flavour quality or vapour quantity of your e-cigarette will begin to degrade. It's time to replace the atomizer coil. With the DOT PRO vape device there is no need to do this as you simple replace the e-liquid pod capsule once you've used the liquid.
When replacing coils you can use a dry cloth or paper towel to clean connections and wipe clean the e-liquid tank.
Do not use your e-cigarette if no e-liquid remains in the tank. If the atomizer coil has a cotton wick, the wick could burn -- and a clearomizer with a burned wick will produce harsh, unpleasant flavours.
Learn More: What Is the Best Way to Care for My Battery?
My E-cigarette Isn't Working! What Should I Do?
If your e-cigarette isn't working, the first thing that you should do is confirm that the battery isn't off by pressing the button five times quickly, please note there is no button on the DOT PRO Vape Kit, it works by inhaling which activates the battery. You will need to ensure your device charged before using. If the light comes on and the e-cigarette starts working, you're all set! If the light doesn't flash, try charging the battery.
If your battery is working but your e-cigarette isn't producing vapour, the clearomizer may be the source of the problem. Try replacing the clearomizer or atomizer coil. A clearomizer or atomizer coil has a finite life, so it's always a good idea to have a spare available.
If your e-cigarette has never worked, contact us! We guarantee that our products will not be dead on arrival. Read more about our terms and conditions.
Learn More: Troubleshooting Your E-cigarette Starter Kit
Is My Battery Going to Explode?
You've probably seen some reports in the news of e-cigarette batteries that caught fire or exploded during charging or use. Members of the media have greatly sensationalised these stories, causing fear among e-cigarette users and potential e-cigarette users. Here's what you need to know:
- No Liberty Flights battery has ever exploded.
- Liberty Flights require all of our battery manufacturers to provide proof that their products have received the CE, WEEE and RoHS certifications and hold their manufacturers to the highest possible safety standards.
- Although a very small percentage of all lithium-ion batteries do have manufacturing defects, such defects are extremely rare. Battery cells undergo thorough testing before they're sold or used in products.
- In almost all cases in which e-cigarette batteries have exploded or caused fires, the batteries were being used in an unsafe manner.
To use your Liberty Flights e-cigarette safely, follow these instructions:
- Do not modify your e-cigarette in an attempt to increase its vapour production.
- Turn your battery off when you are not using it.
- Do not charge your battery unattended.
- Charge the battery only with the included Liberty Flights charger.
Learn More: Explaining E-cigarette Battery Safety
What is nicotine salt?
In its natural state within the tobacco leaf, the nicotine molecule is a salt. Humans have used tobacco for approximately 2,000 years. Throughout nearly all of that history, we have consumed nicotine in its salt form. In the mid-20th century, though, tobacco company researchers discovered that freeing nicotine from the acid that binds it as a salt allows the body to absorb the nicotine more quickly. By adding ammonia to cigarettes, the tobacco companies created cigarettes with free base nicotine. Learn More: What is Nicotine Salt: An Introduction to Nicotine Salts
Did you know all our e-liquid bottles can be recycled?
While the Tobacco and Related Products Regulations mean Liberty Flights have no choice but to sell nicotine containing e-liquid in 10 ml plastic bottles, they support looking ways to reduce impact on the environment where possible. So Liberty Flights bottles and boxes can all be recycled after use.
