E-Liquid Steeping Methods – A How To Guide

Today,  David Coleman from Vaporesso brings you some interesting techniques for you to practically try the art of steeping your e-liquids, but first a few important considerations for retaining the consistency of your e-juice.

You may have heard already that it’s never a good idea to expose e-liquid to direct air, heat and sunlight.

The reason is these things are proven to degrade e-liquid very rapidly.

They are also known to cause nicotine to break down. A big no-no if you’re particular about maintaining the nicotine content inside your e-liquid.

As far as natural air is concerned, there is always the possibility of dust and germs getting into your e-juice if exposed deliberately.

Usually though there is not much to worry about since PG has anti-bacterial properties. However, dirt inside your bottle of e-liquid could spoil it entirely.

If you’re new to steeping, you can confidently try out any of the following methods.

These are all based on the experience of vapers around the world and there are still many more techniques you can find out about online.

Slow and sure wins the race

Our first technique for you to explore is totally uncomplicated but requires some patience to get it right.

To conduct the actual steeping you simply leave your bottle of e-liquid inside a cool dark place for a fixed period.

We will get to the how long bit in a moment.

Many vapers intermittently give the e-liquid a shake every now and then throughout this process. So you would leave the bottle of e-liquid to sit for a day, then shake it up thoroughly, then leave it to sit again, and so on.

This takes place over several days leading up to weeks if required.

There is a difference of opinion whether or not leaving the bottle open during steeping makes a difference or not.

You can try both methods and see what works better for you.

For how long should I Steep Vape Juice?

There’s no set duration for the process of steeping since experience has shown different flavors react differently.

According to some, certain flavors are best left without any steeping at all. To give you a broader picture you can follow the guidelines for the various complexities of differing flavors below.

Steeping Dessert Flavored E-juices

You’ll probably get good results by steeping dessert flavors over a 2 to 4 week period. Custards, tarts, and pudding based flavors fall into the same category.

Many have reported that these types of flavors continue to show signs of improvement well beyond the initial stint of steeping. So you could steep them, test or use them for a while, and then again if you require.

Dessert flavors can be steeped for months on end with no issues whatsoever.

Steeping Menthol’s and Fruity Flavors

These flavors can do without steeping by simply shaking before you vape. If you would like to steep try not to exceed a steeping period of two weeks.

Fruits and menthol flavors can start lose taste if too much steeping is applied.

It is better to avoid using the air direct method of steeping with fruit flavors as this degrades the taste even further.

The creamier variety of fruits like mango-based flavors do benefit from a week or two of steeping but be sure to leave the bottle closed throughout.

Fruit mixes and cocktails are generally more complex and steeping will allow the various notes and tastes to merge more effectively.

Steeping Tobacco Flavors

The majority of vapers prefer to not steep tobacco based flavors and do just fine shaking and vaping.

Most of the tobacco flavors out there are rather deep and not what our taste buds are familiar to.

Hence steeping may not be required if you find the flavor rather strong to begin with.

You would like to tone down the strength of the tobacco flavor and perhaps bring out hidden notes, you can still benefit from steeping. No more than 2 to 4 weeks will do the trick.

Tobacco flavors featuring a sweet mix with vanilla or caramel are very popular these days.

To get even more out of them go ahead and steep for at least two weeks.

Combining Heating With Steeping

The idea behind bringing heat into the equation of steeping is that it reduces the time factor tremendously.

Vapers have through trial and error invented various methods to speed up the steeping process.

Here are some of the most common ways to fast track your steeping.

Immersing in Warm Water

This method involves placing your bottle of e-liquid inside a plastic bag and then leaving it inside a vessel containing warm water.

As a rule of thumb never use boiling hot water as it may cause the breakdown of e-liquid components and end up killing the flavor.

Make sure the bottle’s cap is tight and secure, seal off the plastic bag, and place the whole package inside the water.

You can take it all out after 15 minutes, give the bottle a shake and do a taste test.

If you like it, fine, otherwise simply repeat the process until you’re satisfied.

Using Rice for Heat

This method applies heat to e-liquid ingredients in a similar way to warm water except that this is a completely dry method.

Simply microwave a cup of uncooked rice until it’s hot to the touch.

Remove and bury your bottle inside the hot rice until it is completely covered.

You can leave it for several minutes to speed steep before shaking and testing.

Again, you can repeat the cycle to get to the taste you’re looking for.

Inside your Car

And last but not least, we have the famous hot car method for you to try.

Many claim this quick steeping technique works like a charm especially if you’re pressed for time to try your freshly mixed e-juice.

All you have to do is store your e-liquid inside the glove compartment for 3 to 4 hours.

The environment of a hot car coupled with the tight dark air space of the glove box makes for excellent steeping results