I’ve seen a lot of ads that claim you can smoke these things anywhere–in a bar, in your office, etc., in other words, all the places you used to be able to smoke actual cigarettes, but can’t anymore.
However, I have never seen anyone smoking one, anywhere. Not in an office, not in a bar, not in a box, not with a fox.
Or do they just not look like actual cigarettes, so I’ve missed it? In the ads they look like actual cigarettes, but I guess they wouldn’t have to.
I have never seen one used, and they really aren’t legal in as many places as they claim.
Mots dudes, if they want nicotine without smoking, use smokeless tobacco.
A good friend of mine is trying to e-smoke. He likes the lack of smoke and the health aspects. He loves the low cost (it takes 2-3 months to offset the cost of the device, and then the price is 1/3 that of cigarettes.)
But unfortunately, the technology isn’t working for him. He’s tried two brands and the batteries punked out on both. Now he’s ordered the most expensive, best reviewed, model and hopes it will work right.
He says that so far he isn’t using it in no-smoking establishments just because he doesn’t want to have to explain himself to indignant patrons. But he does use it in his own house, his office (he’s the boss) and in the houses of friends – which he didn’t do with tobacco ciggies.
I use one from time to time in places where regular ones are forbidden. I am usually not flaunting it, though, because someone will certainly see the harmless vapor and come over to tell me I can’t do that, and then we have to go through the whole rigamarole over what the gadget really is.
The last time I was on an airplane, the instructions specifically forbade e-cigs. My guess it’s to avoid the hassle of the flight attendants having to verify all the time what vapor is just vapor and which is smoke, so they just ban it all. Theoretically a person could use one of them in a lavatory and they would not set off the smoke detector, nor would the vapor be evident to anyone else during or after. Of course that would be breaking the rules so I certainly wouldn’t suggest it.
Smokeless tobacco is awkward. Even the kind that says you don’t have to spit it out (Snus, for example) seems to me to sometimes made me feel like I did have to spit it, so I have not continued beyond an initial experiment. Also you can’t stop & start smokeless; it’s either in your maw or it’s not. An e-cig you can take a hit and then put it down until you want another one.
What is the price after the initial cost? What do you put in it? What kind of batteries does it use, and some kind of . . . cartridge? What?
This would be a good Christmas present for someone I know who’s been trying to quit smoking without much success. Can anyone recommend the best kind?
Seriously…? What a terrible idea.
Well, I’ve never seen one either, that I know of. But I can’t imagine why they would be illegal anywhere they aren’t expressly banned. And why would they be banned?
They say they are odorless, which I don’t believe–there must be some odor. But obviously, it wouldn’t emanate the way cigarette smoke does, or anyway, I thought that was the whole point.
So it doesn’t seem like it would have any more impact on others in the surrounding area than if you were, say, chewing on the end of your pen. And some I have seen do, in fact, look a lot like pens.
It could just be that people are doing this very subtly in places like restaurants & bars, so I’ve missed it. Or, could be they aren’t doing it at all.
It might be a good present if your friend wants one. But is it really quitting? Does it help? (I would have been really testy if I’d ever gotten a present to help me quit smoking. But that could just be me.)
Well, most of the dangers from smoking are reduced greatly. The system is still a nicotine injestion system, but I’d guess it is no more dangerous than nicotine patches or gum. Minds you, the addiction continues, but in a less dangerous form.
So, it could be as safe as the gum or patches, and those are recognized as a stop smoking tool.
Well here on Long Island where cigarettes are between $9-11 a pack I see more and more people using them since 7-11 has a kit for $20. A lot of people I know are using them not to quit but to afford to be able to “smoke.”
Hi Sigmagirl,
I’m too lazy to look this stuff up, but my memory is that the “package” is about the size of a pack of cigs and contains:
–The main battery
–Two “cigarettes” that contain tiny batteries.
–Several cottony inserts that are soaked with nicotine.
Hmm… there must also be a moisture source somewhere, because the “cigarettes” produce water vapor. The water vapor flows through the fibrous nicotine inserts, and then into your lungs. Presumably you’re exhaling a small amount of nicotine tinged vapor, but it’s barely visible.
Each insert is good for 3-5 “smokes” and costs about 15 or 25 cents. They come in different strengths and flavors.
The main battery in the “pack” recharges the tiny battery in the “cigarettes.” You recharge the main battery overnight.
The model my friend has been using has glossy black cylinders, and a blue LED at the tip. It glows brighter when you inhale. The unit cost maybe $65.
Check libertystix.com. These are at least mostly made in America. Some of the Chinese ones have a problem with quality control from what I’ve read.
One of the components has a harmless food-grade substance that vaporizes.
In my observation they are completely odorless.
I ‘smoke’ mine all day long in my office. The batteries will crap out like any other rechargeable, but in the office or at home, where I am constantly in front of a computer, I use a USB pass-through. This saves the batteries for use only when I need to be mobile.
I have been using these for over a year now exclusively.
Recurring costs are about $30 a month for refillable ‘cartomizers’, which are the vaporizing element and a cartridge in one piece, and ‘juice’. The vaporizing element will wear out after about a week of use. The juice is a blend of food grade propylene glycol and nicotine.
There is no odor.
When I started, my lungs felt much the same way they did when i attempted to quit smoking; a noticeable increase in lung capacity after coughing up all the leftover remnants of cigarettes.
There is some fooling around and tricks to produce a satisfying vapor that really replicates smoking. Most of these tricks I found on an e-cigarette-forum, which is easily found with a Google search. This is also a great place to find recommendations for starter kits and consumables.
I have used it at some bars, and have had to explain what it is and how it works to co-workers and the curious, but have never been told not to use it after a cursory demonstration.