Creating your own e-liquid from scratch is all part of the fun for many vaping enthusiasts. With so many options to choose from, e-liquid blending is modern alchemy, where you get to experiment with flavour, cloud production, strength of hit and more until you achieve the perfect vape for you.
E-liquids are generally comprised of three components – a PG/VG base mix, the flavour concentrate, and the nicotine or nic salts (if required). In this article, we’re going to talk about e-liquid bases and how changing the ratio of ingredients in it can affect your vaping experience.
What’s in a base mix?
Your base mix is usually made up of two ingredients - propylene glycol (PG) and vegetable glycerine (VG). How much of each you put into your base mix determines your PG/VG ratio, which is normally listed as a split percentage of PG to VG. So, for instance, a base mix with equal amounts of each would be listed as 50/50, while one made up of three-quarters VG would be 25/75, and so on.
Both propylene glycol and vegetable glycerine are clear and colourless. PG is flavourless, while VG has a slightly sweet taste in its natural state. Both liquids have their own properties that they impart to the base mix and, ultimately, to your finished e-liquid concoction.
Propylene glycol
PG is the part of your base mix that anchors the flavour and nicotine. It’s thinner than VG, vaporises at a lower temperature, produces smaller clouds, and holds nicotine and flavour concentrates better. If you’re looking for a strong hit of nicotine or an e-liquid that will work with a low-wattage device, you need to include more PG in the mix.
Vegetable glycerine
VG is the cloud-maker. Thicker in consistency than PG, it does not hold the nicotine and flavour concentrate as well, but compensates for this by producing massive clouds of vapour. If that’s the part of the vaping experience you enjoy most, ramp up your VG levels accordingly.
What PG/VG ratio is best?
That depends entirely on what you want from your vaping experience. If you want to be discreet about vaping, then you should weight your base mix ratio towards PG, as is doesn’t take as long to get going in your vaping device and produces smaller clouds. Likewise, if you’re vaping for a more powerful nicotine hit, a high PG quotient is going to benefit you. High VG mixes do have their fans, however the natural sweetness of the liquid takes some of the harshness out of the draw and, of course, you get those massive clouds of vapour into the bargain.
While many vapers like to stick with a 50/50 blend, there’s a lot of fun to be had from experimenting with different ratios and seeing what works best for you. If you already know what ratio you prefer, or you want someone else to handle the mixing, we offer custom mixes of base liquid. You get to choose your PG/VG base mix ratio in 5% increments, anywhere from 0/100 to 100/0 and we will produce a custom batch. We even include nic salts or nicotine shots to achieve your desired nicotine strength.
You can order all your e-liquid and vaping equipment direct from our online store with fast delivery times across the UK.