Glass wick

[Silver]

Guys please refrain from further personal comments

If you want to continue please take them offline or via PM, not here.

I did ask once before. If this continues we will have to lock the thread.

Please follow forum posting rules.

Thank you

 

[Resistance]

Thank you for creating this thread @Resistance. I’m sure it’ll help educate some of us, and not only on wicking materials BTW!
In my job I come across people who knowingly play with their lives. It outrages me and I’m sometimes tempted to call them names and give them slap on the face or kick them out. But it’s not in my nature and more importantly it would defeat the purpose!
It’s a pity some people hide behind nicknames and use these fora to vent their frustrations, belittle other people or maybe simply be “themselves”? You are quite regular on the forum, you’re making a huge contribution and you may have noticed that it’s the same people who usually make the negative or cynical comments like in any other community. You’re better off ignoring them buddy. It’ll drive them nuts! If you respond to them, you’re giving them the joy of an opportunity to insult you again. Don’t give them that joy!

I have actually found some answers elsewhere as well as informative posts on other wicking marterials.
I suggest that @Silver @Rob Fisher delete this thread. I will start a new one and we can discuss it the new forum with open minds.
This thread is seen by people all over the world and it's not cool what's been done here. Thanks for everyone with positive and contributing feedback. Much appreciated.

 

[Silver]

I have actually found some answers elsewhere as well as informative posts on other wicking marterials.
I suggest that @Silver @Rob Fisher delete this thread. I will start a new one and we can discuss it the new forum with open minds.
This thread is seen by people all over the world and it's not cool what's been done here. Thanks for everyone with positive and contributing feedback. Much appreciated.

Hi @Resistance

Your sentiments are appreciated
There are great posts and info in this thread so it would be a pity to remove them.

Instead of deleting the thread, let’s continue and hopefully it can be done without personal comments going forward.

 

[Dela Rey Steyn]

Hi guys and gals.
This is an interesting topic indeed.
I'm not a veteran vaper by any means, I started only about 5-6 years ago. Although silica wick was still common is SA then, my experience with it is very limited.

I understand that the silica used in the silica wicks are similar to that of fibreglass. Not the same, but close. In a similar way to regular bleached household cotton and our unbleached vaping cotton is "same-same, but different"

It's mostly an unclean product manufactured solely for the "maker's" market and was never intended to be used to in our vaping applications.

That being said, I don't see why it wouldn't 'technically' work as a wicking material. If kept well saturated and used at lower temperatures, it might actually be an excellent wicking material as far as the mechanics of wicking material goes.

Seeing as we already have so many satisfactory wicking material on the market, I can't see any obvious advantages to using it as such. And I personally would not try it, although the intrigue of seeing if it actually works is tempting (I like to tinker...)

I imagine a proper dry-hit on Fibreglass might be a bit more detrimental to your health than organic cotton if it should occur on a regular basis. And I have read to many contradicting studies on the carcenogenic properties of fibreglass to give this theory a go.

Interesting topic @Resistance, just not something I'm putting on my To Do list.

 

[Resistance]

For those that think this thread was about the insulating pink type fiberglass, or the yellow insulating type,it wasn't. There might still be a confusion and I just wanted to clear that up. There's a myriad of types of it in the industry and the stranded version and the rope(braided) version was the type in question.
I just wanted to clear that up.

 

[alex1501]

Not sure why (could be some form of OCD, or the sole fact that I'm qualified for it), but I feel obligation to try and clear some confusion that still hangs around terms "silica" and "fiberglass".
For that we have to start with "silica". It refers to silicon dioxide (SiO2) and is probably the most abundant material on Earth.
Silica exists in two major forms:
1.Crystalline sillica in it's pure form is known as Quartz, but it's also a major constituent in the wast number of sillicate based minerals and when broken down it becomes a sillica sand. If powdered and inhaled it will cause a serious damage to the lung tissue (chronic bronchitis, sillicosis, lung cancer...),nasty stuff.
Our only interest in the "crystaline silica" here, is that is used as raw material for a production of of the second major form "amorphous silica".

2. Amorphous silica aka "glass" is in daily use by everyone.It's usually man made material, but it is also found in the nature (eg "obsidan" aka "vulcanic glass" or "desert glass" created by the lightning storms or meteor impact ...).
If powdered and inhaled it will cause some forms of irritation or inflamation, but not chronical and/or terminal as "crystaline silica" does.
In it's pure form glass is colorless, transparent, strong but brittle material, usually modified for the specific use, by introduction of other elements to change it's various attributes (eg colour, thermal shock resisance, hardness ...).
Our inerest in the "glass" here is that it is used for production of the "glass fibre". Glass makers did experimens with the extrusion of glass to create fibers for centuries.
Today we usually create "glass fibers" directly from the "silica sand", but "glass" is still the median stage of production.
If you are curious to find out more about the "silica":
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicon_dioxide is a fairly good starting point.

"Fiberglass" as term today is the comercial name used for a wide variety of products made of "glass fibers" and other materials. It started with a production and marketing of the "glass fiber wool" for thermal insulation and it was even trademarked for that, but with time it spread from there to the other lines of products.

Now it's most commonly used for for the widest variety of products made from "glass fiber plastic composits".
"Glass fiber plastic composits" are basically made from the "glass fibres" and resin (eg epoxy, polyesther, ...).
Due to the great structural stability (hard, waterproof, weaterproof, ...), flexibility and the other mechanical properies combined with the low price, they are used in almost every part of our lives (from tool handles to the entire houses, also as car parts, sail boats, helicopter blades, planes, ...).
One thing they are not used for is making vaping wicks (no absorption ability).
I'd love to see someone turns this:


into a wick.
No reason to fear them other than as source of polution.

When we take that out of our way, the next is:


The "glass fiber wool" created for thermal insulation and marketed as "fiberglass". It's made from "glass fibers" and bonding agents, to create the structure capable of trapping and holding air, which then acts as thermal insulator.
When the external cover is damaged, small pieces of the wool can enter the brethable air and cause a skin and lung irritation (sometimes more severe, depending of the bonding chemicals used).
This is the main culprit for the fear of the term "fiberglass", and nobody makes vaping wicks from it. Structure itself wouldn't allow it and chemicals involved would taste horribly.

Finally we come to the subject of the original post by @Resistance

"Silica glass fiber" is basically "polimerized glass" or (SiO2)n. The thin strands of glass are extruded to the diameters small enough to make treads and fabrics for further fabrication of the above mentioned (and many other) products.
Different types of glass can be used for creating the fibers, but if there is "silica" in the name, it refers to the pure SiO2 based glass.
Those treads can be used to create wicks and it was done long before vaping came into the picture (various liquid based lamps ...).
The glass wicks would last forever if their perfomace wasn't affected by the external contamination.
They've been also sold as "fiberglass" wicks, because of the name recognition.
Like everything else, they can be made in various grades and not all of them are suitable for vaping. Always be cautious.
The good ones will withstand the temperatures of over 1000 degres Celsius, that ability alone will enable you to perform a simple test of what you have.

I hope this helps a ittle more, than my previous post, without going too technical.


You can always do a further research on the subject.

 

[alex1501]

I am trying to leave this thread alone because it seams on this forum people throw their toys out the pram, were you vaping end of 2011 beginning of 2012 when i am referring to two separate products if not then you are telling me you know better about something i was a part of and you wasn't! If you were vaping back then i will be happy to continue the topic but not were people are so touchy. So much emphasise but on what was perceived as insulting. Funny when i simply pressed the dislike button to a comment on a thread and nothing more i was insulted yet not one person disliked the insult or spoke up for me. If because you pressed dislike to comments of mine i promise you if i looked up exactly where you were from in South Africa to find the nearest river to you to make it personal and posted for you to go piss in it then dislikes and comments would come flooding in and i would get slaughtered, yet when i was told to do so for no other reason than pressing dislike not one person commented or anything, that tells me everything i need to know about what people are really like on here.

I had a high hope that, given time, you'll read this again and maybe make some changes.
However, if that is your answer on a very simple question, you have a way more serious things to take care off.
I wish you all the luck on that journey, wherever the destination is.

 

[Resistance]

Not sure why (could be some form of OCD, or the sole fact that I'm qualified for it), but I feel obligation to try and clear some confusion that still hangs around terms "silica" and "fiberglass".
For that we have to start with "silica". It refers to silicon dioxide (SiO2) and is probably the most abundant material on Earth.
Silica exists in two major forms:
1.Crystalline sillica in it's pure form is known as Quartz, but it's also a major constituent in the wast number of sillicate based minerals and when broken down it becomes a sillica sand. If powdered and inhaled it will cause a serious damage to the lung tissue (chronic bronchitis, sillicosis, lung cancer...),nasty stuff.
Our only interest in the "crystaline silica" here, is that is used as raw material for a production of of the second major form "amorphous silica".

2. Amorphous silica aka "glass" is in daily use by everyone.It's usually man made material, but it is also found in the nature (eg "obsidan" aka "vulcanic glass" or "desert glass" created by the lightning storms or meteor impact ...).
If powdered and inhaled it will cause some forms of irritation or inflamation, but not chronical and/or terminal as "crystaline silica" does.
In it's pure form glass is colorless, transparent, strong but brittle material, usually modified for the specific use, by introduction of other elements to change it's various attributes (eg colour, thermal shock resisance, hardness ...).
Our inerest in the "glass" here is that it is used for production of the "glass fibre". Glass makers did experimens with the extrusion of glass to create fibers for centuries.
Today we usually create "glass fibers" directly from the "silica sand", but "glass" is still the median stage of production.
If you are curious to find out more about the "silica":
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicon_dioxide is a fairly good starting point.

"Fiberglass" as term today is the comercial name used for a wide variety of products made of "glass fibers" and other materials. It started with a production and marketing of the "glass fiber wool" for thermal insulation and it was even trademarked for that, but with time it spread from there to the other lines of products.

Now it's most commonly used for for the widest variety of products made from "glass fiber plastic composits".
"Glass fiber plastic composits" are basically made from the "glass fibres" and resin (eg epoxy, polyesther, ...).
Due to the great structural stability (hard, waterproof, weaterproof, ...), flexibility and the other mechanical properies combined with the low price, they are used in almost every part of our lives (from tool handles to the entire houses, also as car parts, sail boats, helicopter blades, planes, ...).
One thing they are not used for is making vaping wicks (no absorption ability).
I'd love to see someone turns this:
View attachment 190819

into a wick.
No reason to fear them other than as source of polution.

When we take that out of our way, the next is:
View attachment 190820

The "glass fiber wool" created for thermal insulation and marketed as "fiberglass". It's made from "glass fibers" and bonding agents, to create the structure capable of trapping and holding air, which then acts as thermal insulator.
When the external cover is damaged, small pieces of the wool can enter the brethable air and cause a skin and lung irritation (sometimes more severe, depending of the bonding chemicals used).
This is the main culprit for the fear of the term "fiberglass", and nobody makes vaping wicks from it. Structure itself wouldn't allow it and chemicals involved woud taste horribly.

Finally we come to the subject of the original post by @Resistance
View attachment 190821
"Silica glass fiber" is basically "polimerized glass" or (SiO2)n. The thin strands of glass are extruded to the diameters small enough to make treads and fabrics for further fabrication of the above mentioned (and many other) products.
Different types of glass can be used for creating the fibers, but if there is "silica" in the name, it refers to the pure SiO2 based glass.
Those treads can be used to create wicks and it was done long before vaping came into the picture (various liquid based lamps ...).
The glass wicks would last forever if their perfomace wasn't affected by the external contamination.
They've been also sold as "fiberglass" wicks, because of the name recognition.
Like everything else, they can be made in various grades and not all of them are suitable for vaping. Always be cautious.
The good ones will withstand the temperatures of over 1000 degres Celsius, that ability alone will enable you to perform a simple test of what you have.

I hope this helps a ittle more, than my previous post, without going to technical.


You can always do a further research on the subject.

Good post on this topic.

Yes it was quite common to have a good fibreglass wick on a oil lamp and it could be cleaned with heat trimmed and reused.
And that was the reasoning at first. The part where it doesn't wick ejuice so we'll is an issue ,but not a train smash and can be worked around.

 

[Silver]

Not sure why (could be some form of OCD, or the sole fact that I'm qualified for it), but I feel obligation to try and clear some confusion that still hangs around terms "silica" and "fiberglass".
For that we have to start with "silica". It refers to silicon dioxide (SiO2) and is probably the most abundant material on Earth.
Silica exists in two major forms:
1.Crystalline sillica in it's pure form is known as Quartz, but it's also a major constituent in the wast number of sillicate based minerals and when broken down it becomes a sillica sand. If powdered and inhaled it will cause a serious damage to the lung tissue (chronic bronchitis, sillicosis, lung cancer...),nasty stuff.
Our only interest in the "crystaline silica" here, is that is used as raw material for a production of of the second major form "amorphous silica".

2. Amorphous silica aka "glass" is in daily use by everyone.It's usually man made material, but it is also found in the nature (eg "obsidan" aka "vulcanic glass" or "desert glass" created by the lightning storms or meteor impact ...).
If powdered and inhaled it will cause some forms of irritation or inflamation, but not chronical and/or terminal as "crystaline silica" does.
In it's pure form glass is colorless, transparent, strong but brittle material, usually modified for the specific use, by introduction of other elements to change it's various attributes (eg colour, thermal shock resisance, hardness ...).
Our inerest in the "glass" here is that it is used for production of the "glass fibre". Glass makers did experimens with the extrusion of glass to create fibers for centuries.
Today we usually create "glass fibers" directly from the "silica sand", but "glass" is still the median stage of production.
If you are curious to find out more about the "silica":
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicon_dioxide is a fairly good starting point.

"Fiberglass" as term today is the comercial name used for a wide variety of products made of "glass fibers" and other materials. It started with a production and marketing of the "glass fiber wool" for thermal insulation and it was even trademarked for that, but with time it spread from there to the other lines of products.

Now it's most commonly used for for the widest variety of products made from "glass fiber plastic composits".
"Glass fiber plastic composits" are basically made from the "glass fibres" and resin (eg epoxy, polyesther, ...).
Due to the great structural stability (hard, waterproof, weaterproof, ...), flexibility and the other mechanical properies combined with the low price, they are used in almost every part of our lives (from tool handles to the entire houses, also as car parts, sail boats, helicopter blades, planes, ...).
One thing they are not used for is making vaping wicks (no absorption ability).
I'd love to see someone turns this:
View attachment 190819

into a wick.
No reason to fear them other than as source of polution.

When we take that out of our way, the next is:
View attachment 190820

The "glass fiber wool" created for thermal insulation and marketed as "fiberglass". It's made from "glass fibers" and bonding agents, to create the structure capable of trapping and holding air, which then acts as thermal insulator.
When the external cover is damaged, small pieces of the wool can enter the brethable air and cause a skin and lung irritation (sometimes more severe, depending of the bonding chemicals used).
This is the main culprit for the fear of the term "fiberglass", and nobody makes vaping wicks from it. Structure itself wouldn't allow it and chemicals involved woud taste horribly.

Finally we come to the subject of the original post by @Resistance
View attachment 190821
"Silica glass fiber" is basically "polimerized glass" or (SiO2)n. The thin strands of glass are extruded to the diameters small enough to make treads and fabrics for further fabrication of the above mentioned (and many other) products.
Different types of glass can be used for creating the fibers, but if there is "silica" in the name, it refers to the pure SiO2 based glass.
Those treads can be used to create wicks and it was done long before vaping came into the picture (various liquid based lamps ...).
The glass wicks would last forever if their perfomace wasn't affected by the external contamination.
They've been also sold as "fiberglass" wicks, because of the name recognition.
Like everything else, they can be made in various grades and not all of them are suitable for vaping. Always be cautious.
The good ones will withstand the temperatures of over 1000 degres Celsius, that ability alone will enable you to perform a simple test of what you have.

I hope this helps a ittle more, than my previous post, without going to technical.


You can always do a further research on the subject.

Wow, thanks for that post @alex1501 !!!
Very infomative indeed

 

[BioHAZarD]

Not sure why (could be some form of OCD, or the sole fact that I'm qualified for it), but I feel obligation to try and clear some confusion that still hangs around terms "silica" and "fiberglass".
For that we have to start with "silica". It refers to silicon dioxide (SiO2) and is probably the most abundant material on Earth.
Silica exists in two major forms:
1.Crystalline sillica in it's pure form is known as Quartz, but it's also a major constituent in the wast number of sillicate based minerals and when broken down it becomes a sillica sand. If powdered and inhaled it will cause a serious damage to the lung tissue (chronic bronchitis, sillicosis, lung cancer...),nasty stuff.
Our only interest in the "crystaline silica" here, is that is used as raw material for a production of of the second major form "amorphous silica".

2. Amorphous silica aka "glass" is in daily use by everyone.It's usually man made material, but it is also found in the nature (eg "obsidan" aka "vulcanic glass" or "desert glass" created by the lightning storms or meteor impact ...).
If powdered and inhaled it will cause some forms of irritation or inflamation, but not chronical and/or terminal as "crystaline silica" does.
In it's pure form glass is colorless, transparent, strong but brittle material, usually modified for the specific use, by introduction of other elements to change it's various attributes (eg colour, thermal shock resisance, hardness ...).
Our inerest in the "glass" here is that it is used for production of the "glass fibre". Glass makers did experimens with the extrusion of glass to create fibers for centuries.
Today we usually create "glass fibers" directly from the "silica sand", but "glass" is still the median stage of production.
If you are curious to find out more about the "silica":
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicon_dioxide is a fairly good starting point.

"Fiberglass" as term today is the comercial name used for a wide variety of products made of "glass fibers" and other materials. It started with a production and marketing of the "glass fiber wool" for thermal insulation and it was even trademarked for that, but with time it spread from there to the other lines of products.

Now it's most commonly used for for the widest variety of products made from "glass fiber plastic composits".
"Glass fiber plastic composits" are basically made from the "glass fibres" and resin (eg epoxy, polyesther, ...).
Due to the great structural stability (hard, waterproof, weaterproof, ...), flexibility and the other mechanical properies combined with the low price, they are used in almost every part of our lives (from tool handles to the entire houses, also as car parts, sail boats, helicopter blades, planes, ...).
One thing they are not used for is making vaping wicks (no absorption ability).
I'd love to see someone turns this:
View attachment 190819

into a wick.
No reason to fear them other than as source of polution.

When we take that out of our way, the next is:
View attachment 190820

The "glass fiber wool" created for thermal insulation and marketed as "fiberglass". It's made from "glass fibers" and bonding agents, to create the structure capable of trapping and holding air, which then acts as thermal insulator.
When the external cover is damaged, small pieces of the wool can enter the brethable air and cause a skin and lung irritation (sometimes more severe, depending of the bonding chemicals used).
This is the main culprit for the fear of the term "fiberglass", and nobody makes vaping wicks from it. Structure itself wouldn't allow it and chemicals involved woud taste horribly.

Finally we come to the subject of the original post by @Resistance
View attachment 190821
"Silica glass fiber" is basically "polimerized glass" or (SiO2)n. The thin strands of glass are extruded to the diameters small enough to make treads and fabrics for further fabrication of the above mentioned (and many other) products.
Different types of glass can be used for creating the fibers, but if there is "silica" in the name, it refers to the pure SiO2 based glass.
Those treads can be used to create wicks and it was done long before vaping came into the picture (various liquid based lamps ...).
The glass wicks would last forever if their perfomace wasn't affected by the external contamination.
They've been also sold as "fiberglass" wicks, because of the name recognition.
Like everything else, they can be made in various grades and not all of them are suitable for vaping. Always be cautious.
The good ones will withstand the temperatures of over 1000 degres Celsius, that ability alone will enable you to perform a simple test of what you have.

I hope this helps a ittle more, than my previous post, without going to technical.


You can always do a further research on the subject.

Glad to see someone posting a well thought out response and not just a one line insult. Very informative. Thank you.

 

[Resistance]

Glad to see someone posting a well thought out response and not just a one line insult. Very informative. Thank you.

Agreed, the post was very informative and work has gone into it.
A little something this forum started lacking. That little effort to support our fellow vapers especially when things go sideways.

 

[Resistance]

So I have tried it. With cotton to compensate for the wicking issues.
After sterilization of course.
And it works. No pics this time but I will follow up with pics.

 

[Resistance]

second attempt. Vape is smoother flavours slightly more pronounced.simular to SS cable. The NIC hit is harder.
Overall good vape. The effort in getting the wick done. Depends on how long the wick lasts. Anything less than a week would be no.
Anything more could be a winner for me personally.

Edit. This is the second attempt and it's getting better.

 

[Resistance]

You can actually tell when the wick is getting dry by taste of the vape.

 

[Raindance]

Guy's, I also did dabble in "glass" wicks a while ago. Have a look here.
The Silica Wick Thread

Regards

 

[BioHAZarD]

Guy's, I also did dabble in "glass" wicks a while ago. Have a look here.
The Silica Wick Thread

Regards

no no not the "glass" wick ... that is the devils work

I remember that thread. It was an interesting read.

 

[Resistance]

I mixed some cotton in the fibres to aid in wicking. In the pic above.
So far so good. The flavour is still amazingly good if not better and this is what it looks like on day 2.
Also this is a pigtail wick and I had no wicking issues yet