What are vape coils? 

The coil inside any vape pen is a key element to being able to produce delicious clouds of vapour. Without the coil, you wouldn’t have a way to turn your e-liquid into vapour. This is why anyone who vapes needs to understand the basics of how vaping works.

Vapour Coils

Technically, what we call vape coils are actually atomiser heads. They are housed inside an atomiser or vape tank and have a thin coil of wire and wicking material in them. Since most people call atomiser heads “coils,” we’ll make things simpler by using the more common lingo.  

E-liquid soaks into the wicking material in the coil and when you fire up your vape, your e-cig battery heats up the coil. The heat then converts the e-liquid from the wicking into delicious vapour.

Types of Vapour Coils

There are several different types of coils to choose from depending on your preferred vaping experience.

• High-resistance coils: These are coils that are rated 1.0 ohm or higher. They operate at a lower power and use less e-liquid because they produce smaller clouds of vapour. Most e-cigs can work with high-resistance coils.
• Low-resistance coils: These coils have less than 1.0 ohm and are usually referred to as “sub ohm” coils. They produce big clouds of vapour so they use more e-liquid than low-resistance coils. If you want big clouds, make sure your vape is compatible with the right kind of resistance coils.

Beyond resistance, coils can also vary by size, design, and the type of wire or wicking material used.  Some of the most common types you’ll find when shopping for coils include:

• Kanthal coils: Kanthal is the trade name for a type of wire made up of a metal alloy. This is the most common type of wire used.
• Mesh coils: Instead of wire wrapped in a coil, the wire in these coils looks more like mesh. They have a higher surface area and create more intense vapour.  

For people who are newer to vaping, all of this might seem overwhelming. If you aren’t sure which type of coil you should go with, your best bet is to check which coils your vape requires.