Mixing By Weight... Questions

[Ld3441]

Who here mixes by weight? Can I pick your brain a bit??

Which scales and calculator do you use? What do I need to look for in a scale?
I know this has been discussed before but I was not ready to think about that at the time.
I'd like to see what options I have as far as a scale and calculator. I am now thinking this may be a better option for me but I need to know more before I purchase one.

@RocketPuppy ... you seriously need to get back in here! I hope all is well.

 

[AmandaD]

There's a long thread about this over on ECF in the DIY forum. I'm thinking about it as well!

 

[wllmc]

you for sure need a scale that is accurate to at least 0.01 grams .......... everything weights different but I think a ml of flavoring is about 1 gram........ I think . I want a nice scale but just havent yet

 

[Botboy141]

You want at least a 500x0.01 scale (this means it weighs up to 500grams down to hundredth. You also want a scale with either NO auto shut off feature, or at least a long one.

Scale Recommendation:
Next you will most likely want to pick up some pipettes, they make life a lot easier, and it's cheap enough using disposables that you're likely to prefer using them over using paper towels to clean up every drip as you were pouring out of a bottle without a drip tip on it.


Next, I would recommend picking up some 8 oz plastic bottles with yorker drip tips (for PG and VG). These things make life so much easier.


If you really hate making a mess and order your PG/VG in quantity, you may also want to consider picking up a funnel to fill those bottles, that entirely your call.

That's about it.

You can also read more in this guide to mixing by weight.

Edit: Missed the calculator question in OP = http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/diy-e-liquid/480587-new-calculator-try.html

 

[AmandaD]

I thought the whole point was that you need no pippettes, funnels or anything else! I absolutely loathe pippetes, and I have a bunch that I never use! I have my pg/vg in the bottles above, so that'll make them easy to pour. And the flavorings, surely, just get dropped in right out of the bottles, no? The only thing I would probably measure until I'm sure would be the 100mg nic solution.

 

[Botboy141]

I thought the whole point was that you need no pippettes, funnels or anything else! I absolutely loathe pippetes, and I have a bunch that I never use! I have my pg/vg in the bottles above, so that'll make them easy to pour. And the flavorings, surely, just get dropped in right out of the bottles, no? The only thing I would probably measure until I'm sure would be the 100mg nic solution.

The pipettes aren't for measuring. They are only needed if you have flavors that aren't in dropper bottles (I still have ~150 2dram vials).

 

[Ld3441]

Thanks for the answers so far!
I really didn't/don't want to go to the other place and figured we needed that info here.

I agree with Amanda, no pipettes for me either. All my flavors will be in dropper bottles. Most are anyways and I will put the others in those if I do this.
Thanks for the link. I'll check it out.

 

[Botboy141]

Yeah I just assumed everyone had some vials without drippers like me. Still have ~150 vials from Wizard Labs from when I started DiY'ing. I use tiny amounts of them occasionally so pipettes made the most sense and they were cheap to pick up for a box of 500.

 

[rowdyplace]

RocketPuppy... RocketPuppy... Calling RocketPuppy!!!!

 

[Heabob]

Yeah I just assumed everyone had some vials without drippers like me. Still have ~150 vials from Wizard Labs from when I started DiY'ing. I use tiny amounts of them occasionally so pipettes made the most sense and they were cheap to pick up for a box of 500.

I've also got a ton of 15ml flavors from TPA/TFA in glass bottles.
And am finding it difficult to measure by drawing out with a 1ml syringe when a recipe calls for 1-2 drops.
I've poured a few into dropper bottles now for easier drop measuring, like EM, Sweetener, ACV, etc.
Never used pipettes tho, oh well, I need to get some more "clutter" around here anyway, lol.

 

[AmandaD]

I put all my flavors into the 3ml pure vapes bottles - that way I know pretty much how many drops per ml. Makes it easy to mix up small amounts! I find pippettes incredibly annoying - useless for drops, because it depends how they feel that day as far as I can see. And hard to get everything out of them.

 

[lkerr406]

I personally mix by a combination of weight and syringes. My flavoring and nicotine are measured by weight. Drops straight into the final container on a scale. The VG and PG, typically use a syringe. From Rite-Aid drug store I picked up "oral syringe with dosage-korc" makes pulling VG and PG from bottles a breeze.

 

[Ld3441]

What calculator do all of you use?

 

[danykitten]

I use the liquix app for android. It is a paid app but does a great job storing recipes and ingredients and measures by drops, ml, and weight

 

[Donald Bickers]

I use syringes to do all my measuring and I use dot1ml for a calculater...don't know if you could convert for weight or not.

 

[Botboy141]

Guide to Mixing By Weight

Threw this up the other day after I saw some questions starting to pop up around here.

 

[Huckleberried]

I really didn't/don't want to go to the other place and figured we needed that info here.

LIKE LIKE LIKE!!!

 

[Ld3441]

LIKE LIKE LIKE!!!

I learned a lot there but never really liked it there either.
Except of course in some of the DIY threads.

 

[thewaatt]

I was inspired by BotBoy's guide to mixing by weight so I purchased the recommended scale on Amazon. The biggest pain in the ass in my DIY ventures was cleaning 20 syringes after a mixing session so it didn't take much convincing for me to convert to weight.

My question is does anyone here use the mix by weight feature on e-liquid-recipes.com? And if so, are the calculations on that site accurate, as far as the weight of PG/VG/Nic?

For example, the site tells me that to mix a 30ml bottle of 6mg e-liquid, I need 3.89g (3.75ml) of 48mg PG base nicotine. Does that seem about right?

 

[Botboy141]

And if so, are the calculations on that site accurate, as far as the weight of PG/VG/Nic?

For example, the site tells me that to mix a 30ml bottle of 6mg e-liquid, I need 3.89g (3.75ml) of 48mg PG base nicotine. Does that seem about right?

That's correct.

Weight of 48mg in PG: 1.036656 grams per ml

1.036656 * 3.75 = 3.88746

He is also looking into adding specific gravity for flavors to e-liquidrecipes.com but I think it will be awhile before that is complete.

 

[Talon4x4]

I was just looking into mixing by weight so this thread has been helpful but I do have a question. Does it make sense to mix by weight if I'm only making up 10-60ml bottles?! I'm just thinking if I were to make up a 10ml bottle and only .5% was required of 1 of the flavors that is only .05ml. Will the scale even register amounts that small? Would I need a scale that went out to thousandths or would hundredths suffice?

 

[Ld3441]

I wish there were more here that mixed using weight.
I have yet to figure this out or even attempt it.
I have so little time these days to even mix at all, I have not had the time to spend on research.
I would love to be done with syringes though.
Some day...

 

[Huckleberried]

We need that danged flyin' puppy. She mixes by weight, too.

 

[HotRod19579]

I was just looking into mixing by weight so this thread has been helpful but I do have a question. Does it make sense to mix by weight if I'm only making up 10-60ml bottles?! I'm just thinking if I were to make up a 10ml bottle and only .5% was required of 1 of the flavors that is only .05ml. Will the scale even register amounts that small? Would I need a scale that went out to thousandths or would hundredths suffice?

In my opinion mixing by weight is the only way to go. I use the LB-501 scale referenced earlier in the forum and it is accurate to 0.01 grams which is approximately 0.01 ml. For small volume mixes I would say that it is probably more accurate than measuring by volume. If all of your ingredients have dropper tops there is absolutely no cleanup required when you are done mixing. You can mix up a recipe and be done in less than 5 minutes.

 

[MD_Boater]

Do you have to weigh every flavor that you buy before you are able to mix with it, or do you use 1.036656 grams for all PG based flavors?

 

[HotRod19579]

Do you have to weigh every flavor that you buy before you are able to mix with it, or do you use 1.036656 grams for all PG based flavors?

I use the 1.036 for all of my PG based ingredients.

 

[HotRod19579]

That's correct.

Weight of 48mg in PG: 1.036656 grams per ml

1.036656 * 3.75 = 3.88746

He is also looking into adding specific gravity for flavors to e-liquidrecipes.com but I think it will be awhile before that is complete.

Adjustments for gravity? It is going to tell you to add .9g instead of 1g because of your location? Scales normally come with a calibration weight such as a 100mg weight. If you calibrate your scale at the altitude you are using it at then it will measure the weight accurately at the altitude. You don't calculate a different weight to add, you calibrate the scale at the location that you are using it.

 

[Ld3441]

Ok, I am slowly getting things figured out with this calculator.
I am still trying to get everything added to inventory and I have a question..

How can I add more than one nicotine? I have added the nicotine I am currently using for me.
How can I add a different nicotine as in different mg per ml and also different PG/VG ratios?
I also have not been able to figure out how to add manufacturer so I just add that to flavor name for now.

I know there has to be a way to do this but I have not found the right button to click as of yet.

 

[Botboy141]

From the main window:

To add/change/edit manufacturers: Edit > Maintain Manufacturer List

To add a nicotine base: Ingredients > New > Type in Name (IE 100mg VG), Select MFG > Click OK > Select Nicotine under 'Ingredient Type' > Adjust 'Nicotine Level (mg/ml)' at the bottom of the window

 

[HotRod19579]

Ok, I am slowly getting things figured out with this calculator.
I am still trying to get everything added to inventory and I have a question..

How can I add more than one nicotine? I have added the nicotine I am currently using for me.
How can I add a different nicotine as in different mg per ml and also different PG/VG ratios?
I also have not been able to figure out how to add manufacturer so I just add that to flavor name for now.

I know there has to be a way to do this but I have not found the right button to click as of yet.

To add another nicotine click the new button in the ingredient editor window and then select "Nicotine" as the ingredient type. When creating a recipe the nicotine ingredient has a drop down list allowing you to select which nicotine ingredient to use.

To add manufacturers click the "Edit->Maintain manufacturers" and you can create manufacturer entries that can be assigned to an ingredient.

 

[Botboy141]

To add another nicotine click the new button in the ingredient editor window and then select "Nicotine" as the ingredient type. When creating a recipe the nicotine ingredient has a drop down list allowing you to select which nicotine ingredient to use.

To add manufacturers click the "Edit->Maintain manufacturers" and you can create manufacturer entries that can be assigned to an ingredient.

Didn't even realize that was you in this thread giving earlier instructions . Then I actually looked @ the avatar...

 

[Ld3441]

Thanks guys!
Just gotta have the right combo to get er done.
I am really going to like this one once I get all the info in there.

 

[HotRod19579]

From the main window:

To add/change/edit manufacturers: Edit > Maintain Manufacturer List

To add a nicotine base: Ingredients > New > Type in Name (IE 100mg VG), Select MFG > Click OK > Select Nicotine under 'Ingredient Type' > Adjust 'Nicotine Level (mg/ml)' at the bottom of the window

Sorry, I didn't see your post when I replied. We must have been replying at the same time but you were a little bit quicker.

 

[Botboy141]

Sorry, I didn't see your post when I replied. We must have been replying at the same time but you were a little bit quicker.

S'all good ;-)