Posting this up here basically to have something to link in the wiki outside of third party how to's.
Whether you're looking to make your blends be more consistent, avoid clean up, avoid cross contamination, mix larger batch sizes, or are just trying to avoid the long term cost of buying syringes and other mixing instruments, well, this is written for you.
##Supplies There are very few supplies that are REQUIRED to mix by weight. They are:
1.) Scale - Scales come in many different varieties and there are tons that would work for most people. There is one major thing you need to AVOID when looking for a scale. You need a scale that DOES NOT have an AUTO-SHUT OFF feature, or at least if it has one, it needs to be on a long delay. A lot of scales by default have a 10 or 15 second auto-shut off, this can mess you up very badly if your scale shuts off while you are trying to add ingredients to a mix. I recommend: American Weigh Scales LB-501 Digital Kitchen Scale for your average DiY'er. Please note that it comes with the calibration weights.
The scale you choose also needs to weigh down to 0.01 grams, additionally, I wouldn't buy a scale that has a limit under 500g.
2.) Pipettes - These are only needed if you have flavoring bottles that do NOT have dropper tops. You can find them on Amazon for ~$20 for a box of 500. This will last the average DiY'er a very very very long time.
3.) Bottles - You will want some dropper bottles for adding PG/VG and Nicotine to your mixes. I'd recommend at least an 8oz bottle, however, if you mix smaller quantities for the most part, you can probably survive with 4oz bottles for PG and VG and a 1 oz for 100mg NIC. I use 4oz for nic and 8oz for PG/VG. You can find these on amazon for under $3 each, or go to a company like www.usplastic.com and get them much cheaper (but have to pay higher shipping).
##Calculator Not too much I need to say here other than give you some basic values. There's only one Calculator that I have used since I started DiY'ing and it works wonderfully for mixing by weight. Calculator Link. The same one (last one) listed in the sidebar. Please note that Google Chrome doesn't like this software download, I assure you it's completely harmless, but Chrome blocks it as malicious.
The basic values that you need to know for mixing by weight are below.
- Weight of PG: 1.038 grams per ml
- Weight of VG: 1.26 grams per ml
- Weight of Pure Nicotine: 1.01 grams per ml
- Weight of 100mg in PG: 1.035 grams per ml
- Weight of 60mg in PG: 1.03632 grams per ml
- Weight of 50mg in PG: 1.0366 grams per ml
- Weight of 48mg in PG: 1.036656 grams per ml
- Weight of 36mg in PG: 1.036992 grams per ml
- Weight of 24mg in PG: 1.037328 grams per ml
- Weight of 100mg in VG: 1.235 grams per ml
- Weight of 60mg in VG: 1.245 grams per ml
- Weight of 50mg in VG: 1.2475 grams per ml
- Weight of 48mg in VG: 1.248 grams per ml
- Weight of 36mg in VG: 1.251 grams per ml
- Weight of 24mg in VG: 1.254 grams per ml
If you have a mix of Nicotine that is not listed above the calculation is fairly simple:
48mg VG based nicotine solution. That's 4.8% pure nicotine and 95.2% pure VG. Pure nicotine weighs 1.01g/ml and Pure VG weights 1.26g/ml. Let's assume we have 100ml for simplicity with decimal points.
4.8 x 1.01 = 4.848 grams. 95.2 x 1.26 = 119.952 grams. If we add these two together: 4.848 + 119.952 = 124.8 grams. Divide it by 100 and we have our weight per ml for 48mg nic. 124.8 / 100 = 1.248 g/ml. This same breakdown can be done for 50/50 blends, just know that the non pure nicotine portion of your base is split 50/50, for example, 60ml in 50/50 mix = 6% pure nic, 94% left over = 47% VG, 47% PG.
When it comes to flavors, there are a couple of thoughts/theories surrounding mixing by weight when dealing with flavors. Many people enter the specific gravity as indicated on an MSDS for every flavor that they have. I feel this is a complete waste of time. After searching hundreds of MSDS sheets for flavors, all flavors fall into a range of .93g per ml to 1.07g per ml.
In order to achieve personal consistency for your juices though, all that is relevant is that you use the SAME value, every time for any given flavor. I simply use a value of 1. This means that whether or not my flavors actually weigh 1 gram per ml, I always pretend they do. Percentages in any given recipe of mine will always be the exact same for me, however, if I am trying to recreate someone elses recipe, or they are mixing mine, there's a chance I'll be off a little bit (no more than 7% which is about the margin of error most people get when mixing by volume).
If you prefer to mix with specific gravity for flavors, you may find /u/sargeant_utestemme's list of TFA specific gravity helpful. /u/tet5uo also acquired some weights from Flavour Art just recently. Also a Capella list compiled by /u/N0CTURN3
##Method The method is pretty subjective but I'll share what I do. It's fairly simple. Any scale you buy should come with a 'tare' button. This resets the scale to zero regardless of the weight on it. This is a button you use quite frequently.
Basically, start off by setting your bottle on the scale, whatever it is you want to mix into. Sometimes for me this is finished bottles, other times when I'm making larger batches, it's 250ml Amber glass bottles.
Now your bottle is on the scale, turn your scale on, this starts your scale @ 0.00g. If you turned it on first and set your bottle on after, no big deal, just press the 'tare' button. Now, The calculator I linked above, gives you the weights you need to add for your Nicotine, VG, PG, and each flavor (once you programmed them in appropriately). I always go in order so I don't miss anything or forget my place (I also have my bottles set up in the same orderly line in my mixing space just to make sure).
For example: I'm making a 15ml batch of my Princess Cake (fruitier version recipe). I'm using 100mg VG nicotine, and am looking for an end result of 40/60 PG/VG.
The calculator gives me these outputs.
I start by adding 0.556 grams of nicotine to my bottle, I round this to 0.56 as your scale likely only reads to the hundredth (at least mine does, thousandth readings on a scale will cost you ~20x the price of the scale). Then press 'tare'.
Next I add my PG (4.476g) rounded to 4.48g. Then press 'tare'. Then VG 10.773 grams rounded to 10.77. Then press 'tare'. Then add your flavors pressing tare after each one. Before you know it, you've mixed your first bottle and have no mess to clean up.
Congratulations, you just mixed your first batch of juice by weight.
Any questions, shoot away.
Edit: Edited the math on calculating weight of nicotine in PG/VG to make it (hopefully) simpler to understand. My wording was a bit funky!
Edit: Added some more notes about the calculator, also added the link to /u/tet5uo's post about FA specific gravity.
Edit: Added a simple comment noting that YOU need to input specific gravities for PG/VG/Nic into the calculator.
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American Weigh Scales LB-501 Digital Kitchen Scale (7% price drop)
Current $31.37 Amazon (New)
High $54.99 Drugstore.com (New)
Low $31.37 Amazon (New)
awesome guide.
i also usually weigh my bottle before i begin mixing and note the weight.
later i subtract that figure from the total weight of the finished mix to see how close i am to the target weight (17.493g in your example). this helps me in future batches with my precision.
That's a great recommendation, never done it personally but I like where your head is at, I'll have to check myself some time.
I've actually been mixing everything @ 5% over (15.75ml instead of 15ml) just cause my bottles are funky and hold closer to 18ml. 15ml just looks empty lol.
Been looking into mixing by weight. One thing I would add under the things to look for into scales is one that does not have a long delay when you add something to the bottle (could not think of a way to make that sound easier). I have a scale that I originally bought for other purposes and it annoys me when I add something to the scale and it takes several seconds (up to 5) for it to display the new weight.
Great guide! I've been thinking about mixing by weight mainly for darker flavors where I can't see the hashmarks on my syringes...
Just as an FYI related to downloading that calculator: On the links from ECF to download the calculator, the Google Drive version didn't work (404) and the Dropbox version brought up a malicious file warning and wouldn't let me download it on Chrome. Just a heads up for anyone trying to get that calculator on Chrome.
This is a beautiful guide my friend. I have been thinking about mixing by weight, but wasn't sure how to go about it.
Thanks, just tried to dumb it down some so everyone can experience the ease and pleasure of mixing more accurately and without all the cleanup and need for extra equipment.
Hey, thanks for this! I just ordered the scale yesterday, so I am super excited to not have 150+ syringes in baggies with labels everywhere.
Checked the buy/sell sites when I was setting up to start this and got this scale for 20$ :D
http://i.imgur.com/vAC20KQ.jpg?1
2.4kg and .01g resolution.
Used I'm assuming but that's bad ass. Any idea what the scale is? MFG/model #?
I'll be upgrading to something similar shortly but trying to keep as much capital on hand for unforeseen expenses for the biz at the moment.
From what I can gather it's a Mettler bb2400.
Not sure how old it is, I had to clean it well with isopropyl, as it was used in a print-shop and was covered in ink-stains.
Seems to be accurate, though. It came with a Kg test-weight and calibrates itself still.
For larger things (i just cut nic into some 500mL and 1L bottles) I bought the AWS SC-2KG-A . It only has .1 resolution, but features an AC Adaptor to prevent auto shutoff.
I'm giving the linked calculator a go but it does not display grams in default and I can't find an option to change this. I'm sure it's a simple setting I'm missing. A little help would be appreciated.
Tools > Options > General Tab > Preferred Mixing Method.
Check the grams box and good to go!
Yup, I've been trying that. Grams aren't even showing up. I've tried reinstall twice, repair three times, changing a bunch of settings. Still no go.
Here's what the main window looks like: http://i.imgur.com/3uxsvxC.png
And the box has been checked and unchecked countless times to see if anything would change.
Thanks for the quick response and help, by the way!
Edit: Removed a picture.
Ok, I'm about to go from mixing by volume to weight, mostly to avoid clean up and the use of so many syringes.
What size are the pipettes being used? Also with the 4oz and 8oz bottles, are these plastic or glass? If glass, am I looking for the ones with droppers in them?
Thanks for the guide, it has helped tremendously!
Plastic, I use www.usplastic.com for my bottles of this type.
Pipettes, well, just depends on what you need them for and the batch size you are mixing. I have a box of 3ml and a box of 1ml, just different ones depending on the situation.
Eventually you'll learn to order flavors from companies that send them in bottles with dropper tops or that you can attach dropper tops to and then you don't need pipettes anymore ;-)
I'm looking for a cheap digital scale on ebay with 0.01 X 500g and no auto power off or a long power off. Everything I've found has one minute auto power off or shorter. I think this is not sufficient for weighting DIY ejuice. Any recommendations for a sclae below 15-20 usd price?
I'm mixing using weight for the first time right now. I already have a 70VG 30PG solution mixed up and ready to go. I can't figure out how I would go about knowing the weight of the solution. Every time I think I have the idea for a formula in my head, I lose it. For example:
Say I was going to make a 15ml bottle and after the flavor is factored in, I had to add 13.8ml of my nic solution. I have:
60mg nic in 100% VG (1.245g) 70% VG (100% being 1.26g) 30%PG (100% being 1.038)
I also bought pre-mixed 70/30 and still have a good bit left. I think once I understand the first problem though, I'll have the answer to the second one. Thanks for taking the time to read this, I'm going to continue to try and get this. I didn't do very well in math in school. Then again, I wasn't nearly as interested in learning it as I am now.
Hey there Botboy, not sure if you still reply to this post, but I'm from Canada and that American Weight scale you linked is 2x the price on Amazon.ca, so I was looking for an alternative and I stumbled upon: http://www.amazon.ca/Smart-Weigh-ZIP300-Digital-Counting/dp/B00MES5KWO/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1424036915&sr=8-7&keywords=kitchen+scale+0.01
I was wondering, would this be suitable? It weighs up to 300g (not 500g as you suggested), 0.01 accuracy, and has a 60 second auto shutoff. I PROBABLY won't be doing batches above 120ml, at least not yet. If I do however, I will surely upgrade my scale. I'm trying to compile a shopping list on Amazon.ca, and I've already added 500 of the pipettes of $19.99 and this scale.
Also, if I want to use Citric Acid, how would I add that onto this calculator with the exact weight?
Thanks in advance and thanks for writing this up!
Edit: Just gonna go ahead and spend that extra money on the scale recommended, figured I'll recoup the costs in the money I'll save from DiY juice. Still wondering about the Citric Acid though!
Good chance the scale you linked would work just fine. My only concern would be the weight restriction.
As far as the citric acid is concerned, if you are mixing it yourself, it's fairly simple to determine the final specific gravity/volume.
Let say you're mixing a 10ml solution of CA with 1 gram of Citric Acid. This will require 10ml of PG (10.38 grams) + 1 gram of Citric Acid (1.0 grams). This would provide a total weight of 11.38 grams in 10ml or 1.138 grams/ml.
So i just got all my supplies in today, and I am trying to create the new flavors in my ejuice calculator (I wish there was a place where I could just download these from as it is mildly frustrating). It asks for things like PG% in my TFA Bavarian Cream flavor, I know there is PG in there but I have no clue what percentage nor have any of my google searches led me to anything relatively close to what I need. Is there any place where I can download the eJuice calc flavor settings instead of manually doing all of them? Or is there a place that will list the PG% for each flavor? Thanks to anybody who can help!!!
99% of your flavors should just be listed as 100% PG. Generally speaking, we're not worried about the percentage of actual PG in the mix of artificial flavors, just if it's in a PG base it's 100%, if it's in a VG base it's 100% VG instead of PG. There are very few vendors out there that do a mix of PG/VG in their flavor concentrates.
Thanks! I finally stopped freaking out about it when I looked back at the image from your calculator and saw all your flavors read 100% PG so that's just what I plugged in. Made some Unicorn Milk and some PBS (Peach, Blueberry, Strawberry). The feeling of tasting something that's not half bad that you made yourself for like $0.51 worth of liquid is pretty awesome. Super stoked to be able to DIY!
Will this scale work American Weigh Scales LB-1000 Compact Digital Scale with Removable Bowl, 1000 by 0.1 G? They cost 18 usd less then LB501. Please help ready to order :)
First off, I just want to say thanks /u/Botboy141 for such a great guide. I'm about to list out some concerns about the process and I don't want you to think for one second that I am ungrateful or that I think your process is flawed. Everything you wrote makes perfect, logical sense and I know it works for most everyone who tries it. I guess what I'm looking for is clarification.
I've been mixing by volume since I started DIY 9 months ago and today I just mixed my first few bottles by weight (15 ml each). To be honest, I have mixed feelings about it. Here are two of my primary concerns.
- I'm sure I'll get faster with more experience and confidence, but this did not save me a whole lot of time in terms of the mixing process. Cleanup was a snap, I'll give you that. But I had to be so careful with each drop I added to make sure I didn't add too much. With that said...
- What the hell do you do if you accidentally go over the target weight (the answer to which I'm sure is "well, don't go over then")? Using the stock dropper top on a flavor bottle is not too precise in terms of accuracy and it is very easy to go over. If consistency is one of the end goals, I don't see how mixing by volume is a feasible solution unless you are mixing large batches.
Again, thanks for the guide. Hopefully with some help I can make this method work for me.
Quickness comes with time.
The price of DIY juice is cheap, I rarely if ever mix batch sizes below 30ml of recipes I'm working on. Recipes that I'm no longer improving but mix frequently, I just pre-mix the flavors so I can add all flavor from one dropper bottle instead of trying to fine tune 0.5% of this and 0.2% of that.
Not sure what type of dropper bottles you are working with, but on average for me, mine drip 0.03g per drop. Assuming a 1.0 specific gravity, it would require 3 drops when mixing by volume to equal 0.09 ml, this is so far from accurately measure able in a syringe that it's silly.
I guess the amount just kinda comes with time when dealing with the smaller batches, but once again, I don't mix less than 30ml of test batches and frequently I do 60 ml, 30ml to vape over the course of 3 days at the tail end of a week after mixing and another 30ml to try after 3-4 weeks (30ml lasts me about two days of dripping).
Oh and if I go over, I simply dump and start over. I rarely if ever go over when adding flavor, I frequently go over when adding nic (I enlarged the dropper on my nic bottle so I could get out enough for 120ml bottles without sitting there squeezing all day, but occasionally that causes me to get a little over zealous when mixing say a 30ml @ 3mg.
Once again, the cost of DIY is so cheap, I don't mind throwing a nickel or 10 down the train a few times a week...
What is the normal range of error for scales (if there is one). A 200g calibration weight weighs 200.17g according to the scale. Is that an acceptable reading or is it off too much?
That's when you use the Calibration Mode of the scale to reset the calibration...Off too much and range of error is subjective and only relative to your desire for accuracy.
Hey - is there any downside to measuring in ounces or troy ounces vs grams since the scale of measurement is the same?
none to my knowledge
Didn't think so, just making sure since my scale measures to thousandths in oz and ozt, so it makes for a bit more accurate measurement on my end. :P Thanks again for ALL of the help you've given a ton of us. Your blog on running a juice co brought up several valid points and questions that made me really question whether I wanted to follow through with our juice line. We are, but we are much more prepared thanks to you. :P
I hate to point out that this calculator is flawed; it assumes a density of 1 g/mL for flavorings, when they're usually in PG. Look at the screen shot, the ml and gram columns shouldn't be the same.
Read the rest of the post. It's addressed ;-)
No worries, I addressed it myself by making my own calculator in Excel
FWIW, Edit > Ingredient Editor
Allows you to adjust the specific gravity of every ingredient saved to the calculator. Not all flavors have the same specific gravity.
My write up explains why I use 1g/1ml for my recipes and how it will not be accurate for others. It also will not maintain a specific amount of volume however I overfill all of my bottles by 10% ;-)