How to vape CBD: A full guide for beginners
If you are new to vaping, you might be overwhelmed with the many options available and wondering what CBD has got to do with anything. You might hear some people say they are vaping CBD oil, which actually means they are vaping CBD e-liquid. Indeed, vapers are increasingly choosing CBD e-liquids over regular vape juices.
CBD vape juice is specifically designed for inhalation and is completely different from CBD oil, which you can only take orally or apply topically. We also recommend never to make your own CBD juice using CBD oil at home because the carrier oils used in them are not meant for inhaling, posing potential health risks.
What is CBD vaping?
Vaping is inhaling a vapour that is produced by electronically heating a specially-designed liquid. You use a battery-powered device to vape the e-liquid in it. An e-liquid may comprise a variety of ingredients including flavourings, nicotine, vegetable glycerin (VG) and propylene glycol (PG) in varied proportions. When CBD is part of the vape juice, we call the process CBD vaping.
Choosing your vaping device
You will need a vape device in order to vape. There are plenty of them on the market, with some being simple to use for beginners and others a bit more of a challenge to handle. But you don’t have to dedicate hours of learning to use the most complicated vaping device out there.
The rule of thumb for newbies is to get the easiest device to use for their first time trying CBD. Then graduating gradually from there into more advanced options that may suit your needs.
The easiest option you can bet on is the disposable type of vape pen. After that, you can go with cartridges, pods, and refillable vape pens. Read on below to see the various options.
Disposable CBD vape pens
These are the simplest vaping devices you can get on the market. They come as a prefilled unit that’s ready to use once you get it out of the package. Some have a button you press before taking puffs while others are triggered when you inhale. They are designed in such a way that the components (battery and coil) go out of use once the vape juice within is completely gone.
CBD oil cartridges
CBD oil cartridges are slim tanks that come containing ready-to-use CBD e-liquid. They can contain anywhere between 0.5ml to 1ml of CBD vape juice or distillate CBD. To use these, you need a vape pen or a compatible battery. It is the standard opinion of CBD users that CBD oil cartridges are the second easiest to use.
CBD pods
CBD pods are a lot like CBD cartridges but have upgraded features that fit with JUUL batteries. JUUL is the best-known vaping device out there, allowing the user to switch in between vape juices. With your vape e-liquid pod, you simply need to snap and start using as you like.
Refillable CBD vape pens
As the name suggests, these are vape pens that you refill with your favourite CBD e-liquid. They are rechargeable thanks to the simple battery attached alongside the tank. Compared to the other devices, refillable CBD vape pens produce more flavour and vapour depending on the CBD vape juice you choose.
Refillable CBD vape pens require maintenance which entails dismantling the components and wiping them clean and changing the coil. Eventually, by properly maintaining these pens, they save you a lot of money in the long run.
Pod vapes
Just like refillable CBD vape pens, pod vapes are refillable and suitable for use with thin vape juices like CBD. You can get pods in a variety of sizes and shapes but they mostly look like JUULs.
The process of vaping CBD
After choosing a vaping device, you need to make sure you’ve read the user manual included with it to be sure you’ll be using it properly.
Disposables only require you to inhale through the mouthpiece to start enjoying your CBD. They are draw-activated and often, no buttons are involved. As long as you know where to place your lips, you don’t have to prepare or learn anything. We recommend this for newbies.
You have to take the instructions from the manufacturers seriously if you are going to use cartridges, vape pens, and pods. If you are already vaping using regular vape juice, switching to CBD vape juice will be easier with these devices. You can use the vape device you already own, but it's important to understand that CBD e-liquid is thin and might lead to spillages if you don't handle it carefully. It's just better to use a device specifically designed for vaping CBD.
Here are the instructions you should follow for each vape device:
How to use CBD oil cartridges
- Connect the cartridge with a compatible battery
- Cartridges with power buttons will require you to click the button 5 times to start the device
- Press the button as you take small draws from the device at the beginning
- Take at least a 5 minute break in between the puffs to see if it suits your needs
- If you are new to CBD, take a few puffs and gradually increase your intake
- Should you want a higher frequency rather than the smaller intakes, try some adjustments with larger puffs to suit your needs
How to use a CBD pod
- Connect the pod to your JUUL battery to power it
- Take a puff from your device to activate it
- Just like with CBD oil cartridges, wait 5 minutes in between puffs
- Take a few puffs depending on the level of CBD intake you are at
- If you are new to CBD, a few puffs will suffice, but you can try more frequent and larger puffs as you gain experience
- Keep monitoring the battery life by tapping the JUUL two times
How to use a CBD vape pen
- Fill the tank with the CBD e-liquid of your choice
- Prime the coil so it performs optimally
- Give the coil time to saturate with the CBD juice
- Turn the device on by pressing the power button five times
- You might want to tweak the airflow adjustments to your preferred settings
- Press the button as you take small puffs and inhale
- If you are new to vaping CBD, start slowly with fewer puffs per vaping session
- Take five-minute breaks between each puff as you proceed
- When you get used to the smaller number of puffs, you can try larger and higher-frequency puffs – just be sure to always stay within the manufacturer's recommended dosage
- Clean and maintain your CBD vape pen on a regular basis for it to perform optimally
How to vape CBD: Determining your CBD dosage
Dosing CBD is different for each user because there are many factors that contribute to your needs. This includes the weight of the user, their body chemistry, whether they’ve taken CBD before or not, and their individual needs as well.
For instance, a person that has been taking CBD edibles for a while might take in more CBD during vaping than individuals that are newer to vaping and have also never used CBD before.
It’s easier to determine the exact dosage of your CBD intake when you use tinctures and gummies than when you vape it. You’ll have to take a longer route to calculate the exact amount of CBD you are taking in individual puffs. That being said, you just need to start small as it's important to understand your limits. Then gradually increase the puffs you are taking over time until you are at a point where it’s meeting your needs.
The good news is that there are vape devices that can help you count how many puffs you are taking during every session. Just press the reset button and it automatically starts counting with the next puff.
Calculate how much CBD you are taking
To do the calculations, you’ll start by determining the potency of the e-liquid you are consuming. You get this by dividing the amount of CBD in a bottle by the capacity of that same bottle. For instance 1000mg divided by 50ml – you get 20mg. This means that, in such a bottle, for every 1ml of CBD there’s 20mg of CBD.
If your vape device holds 3ml capacity, then it will contain 60mg when fully loaded (that's 3ml x 20mg). So every time you vape the entire tank, you know exactly how much CBD you’ve taken. Let’s say you take 120 puffs out of your CBD device, that will mean each puff is approximately 0.5mg of CBD (that’s 60 divided by 120 puffs). Again, note that the 0.5mg is just an approximation because not all puffs are the same.
Final thoughts on how to vape CBD
If you're a beginner or are contemplating vaping CBD, the steps are fairly straightforward. You just need to choose your device wisely then follow the steps recommended in the user manual. Disposables are the easiest to use. Another important factor to consider is the CBD vape you are using – make sure it has the potency that is right for you. Most importantly, get your CBD e-liquid from a reputable brand that has proof of lab tests plus good reviews and testimonials from the users.