Why You Need Different Heating Sources on Vapes 

Everyone knows that dry herb vaporizers heat up your substances until you can inhale the vapors that are produced.

Not as many are aware that there are different heating methods that make this process possible.

Although each heating method gets the job done, some streamline the process and provide you with high-quality vaping experiences every time while others may have the potential to create issues during the process.

To better understand how heat plays into vaporization, let’s take a look at the different heating options available and break down the advantages and disadvantages of each. 

A heating source is just another feature on a vaporizer.

Much like any vape feature, different heating methods serve to accomplish certain things when you begin vaping a substance. Whether you want a fast, flavorful, or full-bodied vaping session, the heating source that you choose will ultimately decide the experience that you receive.

However, what types of heating methods are there and what do they add to your vape experience? 

 

What Is Convection Heating? 

Convection heating is a heating process that involves surrounding dry herbs with hot air until the active ingredients are vaporized. Often considered the best kind of heating feature for vape products, there are some pros and cons to convection heating. 

Pros

Some of the advantages of convection heating include…

No Smoke

Vaping products don’t require users to burn any of their substances, right? That’s absolutely correct!

However, accidental smoke production can occur when there are heating methods that involve direct contact with the substance that you are vaping.

If the heat is too high on your device and the substance is allowed to be exposed to this heat source for a longer period of time, you may end up with burnt herbs.

Convection heating makes it so that your device never has to touch your substances, which, therefore, makes certain that burning and smoking aren’t a problem. 

Improved Vapor Quality

To put it simply, convection heating is the fine-dining of vaping.

Other heating methods are much like fast food as they get the job done in a hurry. Although you are still getting a quick session with a convection heating vape, the temperature within the vape takes its time gradually building, giving your herbs a slow roast that helps to release all of the flavors and chemicals within your herbs.

This process translates into excellent vapor quality, which will often be full as well. 

Dose Your Vapor

Other heating methods will deliver all of your contents rapidly, which is great for those who are trying to get high as quickly as they can but not so great for those who are trying to measure out their substances.

With convection heating, you can gradually dose out your products knowing that you are getting everything that your herbs have to offer without having to stir your herbs or worry that the vapors aren’t providing you with the effects that you need. 

Less Smell

Vapes who use direct heat can often produce intense vapors that, you guessed it, produce an equally intense scent. When you are smoking aromatic herbs such as marijuana, reducing the overall smell of your substances can be important for those who want to have more discreet smoking sessions.

If you are looking to make sure that your substances don’t smell, convection heating can help to reduce the intensity of the vapor production so that you can vape and draw minimal attention to yourself. 

Cons

Some of the disadvantages that come with using a vape that has convection heating include…

Slower Heat-Up Time

There are some people who want to be able to turn on their vape and hit it within a matter of seconds. There are plenty of these vapes on the market but convection vapes don’t tend to fall within this group.

Convection heating is a slower process that requires heat to build up as it is introduced to the chamber. While they are by no means vapes that are going to take minutes to hit, they still may not be the right vapes for people who need quick access to their herbs. 

Expensive

High-quality vaping comes at a price.

Because convection vapes use more energy to produce the heat without touching your herbs, the cost of making this is clearly reflected in the higher price tags that you will find on portable or desktop convection vaporizers.

While you can still find affordable options, they are never going to be as cheap as other vapes with different heating systems. Here is a list of the most popular ones.

What Is Conduction Heating? 

Conduction heating, the other main heating utilized in vaporizer devices, is a heating method that involves applying your herbs directly to the heat source in order to bake the substances out of the herbs, which is similar to how you will put things in a pan to be cooked (just for example).

Despite what disadvantages are pointed out in the above section, there are some advantages to this heating system as well. Let’s look at what you can expect to receive from a conduction vape. 

Pros

Some of the advantages that come with a conduction heating system include

Faster Heat-Up

Conduction vapes heat up your herbs directly, which is by far a much faster process than having to wait until the area around your herbs is hot enough to affect the herbs themselves.

Conduction vapes have impressive heat-up times measured in seconds, which allow you to turn on your vape and hit it almost instantly. If you are someone who values speed and efficiency, these vapes will allow you to take hits whenever you want. 

Widely Available

Conduction vapes are readily available, mainly due to the fact that they are much cheaper to produce and perform their function well.

Individuals who are just getting into vaping can easily get their hands on a conduction vape for an affordable price and won’t have to worry about looking around too hard to find one.

If you’re looking for a vape near you, you are almost guaranteed to find a great conduction vape with ease. 

More Parts

Conduction vaporizers are treasured for their contradicting simplicity and complexity.

On one hand, you have fewer things to deal with as the heating source is built into your device and you will just need to load it to get it working.

On the other hand, the ease of use allows you to further build upon your vape, adding parts that can modify the process to allow you to vape different substances and get more out of your experience (if your vape allows).

For those who are interested in customizing their vapes, conduction is the way to go. 

Cons

Some of the disadvantages that come with conduction vaporizers include

Inefficient Vapor

When it comes to vaping, people want their clouds to be large, flavorful, and effective. No one wants to take disappointing hits from their device.

With conduction heating systems, however, much of the vapor that is produced tends to be thin, not so flavorful, and may not give you the effects you want due to the lack of the whole herb being cooked.

That’s not to say that all conduction vapes are bad but there are quite a few that produce this level of quality. 

Taste

Taste is very important. Without taste, vaping sessions are bland and serve only to get the job done. If you are using a conduction vaporizer, taste may be compromised when the herbs are not evenly baked, if the temperature is too high and burns the herbs, or if the vapor produced is too thin to get any flavor out of.

Make sure that you keep flavor in mind when you are shopping around for a conduction vaporizer. 

Cheap Quality

Because conduction vaporizers are cheaper to make, they are also cheaper to mass-produce and sell to the vape community. When it comes to vaping, affordability rarely beats quality as there are many budget vapes that do a terrible job of heating up herbs delivering a high-quality experience.

Be aware that there are many cheap vapes for sale that may be good for your wallet but won’t be good for your lungs. 

Hybrid Heating

Hybrid heating is a heating system that combines the two systems listed above.

Using conduction, a vaporizer will heat up the herbs closest to the heat source while convection heating will thoroughly cook your herbs that are not close enough to the source to be vaporized.

With this system, you get the best of both worlds. 

Pros

With hybrid heating, you will experience pros such as…

Efficient Heating

The problem with that conduction is that it is fast but not necessarily effective. With convection heating, we are given a system that improves the vapor output but takes a bit more time to achieve.

This hybrid heating solution makes sure that we get both the speed of conduction heating with the quality of convection heating, making for a more efficient heating system that can fix the issues we experience when we choose one type of vape or the other. 

Bigger Clouds

As we learned above, conduction vapes will generally produce small, wispy clouds, while convection vapes will produce larger clouds that are still not up to the expectations of those who are accustomed to massive, billowing clouds.

Because you are now dealing with a system that combines both heat sources, you can expect your clouds to be much larger and much more flavorful. 

Cons

While hybrid heating systems are great, there is one major disadvantage. Which includes…

Hard Learning Curve

Hybrid heating systems can be difficult to get used to, especially for new users.

You need to learn how to properly heat your system, how to take care of your herbs so that they are not at increased risk of combustion, and how to deal with the many features that your vape will come packed with.

If you are not tech-savvy, these systems will offer up a hard learning curve that will be difficult for you to navigate as you operate these vapes. 

Combustion 

Although it is not a type of heating method utilized in vapes, some people may simply prefer smoking over vaping for a number of reasons.

But is it an efficient or safe form of getting the ingredients out of your herbs?

Let’s look at some of the pros and cons of smoking rather than vaping. 

Pros

If you’re a fan of smoking your herbs, one of the most notable pros include

Quicker To Smoke

Waiting for your vape to heat up (even if it could do so in a matter of seconds) can seem silly when you can easily hold a flame to your open herbs and smoke half of your herbs in half of the time.

There is no denying that fire can burn through your herbs rapidly, which is a major advantage for those who need to have a quick smoke session and don’t have time to turn on, navigate, and operate their vape device. 

Cons

It’s true that there are some advantages to smoking but there are also some major drawbacks. Some of these cons include… 

Hot Smoke

Unless you are using a rig or glass piece that comes with a complex system of water filtration systems, you are going to be dealing with hot smoke with each hit you take.

Hot smoke is not good for your lungs in any capacity as it clogs them up with the tar from the smoke and makes it harder for you to breathe. While it’s no secret that smoking is bad for you, it is still important to emphasize this disadvantage to your health. 

Irritate Lungs and Throat

Have you ever hit a joint, a pipe, or a blunt, only to feel a strong burning sensation in the back of your throat that made your eyes water and your lungs warm up?

Some people love a good throat hit but this hot smoke can seriously irritate your lungs and throat when you are taking it in. There may be no repercussions now but this constant irritation can do damage to your body in the long-run.

Smoking every once in a while is one thing but when you are constantly smoking, you are only worsening the condition of the parts that come in contact with the smoke. 

Strong Smell

Many turn to vaping as a way to be more discreet about using certain substances like marijuana or getting their nicotine fix. Why?

To gain better insight into why many make the switch, simply turn your attention to the main issue associated with combustion: odor. Whether you are lighting up a cigarette or a joint, the overwhelming smell produced by the smoke sticks to absolutely everything.

These smells are then easily detectable by others, even when you try to cover it up with perfume and other scents. Smoking your substances may be fun and fast but if you are trying to be sneaky, you are guaranteed to be caught by the smell every time. 

Conclusion

Knowing what type of heating system is installed in your vaporizer device will make a major difference in the vaping sessions that you have once you begin using it.

If you have not yet researched heating systems and their impact on the vaping experience, compare and contrast the heating systems above to discover the best vape for you based on your own needs. 

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Read here for more information about Convection