It’s hard to imagine anything in vaping that’s more annoying than a leaky vape. When a vape leaks, you’re liable to get e-liquid all over your hands – or worse yet, in your pocket. A leaky vape is wasteful – and the worst part is that once a vape starts leaking, it’s hard to be completely certain that you’ve fixed it. At any point, you might look at your desk and see a puddle forming under your vape again. So, why is your vape leaking, and what can you do about it?
The best way to fix a leaky vape depends on the type of vape you’re using, so we’re going to divide this guide into three sections. Whether you’re using a disposable vape, a pod vape or a vape mod with a glass tank, you’ll find the advice you need here.
Stick around to the end of each section, where we’ll list some leak-free vapes that you can try if you’re tired of troubleshooting your current device.
Fixing a Leaky Disposable Vape
Disposable vapes are typically some of the most leak-free vapes that you can buy. That’s because the e-liquid container in a disposable vape is essentially a sealed environment aside from a small hole at the top for the device’s coil and airflow chimney. If a disposable vape does leak, it’s often because it’s been dropped, dislodging the lid from the e-liquid container. If your disposable vape leaked after impact with a hard surface, fixing it might not be possible. If the device hasn’t been dropped, read on to learn what you should do next.
What to Do when a Disposable Vape Leaks
When a disposable vape leaks, the e-liquid will often come out of the air hole, although it could also come out of the mouthpiece. Here’s what you should do first.
- Dry the outside of the device thoroughly.
- If your vape is leaking from the mouthpiece, take a piece of paper towel, roll it into a tight cylinder and run it down the mouthpiece to absorb some of the excess vape juice.
- If your vape is leaking from the air hole, you can either continue using the device and hope that the situation resolves itself, or you can blow hard through the mouthpiece while holding a paper towel over the air hole to remove some of the excess e-liquid from the inside of the device.
How to Prevent Leaks in the Future
Now that you’ve hopefully resolved the immediate issue, it’s time to look at why your disposable vape leaked in the first place. Here’s what you can do to potentially prevent leaks in the future.
- Don’t unpack a disposable vape until you’re ready to start using it. A disposable vape usually ships with a plug in the mouthpiece and a sticker covering the air hole. Those things help to prevent leaks, and you shouldn’t remove them until you’re ready to start vaping.
- Try to avoid storing a disposable vape on its side when you aren’t using it. If the e-liquid container isn’t well sealed, some of the vape juice could potentially seep out.
- Puff gently when you use a disposable vape. Because the airflow channel is very narrow, puffing too firmly could cause the coil assembly to flood. If that happens, the excess e-liquid will leak out of the air hole.
Disposable Vapes that Don’t Leak
Most disposable vapes are manufactured according to very high standards – so if you want to buy disposable vapes that don’t leak, you’re generally safe buying any name brand. Don’t forget that fake vapes are out there, though, so you always want to get your vapes from a reliable vape shop.
Some popular leak-free disposable vapes include:
Read our list of the best disposable vapes for more options to consider.
Fixing a Leaky Pod Vape
When a pod vape leaks, user error is often the root cause – which is actually a good thing because it means that if you have a leaky pod system, it’s usually easy to fix. Here’s what you should do.
What to Do when a Pod Vape Leaks
- Remove the pod from your vape and see if the bottom of the pod and the chamber at the top of the device are wet. If they are, use paper towels to dry them thoroughly.
- If vape juice has leaked from your vape’s air hole, blow through the chamber at the top of the device with the pod removed while holding a paper towel over the air hole. This should remove most of the vape juice from the device’s airflow channel.
- Check the silicone plug that seals the pod’s filling port and make sure that it’s pushed completely in.
- If you’re using a pod system with replaceable coils, check the coil and confirm that it’s pushed all the way into the pod. Sometimes, a vape coil has a flat side on its base that needs to be aligned properly, or it’ll be impossible to push the coil in fully.
How to Prevent Leaks in the Future
By following the steps above, you should have been able to resolve the immediate issue by drying the leaked e-liquid from your pod system. The next step is to prevent the problem from happening again in the future. Here’s how to do it.
- Puff gently when using your pod vape. Small pod vapes are similar to disposable vapes in that they often have narrow airflow channels. Using too much air pressure could draw excess e-liquid into the coil assembly and cause the coil to flood.
- Don’t overfill the pod. If you add too much e-liquid, the silicone plug will push some of the vape juice out of the pod when you close it.
- If your pod system uses replaceable coils, always doublecheck to make sure that new coils are pushed all the way in before refilling your pod.
Pod Vapes that Don’t Leak
Vape pod technology has come a long way over the past few years – so if you haven’t bought a new vape in a while, it might be time to grab a new device so you can enjoy a leak-free experience.
Here are a few pod vapes that don’t leak.
Want to see some more options? Read our list of the best pod vapes.
Fixing a Leaky Vape Mod
Vape mods are a bit more complicated than other types of vapes, and the fact that you can disassemble a vape tank completely means that glass tanks can sometimes be a bit prone to leaking. You can definitely fix it, though, and we’ll explain what you need to do.
What to Do when a Vape Mod Leaks
If your vape mod leaks, the first thing that you need to do is resolve the immediate problem by removing the excess e-liquid. You’ll also need to check your tank to make sure that it’s assembled correctly and doesn’t have damaged gaskets. Follow these steps.
- If your vape mod is leaking from the tank’s mouthpiece, take a piece of paper towel and twist it into a tight cylinder. Run the cylinder down the mouthpiece to soak up the excess vape juice.
- Remove the tank and make sure that e-liquid hasn’t leaked into your mod’s threading. Use paper towels to dry the threading and the outside of the tank.
- If the tank has leaked from the air holes, disassemble the tank and check the rubber gaskets to make sure that they aren’t damaged or stretched out of place. Replace any damaged gaskets. Check to make sure that the coil is installed properly. Screw the tank back together carefully, making sure that the parts aren’t cross-threaded.
How to Prevent Leaks in the Future
Now that you’ve cleared away the leaked e-liquid, here’s what you can do to prevent your vape mod from leaking in the future.
- Don’t store your vape mod on its side for extended periods of time. Because vape tanks have very large openings, they can sometimes leak if they aren’t stored upright.
- When you replace your coil, make sure that the new coil is twisted or pushed in all the way.
- When you unscrew your tank’s base to replace the coil, screw the tank back together very carefully to prevent cross-threading. If the threads don’t turn smoothly, don’t try to force them. Back them up and keep trying until the threads are correctly aligned.
Vape Mods that Don’t Leak
Any new vape mod should come with a leak-free tank, but you’ll always have the best luck if you use a tank with airflow vents on the top rather than the bottom. If a top-airflow tank is stored upright, leaking should be virtually impossible because vape juice would have to fight gravity to escape the tank.
Here are some of the best vape mods that don’t leak.
Looking for more options? Read our list of the best vape mods.