How to Change a Vape Coil (and When to Replace It)

A coil does not fail all at once. Flavour fades over a few days, vapour thins out, and then one pull tastes scorched. Most people put up with a dying coil far longer than they need to.

Here is how to tell when a coil is finished, how long one should realistically last, and how to fit a replacement properly. You will find replacements for most devices we sell in Pods & Coils.

What a vape coil actually does

The coil is a length of wire, or a mesh strip, wrapped in cotton. The cotton soaks up e-liquid from the tank or pod. When you fire the device, the wire heats and turns that liquid into vapour.

Nothing else in the device touches your e-liquid the way the coil does, so as the cotton degrades, so does everything you taste.

How long should a coil last?

One to three weeks is normal. Two weeks is a fair average for a moderate vaper, but the spread is wide and depends on more than how much you vape.

• Sweetened e-liquids are the biggest factor. Sucralose caramelises on the wire and coats it in a dark residue. Dessert and candy flavours can halve a coil's life.
• High VG liquids are thicker and wick more slowly, which risks dry hits on a coil that cannot keep up.
• Power matters. Running at the top of a coil's range shortens it.
• Chain vaping gives the cotton no time to re-saturate between pulls.

If you are getting under a week from every coil, the cause is usually the e-liquid or the wattage rather than the coil itself.

Signs your coil needs changing

In roughly the order they appear:

1. Flavour goes flat. The first sign, and easy to miss because it happens gradually.
2. Vapour thins. Same settings, noticeably less output.
3. A burnt or peppery edge. The cotton is charring.
4. Gurgling or spitback. The cotton can no longer hold liquid, so it pools and gets flung up the chimney.
5. Leaking. Saturated cotton stops sealing the coil housing.

Pull the coil and look at it. Healthy cotton is off-white. A spent one is brown or black around the wire.

How to change a vape coil, step by step

1. Empty the tank or work over a sink. Removing a coil from a full tank will spill liquid.
2. Separate the tank from the battery so the device cannot fire while your fingers are inside it.
3. Unscrew the base. Most tanks open at the bottom; most pods pull the coil straight out of the underside.
4. Remove the old coil. It either unscrews from the base or pulls free. Check the o-rings while it is apart — hardened or flattened seals cause leaks.
5. Prime the new coil. Put a drop of e-liquid on each wicking port until the cotton looks damp. This is the step people skip.
6. Fit it and reassemble. Finger-tight only. Overtightening crushes the seals.
7. Fill, then wait. Give it five to ten minutes for the cotton to fully saturate.
8. Take two or three primer puffs without firing, then start at low power and work up.

The two mistakes that kill a new coil

Firing it dry. If you vape a fresh coil before the cotton has soaked through, you burn it on the first pull. There is no recovering from this — the coil is finished, and it takes about four seconds to do.

Starting at full power. Begin at the low end of the range printed on the coil and climb until the flavour is right. Coils are marked with a wattage range for a reason.

Getting the right replacement

Coils are not universal. They fit a specific device series, and the series name is printed on the coil body — GTX, PnP, RPM and so on. A Vaporesso GTX coil will not seat in a device built for VOOPOO PnP coils.

Check the series and the resistance before you order. If you are unsure, message us with your device name and we will confirm which coil fits.

Frequently asked questions

Can I clean and reuse a coil?

Not a stock coil head. Rinsing removes some residue but cannot restore charred cotton, and a coil that has been soaked and dried usually tastes worse. Rebuildable decks are different — there you replace the cotton and keep the wire.

Why does my new coil taste burnt straight away?

Almost always insufficient priming, or firing before the cotton soaked through. Occasionally the wattage is set too high from the previous coil.

Does a coil need changing when I switch flavours?

Not necessarily, but the old flavour will linger for a tank or so. If you are moving from a dessert to a mint, a fresh coil is worth it.

Is a higher resistance coil better?

Neither is better — they suit different styles. Higher resistance gives a tighter, cooler draw at low power. Lower resistance gives warmer, denser vapour and drains the battery faster.

Where to buy replacement coils

Vapor Space stocks replacement coils and pods for the devices in our range, including Vaporesso GTX, VOOPOO PnP and SMOK TFV16 series. Browse the full range in Pods & Coils.

Related reading: a complete guide to vape accessories and what is a pod system.