As tobacco smokers begin to have an understanding of what electronic cigarettes are the popularity of e-cigs is soaring. After decades of lighting up where they wanted with no repercussions or restrictions, smokers are faced with a changing public attitude that no longer tolerates smoking in public.
Increasingly, tobacco users find themselves ostracized in public areas and relegated to feeding their habit outside public buildings and only in certain designated smoke filled rooms in airports. The condemnation of tobacco has spread to bars, restaurants, theaters and everywhere else people gather as the dangers of second hand smoke have become public knowledge.
The solution to the growing public intolerance to smoking is the e-cigarette which was introduced in 2003. Flavor and nicotine is delivered to the user through a vapor that has no negative effect on those around you. The e-cig may physically resemble a ball point pen or a tobacco product such as a cigarette, pipe or cigar with many designed to look just like the tobacco version.
E-cigs are reusable although some come with disposable components. The best selling products are the automatic style where vapor is delivered on demand when the user applies draws on the mouthpiece.
The flow of air is detected by a sensor that will activate a heating element and that heat vaporizes a solution containing nicotine. The solution may be added with an e-fluid or may be a cartridge located in the mouthpiece. A LED light at the end of the electronic cigarette lights when vapor is produced. Original models of the product routinely used an orange or red LED to resemble the fire of a lit cigarette. Today the user can choose from a variety of LED colors.
On the manual models the user must press a button to activate the heating element and release a vapor. Manual and automatic style use the same electronic circuits and rechargeable batteries in their delivery systems.
The tip or mouthpiece of an e-cig is often round like a tobacco cigarette but there are also versions shaped like a cigar tip. The liquid solution is contained in the absorbable materials in a small cup located in the mouthpiece. The mouthpiece is commonly referred to as a “cartridge” and may be refillable or disposable. The “atomizer” is the heating element that changes the liquid into a vapor the user can inhale.
E-cigs are considered a delivery system for nicotine. The solution referred to as e-liquid can be purchased in many flavors and in various strength levels of nicotine. The user chooses the nicotine level he prefers just as he might choose regular, light or ultra-light tobacco cigarettes.If you have wondered “what are electronic cigarettes” you’ll find the e-cigs an effective method of providing nicotine through a process that does not endanger those around you or release odors into your home.
Mary Kay Rivers is an expert on all aspects of electronic cigarettes. Her articles about how much money smokers would save with cheap e-cigarettes and about the best electronic cigarettes have become very popular.
