Are you thinking about upgrading from a beginner-oriented vaping device like a pre-filled pod system to a full-fledged vape mod with a tank? If you are, you’ve got a pretty big decision to make; it could even be a bit bigger than you realize.

If you’re currently using a closed vaping system, you might assume that the best way to upgrade to an open system is by buying a full starter kit that includes both a device and a tank. To a certain extent, that’s true. You’ll definitely pay less for a full vape kit than you would if you bought the device and tank separately.

The problem, though, is that many people approach the buying process in the wrong way. They assume that all vape tanks are essentially the same and choose a package based solely on which mod they like the best. The truth, though, is that it’s actually the other way around. A vape mod is just the thing that delivers power to the tank. The tank, meanwhile, is the primary component that determines the flavor and vaping production of your setup – it’s extremely important.

Choosing the right vape tank for your needs – and learning how to use it properly – can make all the difference in the quality of your vaping experience. That’s where this article is going to help. These are the things you need to know before buying your first vape tank.

Buy a Vape Tank for Your Inhaling Style

The first thing you need to know about buying a vape tank is that many of the most popular tanks probably aren’t designed for the inhaling style that you currently use when vaping. If you’re a recent convert from smoking, you probably use a small vaping device and fill it with high-strength nicotine salt e-liquid. That type of vaping device is designed for the mouth-to-lung inhaling style, which is perfect because you use the same inhaling style when smoking a cigarette.

When you begin shopping for a new vape kit or vape tank, though, you’re going to find that many of the tanks on the market are much larger than the pods you’re currently using. They have wide mouthpieces and huge airflow vents, and that’s because they’re designed for direct-to-lung inhaling. Many people who vape do prefer the direct-to-lung inhaling style – but switching from one style to the other is a major change that you may not be ready for yet.

If you want to switch from a pod system to a device with a vape tank – but don’t want to change your inhaling style – look for a vape kit with a smaller tank. If a tank has small airflow vents and a narrow mouthpiece that looks similar in size to a cigarette filter, it’s designed for mouth-to-lung inhaling.

Choose Glass Rather than Plastic

Throughout most of the history of vaping, the most popular vape tanks have all been ones with glass enclosures. More recently, though, the popularity of pod-based vaping devices – which store e-liquid in plastic pods – has caused manufacturers to begin offering plastic tanks that resemble vape pods. One of the benefits of plastic vape tanks is that they’re very durable and are very unlikely to shatter if you drop your vaping device on a hard surface. If you want your vaping experience to be as rich in flavor as it can possibly be, though, you should consider choosing a traditional glass vape tank instead.

One of the greatest benefits of glass tanks is the fact that glass is chemically inert and won’t interact with your e-liquid. Plastic, on the other hand, isn’t inert. When you store your e-liquid in a plastic tank, pod or clearomizer, there’s a chance that molecular interactions could occur – particularly as you use your device and the tank begins to heat up. Many long-term vapers swear that they can detect a difference in flavor quality between a glass tank and one made from plastic. If you have a sensitive palate, you may feel the same – so you should consider opting for a glass tank.

Look for a Vape Tank with a Mesh Coil

With both mouth-to-lung and direct-to-lung vape tanks, the most important technological advancement of the past several years has been the development of mesh coils. A mesh coil replaces the traditional heating surface – which is made from a wound cylindrical wire – with a strip of mesh that looks a little like a window screen or the surface of a small spice grater.

Compared to traditional vape coils, mesh coils offer greater surface area with lower mass. The surface area of a vape coil determines its vapor production, and the mass determines its required wattage. Therefore, mesh coils offer bigger vapor clouds than traditional coils while having lower wattage requirements and consuming less battery power. Mesh coils are a big win for everyone, so you’re really going to have the best possible experience if your next vape tank uses a mesh coil.

Learn How to Maintain Your Vape Tank

The final thing you need to know about buying a vape tank is that tanks require a bit more maintenance than pods. Vape pods are very small, and it’s usually not possible to disassemble them. While you can clean a vape pod to a certain extent, most people don’t bother with that level of maintenance. When their pods become dirty, they simply discard and replace them. Tanks are a bit different, and you’ll need to learn how to clean a vapor tank if you want to have the best possible experience.

The ROBO2020 automatic vape coil cleaner makes cleaning a vape tank easy because you can disassemble your tank and put the entire thing – coil and all – in the device along with a little water, and it’ll come out clean and ready to use in about a half hour. Keeping your vape tank clean will improve the flavor and performance because it’ll remove the residue from your e-liquid – particularly important if you like to change flavors frequently – and because it’ll remove the dust and pocket lint that can obstruct airflow and hamper vapor production.