The Vaping Differences: Atomizers, Cartomizers, Clearomizers, and (Tanks)

Vaping vocabulary can get pretty tough sometimes. Each individual part of a vaping device will have its own name, and sometimes even these names can have slang terms or different words associated with them depending on where you’re located in the world. Even more confusing is the fact that so many vapers and people who don’t even vape, don’t actually know what some of the terms mean. With that said, we’re here to clear up ‘4’ of these terms for what atomizers, cartomizers, clearomizers, and tanks really are, and to give you some background insight on what each one can do for you.

Atomizers are the original device types. Everything you’ll hear about will be compared to the atomizer, and how reliable they are and were. Because they’re older, many different designs have since been created. However, the general design utilizes a heating coil underneath the coil, all below a metal mesh. Atomizers are perfect for dripping, meaning you manually drip e-liquid onto the wick in order to vape. This allows for rapid switching between e-liquid flavors, a great thing if you like to switch it up during your vaping sessions. Furthermore, since they’re such a robust and well-known design, atomizers are fairly cheap and easy to get. On the flip side, most atomizers are extremely difficult to deconstruct and rebuild, something that you’ll want to do if you clean the device often.

Cartomizers are the next upgrade to the atomizer. They’re similarly designed, but usually feature a large tank and a polyfill-wrapped coil. The wrapping allows e-juice to soak in and be vaped for longer periods of time, and combined with the tank size, give an unbeatable vaping session length. Compared to an atomizer, the cartomizer holds significantly more e-liquid. However, some vapers will say that the previously mentioned polyfill material takes away from the true e-juice flavors. Since the e-liquids have molecules that easily bond to other molecules, some think that the polyfill and the e-liquid interact during the time the juice is soaking in the material. Also, due to the large amount of juice held in the tanks, some cartomizers will retain the flavors from e-liquids previously used. Nevertheless, cartomizers quickly gained popular mostly due to the tank size and longevity provided.

Clearomizers are the best, newest, and flashiest type of tank to hit the market. With a clear tank that allows you to see how much e-liquid is left, a silica wick to deliver vape juice to the coil, and mostly easy breakdown and rebuilding for cleaning, clearomizers have surpassed both atomizers and cartomizers in usefulness. Vapers will rave about being able to know how much e-liquid is in the tank, and how long the clearomizer lasts. Many models nowadays are completely rebuildable, meaning you can tweak your clearomizer to your heart’s delight. Flavor delivery is quick and efficient, retaining true juice flavor. However, since clearomizers are so new to the industry you must be careful in your selection. Some clearomizers will leak, and most clearomizers are far more expensive than cartomizers and atomizers.

Now, you may be wondering what a tank is after these three terms have been cleared up. It turns out that a tank simply refers to any of these three. A tank is the critical component of a vaping device - something that can both hold e-liquid and deliver it to a heating system for that pure vapor. Atomizers, clearomizers, and cartomizers are all combinations of an e-liquid holder and heating element that’re considered the basic foundations of tanks.

With these terms defined, now you’ll know more when you research for your next device. Keep in mind what each tank is and what the specifications for each is, and you’ll be thrilled to notice all of the small details that come with your research.