Multi-brand Vivant Alternate

CHIDOY said:

Man, sorry to hear you guys are having complications.

I loved my Alternate since day one. It has found it's way into my DAILY rotation.

FOR ME.... I've been using my Alternate daily since I got it (A month or so ago?)and have had NO issues. (Knocks on wood)

I use it through water almost exclusively and at 410°F. (Haven't been higher than 410°F cuz I be ded). No melting, no cracking, no fumes or plastic taste. Again, I use it daily (about 2-3 bowls a night).

Admittedly, I have a little ocd with all my vapes and brush/wipe them after each use. My Alternate looks pristine. I've used 91% iso to clean the mouthpiece/top cap once a week and have had no issues with what has been described.

With ANY new vape there are bound to be some defects or issues that arise. Find me a company that doesn't have issues when they first roll out a product. Each and every "new vape" thread on FC will have people complaining about issues. But not every company is as involved as Vivant/Emily so cheers to them for "showing their face" and responding. They really seem to "care."

I hope you all find a solution that makes you happy.

Cheers!

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I love this vape too. I just want it to work reliably and safely. Emily with Vivant and everyone at Puffitup has been incredible to communicate with, so I agree that other than these defects, both companies are doing the right thing here.

BuddingMagic said:

I'm debating on how I'd like to move forward at this point.

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If it was be me, i start to collect top caps and mod it into WPA like @Vape Dr. did

CHIDOY said:

I use it through water almost exclusively and at 410°F. (Haven't been higher than 410°F cuz I be ded). No melting, no cracking, no fumes or plastic taste. Again, I use it daily (about 2-3 bowls a night).

Admittedly, I have a little ocd with all my vapes and brush/wipe them after each use. My Alternate looks pristine. I've used 91% iso to clean the mouthpiece/top cap once a week and have had no issues with what has been described.

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It looks like you have a yours from first good batch.

BuddingMagic said:

I just heard back from puffitup and they're again offering to replace the mouthpiece. I'm debating on how I'd like to move forward at this point. Who knows how long it'll take for Vivant to correct this issue and make new mouthpieces available? My concern is that it'll be far enough out that I could be stuck in a cruddy place for a prolonged period of time, replacing mouthpieces every week.

To return or not to return? That is the question.

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Return it now and buy it again when they have fixed the issues if you are concerned.

gienkollo said:

If it was be me, i start to collect top caps and mod it into WPA like @Vape Dr. did


It looks like you have a yours from first good batch.

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That's exactly what I thought too.

BuddingMagic said:

I just heard back from puffitup and they're again offering to replace the mouthpiece. I'm debating on how I'd like to move forward at this point. Who knows how long it'll take for Vivant to correct this issue and make new mouthpieces available? My concern is that it'll be far enough out that I could be stuck in a cruddy place for a prolonged period of time, replacing mouthpieces every week.

To return or not to return? That is the question.

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Take the time to speak with Randy at @PuffItUp and ask him for advice for your situation. Randy is honest and would not sell the Alternate if it was not safe.

He may also have numbers of units sold vs cracked cooling units.

If you find anything out, please report back.

sickmanfraud said:

Take the time to speak with Randy at @PuffItUp and ask him for advice for your situation. Randy is honest and would not sell the Alternate if it was not safe.

He may also have numbers of units sold vs cracked cooling units.

If you find anything out, please report back.

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Seconding this. Randy is who I've dealt with and he kicks ass! Good people at PIU and looks like at Vivant as well.

I just got my alternate today, and I must say that I've been a bit on the fence for a while reading through the thread, have been following since about page 14 or so. I decided throughout Emily and Scott's participation here and their commitment to fixing issues and qualms people have, that I am jumping in with the Alternate.

I'm coming from a MFLB, then an Inhalater, and now I've gone through two Arizer Air units, both crapping out on me within my two year warranty period. They're replacing it, but I don't want to wait very long, and fuck combustion, so I decided I needed a good backup. Loving the 18650 compatibility, this, as many others have said, is a bit of a unicorn for me. Plus a great price? Sign me up

So, I decided also that due to the reports of the MP/CU cracking and deforming, I thought I would try to inject a bit of record keeping with my unit to maybe try and hone in on what is happening, in the event that my mouthpiece also has issues. Here's my approach, and I will report back how my unit is performing if anything changes.

Before getting to the process, I bought my unit from PIU on Saturday, March 18th, and received my unit today, March 22nd.

I decided since I use the Air at white (374F) and green (392F) that I won't really ever use it above 400. I'm a little suspicious of the 400 plus temps maybe causing issues, so I'm not going to ever go up above that, save for my first two burn offs.

- The process -

Burn off - I performed two one minute burn offs at the unit max 428F, but did so WITHOUT the MP/CU attached. I watched it with a light behind the chamber for the duration, and saw NO fumes at any point.

I took a quick video of my MP/CU before subjecting it to ANY heat, in 4K resolution and with some light to point out any imperfections and to show an original state.

Next, burn off of two sessions with the MP/CU attached, at MY max temperature, of 392F. Again saw no fumes during either session.

The second session just cooled down, and after removing my MP/CU, I am not seeing ANY difference from when I originally started it up. I will take another video, just to show it for historical purposes.

I will be watching this like a hawk after each iteration, and will report back my findings in order to help both the community, as well as Vivant.

I know we are all incredibly protective of our own well being and health, and I think that Emily and Scott have echoed that they feel the same way, and ultimately stand behind their product and I think that's fantastic. Might we uncover a truly recall-able situation? Maybe, and as everyone knows people have growing pains. The fact that Vivant is here to help and will take responsibility if needed makes me feel good about the future of the Alternate and their company.

IckiestOfTheSticky said:

I just got my alternate today, and I must say that I've been a bit on the fence for a while reading through the thread, have been following since about page 14 or so. I decided throughout Emily and Scott's participation here and their commitment to fixing issues and qualms people have, that I am jumping in with the Alternate.

I'm coming from a MFLB, then an Inhalater, and now I've gone through two Arizer Air units, both crapping out on me within my two year warranty period. They're replacing it, but I don't want to wait very long, and fuck combustion, so I decided I needed a good backup. Loving the 18650 compatibility, this, as many others have said, is a bit of a unicorn for me. Plus a great price? Sign me up

So, I decided also that due to the reports of the MP/CU cracking and deforming, I thought I would try to inject a bit of record keeping with my unit to maybe try and hone in on what is happening, in the event that my mouthpiece also has issues. Here's my approach, and I will report back how my unit is performing if anything changes.

Before getting to the process, I bought my unit from PIU on Saturday, March 18th, and received my unit today, March 22nd.

I decided since I use the Air at white (374F) and green (392F) that I won't really ever use it above 400. I'm a little suspicious of the 400 plus temps maybe causing issues, so I'm not going to ever go up above that, save for my first two burn offs.

- The process -

Burn off - I performed two one minute burn offs at the unit max 428F, but did so WITHOUT the MP/CU attached. I watched it with a light behind the chamber for the duration, and saw NO fumes at any point.

I took a quick video of my MP/CU before subjecting it to ANY heat, in 4K resolution and with some light to point out any imperfections and to show an original state.

Next, burn off of two sessions with the MP/CU attached, at MY max temperature, of 392F. Again saw no fumes during either session.

The second session just cooled down, and after removing my MP/CU, I am not seeing ANY difference from when I originally started it up. I will take another video, just to show it for historical purposes.

I will be watching this like a hawk after each iteration, and will report back my findings in order to help both the community, as well as Vivant.

I know we are all incredibly protective of our own well being and health, and I think that Emily and Scott have echoed that they feel the same way, and ultimately stand behind their product and I think that's fantastic. Might we uncover a truly recall-able situation? Maybe, and as everyone knows people have growing pains. The fact that Vivant is here to help and will take responsibility if needed makes me feel good about the future of the Alternate and their company.

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Thank you for logging specifics. I like to do the same whenever I'm reviewing something!

I'm not trying to dog-pile Vivant. They seem to be doing what they can.
I just figured I should share mine as well, because reasons.
Had it for a couple days now. Ran about three batteries worth of bowls through it, and mine is starting to deform a bit too. It doesn't seem to be enough to cause noticeable operational issues yet, but I suspect it will continue to deteriorate. I'd ordered mine from PIU last week.

Ramahs said:

I'm not trying to dog-pile Vivant. They seem to be doing what they can.
I just figured I should share mine as well, because reasons.
Had it for a couple days now. Ran about three batteries worth of bowls through it, and mine is starting to deform a bit too. It doesn't seem to be enough to cause noticeable operational issues yet, but I suspect it will continue to deteriorate. I'd ordered mine from PIU last week.

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I wonder if the screen is acting as a heat sink and then transferring that heat to the surrounding plastic?

So I received mine yesterday, it's from DHGate. Packaging was the same as from official sources except it had no battery which is marked on the back of the box.

1. Plastic smell, did a lot of burn offs probably around 10 (185-210c) and can still smell it. Maybe it's because i did the burn off on an empty chamber, dunno but still it's worrying. If i were to describe the smell, it's kind of like a burning candle, wax i guess.
2. Battery gets pretty hot, is that safe? I'm using the LG HG2

I have an idea to see if anything bad gets inhaled, get a vacuum, put a cloth or swab of some sort a larger one preferably on the end of the vacuum and see if at the end of a session it has some residue on it.
Not sure how accurate it would be but worth a try i guess.

My everyday vaporizer is a Solo, this was supposed to be my backup vaporizer but I'm kinda afraid of using it atm.

Bitowzky said:

2. Battery gets pretty hot, is that safe? I'm using the LG HG2

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Li-Ions can take of good bit of heat, so it depends on how hot and why. If the battery is heating up from being close to the heating unit, then I wouldn't be concerned if it gets a bit warm(not hot!). If the battery is getting hot from simply being used, it could be being pushed beyond its limits. Being that it's an HG2, I'd say that it's probably not being pushed to its limits, but there are so many fake batteries on the market that it could be possible.

In the e-cigarette community the first advice I give to new users is to be careful where you source batteries and how you use them, they become like little rockets if mishandled. So, did you buy your battery from a trustworthy seller? If so, and it's a real HG2, I wouldn't be concerned.

If you can tell by touch or have a laser thermometer - 18650 cell generally shouldn't exceed 140f and if it got up to 175f id start getting concerned and look into other options.

OK so aside from the MP issues ..those who own a cf or cfx and the alternate..which do you prefer in regards to cloud production..I got to try my friends cfx and was really impressed at how consistently we were able to pull big rip after rip...my next purchase is either the alternate or the cfx..and I won't be buying soon..probably around 4/20 sale time...so sell me on the alternate..aside from the removable battery and more convection ..why else would I buy it over a boundless product? Again biggest comparison I want to know how comparable the alternate is to the boundless lineup when it comes to draw resistance and cloud density/production

@Meach Cfx.. 30 min quick charge and the mp won't melt on you. I regret throwing my cfx away after I had problems with it instead of contacting @PuffItUp .. was on the fence about getting the vivant and just trashing the cfx or sending it in for repair. When the sales come around I'm hoping to get reunited with the cfx..It might not have the replaceable batteries (yet) but its vapor production for the price is REDICULOUS. I didn't have an opportunity to use the vivant alternate due to the repeated burn off with no loss of plastic smell. Cfx I never even had to do a burn off

Hey guys new user here. Just bought the Alternate. Quick question though, I feel like I'm not getting enough vapor as I expected (or seen in mulitple videos). Any tips? In addition, what should I keep an eye on for when it comes to melting? Thanks in advanced!

Meach said:

OK so aside from the MP issues ..those who own a cf or cfx and the alternate..which do you prefer in regards to cloud production..I got to try my friends cfx and was really impressed at how consistently we were able to pull big rip after rip...my next purchase is either the alternate or the cfx..and I won't be buying soon..probably around 4/20 sale time...so sell me on the alternate..aside from the removable battery and more convection ..why else would I buy it over a boundless product? Again biggest comparison I want to know how comparable the alternate is to the boundless lineup when it comes to draw resistance and cloud density/production

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I would say cfx can put out larger clouds but takes about 4 x the amount to pack. As for quality though the cfx is still getting used an the alternatea next journey will be to the bin most likely

Just as a heads up, I've been continuing to test my new Alternate, and have been logging my data in a spreadsheet in case it's needed down the road. I've had two 6 min sessions that definitely had a plastic taste in there (I'm definitely spoiled coming from the Arizer Air's glass path) and have gone back to doing some burnoffs at 392F. I'm up to 33 minutes of operating time and can still detect the faint smell and taste of plastic. The last few sessions have been only burnoffs so haven't tasted those but can still smell it.

I am still not noticing any sort of damage or deformation to the MP, which is a good sign. I'll continue to log the data and share it once I can determine when the taste fades/disappears and how long that took.

I will say my two actual sessions I had great vapor production at 375, similar to my Air. I noticed though that it fades more quickly, whereas I can do an entire 10 min session on the Air and still have vapor. ABV is very evenly browned which is great.

wickedflow said:

Hey guys new user here. Just bought the Alternate. Quick question though, I feel like I'm not getting enough vapor as I expected (or seen in multiple videos). Any tips? In addition, what should I keep an eye on for when it comes to melting? Thanks in advanced!

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What temps you vaped? Often on youtube reviews, they are going on max temps for effect a lot of vapor, did he drove you there where you were going without much visible vapor? If so, it is your first vape? If it is, it can be some kind of mind thing to used to, try with vaping around a lamp or some light source, if you blow into beam of light you will see vapor, on my beginnings i had a problem to get properly high without me seeing smoke substitute which is vapor in this case.
I dont know it is answer that you look for, but still.

^^^^what he said..this is why I wanted to see which vape produced better clouds I religiously try to convert my friends and family from burning bowls to using a vape..there is something psychological about seeing the exhaled product that triggers you to feel medicated...my brother hates vaping unless it's using my solo though water on high heat..sipping on any other vape doesn't do it for him..he has to see the clouds..lol..

@wickedflow you can also try adjusting the airflow switch located below the logo on the front of the unit. As far as melting goes, I would keep an eye out for any signs of melting.
Welcome to FC.

edit for because

Mine was purchased from Puffitup, and is also showing signs of melting around the screen. Bummed.

Ramahs said:

I'm not trying to dog-pile Vivant. They seem to be doing what they can.
I just figured I should share mine as well, because reasons.
Had it for a couple days now. Ran about three batteries worth of bowls through it, and mine is starting to deform a bit too. It doesn't seem to be enough to cause noticeable operational issues yet, but I suspect it will continue to deteriorate. I'd ordered mine from PIU last week.

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What temp do you run at?

Baron23 said:

So, I haven't bought one of these devices yet, but have been very interested in reading this thread and have come to a conclusion that owners and Vivant may be talking past each other in discussion of plastic used in the CU/MP and plastic smell.

I see where Vivant has said that they are seeing only a 1-1.5% defect rate. I can only assume this to mean that only 1-1.5% of units shipped have developed cracks in the top unit.

But that doesn't seem to be the main thrust of the comments (including ones about recall) which seem less associated with a specific part failure (crack in CU) than with the quality of the plastic used in the CU/MP and whether this plastic is sufficient and appropriate to its use.

To me, plastic that turns white on exposure to ISO and plastic that for all intents and purposes looks like its melting on the CU right above the oven, is a material issue and not a manf or mechanical design defect like the CU cracks.

To me, this definitely raises suspicion of material selection issues which Vivant has NOT addressed except in the most general way (we use it too, we are caring people, yada, yada, yada...everthing but the exact type of material used, yeah?).

I find often with CS (vape company or otherwise) that upon some failure or short fall by that company, the CS personnel think its important to tell me that they are "sorry". They will tell me they are "sorry" multiple times while not actually solving the problem.

They all seem very taken aback when I express the view that I have no interest in their emotional state, sorrow or otherwise, but what I do what is a resolution (and often prevention of a recurrence). I'm sort of getting that from Vivant....they are sorry, they are sympathetic, they use the device too.....and my initial reaction is "so what, what we want to know is what fucking plastic are you using that turns white upon exposure to ISO and which melts when placed near the oven"

Ok, I'm out of here before Stu starts spanking my heinie for busting vendor chops too much.

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Hello @Baron23 , thank you for your feedback. Please allow me to clarify a few things. The 1-1.5% defect rate is including all types of defects, that is why I stand by my statement that the problematic top caps or devices is very low right now. I haven't gotten around to seeing the numbers by specific defects.

The plastic is being looked into every moment our team is awake. We have performed multiple testing's ourselves and will release some videos to show the community our findings. As for the plastic turning white, we have dropped many top caps (used and unused) into different levels of Isopropyl Alcohol either directly or with equal parts water just to test the cause of the problem and have been unsuccessful so far in seeing the top caps turn white like the pictures sent to us. This leaves us to wonder if there is specific brands or if the isopropyl used that has this effect is not medical grade alcohol.. We are still in the phase of finding the exact cause so we can fix it therefore there hasn't been an official statement released from us because we are still uncertain at this point hence the reason we are asking for the communities patience as we are truly trying. This goes for all the different issues that have arised, please keep in mind we are only human too and doing the best we can at this point in time.
We have stated in multiple threads and forums of the material we use in and on the Alternate and I do not wish to go against the FC Rules and will honor what Stu said about discussing material safety elsewhere.
I am sorry (yes I truly am being apologetic again) for how you feel about us. I hope we are showing we are not your typical CS individuals and we are actually working on a solution as we have said many times but we wish too the fix was as easy as it seems.
Please be open minded as plastic turning white with ISO cleanage has a lot of different possibilities and we can't rule out the type of alcohol being used to clean it either. It is not in our character to push the blame so we don't often like to say things like this because we know there is still a problem and it still needs to have a solution/fix but it seems my explanations so far as not being accepted well to certain members and yes, I am sorry for that as I am doing my job the best I can.
I have in my lifetime experienced customer service where the company won't take any responsibilities whatsoever and the CS doesn't even offer an apology and this is not the type of feeling I want to give to other people. We apologize because we realized you have been caused an inconvenience by a company we represent so we feel it is the least we can do, to accept there is a problem and apologize.
I hope you will one day feel comfortable enough to purchase an Alternate and give us your honest feedback of the product as well or even another product we release down the line. Thank you.

Pistil_Pete said:

Hey all. I got the Alternate last week, used it at 400 degree 5 times and no problems. However, once I used it at 428, that is when my cooling unit started to deform and gave out a plasticky fume, which I am sure I inhaled it in the process. I seriously think their plastic supplier had a bad batch of material. Either way this needs to be fix.

I contacted Vivant regarding my problem, but unfortunately they cannot do anything about a replacement cooling unit because I purchased mine from a ebay seller vapormist (who is an employer for joyetech), even though mine is authentic and was brand new. This wasn't the response I was hoping for from the manufacturer, but that's another story.

Ive contacted the eBay seller regarding getting a new cooling unit, but I have yet to get a response.

If this eBay seller doesn't offer to send a replacement cooling unit, I will have to return the alternate for a refund, and will buy something else that can handle the heat.

The vaporizer itself is great, and I would definitely recommend it if it wasn't for the melting plastic issue I had. But as of right now I would hold off on it after the crack and melting issues are straighten out.

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Hello @Pistil_Pete , I am sorry for what you are going through. I am sending you a PM to take care of the issue for you, it seems to have been some miscommunication between you and our company. We are not going to leave you with no resolution so please check your PM very shortly. Thank you

Copacetic said:

Hi @Vivant , thanks for engaging with our community so thoroughly
I bought my Alternate from Heavens gifts (I wish I'd gone for PIU or you now though as it's taken nearly a month since payment, and still no package!) and would like the opportunity to purchase a new revised mouthpiece from you when you release them.
I agree that you cannot, and should not be expected to warranty a unit which you did not sell me, and made no profit from, but I would like to BUY a safer replacement when they are released.

Is Vivant likely to offer this to folk like me who bought elsewhere?

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Hello @Copacetic , Thank you for your feedback.. We are currently revamping our website. When the new site goes live we will offer accessory parts sold separately. If you want to place an order in the meantime, I can always help you perform it manually. Please just feel free to PM or email me.
No worries, our authentic parts and devices are traceable and we will and do offer warranty on any parts that are truly from us. You will not have to worry about this, you will get the warranty on your separate top cap. I hope this helps, thank you!

Ramahs said:

I'm not trying to dog-pile Vivant. They seem to be doing what they can.
I just figured I should share mine as well, because reasons.
Had it for a couple days now. Ran about three batteries worth of bowls through it, and mine is starting to deform a bit too. It doesn't seem to be enough to cause noticeable operational issues yet, but I suspect it will continue to deteriorate. I'd ordered mine from PIU last week.

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Hello @Ramahs , thank you for sharing, we appreciate the information and it will help with us finding the cause and solution. Please contact PIU and let us know if we can be of help but Randy and his team are on it and amazing! Sorry for the inconvenience, thank you for your support!


We want to say thank you for everyone's continuous feedback and support. We are working on determining the cause so we can find the right solution to fix any problems that have been brought to our attention. Please keep in mind, the total defective rate is still relatively low so I hope this doesn't steer people away from our brand. I assure you we will find the cause and proper solution for any problems, no matter how big or small. Please feel free to contact us any time, we will be here. Thank you FC Community!

gienkollo said:

What temps you vaped? Often on youtube reviews, they are going on max temps for effect a lot of vapor, did he drove you there where you were going without much visible vapor? If so, it is your first vape? If it is, it can be some kind of mind thing to used to, try with vaping around a lamp or some light source, if you blow into beam of light you will see vapor, on my beginnings i had a problem to get properly high without me seeing smoke substitute which is vapor in this case.
I dont know it is answer that you look for, but still.

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Hey man really appreciate that! I am a new vaper, but I am pretty smacked at the moment off one bowl, so that's a good thing! Seeing more results at 385 and up. Quick question, how is the experience vaping at lower levels, like 150-350? Thanks a lot guys!

When I'm cleaning my vapes with ethanol I sometimes notice a white residue which is in my opinion diluted cannabis resin. Looks exactly like when I do QWE concentrates.

However @Vivant where can I find the material used? I only remember the reply that it will be on the (updated?) website but I couldn't find it there. I don't want to bring the discusion up again but a link would be very helpful. Thanks!

Baron23 said:

What temp do you run at?

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After a couple of bowls I settled at starting at 360, then 390, and then extract the last remnants of it out at 420.

I will say that after a couple days of use, I still can get bigger hits off my MFLB. I was hoping this would be a step up in vape quality from that. I dunno. Maybe I just haven't got my technique figured out yet for this new vape to hit hard.