BaroneBarra
Well-Known Member
I'm sorry to say that I checked my mouthpiece just now and the cooling chamber has some clear signs of melting 
Multi-brand Vivant Alternate
- Thread starter blackbur
- Start date
Hello @Povertysteak , please DM us or email us at info@vivant.com so we can take care of the issue for you. The crack is under warranty so you won't have to pay for it. Also, when the final replacements come in, we will warranty the crack ones with the fixed versions for no fee as well since it is under warranty. Thank you
Hello @Just Justin your dream vape sounds like an amazing device!! I will definitely pass on your recommendations to our designers but I'm not sure what they are going to tell me about the filling balloons function
Unfortunately, convection devices mostly use plastic because metal in this situation would heat up too much and utilizing convection heating method, you would burn yourself trying to hold the device. Thank youHello @Stinky , I am sorry for the delay. We had to revamp our team as well and unfortunately are a bit short handed right now. Once things get going and we can build our video team back up, you will be sure to find the videos on our YouTube channel.. Please hang in there for us. Thank you
I bought an Alternate a month ago from PIU and it arrived two weeks later (Europe). I haven't had cracking problems (or melting, for what I can see: haven't cleaned it yet) but tbh I haven't used it a lot, less than 15 sessions I'd say. I did notice that the mouthpiece gets really hot above the chamber, so hot that it actually hurts to keep your hand on it for more than a couple of seconds. I don't vape at high temps either, normally I go up to 205 max.
Also, another thing maybe someone can attest to: my little straw doesn't seem perfectly airtight. I mean, if I "open" it all the way and let it rest on the mouthpiece, when I inhale there's a distinct hiss coming from it - definitely air coming in; so I need to bring it back a notch, and then it draws fine. Probably the hole at the bottom of the straw or in the mouthpiece is misplaced/too big: nothing major, just a bit annoying.
Now, about the guys over at @Vivant. I don't wanna burst the wholesome bubble of this thread, and personally I don't appreciate the rude tone I read in some posts a few pages back. It's great to have a place where you can discuss with the actual company that made a product, this doesn't happen like ever. But working in a field somewhat related to CS I just wanted to give you my.
I don't think just being present here and apologise while never give a definite answer is enough. Where is the list of materials you said you were gonna publish like 10 days ago?
But let's just focus on health, and precisely the melting mouthpieces.
I see three scenarios, imo in increasing order of probability: you know the plastic melting is harmful, and you pretend nothing happened. This is just criminal.
You know it's not harmful, and you're not giving us proof of that. ...why?
3: you are not sure. That's fine. Still, at the very first sign of something that's off, I'd bring my chief engineer (or whatever their title is) and put them in front of a computer for an hour, reading this thread, replying to questions, asking for advice. I'm not one of them, but for what I read there are a lot of users here that might very well have more knowledge and especially more experience with vapes than your team. Just pick their brains and use this place at your own advantage.
Hello @BaroneBarra , I am sorry you felt I was initiating rude tones, there is no rude intent whatsoever, I promise that. Unfortunately when things are typed, different people will read it differently. I wish more than anything I could speak with each one of you in person instead. Also, we are short handed right now so I may have been rushing typing and could have better worded my responses. The reason there is no definite answer right now is because we want to make sure we know the exact causes and find the proper solution before we publicly announce it. It would be unprofessional of us to give false info or info that is not 100% tested first. The list of materials is being asked for already, unfortunately we cannot release the initial form we have as that would let our competitors know exactly how to replicate our product so this is confidential. We are working on a public informational list from our factory right now. Please understand we do as much in our power to be transparent with the community, there is no question whatsoever if the device is deemed unsafe that we would not be recalling all of them. Releasing public info just takes a bit of time especially when it shows too much internal information not because we don't want you to know, but again, because competitors will feed off this information. We have continuously DM'ed individuals for their responses, advice and feedback and take all of this information straight to our designers. I hope you can have positive thoughts of our brand one day. Please feel free to let me know if you have any further questions as I will be more than happy to answer them as best as I can. Thank you.
Thank you for the video @Vitolo and for your kind words. It truly makes us so happy that all diversity of people can enjoy our device and have its ways to help them. Thank you again!
Just Justin
Well-Known Member
@Vivant thanks for passing that along! A company that listens to it's customers is a company I want to support! Maybe the Alternate 2? I've got endless ideas and designs for vapes but sadly I don't have the equipment to bring them to life. We should have all of FC and Vivant do a collaboration vaporizer! We could certainly design the greatest vape ever. Can we do that?
mash
Well-Known Member
Even tho this device has its issues right now.... I cant wait to purchase one..... and the responses from @Vivant just wants me to buy this product more.
I suppose I wait now... for the issues to be resolved...hopefully for the 420 sale I can find a authorized Canadian dealer for one of these units
I suppose I wait now... for the issues to be resolved...hopefully for the 420 sale I can find a authorized Canadian dealer for one of these units
Vitolo
Vaporist
Just to keep the record straight, I have found no issue whatsoever.
Luck of the draw?
I am very happy with the unit.
Just Justin
Well-Known Member
Same here! My Alternate is pretty flawless. I use it everyday and it hasn't let me down. Looking forward to more Vivant products in the future
Povertysteak
Active Member
Hi Emily, I hope you are well. Normally, i would take you up on your offer, but i noted that i purchased the unit from heaven_gifts (on dhgate). As much as i would like to take advantage of your offer, it would be just that, taking advavntage.
in any case, if you could let us know when the new mouthpieces are available for sale, that'd be great, as i'm sure many people would like to grab a spare.
Thank you for your attention, and good day to you!
Modnote: Edited to fix quote tags
stark1
Lonesome Planet
The Alternate is indeed a nifty little tool, if only the MP is made out of heat-resistant-dura-plastic!
So many cooling units suffering from heat failure (mine included) should indicate a design re-thinking.
With that flaw corrected, it would indeed make it a nice little Vivant vaporizer. The Dura Alternate. 
So many cooling units suffering from heat failure (mine included) should indicate a design re-thinking.
With that flaw corrected, it would indeed make it a nice little Vivant vaporizer. The Dura Alternate.
BaroneBarra
Well-Known Member
Hey Emily @Vivant, thanks for replying.
Just to set the record straight, when I said in my previous post "I don't appreciate the rude tone of some messages" I was referring to the ones of other users criticizing you with words like "plasticy crap".
Sorry for the confusion, your posts were always very polite, and this one is no exception.
That said, my mouthpiece melted a bit. Since I'm in Europe, I feel bad asking PIU to pay for the shipment of a replacement all the way to here.
If you can assure us that there's no risk for health I will continue using my Alternate at lower temperatures for now (it does RIP, ime).
But do you have an ETA - even approximate - on the production of the new, more resistant mouthpieces? What about the WPA?
I'd rather wait for them to come out so I can order everything from PIU at once, and maybe buy some other stuff to make it worth their while.
Feel free to PM me for details if you prefer. Thank you!
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Did you send the unit back?
they didnt want it
ScoMonster415
Well-Known Member
Hello all, I've been monitoring this thread since the beginning and unfortunately my alternate cooling chamber also has signs of melting. I bought my unit a month ago from PIU.com and have taken great care of it since. At first I noticed a strong plastic smell even with a dozen or so burn offs which was a little concerning. Yesterday I look under the top and indeed there is evidence of melting. I have only used the unit a few times at 220 c for dry material only. I feel that even with a new cooling unit the same outcome will happen if it is made of the same materials. I really hate to ask for a refund of some sort, but I strongly feel this vape has serious health concern issues. Any feedback is greatly appreciated, Thank You.
I've had my Alternate for a few weeks now, so here is my review:
The Vivant Alternate is an impressive debut from a new company. While not perfect on all fronts, it satisfies most things most people want in an herb vape, and does it on a budget.
Pros:
Extremely smooth, cool, adjustable airflow
Good quality vapor
Small
Lightweight
User replaceable batteries
USB port
Upgradeable firmware
Temps adjustable by one degree
Programmable timer from 1-5 minutes
Lights and beeps can be turned off
Easy to clean
Low odor when running
Very responsive customer service
Affordable (1/3 price of similar products)
Cons:
Very small bowl
Uses batteries quickly
Takes relatively long to heat up
Very tiny font on tiny screen too hard to see for older folks
Different combination of buttons for different functions can be confusing at first
Gets very hot at the top of the vape around the bowl
Some units initially off gas really badly, until a number of loads have run through it
My first impression was admittedly not that favorable. I loved the cool and smooth draw with a user-adjustable airflow! So seemingly simple, why has no other manufacturer thought of this before?
But unfortunately, my particular unit did offgas quite badly at first. This seemed most noticeable at higher temps and the strongest right around the bowl. To be honest, I was ready to send it back, as the taste of the vape seemed to overpower the taste of its contents. I did numerous high-temp burn offs, finally resorting to running a cool temp hair dryer on it at the same time. After about an hour, the odor was greatly diminished. As with some other recently-released vapes made in China, the packaging materials also had a similar smell, so it’s possible that contributed to it.
To be fair, my hubby didn’t smell anything bad at all, and apparently, most users don’t. So please bear in mind that this can be an issue of personal sensitivity. A couple days into using it, the smell appears to be gone. But I would still rather have a vape that didn’t off gas at all.
I have to say, this little critter has grown on me. The hits are so cool and smooth and clean. It’s a very pleasurable experience, and has made it much more enjoyable for friends with respiratory issues. I just wish the bowl was twice the size, and the battery lasted longer, considering how long it takes it to heat up to the selected temperature. Randy at puffitup.com explained that the heating element is larger than usual relative to the type of battery (18650). I wonder if this may have anything to do with this vape’s degree of convection, which takes more juice than simple conduction alone. If you don’t mind carrying a pocket full of charged batteries and a small container, you’re good to go. But even though sessions and battery life are short, it retains enough heat that you can get lots more draws even when it’s turned itself off. Thoughtfully, a USB port is provided, which also enables downloadable firmware updates.
Vivant’s attentiveness and responsiveness to their customer base is very impressive. They are very open to implementing whatever user suggestions they can, and reply to user questions online. Vivant says they have more products in the pipeline, which I am really looking forward to. The Alternate ticks almost all the favorite features that users want, it just has its limits. I’m down for their next version for sure, especially if it has a larger bowl and longer runtime. Personally, I like to vape on a hike in the woods.
For now, I would sum up the Alternate like this: Wonderfully cool draw, best for one person low-dosing high-grade on a short walk…
Unfortunately, the top mouthpiece cracked on both sides off the bowl area. Puffitup took care of it right away and sent me a replacement. I don’t know if mine was part of the “bad batch” Vivant referred to. But I am looking forward to Vivant’s promised “final replacement” of either the top piece or the entire vape if and when they have solved the cracking/melting plastic problem. Perhaps they should also offer early adopters or people who experienced this defect, a substantial discount on an improved model.
The Vivant Alternate is an impressive debut from a new company. While not perfect on all fronts, it satisfies most things most people want in an herb vape, and does it on a budget.
Pros:
Extremely smooth, cool, adjustable airflow
Good quality vapor
Small
Lightweight
User replaceable batteries
USB port
Upgradeable firmware
Temps adjustable by one degree
Programmable timer from 1-5 minutes
Lights and beeps can be turned off
Easy to clean
Low odor when running
Very responsive customer service
Affordable (1/3 price of similar products)
Cons:
Very small bowl
Uses batteries quickly
Takes relatively long to heat up
Very tiny font on tiny screen too hard to see for older folks
Different combination of buttons for different functions can be confusing at first
Gets very hot at the top of the vape around the bowl
Some units initially off gas really badly, until a number of loads have run through it
My first impression was admittedly not that favorable. I loved the cool and smooth draw with a user-adjustable airflow! So seemingly simple, why has no other manufacturer thought of this before?
But unfortunately, my particular unit did offgas quite badly at first. This seemed most noticeable at higher temps and the strongest right around the bowl. To be honest, I was ready to send it back, as the taste of the vape seemed to overpower the taste of its contents. I did numerous high-temp burn offs, finally resorting to running a cool temp hair dryer on it at the same time. After about an hour, the odor was greatly diminished. As with some other recently-released vapes made in China, the packaging materials also had a similar smell, so it’s possible that contributed to it.
To be fair, my hubby didn’t smell anything bad at all, and apparently, most users don’t. So please bear in mind that this can be an issue of personal sensitivity. A couple days into using it, the smell appears to be gone. But I would still rather have a vape that didn’t off gas at all.
I have to say, this little critter has grown on me. The hits are so cool and smooth and clean. It’s a very pleasurable experience, and has made it much more enjoyable for friends with respiratory issues. I just wish the bowl was twice the size, and the battery lasted longer, considering how long it takes it to heat up to the selected temperature. Randy at puffitup.com explained that the heating element is larger than usual relative to the type of battery (18650). I wonder if this may have anything to do with this vape’s degree of convection, which takes more juice than simple conduction alone. If you don’t mind carrying a pocket full of charged batteries and a small container, you’re good to go. But even though sessions and battery life are short, it retains enough heat that you can get lots more draws even when it’s turned itself off. Thoughtfully, a USB port is provided, which also enables downloadable firmware updates.
Vivant’s attentiveness and responsiveness to their customer base is very impressive. They are very open to implementing whatever user suggestions they can, and reply to user questions online. Vivant says they have more products in the pipeline, which I am really looking forward to. The Alternate ticks almost all the favorite features that users want, it just has its limits. I’m down for their next version for sure, especially if it has a larger bowl and longer runtime. Personally, I like to vape on a hike in the woods.
For now, I would sum up the Alternate like this: Wonderfully cool draw, best for one person low-dosing high-grade on a short walk…
Unfortunately, the top mouthpiece cracked on both sides off the bowl area. Puffitup took care of it right away and sent me a replacement. I don’t know if mine was part of the “bad batch” Vivant referred to. But I am looking forward to Vivant’s promised “final replacement” of either the top piece or the entire vape if and when they have solved the cracking/melting plastic problem. Perhaps they should also offer early adopters or people who experienced this defect, a substantial discount on an improved model.
Vitolo
Vaporist
Burn offs do not remove smells, but rather "bakes them in" (in my opinion).
ESPECIALLY bad for any unit is a burn off with oven left open.
That would be like turning your oven at home on all the way, and leaving it's door open.... The oven is signaled that temperature has not been reached and so the heater keeps going.
I am sure your burn-offs were with unit closed, so you are OK there.....
In all my years, I found that vaping will eventually completely remove odors, as the THC adheres to and somewhat penetrates the vapor path.
I found that burn offs on units with an odor the owner does not like seals the aromas in.
This is one man's opinion.
Nope, my final burn-offs with the hair dryer blowing on it were with the oven open.. I'm aware of how doing that can mess up the temp sensor on a kitchen stove oven, but it doesn't seem to affect the vape or burn in the bad taste in my experience. It was the only thing that worked!
ScoMonster415
Well-Known Member
I completely understand, I guess it was my paranoia about the "new" smell I experienced. My concerns are not with the plastic smell that is no longer there with about 4 weeks of use, but the melting cooling tops and cracking of plastic. For now I will not use the device until possibly an update is made.
I really needed to take the time today to say a big Thank You to all the members on here for their kind words, patience and understanding. You guys have no idea how much I appreciate your support for our company. Every time I get to read kind words and stories of how our team was able to help in situations really brightens up my day and I am very thankful for that. So, THANK YOU! I only hope the Alternate can keep getting better and continue to be a positive element in your life.
Hello @Povertysteak , Thank you for your understanding but I want you to know we are here so if you can't find a resolution through them, please still email us or PM us and we will exhaust all our resources to do our best to fix any situation any one encounters with the Alternate. I will definitely keep everyone here updated on the developments as they come along with certainty. Thank you!
Hello @BaroneBarra Thank you so much for the clarification.. I was literally sitting here saying to myself "word your sentences better so people don't take it wrong" lol Thank you for your kind words, it is truly appreciated. Please email or PM us so we can better assist you but because PIU is one of our wholesalers we work very closely with, I won't mind at all stepping up in this situation to take the responsibility off PIU's hands and into our own. I know as a company spokesperson I shouldn't ever recommend anyone use the device at a lower temp than it was designed to function at a max at, but personally I would say you are doing everything right, keeping it at lower temps until the solution arrives. As for ETA for replacement top caps, I personally estimate 2 weeks but this is not confirmed by the company at this time. I will update as soon as they do though. Also, for the WPA, it will be a little longer as we have prioritized fixing the issues first so I don't have an ETA at all, sorry. Thank you for your continuous support. -Emily
Hello @Povertysteak , Thank you for your understanding but I want you to know we are here so if you can't find a resolution through them, please still email us or PM us and we will exhaust all our resources to do our best to fix any situation any one encounters with the Alternate. I will definitely keep everyone here updated on the developments as they come along with certainty. Thank you!
Hello @BaroneBarra Thank you so much for the clarification.. I was literally sitting here saying to myself "word your sentences better so people don't take it wrong" lol Thank you for your kind words, it is truly appreciated. Please email or PM us so we can better assist you but because PIU is one of our wholesalers we work very closely with, I won't mind at all stepping up in this situation to take the responsibility off PIU's hands and into our own. I know as a company spokesperson I shouldn't ever recommend anyone use the device at a lower temp than it was designed to function at a max at, but personally I would say you are doing everything right, keeping it at lower temps until the solution arrives. As for ETA for replacement top caps, I personally estimate 2 weeks but this is not confirmed by the company at this time. I will update as soon as they do though. Also, for the WPA, it will be a little longer as we have prioritized fixing the issues first so I don't have an ETA at all, sorry. Thank you for your continuous support. -Emily
Radiocitysuicide
Well-Known Member
I purchased an alternate from puffitup in early March and have the same concerns as you. I only used my alternate one time after doing a couple burnoffs and didn't notice any cracking/melting.
However after reading about the issue here and on reddit and seeing how prevalent it was I decided I wasn't going to wait till I'm inhaling plastic to do something about it. Especially since the only fix right now seems to be to just send out replacement parts that may have the same issue.
I was going to wait it out like you and wait for a permanent fix but since I didn't know when that fix was coming or what it would even be I decided to contact puffitup for a return. I explained to them that normally I'd never return a used vape but I don't feel safe using it. Puffitup was awesome (no surprise right?) and said since I had purchased it within a month they'd take it back and sent me prepaid shipping label. If it hasn't been a month since you purchased yours maybe you should do the same? You could always buy it again in the future when the problem is solved.
I'm not bashing Vivant for the record and I think it's great how responsive they've been on here. If the issue gets fixed and they are able to release a materials list I'd gladly pick one up again in the future. I just didn't want my money tied up in a vape I don't feel comfortable using for an undetermined amount of time.
PPN
Volute of Vapor
I understand your faith in the manufacturers @Vitolo but could you explain me why some vapes comes free of any plastic/factory smell and others stinks?
If no-smell is something doable is it respectfully to send a stinky unit to a customer?
With all my respect for Vivant (cause they are not alone to sell stinky vapes) a stinky vape is always a bad sign of poor components, manufacturing, cleaning and packaging especially if you can't get the smell out after one load. personnaly i don't want to vape a dozen of bowls of plastic taste, feel unpleasant and totally unhealthy.
If no-smell is something doable is it respectfully to send a stinky unit to a customer?
With all my respect for Vivant (cause they are not alone to sell stinky vapes) a stinky vape is always a bad sign of poor components, manufacturing, cleaning and packaging especially if you can't get the smell out after one load. personnaly i don't want to vape a dozen of bowls of plastic taste, feel unpleasant and totally unhealthy.
BaroneBarra
Well-Known Member
That's very cool, Emily.
I'll wait for the new mouthpieces to come out then. It would be perfect if that happened before 20/4 (yeah, fuck combustion but also fuck your confusing murican way of writing dates!
) so we can take advantage of the sales!At this point I think it makes sense for me to wait for a European retailer to start selling the WPA and buy it then, for now the mouthpiece is the most pressing issue.
Have a great day everyone!
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I'd say most vapes have some degree of burn off, most manufacturers recommend it. Try vaping other herbs like camomile or lavender through the device to get rid of the taste. I suspect those that had little complaints with the smell have a poor sense of smell, we are stoners after all.
It's blows my mind that some people here are just suggesting to do more burnoffs as a fix for the plastic taste and smell. Mouthpieces/cooling units are melting people. Is it worth it to inhale plastic and risk future health problems for a $120 vaporizer from China? Vivant has been excellent in their customer service so far and hopefully they can provide a fix but until then I would stay away. It isn't worth your health! If this vape had been released by Gpen I think the responses here would be much different.
hard to believe isnt it, the company wont say either way if its a safety issue, wont release a spec sheet and the user base in here just laps up their apologies as if it actually means anything, I get treating other vape users in here with respect, but a brand new company releasing a questionable product? I dont think they have earned respect yet personally
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