Hi all,
First off, I'm a newbie to vaping. Back in September I tried a friend's herbalAire and really enjoyed the experience. I still live with my parents so wanted something a bit more portable and discrete. I settled on the Solo after reading some reviews, hearing from friends etc. The usual.
When I used the herbalAire, my friend encouraged me to draw as hard as I wanted on it, it being a desktop unit and all. So, like others before me I'm sure, having read about the more restricted airflow with the Arizer, when I got it I dragged hard on it too. I used it a few times with friends who did the same, and about 1.5 months down the line I started experiencing issues. Sometimes it would seemingly not heat up after I'd set the temperature. I'd draw on it and could tell I was getting really cool vapor out of it if I got anything at all. Whenever this happened I would restart it, heat it back up and 9 times out of 10 it would start hitting like a champ again.
Then, almost the opposite started to happen. I usually start out on temp level 5 and move up to 6 and finally 7 as I reach the end of a session, but after a couple of hits at level 5 my bud tasted like it was completely cooked through and I couldn't get anything else out of it. The unit was also getting extremely hot and during one session it shut off early, way before the 12 minute mark. At that point I decided enough was enough and got a replacement.
I've been using the new unit for about 2.5 weeks now. While I waited for it to arrive I read up on the technique people are using to take hits, and have since been drawing a lot slower (my draws are often not audible now). I vape every night to help me sleep and until Saturday, I had no complaints. But then, while taking a draw, I started to hear two quite alarming sounds from the unit, both quite difficult to describe, and the problems which had afflicted my previous Solo seem to be back again. The first sound sounded almost like a cross between popping and spitting. Not a very good description but it was enough to make me think something could be on fire. I brought my session to an early end, removed the stem and switched the unit off. It was then that I heard the second sound, almost a quiet, high-pitched simmering from inside the Arizer. This wasn't the whistle caused by the power supply, this was something altogether different which got quieter and quieter as the unit cooled down.
This morning, at temp level 7, I ran the Solo through a 12 minute cycle without a stem. There were no strange sounds, but I could smell a faint oder. Not enough to make me think anything is burning inside the unit, but it is definitely producing a smell while heating even without a packed stem inserted. I plan on using it as normal tonight (2 sessions) and seeing what happens, but in the meantime has anybody else here experienced anything similar? Am I somehow using the unit incorrectly? I pack unground nuggets of material (2 of which were completely wasted last night because of these issues) into the stock curved stem. I've cleaned the stem twice in the last couple of months by boiling it in milk, and I've also ordered some ISO alcohol for solking. I've never used the straight stem, so I might try that tonight although I think the problem lies with the Solo itself which I've never attempted to clean. I'm wary of taking it apart as I'm visually impaired and there exists a chance that I'll lose or displace something I shouldn't, plus I can't seem to find a screwdriver in my collection which will do the job.
I love the Solo when it's running smoothly, but I'm honestly thinking about just buying a desktop unit which is more durable and easier to maintain. When you can see very little, the apparently simple things like using a tiny bit of rubbing alcohol to clean the heating chamber can quickly turn into a nightmare. Sorry for the long post and thanks in advance!