Discontinued herbalAire

[GanjaRunner]

Received my vape in the mail today! Bottom line, I'm REALLY ripped right now, so I hope this makes sense. You can assume that the bottom line is quite positive, LOL!

I checked out the manual, built the bags, got all my parts together, and put a pea-sized chunk of some Headberry into the crucible. Put that in, mouthpiece on, hooked up, turned on to 335, nice red glow from the bottom, green light on, plug on a bag and wait. Couple minutes, the light is amber, on goes the pump, and I let the bag inflate. Reasonable amount of time. I bought this, mainly, for me, so the whole party aspect is not so important. First bag off, while hitting it, I put the other bag on and crank up the temp to about 350, taking several huge lung filling hits of absolutely DELICIOUS, pure vapor. And the it hits me and I feel fantastic. I finish the bag and the next one is almost ready. Switch, blow another at 350, down the second.

Long story short, by the time I'm through, I've vaped a little pea-size hunk of bud all the way to 400 until the bags were essentially clear. Then I checked bud. Amazing. Totally intact, yet completley brown. and it just crumbled to dust in my hands.

And I am vaked and this thing rocks!

 

[stinac]

Received my vape in the mail today! Bottom line, I'm REALLY ripped right now, so I hope this makes sense. You can assume that the bottom line is quite positive, LOL!

I checked out the manual, built the bags, got all my parts together, and put a pea-sized chunk of some Headberry into the crucible. Put that in, mouthpiece on, hooked up, turned on to 335, nice red glow from the bottom, green light on, plug on a bag and wait. Couple minutes, the light is amber, on goes the pump, and I let the bag inflate. Reasonable amount of time. I bought this, mainly, for me, so the whole party aspect is not so important. First bag off, while hitting it, I put the other bag on and crank up the temp to about 350, taking several huge lung filling hits of absolutely DELICIOUS, pure vapor. And the it hits me and I feel fantastic. I finish the bag and the next one is almost ready. Switch, blow another at 350, down the second.

Long story short, by the time I'm through, I've vaped a little pea-size hunk of bud all the way to 400 until the bags were essentially clear. Then I checked bud. Amazing. Totally intact, yet completley brown. and it just crumbled to dust in my hands.

And I am vaked and this thing rocks!

im glad that you like it.
How come that you decided to go with HA ? I pick it up for personal use, just like you.
Did you try any other vape, can u compare ?
I like it more and more,this simplicity and efficiency amazes me.
Do you guys leave crucible with bud in the unit ON after filing one bag ?

 

[GanjaRunner]

Received my vape in the mail today! Bottom line, I'm REALLY ripped right now, so I hope this makes sense. You can assume that the bottom line is quite positive, LOL!

I checked out the manual, built the bags, got all my parts together, and put a pea-sized chunk of some Headberry into the crucible. Put that in, mouthpiece on, hooked up, turned on to 335, nice red glow from the bottom, green light on, plug on a bag and wait. Couple minutes, the light is amber, on goes the pump, and I let the bag inflate. Reasonable amount of time. I bought this, mainly, for me, so the whole party aspect is not so important. First bag off, while hitting it, I put the other bag on and crank up the temp to about 350, taking several huge lung filling hits of absolutely DELICIOUS, pure vapor. And the it hits me and I feel fantastic. I finish the bag and the next one is almost ready. Switch, blow another at 350, down the second.

Long story short, by the time I'm through, I've vaped a little pea-size hunk of bud all the way to 400 until the bags were essentially clear. Then I checked bud. Amazing. Totally intact, yet completley brown. and it just crumbled to dust in my hands.

And I am vaked and this thing rocks!

im glad that you like it.
How come that you decided to go with HA ? I pick it up for personal use, just like you.
Did you try any other vape, can u compare ?
I like it more and more,this simplicity and efficiency amazes me.
Do you guys leave crucible with bud in the unit ON after filing one bag ?

Deciding on a vape is the hardest thing of all! I have a Magic Flight Launch Box, which is great for a portable, and I also have a Cloud on pre-order, but I wanted something more substantial now, and all of the research I did, the HA fit that bill best, for ME.

I have to admit I really like the idea of just nipping off a hunk of bud and dropping it into the cruicible. I've always been one of those who kind of "flinches" a bit when really nice bud goes into the grinder! A small thing, I know, but the Herbie really seems to get everything out.

The only other vape I've used is the MFLB, so it's hard to compare. the MFLB is awesome for what it does, but you certainly aren't going to be able to vape as much bud, as quickly, in it so one can go from there.

Yes, I'm curious too about how everyone "times out" with the Herbie. I mean, I consider myself pretty "hardheaded", and I was kind of wishing my buddy was over yesterday after I'd gotten to about bag number 5! I didn't know what else to do, didn't want to waste the bud, so I just kept blowing bags...but man! hahahaha

 

[Gee79]

I recently got a Herbalaire, it's my first vaporiser and I thought I should describe my experiences with it for anybody else who is thinking of getting one. First of all I want to say that I've been pretty happy with the HA, it has been a huge improvement on smoking through my bong. I've not had much experience with other vapes so I can't really compare it directly with other similar units on the market.

There were a couple of reasons I ended up getting a HA. My only previous experience with a vaporiser was a Volcano so I knew that I liked bag style vapes plus a large part of the reason I wanted to switch was so it was easier on my throat and lungs and it seems that a bag is good for that. However there is no way that I was going to pay the high price tag for the Volcano when there are a lot of cheaper vaporisers that will do a good job. The HA sells at a good price and does a great job using the bags. I was also impressed that even though it was cheaper it offered more versatility as you can use the whip or hook it up to a bong. In the end though once I got the unit I found that I didn't really like the whip. I agree with everybody who said that whip isn't this unit's specialty it didn't seem to work particularly well for me and I quickly decided I preferred the bags. When I first got it and was using the whip I had some plant matter suck through the whip and go into my mouth and that sort of turned me off. With the bags as well after using it a few times you can start to see the odd little bit of plant matter getting into the bag, it doesn't seem like the screen on the mouthpiece stops everything from getting through. It doesn't worry me so much when I'm using the bags and I know that I could just try using it with a bong if I was really worried about it (I plan on trying this out some time, thanks to those who posted about it in this thread).

Another big draw with the HA for most people seems to be the efficiency. This certainly influenced my purchase, I'm always trying to save money if I can so efficiency seemed like an important factor. Since getting the HA I haven't really noticed a huge difference in the amount of pot I'm using, it has pretty much stayed about the same. Having said that though I haven't been really making an effort to try stretch it as far as I can yet, I'll usually blow a couple of bags and then stop after that because I'm nicely stoned but it is apparent there is still vapor left and I could probably get some more bags out of it. Plus I have always been eager to use my new HA since I got it so I'm probably going through more now than I will once the novelty wears off. When you consider that the ABV can be reused again for brownies or whatever it feels like I'm already getting better value from my pot so I can't complain, and in the end by not trying to squeeze out every little bit of vapor it will probably be better when I start using the ABV.

One unexpected dissappointment for me was the air pump or more specifically how the air pump connects to the HA. Before I bought the unit I had seen videos of people using it on Youtube and it looked pretty easy, let it heat up, plug in the pump and watch the bag expand. When I got my unit though I was surprised to find that the hose from the air pump has a different nozzle on the end. In the videos I saw the user can just plug the nozzle into the unit and walk away while the bag fills, with mine the nozzle won't sit in the hole in the back of the unit, it just falls out, so I have to hold the hose there until the bag fills up. While it's not a huge problem it is a bit irritating having to wait there for the minute or so it takes to fill. I'm usually sitting in front of the computer when I'm vaping and having to hold that hose there makes it a real pain trying to type stuff, would be so much nicer if I could just sit it aside while it fills the bag. It seems to be an odd decision to change the nozzle like that because I've seen comments with people criticising the HA for having a slow filling time, making you actually sit there and hold the thing the whole time as well isn't going to make it seem to go any quicker. I haven't seen anyone else with this complaint so maybe it's just a thing with my particular unit where they've included the wrong part or something, I'd be interested to know if anybody has had the same problem. I should see if I can find somewhere to buy a replacement nozzle.

I'm curious to know whether anybody has any tips on how to clean the HA. I cleaned mine following the instructions from the manual but I found it really hard to get some of the parts clean particularly the main mouthpiece. I was just immersing it in rubbing alcohol then trying to scrape the resin out with the little metal stick cleaning tool thingy that they include with the unit but there is no way to get to a lot of it. What has everybody else found that works well, does it work better to let it soak in the rubbing alcohol for longer? Any tips would be appreciated.

Since switching from the bong it feels like getting stoned has become a much more time consuming process so if speed of use is a factor then it may not be the best for you. It's a conspicuous looking thing so I tend to keep it closed away in a cupboard, getting stoned means getting stuff out, plugging it all in, waiting for it to heat up, blow the bags and then the time to inhale the bags. The whole process takes much longer than just using a bong so if that is important to you then it might be best to look into other types of vaporisers. On the whole though, despite a few niggles, the HA has been a pretty good place to start out and it has sold me on the whole concept of vaping.

 

[stinac]

the nozzle fits perfectly in the pump hole, try removing nozzle from other hose that you got.
The parts came with clear tubes, put them in with iso, and shake it and let them stay over night.
I put 2 or 3 screens on the main mouthpiece, so everything stays in there, and nothing goes in the bag, except vapor, and i use finely grounded stuff.

Recently i got Zephyr Ions valve system, and it is almost direct fit, i did a little dremel job on the bag mouthpiece (just with sandpaper), so it can fit in the hole.
I like this system just because i can put bag away, but that system has funny smell/taste, and when you hit from it, the air goes around it, and it mix with vapor from the bag. I dont like kissing that system too, and it got my lip cut, when i released button with lips on it, so there was a little blood

 

[GanjaRunner]

@Gee79: You need to contact HA if you are unable to press-fit the pump nozzle into the HA unit. Mine presses in and stays put, and simply pulls out when finished. I DO NOT need to hold mine in. Something is not right with your unit.

BTW, I agree with you regarding the time factor. If you want something FAST, I'd recommend the Magic Flight Launch Box.

However, I will admit that I still combust and will continue to do so. It's...different. Not better, just different. Sometimes I want to combust in my bubbler. Other times, I vape with my HA. Yet other times I roll a joint or use my MFLB.

I realize that taking anything into my lungs (other than pure air which is in damn short supply these days) is unhealthy. I realize that combusting is less healthy than vaping. Since vaping has me combusting less, that's got to be a good thing.

My next purchase is going to be a Cloud. I think, from the speed prospective, it will be much more bong like..

 

[stinac]

My next purchase is going to be a Cloud. I think, from the speed prospective, it will be much more bong like..

my opinion is that da buddha (or ssv...) + bong is better and cheaper solution.
i didnt see cloud getting from that machine, it has problem with heating, i hope that they will take care of that soon.

 

[Gee79]

Thanks for replying about the nozzle, I will have to get in touch with HA and see if I can get it replaced. Both hoses have exactly the same nozzles on them so it wouldn't help to switch them around. The demonstration videos I've seen all show the hoses with white nozzles on the end, the ones I got have black nozzles which look bigger than the white ones. I don't know what the story is with it. I read that they've included different types of bags with the unit at different times, so maybe it's the same sort of thing. Definately doesn't work as well so I will find out about getting the other sort.
Stinac, thanks for the tips for cleaning the HA, I was pretty much doing what you say with filling the tube with iso and shaking but I haven't been leaving it soaking for as long as you do. I thought that might be where I was going wrong, will have to give it another go. Do you find it makes a big difference grinding up your herb, from the stuff I'd read about the HA here it seems most people think it works just as well without it.

 

[stinkmeaner]

My next purchase is going to be a Cloud. I think, from the speed prospective, it will be much more bong like..

my opinion is that da buddha (or ssv...) + bong is better and cheaper solution.
i didnt see cloud getting from that machine, it has problem with heating, i hope that they will take care of that soon.

If you watch the first Youtube video, you will see the the problem lies not with heating, but instead they were just trying to find a suitable insulation material, it is just a matter of selecting the right one and you will see it will not be a problem with the insulation technology available today.

 

[GanjaRunner]

@stinac, I had considered a DBV or SSV (and I may still yet acquire one) but for ME, it's not the best solution. For me, the best solution is to wait until the Cloud is available. I have a MFLB and a HA, both are quite sufficient for the moment.

I think if a person wants a "hookah-like" smoking experience, then the SSV/DBV are the way to go. Even taking bong hits from them are still a long, drawn out affair, relatively speaking. With the Cloud, I envision using it more like I would a combustion bong. Just load it up, heat it up, and hit it!

To each his own, of course!

 

[Oprah]

Quick question, is the save or the herbalaire better? And when does the cloud come out?

 

[Mr. Smoke No More]

The save? I would expect the cloud in about 2 months or so. But they are not releasing it until its just right so u will have to hang tight in the time being.

I have never used a HA but seen them demoing it at the Toronto MMJ expo. He was saying u could fill bags then attach a whip to draw from the bag. This seems pointless to me, not sure if he was just trying to use it as a selling feature or what...

 

[max]

my opinion is that da buddha (or ssv...) + bong is better and cheaper solution.

Cheaper- yes. Better- no. Not unless you like tubing. The Cloud will hit bigger, and more importantly, it'll be easier to use for anyone, especially those who are new to vaping. The heat exchanger will let you hit it as hard as you like without having to adjust the temp to compensate. stonemonkey55 is well aware of the pluses and minuses of the 7th Floor products and the Cloud is designed to eliminate the minuses.

Quick question, is the save or the herbalaire better? And when does the cloud come out?

If you mean the SSV, they're totally different. The herbie is mostly a bag filler, and does an excellent job for the $, especially with getting the bowl thoroughly vaped. But due to the excellent efficiency for bag fill, it leaves something to be desired in the whip hit category, and that's where the SSV excels.

He was saying u could fill bags then attach a whip to draw from the bag. This seems pointless to me...

I'd agree with that. A little cooling action maybe, but not worth the trouble IMO. Like the Vapordome on the Volcano, when you're sucking from a bag, adding a whip doesn't really add much of anything.

 

[HiC]

OK, I've seen numerous references to the HA's efficiency. I already have a Purple Days, which kicks ass in the efficiency department . Now I'm looking for a dual bag/whip vape and efficiency is a primary concern again, although I know nothing will compare to the PD in that regard. I've narrowed my choice down to the HA and the Zephyr Ion. Has anyone done an actual efficiency comparison test between these two models? If the difference isn't that great, I'm going with the Ion. Also, I understand the herb chamber for the HA is a good deal smaller than the Ion's. Is this a major factor in the supposed efficiency difference? What's the smallest amount of herb that vapes effectively in the HA?

 

[Ash]

I don't think I've ever heard anyone say the HA was good as whip-vape.

 

[anslinger]

I don't think I've ever heard anyone say the HA was good as whip-vape.

It's not a whip vape. I've just been getting caught up with this thread and I'm seeing an awful lot of mentions of inhaling though whips and tubing. As one who's never been a whip fan, I find this confusing. I like my SSV, but I don't think I could ever really "bond" with a vape that I don't hold in my hand while hitting. Or rest on my stomach between hits while watching tv. Hopefully I don't need to start resting it on my head or genitals.

Actually, it just occured to me. I think that my past alcohol abuse factors into this. The HA feels like holding a drink.

 

[Ash]

Ok, I've never heard it praised as a "direct draw" vape either. There is a direct draw-only version of the HA called the "happy vappy" and that seems to get consistantly low marks.

 

[anslinger]

There is a direct draw-only version of the HA called the "happy vappy" and that seems to get consistantly low marks.

Naw, man. Replace "version of the HA" with "vaporizer with a similar shape to the HA" and you would be correct.

Here's what I do with the HerbalAire, my technique may differ from others. First, I grind the bud. The good stuff will get extracted from whole bud, but where hits are concerned, I'm trying to get it extracted in fewer, bigger hits. I understand the conventional wisdom about lighter vapor being absorbed more fully and therefore more efficient. Exhaled vapor is waste, etc. Well, we're not all going for the same goals here. And our goals may vary from day to day, session to session.

So, bud ground, temp to 375F. Allow to heat up for some extra time after the light indicates. Put a finger over the air intake and try to draw on the main mouthpiece. Lift the finger to allow a very short burst of vapor in a little faster than once per second. Alternately, increase and decrease the speed of draw in about two second cycles while leaving the intake uncovered. I prefer the former.

Every now and then, I take a quik sniff of air through my nose and when my lungs are I dunno, about two thirds full, I stop hitting and fill up with air through both my nose and mouth. Hold it as desired, exhale through nose a bit. Stop. Fill lungs back up. Repeat till ya don't want to anymore and resume breathing normally, high as a motherfuck.

My tek with whip vapes is similar but without the pulsing. Sometimes, the SSV will give a hit lightyears beyond what I can get with the HA. I'll admit that, but not as consistently as I'd hoped.

Full disclosure: I've used the HerbalAire very heavily for well over four years now. I can work it about as well as my own lungs. I'm also pretty handy with a Vapor Genie. Now that I've got a really good whip vape in the SSV that makes me want to reach for it fairly often, I reckon I can get good at that too.

Imagine if I'd put this much practice into my guitar playing...

 

[HiC]

I don't think I've ever heard anyone say the HA was good as whip-vape.

Yeah, I'm primarily interested in the HA and Ion for their bag functions but would like to be able to use them with whips if I feel like it. Everything has me leaning toward the Ion other than this supposed efficiency issue (and the price difference). I just want to know how much more efficient the HA is than the Ion in bag-mode. I know the HA's airflow system is one reason for it's supposed superior efficiency but I also want to know how the size of the herb chamber plays into that.

 

[Beezleb]

Biggest complaint I recall seeing about the HA (whip mode not included) is the bag fill time but I understand they have increased the pump or something. I am not wholly certain.

Some HA users around here have gravitated to other vapes, mostly due to other vapes fitting their style better than other vapes or are used situational. Not everyone is satisfied with just the bag option and with the whip said to be not so good the HA can get bumped down a whole peg.

The Ion you have the whip option that works as good as my DBV (no official whip yet and have to use other companies whips which do not fit properly at this time as their is some slight vapor leaking but minor and not enough for a single draws worth in my opinion.

Tough decision but one full of win! Good luck and happy future vaping!

 

[max]

Everything has me leaning toward the Ion other than this supposed efficiency issue (and the price difference).

Can't help you on the Ion, but I'm a long time HA owner. It gets every bit of the bud vaped. Works fine in whip mode, as far as being effective, but the hits aren't as big and satisfying as a good whip only vape. Similar in that respect to the Extreme, although I'd give the edge to the E for whip use, especially if you load the elbow. I've got the original pump, which is kind of slow, but really only a problem if you have people sitting around waiting for a bag. The slow pump is fine for two people IMO.

I know the HA's airflow system is one reason for it's supposed superior efficiency but I also want to know how the size of the herb chamber plays into that.

I really don't think it does. The HA works much better with pieces instead of ground, since the main mouthpiece has a coarse screen and fine particles of loose herb will get through it or get plastered on it. Just FYI- the crucible (bowl) will hold up to .5g of ground herb. I've never loaded that much for actual use and if you use ground, you'll need to add another screen in the top of the crucible. That's the only way to go, IMO, for using ground bud.

The big plus for the HA these days is the price. You can get one pretty much any time on eBay for $160. That's 10 bucks more than the crappy Vapir One, so if you're looking for a dual mode vape the HA on eBay is a steal IMO.

 

[HiC]

Thanks for the info, Beez and Max. I decided to go with the Ion because I see it as having more of a future in the dual whip/bag dept once they finally release their whips. I'll just stick to my PD when I'm looking to be ultra-conservative.

 

[stinac]

The HA works much better with pieces instead of ground, since the main mouthpiece has a coarse screen and fine particles of loose herb will get through it or get plastered on it. Just FYI- the crucible (bowl) will hold up to .5g of ground herb. I've never loaded that much for actual use and if you use ground, you'll need to add another screen in the top of the crucible. That's the only way to go, IMO, for using ground bud.

i always use grounded bud, just put another screen on the main mouthpiece and one on the bottom of the crucible. I use 0,1g per bag (tokeez) and save AVB. After 7-8 bags, AVB that i collected put in the bowl and fill one more big bag. I use it every day and HA is my primary vape, because it is so easy to use, clean and its super efficient. The bags are so tasty. With new pump it fills one big tokeez bag under 3 minutes. I added wireless sockets for pump and main unit and ION valve system

 

[steiner666]

So, i just got my HA in the mail today. Got it off ebay, seller vaporchik, new for $168 after shipping. I was disappointed when i saw that there were no packages on my front porch today, but then i looked in the mailbox and there it was in a box much smaller than i was expecting. Of course, as with every vape that i've purchased, i was surprised at how small the actually unite itself is. This is definitely something that could be transported around in a variety of things with relative ease. One thing i wasn't too impressed with is the weight of the unit itself. I knew it wasnt going to be as heavy as the 7th floor vapes i had the most experience with, but still, its light and i wish it had a bit more weight in the bottom so it doesnt tip or slide as easy. Not a huge deal tho.

I hooked it up and turned it on to 375F (seemed like a reasonable temp to get some nice thick bags) while i put a bag together (not very hard to do). It was heated up by the time i was done so i tossed in a little chunk of bud, i'd say somewhere just shy of .2g and dropped the crucible in. I then realized i had lost the white main mouthpiece already on my cluttered desk. When i found it (after 5-10 seconds of searching) and went to put it on, i noticed that vapor was pretty much billowing out of the chamber. So i hurried and put the mouthpiece and bag on and switched on the pump.

I was pretty happy with how fast the bag filled, much better than the videos i've seen with the previous stock pump. I see no need for a faster fill really unless you're a terribly impatient person or are filling multiple/larger bags.

So the vapor was good tasting and dense, and i got a couple bags like that. 2 big hits or 3 medium hits per bag on average. The next few bags started to get a bit of an overcooked taste that i havent really tasted since i used a MFLB. After about the 4th bag i dumped out the crucible and examined the herb. It was pretty brown and brittle, but there was clearly some darker brown on the outside and lighter in the middle still. So i'm not sure i'm 100% subscribed to the belief that unground bud is the way to go with the HA yet.

Next i tried something i had been interested in doing for a few months and loaded up some ABV to see if i can get the claimed 2 bags out of it. First i put a ssv screen on the bottom of the crucible and then loaded the abv and then put another screen inside on top of the herb, since i'm not sure how to go about putting the screen in the mouthpiece the opening is smaller than the screen by a good amount. I blew a bag (at375f) and sure enough got some OKish hits out of it, and a thinner second. I wasnt too surprised though because it was from my stockpile of abv that was a mix from since the beginning of the year, with abv from a dbv mainly, and some mflb and ssv. I was able to get a few hits out of this abv in my ssv also in the past. I didnt try setting the temp any higher because it just tasted like it was pretty close to burning already. I noticed there was a good amount of abv in the bag, and i looked and saw that the top screen i put in had moved out of place. Going to have to figure out a better way of keeping it in place before i mess around with revaping this powdery abv any more.

Next i tried some direct draw with a little bit of bud, about as much as i would normally vape in the mini wand with my ssv. Using a mouthpiece extension straw thing created too much of a hot spot on the back of my mouth and the straw itself got too hot on my lips. I found draws directly off the main mouthpiece to be a bit better, and one made me cough pretty good, i couldnt decide if it was a good "omg i'm getting good n' stoned" sort of cough or a "ack, that was harsh" cough tho lol. So i tried the really stiff and short whip thing and it actually worked ok. Not like a SSV, but i knew it wouldnt be. The restricted airflow also reminds me of using a MFLB, and didnt bother me much. I thought it made a world of difference as far as reducing the harshness though.

I didnt get as many hits out of the loads i've put in as i normally do out of the same amount in my ssv, but i think its just because i didnt start off at a lower temps. I plan on on doing some more testing before delivering my final opinion tho! But the first few bags definitely taste great.

 

[rabblerouser]

ha, just got mine yesterday from the same seller. yeah i'm still in new toy stage.
I haven't had anything taste overcooked yet, i've actually been real happy with the flavor. 'cept maybe last high temp bag being not quite as good.

I did the first several crucibles unground, but it seems like its easier to get thicker vapor with ground, and extra screens, maybe just get like 3-4 thicker bags instead of 4-5 thinner ones.

Definitely still playing with different temperatures, i can get decently thick vapor at least as low as 350

haven't played with any direct draw yet