Torches; to purge or not to purge?

Vapor_Eyes

Vapor_Eyes

taste buds
I have recently become a fan of butane torch powered vapes. It's kind of ironic because my first vape years ago was a butane powered (no torch) Iolite.

I did research and found the best way to treat your torches is to fully empty them (purge) before refilling. That's what I've been doing.

My torches are rock solid yet cheap. Purging sounds like it's not a big deal but it brings many small frustrations. I don't like to be frustrated when I vape.:shrug:

One issue is that it would be nice to top off my torch before I go out for a while. If my torch is low and I'm going to purge than I need to bring a second torch.

The biggest issue is that as the butane level gets low, the torch performance suffers. It inevitable goes out mid hit/heating cycle. It gets weaker. It won't ignite. So you bump it up, and then 2 chambers later you get frustrated again in the middle of a hit. Turn it up, repeat until lighter is empty.

It seems the only other alternative is to purge manually once performance is affected, but then you are wasting butane and it is an annoying time consuming process.

My question is, how likely are you to cause damage by not purging, and what problems could it cause?

I use high quality butane, never overfill, and try to follow all of the best practices. The purging is the only one that is a hassle. My favorite torches range from $5-15 dollars so it's almost worth treating them as disposable to avoid the frustration of purging. It's not like I'm trying to maintain a $75 torch.

To be honest that's where I'm headed with my thinking but I thought I might as well find out what other people's opinions are on the subject.
 
Gray Area

Gray Area

Well-Known Member
I occasionally top up the torches I use for my Lotus. I use the honest torches that are the same as you get with the basic kit and have zero problems with them.

What I do (and also after a full purge) is stick the torch in the freezer for an hour or so until it's nice and cold. The theory being that the butane won't expand/turn to liquid as quickly and you'll get more in the torch.

Seems to work fine, but tbh I only do it if the tank is half or more full, and when really needed, I would more often just bleed the excess butane and do a full purge/fill...
 
flotntoke

flotntoke

thoroughly vaped
I usually put my lighters upside down for 5-10 minutes before topping off. Butane is heavier than air. So, you can purge some air and stop when it starts hissing/bubbling. Or, leave them flame side up and purge some through the nozzle. Not a substitute for full purging when doing a proper fill from empty, but seems to work pretty well for me when topping off a half full or so tank when I'll be away from my butane for a while. I usually purge all air when I fill any lighter from empty (or close to it), but always give any that go through this process a good full purge when I fill from empty later since I've been messing with it.
 
Vapor_Eyes

Vapor_Eyes

taste buds
Thanks for the replies everyone! I think I will use one of my $5 Xing torches to experiment on since I have 3 of them. I will simply refill until I notice any problems, then purge.

I'll use a brand new one so I can compare it with the one I've been using. That's the one I use with my Sticky Brick.

My double and triple Scorch torches are the ones that are a real hassle as the tanks are not as visible or visible at all depending on torch, and they seem to need refilling much more often. I use those with my OmniVap.

I'm not so concerned about wasting butane, it is cheap enough. It's just the purging process that is a hassle to me, it seems I'm doing it every other day lately. And sometimes I would like to top off my torch before heading out, it doesn't happen often so it's nice to know its not a huge deal if done occasionally. I'll definitely try @flotntoke's quick purge method when topping off.

Just saw this new response:
Philreal187 said:
I have purged my vapman torch under 5 times in over 33 months of owning and using. I find it takes longer to add butane to the tank without regularly purging but no issues with the function.
Click to expand...

That's great info! It's nice to see some long term, real world data from someone who doesn't purge. I think if you are using high quality butane with a high quality torch there probably isn't much need to purge unless your torch's performance has suffered.
 
T

Tommy10

Well-Known Member
Philreal187 said:
I have purged my vapman torch under 5 times in over 33 months of owning and using. I find it takes longer to add butane to the tank without regularly purging but no issues with the function.
Click to expand...

Yea righttttt! That's a different school of thought. I'd say mine get purged every 2.5 tanks on average or sometimes longer till it plays up. Glad to know that they can do a bit longer without a purge than I give them credit!

Edit to add, I use ventti gas which is the best I can buy, but I'd imagine not the best at all!
 
flotntoke

flotntoke

thoroughly vaped
Philreal187 said:
@Tommy10 I am no torch expert and don't know really the first thing at all about them, but I know almost never purge, it was something I didn't realize others did so often. I have only used Xikar butane that a local cigar shop carries.
Click to expand...

Sometimes you don't have to. I think your butane and how you fill has a little to do with it, but for the most part it is the lighters. I've only owned one good one - a Calibri that died after 6 weeks of not too much use :rant:- but the cheap ones are so hit and miss. I have one I've been using regularly for about 5 years and still going strong. Think it cost $5 at a local smoke shop. Some only last a few fills. Some of the larger ones work great all the time, but who wants to be luggin around a lighter that is 2x the size and weight of your vape!

So... if you're not purging and not having problems, don't purge and keep on keepin on. If you get sputters and unreliable flames while it's still sparking, start purging.
 
T

Tommy10

Well-Known Member
Philreal187 said:
@Tommy10 I am no torch expert and don't know really the first thing at all about them, but I know almost never purge, it was something I didn't realize others did so often. I have only used Xikar butane that a local cigar shop carries.
Click to expand...

I think my purge happiness started because my first butane vape was the hammer. Dunno how others feel but the hammer is much more finicky than your average pocket torch and requires a long constant flame! Fluttering flame frustration has fuelled my fanatic pre-fill purge I find.
 
RUDE BOY

RUDE BOY

Space is the Place
I'm in the 'almost never need to purge' camp.

I've found my vapman torch and cheapo power branded torches never really seem to need it. I never run 'em dry, just top 'em off when they get around half full. I know my vapman torch hasn't needed purging through the last 3 cans of butane and my cheapo torch only needed it once.
 
Philreal187

Philreal187

Well-Known Member
Tommy10 said:
Mmmm! Any of you minimalist purgers ever used a hammer?
Click to expand...

I had both the og hammer and hammer pro. I don't remember exactly how often but I was purging it a lot more often than my torches. It was probably close to every fill or two I was purging. I really liked the hammer and it was extremely efficient with herb, but I didn't like the exhaust smell in my face. I have a feeling the it wasn't as effective as a torch in using all the butane and could become quite fussy. I was having to click it a few times before it would ignite. I don't know if it was lack of oxygen or if it was the quality of the torch system but it was never a consistent torch for me.
 
T

Tommy10

Well-Known Member
Philreal187 said:
I had both the og hammer and hammer pro. I don't remember exactly how often but I was purging it a lot more often than my torches. It was probably close to every fill or two I was purging. I really liked the hammer and it was extremely efficient with herb, but I didn't like the exhaust smell in my face. I have a feeling the it wasn't as effective as a torch in using all the butane and could become quite fussy. I was having to click it a few times before it would ignite. I don't know if it was lack of oxygen or if it was the quality of the torch system but it was never a consistent torch for me.
Click to expand...

Echoes my thoughts to a tee Guess I'll try purging pockets less often.
 
OF

OF

Well-Known Member
Unless you've a solid reason, you should never depressurize any pressure system (nor let vacuum systems 'up to air'). Seals depend on pressure differences (things like the fill or metering valve leak?) and it can be an invitation to contamination (a tiny bit of water vapor can bring an Iolite to its' knees). Besides it's expensive, smells bad and is dangerous (both from fire and frostbite?).

If you have problems, of course, it may be necessary. Otherwise I'm of a mind this falls square into the 'ain't broke' box. As long as I don't get water or something in my car's gas tank I plan to run LOTS of fuel through it and not purge it even once?

OF
 
Baron23

Baron23

Well-Known Member
Meh....I have never purged a torch lighter before (and I smoked good cigars for a long time and owned a number of torches) but the cheap, 4 flame, Vector that I got from Dynavap started to get a bit flakey. Just some of the flames would sputter a bit.

I purged it and immediately refilled it with good clean butane and it works great now.

If it starts to sputter again, I will purge again. If it keeps on working well, then I will just keep on using it.

Cheers
 
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