Ultrasonic Cleaners. What to buy and where?

[Raindance]

Hi, I've been contemplating purchasing a sonic cleaning device for some time but have not been able to get some truly reliable information on these items. Some units are little more than an off balance dc motor attached to a container, whereas others seem to be the real deal. Many specifications are provided in Chinglish as well, a fact that inspires little confidence.

So the purpose of this device will be mainly cleaning of atomizers and coils with the secondary function of making me believe I have reduced my DIY concoction steep times.

I have come down to two possible choices but I am wondering which is best. In the world according to Raindance, a 15 Watt unit agitating a 200ml container will induce a greater "vibration flux" (0.075W/ml) in the liquid than a 50 Watt unit with a 750ml container (0.067W/ml).

Can anyone provide some definitive perspective on this? Also, does anyone know of any regular retail outlets, Clicks etc, that sells these items?

Regards

 

[Lingogrey]

Hi, I've been contemplating purchasing a sonic cleaning device for some time but have not been able to get some truly reliable information on these items. Some units are little more than an off balance dc motor attached to a container, whereas others seem to be the real deal. Many specifications are provided in Chinglish as well, a fact that inspires little confidence.

So the purpose of this device will be mainly cleaning of atomizers and coils with the secondary function of making me believe I have reduced my DIY concoction steep times.

I have come down to two possible choices but I am wondering which is best. In the world according to Raindance, a 15 Watt unit agitating a 200ml container will induce a greater "vibration flux" (0.075W/ml) in the liquid than a 50 Watt unit with a 750ml container (0.067W/ml).

Can anyone provide some definitive perspective on this? Also, does anyone know of any regular retail outlets, Clicks etc, that sells these items?

Regards

I can definitely not provide a definitive perspective @Raindance , but one useful thing that I can say is that the cycle run times should also be taken into account, ESPECIALLY if you want to use it to homogenize / 'pre-steep' juices. It seems that many of the less expensive 'home' models only have 2 / 3 minute run cycles. For that reason alone, I would purchase the tiny and lower watt Vaporesso, which does 3 minute and 8 minute cycles rather than the larger and higher watt Coil Master, which only seems to do 3 minute cycles.

For some reason, I haven't even considered the capacity to wattage ratio that you mention. What you say does make sense, but I am not knowledgeable enough to know if you can calculate the "vibration flux" that directly. I have a Frankford Arsenal EZ Sonic (750 ml, 50 watts) that I bought about two years ago at Safari Outdoor. It works great and hasn't skipped a beat in 2 years (I use it quite regularly, mostly to make me believe that I have reduced my DIY concoctions' steep times, but also to clean equipment), but I haven't seen it available since shortly after I purchased mine. I have never seen an ultrasonic cleaner at places like Clicks, Dischem, Game, Makro etc.

I generally try to buy from reputable local retailers, whether for vaping or not, but I haven't been able to find any below 1 K decent UCs (with longer than 3 minute cycle times) locally from online searches. This model, that I suggested in @RenaldoRheeder 's thread recently, seems to be the best option in my opinion:

https://www.importitall.co.za/iSoni..._medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping_comparisons
https://www.ebay.com/p/Digital-iSon...-Multipurpose-Jewelry-Cleaner-NWOB/1109902819
http://www.isonicinc.com/d2840

 

[Raindance]

At last took the plunge and purchased a SANITAS SUR 42 unit from Takealot. Just under R1K after a 20% discount it seemed a decent entry level unit suited to my needs.

I learned a good indicator of the level of function of these units is to place a piece of aluminium foil in it and see how long it takes to perforate it. (Thanks @Christos ) Here are the test results: (Used Spar heavy duty foil.)

After 30 seconds:

Then did the other side for 90 seconds (Left side on the picture). It did not perforate it in the centre but "ate" away the sides quite severely. Made a lot of mess in the water. 30 second result on the right side.

Then went on to clean what I bought it for. Ran 2 7Min30Sec cycles on this OBS engine. First session was before dry burning the coil but the gunk was not disappearing fast enough. Dry burnt it and ran it again. The before and after result:


The rest of the tank is also remarkably cleaner than I could get it with manual washing. Those Engines do not take fully apart with some hard to reach nooks and crannies. Clean as new now.

There may be plenty better out there but for my needs and the price point I'm pretty happy with the result.

Regards
FYI @RenaldoRheeder and @antonherbst

 

[Christos]

@Raindance you have a decent ultrasonic at a decent price point!
Enjoy the cleaning.

 

[Silver]

Thanks for the feedback @Raindance !
Congrats on the uptrasonic and wishing you well with it

I just have a question for those who clean their vape gear with an ultrasonic - and i dont have one so have no experience in this.

Doesnt it damage the o rings or other plastic parts somewhat - if you leave it in for too long?

 

[Christos]

Thanks for the feedback @Raindance !
Congrats on the uptrasonic and wishing you well with it

I just have a question for those who clean their vape gear with an ultrasonic - and i dont have one so have no experience in this.

Doesnt it damage the o rings or other plastic parts somewhat - if you leave it in for too long?

Nope. @Andre I think answered this somwhere and has said that his reo has been ultrasoniced weekly for a few years with no ill effects.

I will however say that an ultrasonic does make the orings "dry" but this is inevitable as we are cleaning them.

A little vg on the orings weather it's a HE atty or not goes a long way.

 

[Spyro]

If you want to avoid the mini cycles you can pick one up from a gun shop. A friend of mine who's really into his guns repacks old shells to reuse the rounds. He has a cleaner that runs overnight. They are upwards of 3k though. Have no experience with one myself.

 

[Bulldog]

Thinking of getting an ultrasonic purely for cleaning, what confuses me is the tinfoil test. How come they do not damage the surfaces of RTA' etc. They are now R1269 at Take a Lot. @Raindance are you still happy with yours?

 

[Raindance]

Thinking of getting an ultrasonic purely for cleaning, what confuses me is the tinfoil test. How come they do not damage the surfaces of RTA' etc. They are now R1269 at Take a Lot. @Raindance are you still happy with yours?

Yip, still happy. The tinfoil is so thin that the vibrations cause metal fatigue as the material buckles and bends under the waves transmitted by the water. (as the energy collects at certain stress points, this force gets amplified) Larger pieces of material will not be affected as the waves lack the power to bend it.

I do not truly believe in speed steeping, but do place samples up to 30ml in the cleaner after shaking. Within seconds all the milkiness dissipates from the liquid. I recon a seven minute session like this does make sure everything is at least evenly distributed in the mixture.

Regards

 

[Bulldog]

Thank you for the reply and info @Raindance

 

[Zia]

Never mind I understand it now

(How do I delete stupid posts of mine? Lol)

 

[Paul33]

so I found your thread @Raindance which is the info I was looking for regarding these things, never understood why I would need one since I have a tap but this seems to have convinced me otherwise.

so I just throw the rda's (or whatever) in there with caps etc taken off and everything comes out clean and shiny at the end of the cycle?

I reckon this prolong the life span of coils as well then? especially the fancy schmancy aliens and frame staples that gunk up quite fast...

 

[Raindance]

so I found your thread @Raindance which is the info I was looking for regarding these things, never understood why I would need one since I have a tap but this seems to have convinced me otherwise.

so I just throw the rda's (or whatever) in there with caps etc taken off and everything comes out clean and shiny at the end of the cycle?

I reckon this prolong the life span of coils as well then? especially the fancy schmancy aliens and frame staples that gunk up quite fast...

That be so @Paul33. Dry burn the gunck of the coil first and the come put having had a facelift.

I add a drop or two of sunlight to the water as well. Then just rinse under your tap.

Do this once a month.

Regards

 

[Bulldog]

Very happy with mine as well, clean every second wicking, (about), so at least once a week.
Got mine here @Paul33 paid R919 with free delivery, but see they have gone up a bit.
Below is after 2 7:30 minute sessions. I also add 3 drops of sunlight liquid and then rinse in that glass bowl when removing (not a drop or 2, how must you know which one )

 

[Paul33]

thanks @Bulldog and @Raindance

my goons and my coils need a good scrubbing. we pay a lot for our gear so it makes sense to keep them as clean and awesome as possible.

 

[Paul33]

Grabbed one from @Vapers Corner

Should arrive early next week

 

[Room Fogger]

Grabbed one from @Vapers Corner

Should arrive early next week

I got one about a month and a half ago, and best investment I ever made, I find that especially the MTL tanks are a lot “cleaner” and taste better after cleaning. Do all of them one average every second week, and they look good!

 

[vicTor]

Grabbed one from @Vapers Corner

Should arrive early next week

you just need one to steep your juice faster right

 

[Dietz]

I got to do a major pitstop with @Raindance s Ultrasonic cleaner yesterday, and got everything clean in a matter of two 15 minute cycles! This thing is well worth the buy!!

 

[Paul33]

I got one about a month and a half ago, and best investment I ever made, I find that especially the MTL tanks are a lot “cleaner” and taste better after cleaning. Do all of them one average every second week, and they look good!

I’m probably going to do it way more often than that. I’m gettin got mainly for my coils.

Some of these juices absolutely kill coils. I find that with Cardinal especially they gunk up really fast so I think this thing is going to be a godsend with getting the k@k out of the inner workings of these fancy coils!!

 

[Paul33]

you just need one to steep your juice faster right

Does that actually work?

Or is good ol Father Time still the best answer?

 

[vicTor]

Does that actually work?

Or is good ol Father Time still the best answer?

I think nothing beats time