You’ve got an old bottle of vape juice that you’ve been nursing for a while. You weren’t a huge fan of the flavor when you first opened the bottle, but you were glad to have it around for those times when you were waiting for a shipment to arrive from your favorite online vape shop or were a little low on cash. It’s been some time since you first opened the bottle, though, and the e-liquid doesn’t look or taste quite the same as it did a few months ago. Is it still safe to use? How long does vape juice last once it’s opened? In this guide, you’ll find the answer.
How Long Does Vape Juice Last After It’s Opened?
As long as the original bottle remains closed, vape juice lasts about a year after it’s made. Once you open the bottle, though, the shelf life becomes much shorter. After just a few months, you may notice major changes in the e-liquid’s flavor and appearance. The change doesn’t necessarily mean that you shouldn’t use the e-liquid; we’ll discuss that at greater length in a moment. As long as you’re happy with the flavor of the vape juice, you can safely use it even if the bottle has been open for a few months.
What Happens to Vape Juice After It’s Opened?
When a bottle of vape juice is opened, it’s exposed to the elements. When that happens, the e-liquid changes in four ways.
- The components of the e-liquid oxidize due to heat and exposure to the air. This causes the e-liquid to darken. It also causes degradation of the nicotine and flavoring ingredients in the vape juice, changing the flavor and reducing the amount of active nicotine.
- Some of the flavor compounds in the vape juice may begin to evaporate after the bottle is opened. This is particularly likely to happen with alcohol-based flavors, which aren’t commonly used but tend to taste very strong. Between the evaporation and the oxidation, the overall flavor profile of an e-liquid tends to become more difficult to taste after the bottle has been open for a while.
- The chemicals in the e-liquid interact with one another. This is another factor that tends to muddy the flavors in an older bottle of vape juice and make the individual notes difficult to taste.
- There may also be some interaction between the e-liquid and the bottle if the bottle is plastic. Glass is chemically inert, but plastic isn’t, and there will be some molecular exchange between the bottle and the vape juice. The full effects of this phenomenon haven’t been studied.
All of the factors listed above cause changes that will result in the vape juice losing some of its flavor and nicotine content. It’s important to note that those same changes will occur even if the bottle hasn’t been opened. Because a sealed e-liquid bottle is a nearly airtight environment, though, the changes occur much more slowly than they do after the bottle has been opened.
When Shouldn’t You Use Vape Juice That’s Been Opened?
As we explained at the beginning of this guide, you can usually expect a bottle of vape juice to last roughly a few months after it’s opened. To determine when a bottle is finished, you simply need to pay attention to what your eyes and your palate are telling you. Here’s when you shouldn’t use a bottle of vape juice that’s been opened.
- Don’t use vape juice if the liquid has undergone an extreme color change. It’s normal for vape juice to turn yellow – or even slightly brown – as it oxidizes. If the e-liquid is deep brown or black, though, you should probably consider throwing it away. If you see any sign of cloudiness or sediment in the vape juice, you should definitely discard it because these are likely signs that the e-liquid is contaminated with fungi or bacteria.
- If you notice a foul smell when opening the bottle – or if the e-liquid tastes extremely bad when you use it – those are likely signs of extreme deterioration or microbial contamination. As we mentioned earlier in this guide, you should only use an opened bottle of vape juice if it still tastes good to you. If it doesn’t, you should throw it away.
- Don’t use an opened bottle of vape juice if you’re not certain where it came from. It’s common, for instance, for people to trade unwanted bottles of e-liquid online because it helps to prevent waste. It’s really not a good idea to participate in those types of trades, though, or to accept bottles of vape juice from friends. You have no way of knowing if someone has tampered with the bottle and can’t guarantee that it’s safe to use.
What Should You Do if You Want to Save an Open Bottle of Vape Juice?
You might be here because you’ve found an old bottle of vape juice in the back of a drawer and are wondering whether it’s still safe to use. It’s also possible, though, that you’re the type of person who often has many bottles of e-liquid open at the same time. Maybe you love switching between flavors, and you rarely fill your tank or pod with the same vape juice twice in a row. If that’s the case, you need a method for storing your e-liquid in order to make sure that it’ll be as tasty when you finish the bottle as it was when you first opened it. We have a simple three-part solution for you.
- Don’t open the bottle until you’re truly ready to start using it. Even under the best possible conditions, the clock ticks quickly once a bottle of vape juice is opened. You’ll have the best experience if you use the bottle as soon as possible after opening it.
- Minimize the e-liquid’s exposure to air and light. Keep the bottle tightly closed when you aren’t refilling your device and consider storing the bottle in a dark place such as a closed cabinet when you aren’t using it.
- If you think that it might be a while before you finish a bottle of e-liquid – and if there are no curious little hands in your house – consider putting the bottle in the refrigerator. The cold temperature will slow down the processes that cause the quality of the vape juice to degrade.
