It just recently dawned on me that most vapers don't even understand how electricity, and more specifically, batteries work.

First, let's make this easy and break down voltage (V), current (I) and resistance (R) into something that everyone can easily understand. We'll do that by comparing it to water.

Voltage is the pressure or "potential" energy in a battery. The higher your volts, the more pressure you will have in a battery. Rated in "volts".

For example: If you fill a balloon with water, the more you fill it, the more pressure will be placed on the water from the expanding latex.

Current is the flow of electricity. Plain and simple. Rated in "amps".

Example: Opening the hole on the balloon will allow the water to flow through, this stream of water is the current,

Resistance is anything that constricts the flow of current. Everything has a natural resistance. They vary up and down, gold and copper have the least (which is why our houses are wired with copper) while rubber has a very high resistance. Resistance is measured in "ohms".

Example: The size of the hole on the balloon constricts the flow of water.

http://i.imgur.com/RFVY6MZ.jpg

How do these all work together?

The higher a battery is charged, the more pressure it contains. When you press the button on your mod, this closes the circuit allowing the voltage to push it's way through, causing a current (amps). The resistance on your coil halts the flow of electricity, only allowing so much through at a time. This causes friction on your coil, heating it up and producing all of that delicious vapor.

A battery DOES NOT automatically fire at 20 amps just because that is what is written on the side of the battery. A rating is placed on the battery because that is the maximum amperage you can safely discharge it from fully charged to empty. (This is due to a battery's own internal resistance, which is why a battery gets hot when you short it or fire it on a build that is too low.) Yes, you can go over that limit for very, very short periods of time. But if you find that your battery is getting warm after a hit, then it's either a bad battery, or you're building too low or the battery is just not rated to discharge that fast.

Your balloon WILL NOT continuously shoot water out of it at the same pace even as it deflates or you change the size of the hole.

Ohm's Law

http://i.imgur.com/HZIryN6.png

This triangle is easy to understand. To get your current (I), just divide you resistance by your voltage. V/R

(If you want to know your voltage, multiply I x R. And if you want resistance, V/I.)

That's all there is to it. It's so easy to understand.

Now if you'd also like to calculate your wattage (power) just multiply current and voltage, but only AFTER you've calculated your current using your voltage and resistance.

I'm writing this because SO MANY vapers are absolutely clueless as to how electricity works. I swear to you that I just watched a video on youtube where B&M owners believed their rewrapped Imren battery was pushing 40 amps regardless of voltage or resistance. That is just simply not the case.

If you're still having trouble grasping the concept of electricity, then watch this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4Vq-xHqUo8

If you still don't get it after this video, then just use regulated devices. Don't blow your face off.

This was originally posted to The Voop Review. There is another post there that goes into detail about batteries, including which batteries you should be buying and why.

I posted this here because I feel this is where the target audience is more likely to stumble across it, and because I love /r/electronic_cigarette so much :)

-HauntedHairDryer AKA beatnick