How Do You Use Shortfills?

One of the first things you may notice when you enter the world of vaping is the amount of jargon you get hit with. Whether you are looking at vape kits or e-liquids, everything has an abbreviation or a seemingly cryptic name. In this guide, we’re going to take a look at shortfills, explain what they are, why they exist and how you can benefit from them.

A shortfill is a nicotine-free e-liquid in a larger bottle that hasn’t been filled to the top, they are supplied in a 60ml bottle that is filled with 50ml of zero-nicotine juice or a 120ml bottle filled to 100ml with room for the user to add their own nicotine if they so wish - hence the name, shortfill.

Shortfills offer exceptional value for money whether you choose to add nicotine or not, with the average high VG shortfill offering up to 3000 puffs per 100ml bottle.

Why shortfills? Well, in 2017 UK TPD regulations prohibited the sale of e-liquids that contain nicotine in bottles bigger than 10ml and so shortfills were created as a means to allow vapers to purchase larger volumes of e-liquid and add the nicotine themselves.

Traditionally shortfill e-liquids were designed for the DTL (direct-to-lung) style of vaping utilising high VG e-liquid that required a powerful sub-ohm vape kit. This style of vaping produces huge clouds of vapour and allows you to experience the rich and complex flavours that vaping has to offer.

However, if you are just looking to make the switch from smoking, you can also purchase shortfill bottles containing high PG e-liquid for MTL (mouth-to-lung) pod kits as well.

Shortfills can be used on their own for a nicotine-free vape or by adding what is known as a nicotine shot or nic-shot to the bottle.

A nic-shot is a 10ml bottle of flavourless nicotine, they are typically available in strengths ranging from 9mg to 20mg, which when added to your shortfill will bring your e-liquid up to a maximum nicotine strength of 3mg.

A 50ml shortfill bottle contains 50ml of nicotine-free e-liquid in a 60ml bottle, leaving 10ml for you to add a nic shot. Likewise, a 100ml shortfill bottle will contain 100ml of nicotine-free e-liquid in a 120ml bottle, leaving room for two 10ml nic shots.

The only difference with shortfills is that they come in bigger bottles and they contain absolutely no nicotine. Regular 10ml bottles of e-liquid will contain a premixed amount of nicotine in strengths ranging from 3mg to 20mg. Other than that they are the same, shortfills are made with exactly the same base ingredients and flavourings as 10ml bottles of juice.

Shortfills can be vaped on their own for a nicotine-free vape if you just want to enjoy the complexity of flavour and the recreational joy of blowing big clouds of vapour, and they are a super economical way to do so.

Shortfills are available in high VG and high PG options for both sub-ohm and MTL pod kits.

You can also have an MTL pod kit on hand, filled with your favourite nic salt so you can still get your fix of nicotine in the strength that you need.

1. Unscrew the cap on your shortfill and gently remove the nozzle with a firm edge.

2. Add your nicotine shot into the shortfill

3. Firmly place the nozzle back onto the bottle and screw the cap back on tightly

4. Give the shortfill a good shake for at least 1 minute.

5. Wait for the bubbles to settle and enjoy!

A 50ml shortfill comes in a 60ml bottle that leaves room for a 10ml nic shot, which will create a 3mg strength e-liquid when mixed together.

For a 100ml shortfill bottle, you can add two 10ml nic shots which will create a 3mg e-liquid.

But what if you want to make a 6mg strength e-liquid? You can add more nicotine, but you will have to decant the 0mg shortfill liquid to make room for the extra shot, or you can find a larger bottle online and use that. You can decant a 50ml shortfill into any empty 100ml shortfill bottles that you have lying around - just make sure you rinse them first!

Steeping is the process of mixing your nic shot into your shortfill and letting it sit for a few days or weeks before you use it. The idea is that this gives improves the flavour and fives the nicotine and the e-liquid more time to mix. Some people report that the addition of the nic shot can slightly diminish the flavour and choose to steep their shortfills for a few weeks to improve the flavour, however whether this actually works is debatable and you don’t have to steep shortfills before you vape them to enjoy the flavour, just add your nic shot, give it a good shake and let it settle for a few minutes and you are good to go.

To steep a shortfill you simply store it in a cool dark place for a few weeks to a month, making sure not to exceed the expiry date.

Shortfills offer exceptional value for money and are deinitely worth considering if you wish to explore the world of sub-ohm vaping or you are happy to vape a 3mg strength e-liquid in your MTL pod kit.

If you would like to know more about nicotine and how much you should be using take a look at our guide on nicotine.