Did you know that essential oils have an expiration date? And sometimes you feel that the essential oil tastes different than when you first bought it?
E-liquid can go bad before its expiry date if it is not stored properly or not tightly closed when not in use. As you know, the main and common ingredients of e-liquid are PG, VG, flavor extracts and nicotine.
Identify expired essential oils:
Essential oils change color
Nicotine reacts with oxygen, which is what causes vape juice to change color. You can’t stop this process, but don’t worry too much about it, as it’s normal for e-juice. But if the color changes too much, stop using it.
The oil has turned brown but the taste is still the same? This is a normal process as sweeteners “caramelize”. Don’t panic, it’s a normal reaction.
Separation
If you find that your essential oil is not able to blend into a single mixture no matter how many times you shake the bottle, it is likely that your essential oil has expired or gone bad. It is normal for heavy molecules to sink to the bottom of the bottle after a while in good quality essential oils. However, if you see clumps in your essential oil, you should throw it away and buy a new bottle!
Has a strange smell and taste
The e-liquid no longer smells as good as before, but smells like spoiled food. This is understandable because e-liquids also have a similar decomposition process. When you smoke expired e-liquid, you will notice that its smell is different from the original and the nicotine taste is less. That is a sign for you to throw that bottle of e-liquid away.
Flavors like vanilla and caramel are relatively stable because the heavy molecules inside are not volatile. Some fruit flavors may fade over time because the raw fruit flavor has smaller molecules that are more likely to escape when the bottle is opened. We recommend decanting fruit flavor essential oils into smaller bottles if you cannot use them all in a short time.
Concentration
Both PG and VG have an estimated shelf life of 1 to 2 years. E-liquids with high VG will become thicker and vice versa. High PG e-liquids will become thinner as they expire. A good tip to know if your e-liquid has gone bad is that when you add it, it should be one drop at a time, no matter how concentrated it is.
Instructions on how to preserve essential oils
Storage
Keep essential oils away from sunlight or high temperatures as these conditions accelerate the expiration process. You should keep them in a cool, dark place or store them in colored glass containers. On the other hand, if you use plastic bottles, this will not be good for maintaining the longevity of the essential oils.
Boxes, cabinets, and drawers are ideal places to store essential oils. The refrigerator is also a good choice. However, if you want to store essential oils in the refrigerator, you must close the bottle cap tightly, otherwise the entire refrigerator will be filled with the smell of the essential oil.
Close the bottle cap tightly.
Exposure of e-liquids to air will accelerate their deterioration. Oxygen reacts with the concentrated flavors or nicotine in them. So keep your e-liquid bottle tightly closed to prevent oxidation!
Should you use expired essential oils?
Many users ask on forums about the question of whether vaping with expired essential oils is safe. The Food and Drug Administration believes that expired essential oils do not guarantee quality.
There is no guide to tell you whether you should continue to use essential oils or throw them away. Sometimes, the taste of essential oils does not change even after the expiration date. This may be due to incorrect expiration dates or external factors affecting their quality. Manufacturers will only print “Best before…”, “Best before…”, “Expires…” to estimate the shelf life.
But to ensure your health, if you see that the essential oil is past its expiration date, it is better to throw that bottle of essential oil away.
