E-cig ettiquete

[taco.vidal]

I had been seeing more and more people using these in Calgary but having travelled a lot recently, e-cigs seem to have grown quicker in popularity in other areas. I expect we'll see a lot more people using them in Canada and here in Calgary.

Whats your thought on ettiquette on using these in indoor spaces? Ive seen people using them in more open spaces like malls but then also closer confines such as restaurants and transit.
Users argue that its simply water vapour. If you've ever been close to someone vaping, you can clearly smell a distinguishable odour which isnt necessarily terrible but isn't pleasant. Theres also nicotine in the vapour and possibly chemicals.

Thoughts? Go ahead and ecig anywhere? Go outside?

Ive heard people argue they like the ecigs because they can use them in their office and dont need to go outside for a smoke break. Ive also seen two seperate instances of people using on an airplane but trying to do so discretly.

[Chingas]

Non-smoker here. I say go ahead and do it anywhere.

[Sliver]

Originally Posted by Chingas

Non-smoker here. I say go ahead and do it anywhere.

Yeah, it doesn't bother me, either. Non-smoker as well.

[calumniate]

They're banned on airplanes now, and I can see why.don't want to see any sign of 'smoke' / vapour on a plane.

I try to be as courteous as possible, so i often go outside to let the big clouds out. If I am indoors I'll do a double inhale, so no visible vapour comes out. There are some stats that exhaled ecigs have little to no nicotine, and at the root its just vegetable glycerine or glycol. Not sure if that puts you at ease. I don't really like the fact that some ecig users flaunt it in public spaces.. could very well ruin a good thing!

[PsYcNeT]

I was allowing my employees to use them in the office for a few years, but a higher authority cracked down on them 3 months ago. Personally, I can't smell a thing, and while they look "alarming", they really are water vapor and 90+% of any chemicals inside them are absorbed by the lungs of the user.

Really a non-issue IMO.

[DownhillGoat]

I had a person using one beside me on a flight back from Alaska. It was an unpleasant 4 hours. While it's nowhere near as bad as an actual cigarette, it was on par with sitting beside someone who bathed in Aqua Velva. Come to think of it, it reminded me of the scent of undiluted glycol. (edit - looks like calumiate touched on that point - makes more sense now!)

Malls, larger areas, fine. but I'd vote no to cubicles, airlines or generally enclosed public spaces. Same deal with heavy cologne in an office, or spraying half a bottle of Axe on you before work IMO.

Come to think of it, one airline I take frequently actually mentions that e-cigs are prohibited.

[Misterpants]

No issue either. There's a dude who smokes them in our office and the only comment I have is whenever I walk by him and he's huffing away, I am reminded of the worm from Alice in Wonderland. Looks kinda silly, but whatevs.

[First Lady]

Originally Posted by taco.vidal

Theres also nicotine in the vapour and possibly chemicals.

Not necessarily. I think these are the big sellers right now...http://jasperandjasper.ca/ - they are nicotine free.

[calumniate]

There are also some hand creams that fill up a room much worse than some of the strongest ecig flavours. Just sayin'

[Table 5]

So if it's all water vapor and there's no nicotine, what's the point of these?

[Displaced Flames fan]

Anyone experience any issues with water/moisture in the lungs from heavy use? Since they came on the market it is a question I've had in my head about the long term effects. Maybe one becomes more prone to pneumonia as well?

Just curious as a non-user. Certainly much less offensive then cigarettes.

[AC]

It's a myth that e-cigarettes "just emit water vapour", they still emit the same harmful substances (including carcinogens), just in smaller amounts.

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story...to-your-health

The FDA also cited a German publication on electronic cigarettes showing:

• besides glycol, the main ingredient, nicotine, flavors, tobacco-specific nitrosamines, volatile organic compounds, acetone, form aldehyde, acetaldehyde, benzo(a)pyrene as well as silicate and various metal particles are present
• the particle size is between 100 and 600 nanometers, which is comparable to the particle size found in tobacco smoke of conventional cigarettes.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/n...otine-science/

"Whereas e-cigarettes are less dangerous than regular cigarettes, in an absolute sense they are negative," because they contain a number of toxic chemicals and ultrafine particles in addition to nicotine, and secondhand e-cig vapor could be harmful.

[chalms04]

My staff can smoke them inside, however it must still be on their scheduled breaks.

[Reaper]

But it is not just water vapour that e cigs emit. The vapour is comprised of propylene glycol, vegetable glycerine, flavouring agents and nicotine. I don't care too much about these things because they are less offensive than carbon monoxide and smoke but I hate it when the users claim it is just water vapour.
One time on an elevator while I was in the U.S. someone whipped out an e cig and started going to town and several people gave him the stink eye. He exclaimed "it's just water vapor!" One dude mustered up the nastiest fart and proclaimed that "there's no reason why one person should be exempt from being offended by the smell of the elevator." Everyone plugged their nose but one of the other occupants of the elevator gave the fartist a high five. Thankfully I was off the elevator in a floor or two because the dude was clearly eating a diet high in garlic.

[AC]

Honestly, I'm in the "I don't really care" category in regards to their use. But there's a certain smugness that goes along with someone using an e-cigarette that I really loathe.

[psicodude]

I was in Dallas last week and attended a house party that had several people using these devices. I asked a guy straight up what the point was, and I was surprised to learn that he had successfully used the vaporizer as an aid to quit smoking. He told me that he could specifically control the amount of nicotine in the vapor when he ordered his refills and just cut back by a few percent every 2 weeks. Just like the patch, he was able to taper off the nicotine levels in a controlled and painless fashion. I then said, cool, but why are you still using it then? He claimed that he still enjoyed the "practice" or ritual of smoking. He just felt more comfortable talking to people when he had something in his hand to fiddle with. I am pretty sure what he meant to say was that he felt cooler while using it.

I would also say I am in the "I don't care" camp as I couldn't smell anything. There are dozens of flavours to choose from, so maybe certain ones smell worse than others? I bet it would get quite humid in a room if enough people were using them though.

[FlamesAddiction]

I don't think I have ever been around anyone using them, but I see them in stores everywhere.

With that in mind, my first thought was whatever.. if it makes the population healthier, then let them do it. But then I started to think that maybe more people will pick up this habit if it becomes socially normal, and even if it is less harmful than smoking, more people doing it would be more harmful to the population as a whole.

[Hatter]

I use an e-cig with nicotine, and it really helped me quit smoking. I wen't from a pack of darts a day to 0 the moment my rig arrived in the mail. I've had the odd smoke since while I'm drinking, but they really don't taste good anymore.

I use it indoors at bars and such all the time, and nobody has ever hassled me before. I've seen people that are all ######y about it and blow huge clouds of vapour everywhere, but I'd say they are the minority.

[SportsJunky]

I don't have a problem with it and I'm a former smoker.

I do have to get used to seeing them though. We had a kids birthday party at our house and I saw one of the moms dragging on one of these things. I honestly didn't smell anything at all but the vapour looked so much like smoke I was thinking "Is someone lighting up a smoke in my home?"

[Bobblehead]

So of the concerns I've read is there is no regulation on what is used for the vapor. Some dude could be it in his garage using aqua velva to fill it.

The other thing is the rechargable ones don't have the electronics to stop charging when full (like phones do) so they have caused fires.

Mike Swafford bought E-Cig Clubhouse in Ham Lake, Minn. six months ago.

"I hear about it two or three times a week," Swafford said. "There's a lot of inferior products out there."

As far as he knows, Swafford has never sold a faulty e-cig. He said the problem with Chris Leslie's e-cig comes from the battery, which doesn't have overcharge protection

http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/story...osion-charging