Table of Contents
- WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO BE MINDFUL OF VAPING ETIQUETTE?
- IS VAPING INDOORS ACCEPTABLE?
- WHAT SHOULD YOU BE AWARE OF WHEN VAPING AROUND OTHERS?
- WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW FOR VAPING WHEN TRAVELLING?
- SHOULD YOU CONSIDER STEALTH VAPING?
- WHY SHOULD YOU ASK BEFORE USING SOMEONE ELSE’S VAPE OR E-LIQUIDS?
- HOW DO YOU ENCOURAGE OTHER SMOKERS TO MAKE THE SWITCH TO E-CIGARETTES?
- THE ULTIMATE VAPING ETIQUETTE GUIDE 2024 - CONCLUSION
- REFERENCES
*2024 Update - Now you can enjoy our great-tasting UK-made liquids in our pre-filled pod E-Cigarette - the SMOKO VAPE POD!
If you’ve just made the switch from smoking normal cigarettes to E-Cigarettes, congratulations! There are some amazing benefits to making the switch, the fact that E-Cigarettes are 95% less harmful than smoking, the thousands you can save every year and the freedom from tobacco and the many rules around it.
It can be easy though to let that freedom go to your head a bit, so today we are going to talk about the vaping etiquette rules for using an e-cigarette, the explicit ones that will get you in trouble if you don’t follow them, and the unwritten rules as well. (1)
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO BE MINDFUL OF VAPING ETIQUETTE?
E-Cigarettes can open up an ex-smoker’s life, as the vapour produced doesn’t smell or make everything around them smell, it doesn’t harm other people around you like 2nd hand smoke and can be pulled out of a pocket for just a puff or two. According to Cancer Research UK, there is no good evidence that second-hand vapour from E-Cigarettes is harmful. (2)
Many places these days allow the use of E-cigarettes inside so you don’t even have to go outside in the cold and wet evenings!
However for some people though this freedom goes to their head. They start using it everywhere and especially if they have larger mods that produce a lot of vapour this can be extremely annoying.
As we said before vapour isn’t harmful for anyone around you, but that doesn’t mean that you should vape everywhere.
IS VAPING INDOORS ACCEPTABLE?
Even though you might find all the flavours you can now vape delicious (especially our UK made e-liquids if we do say so ourselves) that doesn’t mean that everyone will want to smell the Cherry vapour you are producing.
Though vapour doesn’t have much of a smell, if you breathe out enough of it in confined spaces people will start to notice. This is doubly true if you have a vape device that creates huge clouds of vapour.
Even after you explain that this isn’t smoke and that it won’t make anything smell like smoke does, that doesn’t make it acceptable if other people around you don’t like it. (3)
This is doubly true for businesses like pubs and restaurants that ban vaping inside their premises. It might seem ridiculous but that doesn’t mean you can ignore the rules. And no, forgetting the rules because you had a few too many gin and tonics isn’t considered a good reason by most places!
If you are unsure the best thing you can do is use your common sense and just ask.
WHAT SHOULD YOU BE AWARE OF WHEN VAPING AROUND OTHERS?
But let us say you find yourself in a restaurant that does allow you to use your e-cigarette, that doesn’t mean you should use it all the time.
A big no-no is vaping when other people are eating, as it can put off a lot of people and effect their enjoyment of their food, especially if your device produces a lot of vapour (4). All our e-cigarettes at SMOKO are not designed like that, as they are made to be as much like a cigarette as possible, so they only produce in vapour the same amount of smoke as a cigarette would.
Even with our E-Cigarettes though, it is still rude to start vaping when people are enjoying their meal as it might put them off their food or just cause a nuisance.
Speaking of vaping with people near you, another firm rule is don’t blow vapour into peoples faces! This one may seem obvious as almost no-one would breathe smoke into someone's face, but again if you have a device designed for “cloud chasing” (creating large amount of vapour) it might still blow into others faces.
Generally it is a good idea to check with the people around you before you start to use electronic cigarettes. Most people are happy for ex-smokers who have made the switch to use their e-cigarette, but respect other people's decisions and don’t vape.
This is especially true when vaping around children, the pregnant, the sick and the elderly. Even if you go into great detail about how e-cigarettes can’t harm them they may feel uncomfortable with e-cigarettes, in which case you should avoid vaping around them. (5)
Lastly with regards to other people, don’t vape near a lot of strangers, even if you are outside. For example it can be easy to get bored in a queue and feel the urge to pull out your E-Cigarette. However unless you want to ask everyone else in a 2 metre radius of you if it’s ok it might be better until you have a little more space.
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW FOR VAPING WHEN TRAVELLING?
If the rule for using an e-cigarette inside is to ask, that is doubly true for when you are in someone else’s house or in the car with someone else!
Cars are great at keeping the vapour inside, and if you aren’t careful your vapour can fill the car, and in some extreme cases make it hard to drive. It is not just rude then, but potentially dangerous and something you should definitely discuss with the other person before you start your journey.
Speaking of travelling though, a big rule is to make sure that you are following the law when you vape. In the UK you can vape anywhere that doesn’t explicitly say that you can’t, but that isn’t true everywhere.
In a few countries in areas like the middle east and India, E-Cigarettes are heavily regulated if not completely banned and can lead to fines or even jail time if you are not careful. If you are travelling outside the country it is always a good idea to double check what the local rules around vaping are so you aren’t caught off guard.
For more information on how to travel internationally with your e-cigarette we wrote a great article on it, but if you are ever unsure you can always contact us and we can check for you as well!
SHOULD YOU CONSIDER STEALTH VAPING?
With these rules it can be tempting to take a sneaky puff or two when no-one is looking when you need your nicotine. However even with e-cigarettes as discreet as SMOKO, you probably aren’t being as subtle as you think you are!
But even if can pull it off and are able to get away with a stealth vape without anyone noticing, should you?
If someone has asked you to not to vape, it is just rude to those around you to do it anyway. Though it might not make sense to you why you can’t vape, by stealth vaping you are disrespecting those around you and making yourself and the whole vaping community look bad.
WHY SHOULD YOU ASK BEFORE USING SOMEONE ELSE’S VAPE OR E-LIQUIDS?
If you are like many other ex-smokers it can be hard not to brag about your e-cigarette and the great flavours you are using. And there is nothing wrong with that at all! After all you should be proud of the fact that you have stopped smoking, which is consistently considered one of the hardest addictions to break.
However how would you feel if someone else picked up your E-cigarette and started puffing on it? The vast majority of us would be offended, not only for hygiene reasons but that someone would just use something that is so personal.
That’s why it’s so important to ask before using anyone’s e-cigarette or vape liquid as many of us are very protective of our e-cigarettes. Plus more than likely if you show an interest in someone else's e-cigarette they will happily let you puff on it if you ask!
HOW DO YOU ENCOURAGE OTHER SMOKERS TO MAKE THE SWITCH TO E-CIGARETTES?
After spending years trying and failing to quit smoking it can be hard to stop talking about your e-cigarette, and trying to convert every other smoker you see.
This isn’t bad, in fact it could be considered a great act as you may be helping another smoker finally get off the cigarettes. But there is a fine line between helping a smoker find something that will get them off cigarettes and telling off smokers for smoking a cigarette..
E-Cigarettes can be a huge help to those trying to get away from cigarettes (in fact some studies say they are almost twice as effective as nicotine patches or gum) but you do still need the drive to make the leap. If the smoker isn’t ready yet to make an attempt, you continually badgering them and arguing with them won’t help.
This can also be true for other e-cigarette users as well. Though we have all made the switch away from tobacco we all think that our e-cigarette or e-liquid is the best, and arguments can start when you try and tell others what to use!
THE ULTIMATE VAPING ETIQUETTE GUIDE 2024 - CONCLUSION
If you have a £200 vape kit that has a variable voltage and can change colours and who knows what else, that is great - but for many of us simple and hassle free is the best option. Don’t try and force people to use what you use just because it works for you, just enjoy the fact that you are all non-smokers now!
If you are still smoking cigarettes and looking for an effective way to quit, here are some of the most popular e-cigarette and vape starter kits to help you on your quest to becoming smoke-free!
If you are still smoking cigarettes and looking for an effective way to quit, here are some of the most popular e-cigarette and vape starter kits to help you on your quest to becoming smoke-free!
The largest study on the effectiveness of E-Cigarettes for quitting smoking was published by Cochrane in November 2022, finding 'high-certainty' evidence that E-Cigarettes are more effective for quitting than traditional forms of nicotine replacement therapy (6), like the nicotine patch or gum!
*2024 Update - Now you can get a FREE E-Cigarette starter kit when you purchase a box of E-Cigarette refills! (1 per customer)
REFERENCES
(1) Vaping etiquette: How to tackle the social minefield
(4) 8 Simple Tips for Enjoying Your Food While Vaping
(5) Passive smoking
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Written by Mike CameronMike Cameron is a former smoker of 15 years (2 packs a day) until he successfully quit using a cigalike. Mike is the Co-Founder and CEO of SMOKO E-Cigarettes and over the last 10 years, SMOKO has prevented 600M+ cigarettes from being smoked, helped their customers save £320M+ of their hard-earned money from going up in smoke and helped 10,000’s of adult smokers in 25+ countries to live sm
