e-Cig News 2-29-12 – Leap Day!

Wednesday, February 29th, 2012 at 8:09 am

Welcome to 2012′s bonus day, February 29th! Today’s story is that Utah on Monday is steaming forward on their e-cigarette ban based on scientific evidence. Who am I kidding, it’s like all the bans based on hunches and grousing from prohibitionists. There’s also a response to the ban from an e-cigarette company. A little light news to help you along too featuring a new vape lounge as well as a new ProVari coming soon. So, sit back and spend a little time with the e-cigarette news roundup.

Utah Dangerously Close to Ban

The Utah vaping ban has made it past a critical hurdle and will now be put before the state’s senate. Despite the fact it puts a ticking time bomb around the neck of local businesses, prohibitionists still apparently want more according to the Desert News.

Down with E-something

Michael Siler, government relations director for the Utah chapter of the American Cancer Society, spoke against the bill not as an endorsement of smoking but because it grants the exception. “This is bad policy,” he said.

This is particularly interesting because in a previous article in the Desert News, the ACS said they do not have an official stance on e-cigarettes. Many lawmakers also acknowledge there’s no real evidence of harm. It seems like this ban is going through just because it can. There may still be time for ordinary citizens with common sense to step in here. Take a look at this e-mail I republished for info on what you can do to stop the Utah ban.

blu Speaks out Against Utah Actions

blu Cigs issued a press release on Monday about Utah’s move to include electronic cigarettes in its existing smoking ban. The press release bashed lawmakers for pushing forward this law despite having no evidence e-cigarette vapor is actually harmful.

blu Cigs President, Jason Healy commented, “Utah law makers admit that they do not have all the facts about e-cigarettes, yet they continue to pursue this categorical ban of the product. My concern is that these actions show a lack of respect for the public because they eliminate consumers’ freedom to make an informed choice, and overlook published research about the benefits of e-cigarettes.”

Granted blu is in the e-cigarette business, so naturally, they are going to be against this sort of action. blu also made a misstep, in my mind, in their response to the Florida e-cigarette explosion. However, I still applaud blu’s continued efforts to be increasingly vocal in these situations.

Vape Lounge Coverage

Meanwhile, in less depressing news, the News Tribune covered a new Vape lounge opening in Olympia Washington. While the Florida incident made a brief appearance (what newspaper could resist?), the piece was mostly a business profile on the new Volcano affiliated lounge and its owners.

Although each owner brings a different set of skills to the business, Daniels and Conner, both longtime smokers, were intrigued by the e-cigarette product because it helped them transition from the smoke-filled traditional cigarette to one that emits a lightly scented vapor.

You see that ban-happy locales? A lightly scented vapor, not smoking death! Meanwhile, you can sample all of Volcano’s offerings including the Lavatube. Also, I’d like to point out the Olympia Volcano lounge has been listed in my Vape Lounge Directory for a while now.

Forum Rolls out Safety Guidelines

In a sort of odd move, the e-Cigarette Forum rolled out a set of guidelines for large removable battery vaporizer safety. Essentially, they have a list of several safety features that they want to see in tube mods before they consider them safe from an explosion standpoint. The features include on/off switches, fuses, large vents and safe batteries.

The main requirement is to stop the mod casing fragmenting violently, or the mouthpiece end firing into the user’s face, during an incident while in use. If neither of these can occur then the Safety Specification has succeeded in its primary task.

The fact that a forum is outlining safety standards is pretty strange. As far as I can tell this is a unilateral move, however many vendors (and sites like this one) rely heavily on the ECF which is considered an authority in the vaping world. This does speak to the lack of an inclusive and open industry group. However, consumer safety is the first priority here, so hopefully these guidelines can make the world a safer place.
via @MichaelVapors

Mini Me

ProVape, the makers of the ProVari e-cigarette recently announced a new product in their lineup, the ProVari Mini. The Mini uses an 18350 battery (or an 18490 with the extender cap), and features the newly announced ProVari V2 circuitry to offer more power.

Image: ProVape.com

The mini features that new design on the tube, but otherwise is just a shorter version of the ProVari V2. It will also be available with a blue LED option. The new model goes on sale March 15th. It will carry the same price tag as its big brother. That sort of makes sense since the most expensive parts will still be in the mini.

Deal of the Moment

Are you a fan of Boge 3Ω cartos by chance? If so, Vapor Alley currently has 5 packs of the popular cartos in its bargains section for $5.99. If not, you may find something else in the specials section, like super-inexpensive 808 kits that include a charging case. Check out the daily specials page.

Want to catch all the news action as it unfolds? Why not follow one (or all) of my social accounts to see stuff as I stumble across it. I’m on Facebook, Twitter and even Google+

Stock photos via Morguefile

Filed under: news roundup