Vapes

What are cannabis vapes? 

Before getting into the details, chances are you have questions. We’ll start with the basics: a vape, or vaporizer, is a type of product used to heat and inhale cannabis…without actually burning it. 

How does vaping work? It involves heating cannabis up until just before the point of combustion, allowing cannabinoids and terpenes to get released into the air but not quite turned into smoke. 

Today’s vapes usually take the form of thin devices shaped like pens, thus the name “vape pen.” These pens contain small coils that heat their cannabis oil up to the perfect temperature. Most modern vapes have four main parts: an “atomizer” that heats things, a cartridge that contains cannabis oil and/or flower, a battery, and a mouthpiece. 

And while portable handheld oil vapes are the most common, there are other types, too. These include dry herb vaporizers and tabletop vapes like the near-legendary Volcano. 

How do vapes work? 

Vaporization involves heating up the oil contained in a vape cartridge — just not actually burning it. This is achieved thanks to the help of tiny internal coils (our products feature ceramic coils) that activate the moment you begin to inhale. 

Compared to smoking or other delivery methods, vaping pretty much presents the best of both worlds. It’s convenient and fast-acting…yet entirely smoke-free.

Are you wondering if vaping is right for you? If so, you should know it’s a common favourite of people with anxiety and other mood problems. Because vaping is so convenient, it can be done practically anytime anxiety relief is needed. And consider a CBD-dominant vape, too. Studies explain that the “existing preclinical evidence strongly supports the potential of CBD as a treatment for anxiety disorders.” 

Vaping also makes techniques like microdosing simple. Just grab your vape pen of choice and take a few short puffs. Vaporized cannabis kicks in so fast that it can easily be dosed by feel. Give your body the steady supply of cannabinoids it deserves…oh, and the terpenes, too. Since vaping occurs at such a low temperature, it allows cannabis’s most important (and most flavourful) terpenes to be preserved. 

The amazing history of vaping

Vaporizing cannabis is actually nothing new. The ancient Scythians were doing it as far back as 440 BC. They’d take the resin from cannabis seeds, throw it on hot stones, and proceed to inhale as much as they could. The Greek historian Herodotus describes how this method produced “such a vapour [that] the Scythians, delighted, [shouted] for joy.”

The vapes we know and love today wouldn’t be developed until much later, however. They seem to have got their start in 1989 via a series of High Times articles; in them, a pseudonymous “Dr. Lunglife” described the advantage of vaping over smoking. Vaping produced no tar, Dr. Lunglife argued, making it both safe and effective.

Why vaping is getting so popular 

So…why is vaping getting so popular?

In addition to all the above, there are several practical benefits. For one, vaping is convenient. You can vape cannabis discretely from virtually anywhere (anywhere where it’s legal, of course) without producing strong scents or getting stigmatized by others. 

Vaporization is also versatile. One can vape all sorts of stuff: cannabis flower, vape oils, cannabis oils, live rosin, and much more. Chances are there’s a vape cartridge out there that corresponds perfectly to your cannabis strain of choice. 

Finally, as briefly mentioned above: vaping is also very safe. While smoking can come with all sorts of unexpected carcinogens, including the carbon dioxide and the tar Dr. Lunglife was so concerned about, not vaping. 

Another reason for vaping’s rising popularity? The research is beginning to back it — and some health-conscious consumers are taking notice. A clinical study done at Johns Hopkins University found that vaporized cannabis “produced greater pharmacodynamic effects and higher concentrations of THC in blood” than smoked cannabis could. 

Finding the best vape for you

Vaping’s popularity has had one unexpected downside: there are so many different types of vaporizers out there that it can be pretty tough to decide which to pick! 

If you feel overwhelmed, though, not to worry. We’ve got over a dozen products in total…but we’re here to help break things down and help you decide which is best. Here’s a closer look at some of our most popular products:

Daily Pen CO2 Oil Cart | This product comes to us courtesy of Zen Labs, so you know it’s going to be good! 

More than just good, actually. This CO2 oil cartridge is perfect. It’s highly pure and simply loaded with terpenes, regardless of which of the 8 available strains you choose from. Zen Labs also puts a premium on purity, which is why this CO2 oil is organically made and draws heat from ceramic coils (not standard ones). 

Bob Cartridges | Bob keeps it simple: their vape cartridges contain only THC distillate and terpenes. They’re available in 6 flavours, including watermelon and classics like blue dream.

Apparently this simple approach works, because customers say Bob’s carts are relaxing, easy to use, and great-tasting. 

HTFSE Vape Sauce Cart | These carts are one of the absolute best products on the entire market. Their name is short for “High Terpene Full Spectrum Extract,” which is exactly what they are: packed with a full spectrum of important terpenes and cannabinoids! 

A proprietary extraction technique means these vape carts don’t need any additives or fillers. They taste amazing as it is. So far, customers are leaving rave reviews. Will you be among the next to join them?

Onli Flowers CO2 Cart | If you’re looking for maximum purity, this product is probably the one for you. Onli Flowers’ CO2 cart contains full-spectrum CO2 oil and nothing else! There’s no PG, VG, MCT oil, or vitamin E acetate here — nothing that might oxidize and form harmful chemicals later. Taking a drag off this cart even feels pure, thanks to advanced ceramic core technology.  

Pegasus Natural Terpene Cart | This premium, terpenated vape cartridge is another customer favourite. Prepare for liftoff with its simple-but-effective blend of THC distillate and added terpenes. 

Another cool thing: customers have over a dozen flavours to choose from. Suffice to say they’re so good you might have a hard time believing everything is all-natural. 

feelcbd cart | Ready to start feeling better? Then try feelcbd’s new CBD-centric vape cartridge! It contains organic, full-spectrum CBD and comes in five different varieties, each infused with different essential oils that provide slightly different effects. 

Our vapes are different.

“The problem many CBD vapers have faced recently seems to stem mainly from poor regulation over the vaping market in general, and the subsequent unreliable quality of any vape or vape oil.”

– Vice Magazine, 2018 

As good as vaporizing can get, many vape users face one major problem: low-quality products. As science advisor, Jahan Marcu tells Project CBD, “there may be a hidden downside to vape pens.”

Why? Because some vape products contain additives designed to improve their consistency. Sometimes called “cutting agents,” these additives include polyethylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, and other chemicals. And when these chemicals get heated up, bad things happen; PEG produces cancer-causing carbonyls like formaldehyde.

Many vape pens have design flaws, too. It’s pretty common for them to use cheaply-made coils…and place these coils too close to internal batteries. This can actually cause the battery’s heavy metals to leach into the vape oil, contaminating it over time. If you’re ever had a vape oil that tasted kind of metallic, this effect might explain it. At MMJ Direct, all our vape pens are intelligently designed with temp-resistant ceramic coils, not metal ones.  

PEG and lead are already pretty bad, but it gets worse. The vape market has been plagued by another cutting agent called vitamin E acetate in recent years. This additive becomes highly toxic when inhaled and can lead to lipid pneumonia. It’s likely behind the vape lung disease (VLD) that’s ravaged the US and Canada.

Long story short: when it comes to selecting the right vape product, it pays to know your supplier. All of our products are verifiably free of vitamin E acetate and other synthetic diluting agents. Most of them, in fact, rely on cannabis’s natural terpene component to reach the perfect consistency. 

We keep shopping simple. 

Shopping from our cannabis vape products is simple, safe…and quite frankly fun! Here’s how the process works:

1. Select the vape product(s) and accessories of your choice 
2. Choose your product’s flavour/quantity
3. Click “Add to Cart”
4. (Don’t forget to budget for other cannabis items!) 
5. All done shopping? Then click “View Cart” 
6. Not done yet? Then click “Continue Shopping”
7. If you’re ready to check out, go to the “View Cart” page 
8. Apply Direct Points to get an even better deal
9. Once at “Checkout” your order’s details will be emailed to you. This email will include the order # and Interac e-Transfer payment instructions

And did we mention our shipping is fast? Your order will be shipped as soon as possible —  almost always within one business day. It’ll arrive in just 2-5 business days, ready for you to unpack and enjoy. 

Shipping with MMJDirect is also discrete. We utilize smell-proof, vacuum-sealed packaging and ship our goods with Canada Post Xpresspost, a proven postal carrier. The success rate of our package delivery is just about 100%. 

MMJDirect: We’re on a mission

Providing both premium products and premium support to our customers isn’t always easy, but it’s what we’re all about. 

Our mission is to help you feel empowered in every way by providing the best cannabis products possible. So if you ever need help, please don’t hesitate to reach out and ask. We’ll be here to provide support…and maybe even provide a fun new vape pen recommendation or two.