What Are Shortfills?
Shortfills are nicotine-free e-liquids supplied in bottles that are underfilled to leave room to add nicotine shots. The current laws governing vaping in the UK (TRPR) dictate that e-liquids containing nicotine must be sold in volumes not exceeding 10ml.
As the e-liquids that feature in shortfills do not contain nicotine, they can be sold in larger volumes, usually 50ml or 100ml. You can add nicotine shots to the bottles if you wish and the ranges of most leading e-liquid brands include shortfills.
Please note that brands specialising in the flavours previously found in disposables, such as SKE Crystal and Bar Juice, don't tend to offer shortfills.
Are shortfill e-liquids good choices for you?
Many vapers favour shortfills for the convenience of purchasing e-liquid in larger volumes. In addition, shortfills may represent better value than multiple 10ml bottles.
However, most shortfill e-liquids boast bases that are high in vegetable glycerine (VG) and so are only suitable for sub-ohm devices. Manufacturers tend to produce high VG shortfills as there is less demand for high PG shortfills suitable for low wattage devices. This is because nicotine shots are restricted to strengths of 20mg, and the strength of the shots is diluted when they are added to the nicotine-free e-liquids. For example, adding an 18mg nicotine shot to a 50ml shortfill will result in the completed juice boasting a nicotine strength of just 3mg.
Many vapers would find that vaping such low nicotine strengths at lower wattages would not relieve their cravings. Sub-ohm e cigs deliver bigger clouds (vapour) and therefore more nicotine with every puff and so a low nicotine strength could work for most vapers.
Having said all this, 50VG shortfills are available as are 50VG nicotine shots. the latter will reduce the VG ratio of high VG shortfills and so could deliver e-liquids suitable for most devices.
In short, the benefits of shortfills are:
- Cost-effective choices
- Customisable nicotine strengths
- Larger volumes of e-liquid in single bottle
Which flavours are available as shortfills?
Many of the leading e-liquid brands offer shortfills and tend to showcase their most popular flavours in their shortfill collections. For instance, Vampire Vape's shortfills (Shortz and Konecpt series) include Heisenberg, Pinkman and Catapult.
Does adding a nicotine shot impact flavour?
The shortfill versions of many e-liquids are formulated to feature higher concentrations of flavourings than their 10ml counterparts. This is to allow for the fact that the flavour-free nicotine shots will dilute the strength of the product. But some shortfill e-liquids are identical to the 10ml 0mg nicotine strength versions of the flavours. This means that a nic shot will reduce the flavour intensity a little. The more shots you add to the juice, the greater the impact on flavour.
It can be difficult to establish whether the flavour intensity of a shortfill e-liquid has been adjusted. If the packaging does not feature the information you need, it can help to read or watch reviews.
It is also worth noting that freebase nicotine will slightly impact flavour but salt nicotine will not. This fact may influence your choice of nicotine shots.
How do you mix your shortfills?
It's easy to complete your juice. Simply remove the cap and nib of the e-liquid. Squeeze your nicotine shot into the bottle, replace the cap and nib then shake the bottle vigorously. For a more detailed explanation, read our mixing guide.