What is An RDA Vape Tank? Full Definition & Guide
RDA stands for Rebuildable Drip Atomizer. These types of vape tank are popular with vapers that like big clouds and maximum flavour. You have to install your own coils, wick them with cotton, and traditionally they do not have much juice storage capacity – hence why they’re called drippers (you have to drip juice onto the coil before using them).
However, things have progressed A LOT in the last few years, thanks to the rise of squonking, whereby vape juice can be stored inside a vape mod and sent up to the RDA via a simple squeeze. This negates the need to drip and solves one of the #1 issues levelled at RDAs – juice storage.
The Anatomy of An RDA Vape Tank
RDA tanks are designed to be simple: you have a deck, a mouthpiece, and a tank. And that’s pretty much it. You have postless decks and decks with posts, as well as new plug-n-play RDAs like the GOAT RDA that require ZERO building. You just plop a modular deck in and go.
The simplicity of RDAs is one of the main reasons they’re so popular with vapers. You get maximum flavour and huge clouds and, because they’re rebuildable, you can customise how it performs by augmenting your coils, their position, and also their resistance.
On top of this, you can replace the drip tip to something more your style and experiment with your wicking technique in order to extract more flavour from each hit. Adjustable airflow is also a common feature on RDA tanks, allowing you to close off (tighten) the draw or open it up to make it more swooshy.
Best vape juice for RDA tanks? You should ONLY use High VG Vape Juice inside RDAs. The higher the better. I tend to use 80% VG blends, as these deliver the most smoothness and flavour. Anything less will taste harsh and ruin your vaping.
MORE: USA-Made High VG Vape Juice (Perfect For Your RDA)
RDA Pros (Why They’re Awesome)
- Never Have To Worry About Coils Again
- Cheaper To Run Than Sub-Ohm Tanks
- Best Flavour of Any Style of Tank
- Simple To Use (Even For Beginners)
- Less Prone To Leaking Than RTAs
- They Look Awesome
Massive Clouds, Loads of Customization Options
Different Types of RDA:
- Dual-Coil RDA – These types of RDAs will run two coils. They run at higher wattages, produce more clouds, and are generally the most potent of all styles of RDA.
- Single Coil RDA – Running just one coil, these types of RDA is ideal for lower-power vaping. Designed predominantly for single battery squonk mods, a single coil RDA will use less power and save your mod’s battery life. And still deliver incredible performance.
- Drippers – Drippers do not squonk; they’re designed solely for users’ that want to drip they’re e-juice. Back in the day, drippers were common. Nowadays, they’ve more or less been entirely replaced by squonk-compatible RDAs.
- MTL RDAs – Even rarer than drippers are MTL RDAs. These types of RDA deliver a tighter, more cigarette-style draw while possessing all the major benefits of an RDA.
My #1 Favorite RDA Vape Tanks Right Now
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What Vape Mod Should I Use With My RDA?
Whether you’re running a dual-coil RDA, a squonk RDA, or a single-coil MTL RDA, you need a vape mod to power it. I’d always recommend going with a dual-18650 vape mod. With RDAs, you want to have plenty of power (over 100W, ideally) and solid battery life.
You can use single 18650 mech mods, though I don’t tend to mess around with them as they’re not as safe as regulated vape mods. Right now, my #1 picks for vape mods that are suitable for use with RDAs are as follows:
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Battery life and power are the #1 things you need when using RDAs. Make sure you get a vape mode that has 100W and over and runs dual-18650 batteries. With these two things in place, you’ll have more than enough power to run all kinds of RDAs – from dual coil RDAs to single coils RDAs.
Best Place To Buy Coils & Cotton For Your RDA
If you’re using an RDA, you’ll need to stock up on coils and cotton. Plenty of places sell pre-made Clapton and Alien coils. Even Amazon. You can pick up a box of pre-made coils that’ll last you months at a time because RDA coils if maintained properly, can last for a couple of months easily.
With cotton for wicking, I tend to pretty much exclusively use Cotton Bacon. It’s organic, it wicks great, and it’s cheap – plus a single pack will last your about six months! Once you have these, you’re also going to want to invest in a coil-builder kit; these have all the tools you need to install, test, and augment your builds. I couldn’t imagine living without mine!
Anything Else I Need To Know?
No, we’ve covered just about everything! All you need to do now is decide which RDA to go for. I’ve highlighted my current #1 favourite RDA tanks for right now, so take a look at that post and see which one takes your fancy. They’re all excellent RDAs, so whichever you go for you’re going to be very impressed.
Any questions just hit me up on Twitter or Facebook 😉
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