How puff counts are measured, and why two 8,000-puff devices are not the same

The test, in one paragraph

A puff machine draws 55 mL of air through the device over 3 seconds, rests for 7 seconds, and repeats. Vapour output is measured on every puff, and the run ends when output falls below a set fraction of the initial value — usually the point where the wick can no longer keep up. The count of puffs before that cut-off is the number on the box. Our 2 mL devices are rated on this cycle; the high-capacity models use the same cycle, run longer.

Why the same device can be rated 6,000 or 9,000 puffs

Three variables move the figure more than any design decision:

1. Draw volume. 55 mL per puff is a moderate mouth-to-lung draw. Rate the same device at 40 mL and the count rises by roughly a third, because each puff consumes less liquid. Rate it at 70 mL, closer to a direct-lung draw, and it falls by a quarter. A 40% spread between two honest ratings is entirely normal.
2. Cycle length. A 10-second cycle with a 3-second draw leaves 7 seconds for the wick to recover. Shorten the rest to 3 seconds and the coil runs drier, output drops earlier, and the count falls. Some factories publish counts taken on a 6-second cycle; the device has not changed, the schedule has.
3. Cut-off threshold. Ending the run at 80% of initial output gives a shorter count than ending it at 50%. Neither is dishonest if it is stated. It usually is not stated.

What we publish, and what we do not claim

Our figures are the machine count at 55 mL / 3 s on a 10-second cycle, to a 70% output cut-off. They are comparable between our own models, because the same rig and the same schedule are used on all of them. They are not directly comparable with another factory's number, and we do not pretend otherwise.

What we do not claim is that you will get 8,000 puffs. A user who takes 2-second draws gets more; a user who takes 5-second draws gets fewer, and a user who leaves the device in a hot car gets fewer still. The claim that survives contact with a customer complaint is the one written with its conditions attached.

How to write a puff claim you can defend

1. State the method on the pack or in the leaflet. "Up to 8,000 puffs, tested at 55 mL per 3-second puff on a 10-second cycle" is a claim a regulator and a customer can both check.
2. Use "up to", not a flat number. The figure is a ceiling from a laboratory run, and the word costs nothing.
3. Quote liquid volume as well. 15 mL is a fact that does not depend on a draw machine. Buyers who compare cost per millilitre are comparing something real.
4. Match the claim to the tank. A 2 mL device claiming 2,000 puffs invites exactly the scrutiny you do not want. The 2 mL line is rated at 600 to 800, which is what 2 mL actually delivers.

A worked comparison across our own range

The last column is the interesting one. It falls as devices get larger, which is not a trick: bigger tanks run a leaner vapour-per-puff at the same output, and the count is taken at a lower liquid consumption per puff. If a competitor's number implies 0.03 mL per 100 puffs on a 2 mL tank, the claim is not a measurement.

Sources and standards

The figures on this page come from our own test records. The definitions behind them are public documents:

• ISO 20768:2018 — Vapour products: routine analytical vaping machine, definitions and standard conditions (ISO). It fixes the 55 mL, 3-second puff; the rest interval is exactly where protocols diverge, which is the point of the second section above.
• Directive 2014/40/EU (EUR-Lex). Article 20 sets the labelling and presentation rules that a puff claim has to survive.
• E-cigarettes: regulations for consumer products (MHRA, GOV.UK). The same rules as they apply in Great Britain, in plain English.

External links open the publisher's page; we do not control its content.