E Nails

If you’re into dabbing, but you’re not really a fan of using an open flame to heat your concentrates to extreme temperatures, then e-nails could be for you.

Dabbing is taking the UK herb scene by storm, but it has come with a small caveat. Many neophytes aren’t used to heating up the glass nails on their dabbing rigs with butane torches. It can understandably be tricky, especially if your nail is made of borosilicate glass. Glass is somewhat resistant to thermal shock, but the temperatures that dabbing occurs at is incredibly high and incorrect use of your butane torch can result in broken nails. Thankfully, ingenious dab luminaries have found a way to mitigate that risk entirely, self-heating electric nails, or e-nails for short.

E-nails use electricity to heat your wax or concentrate, often to exact temperatures, thus eliminating the need for a butane torch. They are a great addition to any dab rig, and here at Everyone Does It we stock a wide range of e-nails to suit all budgets.

What are e-nails?

An e-nail is just like a regular dab nail or banger, but it uses electricity to heat up concentrates rather than a dabbing torch. Dabbing nails are an essential component of any dab rig, and work in much a similar way that herbal bowls do in a bong.

E-nails are made of highly durable heat-resistant materials, as the combustion point of concentrates and waxes are extremely high, often in excess of 200°C. Typical materials include quartz, titanium, and ceramic.

E-nails are connected to a small control box, which will typically have buttons, a dial, or an LED display, which you can use to set an exact temperature. These will either be powered by an internal battery, or via the mains.

How do e-nails work?

E-nails take the same principles as a traditional titanium or quartz nail remove the need for a butane torch. Dabbing works by connecting a nail with a small water bong, often called a bubbler. When you kit is ready you prepare the nail by heating it up with a small butane torch (crème brûlée torches are popular for this purpose). The nail must be incredibly hot before the next step; pick up a piece of dab material, oil, wax, or shatter, and drop it onto the nail. If you have heated the nail up correctly it should vaporise instantly.

To use an e-nail, you must first connect it to your dab rig. If you’ve bought your e-nail separately, then this should be able to fit on to the downstem, whereas e-rigs will already have an e-nail included as standard.

Once it’s connected, you can then set your preferred temperature via the control box which the e-nail is attached to. The e-nail will then be automatically heated to that exact temperature in a matter of minutes, after which you can carefully place your wax or concentrates in the nail with the help of a dabber.

The concentrates will then be vaporized, and you then simply inhale that vapour via the mouthpiece. Repeat the process until your concentrates are spent, and then remember to clean your e-nail to maintain it’s efficiency and the taste of your smoke for future sessions, once it’s cooled down of course.

This is a rather involved process and frankly the butane torch is dangerous enough before you follow up the first hit. Taking out the ‘open flame’ element of the whole debacle. While you still have to be careful not to burn yourself with the high temperature of the nail, you can rest somewhat easy that you’re not going to accidentally set yourself on fire.

Benefits of e-nails

There are many advantages of using e-nails compared to regular titanium or quartz nails, so let’s take a look at some of the pros and cons:

Pros of e-nails

• They eliminate the need for a dabbing torch, meaning you have less parts to worry about maintaining/replacing.
• As you don’t need an open flame to light your concentrates, e-nails are much safe to use than regular quartz or titanium nails.  
• They are also better for the environment, as butane, which is typically used in dabbing torches, emits carbon dioxide when it’s burned.
• Precise temperature settings give you greater control over how your heat your concentrates.
• E-nails also maintain a consistent temperature during a session, meaning you don’t have to repeatedly heat it as you would with a dab torch.

Cons of e-nails

• They are invariably more expensive than regular dab nails.
• Some models of e-nail can be quite tricky to use and perfect, especially for beginners.
• PID controller e-nail units must be plugged in to a power source to be used, so are not ideal for people who want to take their dab rigs out and about with them.

Overall, there are clear benefits to going electric when it comes to your dab rig’s nail. Your nail will remain cleaner as the more consistent temperatures will lead to a smoother vaporisation of your dabbing material. Many e-nails come with a temperature control knob so it’s easier to maintain a constant low temperature for medicinal purposes. Low temperature dabbing leads to a smoother easier hit making it perfect for anyone who isn’t used to the rigors of using a water bong.

The better your nail, and the more evenly heated it is the better your dabbing experience. A clean transition from wax or oil to vapor is the best you can hope for and the best thing for your lungs. Burning isn’t the worst thing in the world and can be mitigated with a carb cap. The resulting smoke will be harsher on your lungs.

E-nails are a lot safer for repeatedly dabbing in one session. Dabs are much more powerful than any other form of herb concentrate. A single hit may contain as many active ingredients as several joints or bong bowls. Naturally this can lead to impaired reflexes and spacial awareness. That’s ok it happens to all of us. Operating a butane torch in this scenario isn’t the greatest of ideas, however operating the switch of an e-nail is a somewhat more reasonable proposition.

For a huge range of dabbing equipment, from bubbler water pipes, to dabbing tools, and of course nails (both electronic and regular) check out our UK web store!