Ok : the doesnt matter how long they been sat on a shelf - you cannot pre steep an e-liquid without the nic
the liquid will not steep until you add the nic. You will notice no colour change or deepening of flavour until that nic is in the bottle.
The bowl of warm water is likely to damage the nic content - as it degrades over a certain temperature - and will do nothing to speed the steeping process
removing the lid is a good way to get any nasties in the air hygroscopically absorbed into you eliquid - as pg will suck the moisture right out the air.
if anything it will degrade a flavour - that will. Its made generally in a cleanroom - all that is lost when you leave the top off in your sock draw.
you are looking at trying desserts - desserts as a rule contain flavour compounds that require a steep time - if they tasted awful at first it is probably because of nothing other than time.
Just leaving it alone for a week after you have added the nic will be enough - it doesn't need all the bro science warming and top off business - as a rule, flavour development tends to follow the colour change that happens over several days after you have added the nic.
Hmm. I just looked this up and there are several places that say the nicotine isn't required for steeping.
It doesn't make any sense to me that nicotine is needed in order for flavourings to come out. Nicotine changes colour when it comes into contact with oxygen or light. That and the maillard reaction between amino acids and sugars is responsible for the colour change. But nicotine isn't needed for a maillard reaction. Just heat, moisture and time. Nicotine is usually a very light yellow/orange (specifically nic-b salts) and that intensifies when it's been exposed to light and oxygen and can even look brown.
Nicotine does degrade at certain temps. At 79c you will lose up to 10% of it. at 65c you'll lose up to 8% of it. That's not much and I'm fine with that.
There are plenty of vapers who don't use nicotine, such as many Australian vapers and they still steep their liquids.
Additionally, my Zeus Juice. I forgot to add nicotine to it until I realised I was vaping it (after a few weeks when it got nice) and still craved nicotine lol. That one most definitely steeped. At first it wasn't nice. I couldn't taste the advertised flavours and it was weak. Very weak. I did the hot water thing and left it out and then put it away for 2 weeks just thinking it was crap. I then thought I'd try it again and it was ten times better, so that one steeped without nicotine.
I know I'm not very experienced etc but I don't believe nicotine is needed to steep an eliquid and there are various sites out there that concur.
This is one of the companies that explains that nicotine isn't needed for steeping. It's also one of the ones (among many) that gives the warm bath method as a way for steeping.
Another one that says nicotine isn't needed for steeping & lists the warm bath method.
I think the important thing though is what works for you. The warm bath method which is listed as a steeping method on several vaping/liquid sites works for me. It's just that some flavours I got I don't like and I need to find some that I do like. I've been given plenty of recommendations to try here so I'll get some ordered.
I kmow @Reti has mentioned he has already started mixing and certainly there's no reason why people can't also vape ready made juices as well.
