Ladder Coil – What is it in Vaping?

Definition

A Ladder Coil is a hand-built vape coil whose wraps resemble the rungs of a ladder. Instead of a single continuous wire, two parallel strands form the “rails” while short lengths of wire or ribbon are spot-welded or clamped between them, creating flat “rungs.” This geometry exposes far more surface area to the cottonwick, letting e-liquid boil off faster so the coil produces thicker vapour and richer flavour without needing a Resistance“>low resistance that would strain a Battery“>lithium battery. Ladder coils sit inside RDAs, RTAs or RDTAs and are favoured by cloud-chasers who enjoy a direct Hit“>lung hit.

Technical Details

Electrically, the parallel rails halve the total resistance while every rung adds parallel paths, keeping final readings between 0.08 Ω and 0.2 Ω in dual-coil set-ups. Most builders use 24–26 AWG Kanthal A1 or Ni80 for the rails and 0.3 × 0.1 mm ribbon or 22 AWG round wire for the 4–8 rungs; total length is trimmed to 5–6 mm so the coil fits a 24 mm Deck“>postless deck. Because the mass is high, 3.5–4.0 mm internal diameter is standard to accept enough cotton and prevent leaking. Even heating demands a Mod“>regulated mod capable of 80–120 W with accurate LED indicator feedback; pulsing at 25 W while pinching the rungs with ceramic tweezers eliminates hot spots before the final wicking.

Usage & Tips

Thread thick, shoelace-style organic cotton through each rung gap—loose enough to move, tight enough to drag slightly. Prime generously; ladder coils hold 30 % more juice, reducing dry hits when chain-vaping. To avoid leaking, tilt the atty when re-dripping so excess pools on the deck rather than the airflow slots. Check the LED indicator every few puffs; if it flashes low-voltage, rest the lithium battery—ladder builds drain cells faster. Finally, brush the coil gently under running warm water every two days to remove caramelised sweetener and extend coil life to 4–6 weeks.

History & Context

The ladder coil emerged in 2017 when Australian Facebook groups began competing for “surface-area builds.” By 2019, YouTube reviewers popularised the design as an alternative to claptons that required no drill, cementing its place in the local rebuildable scene alongside staple and alien coils.