Now, what were you using that's so expensive? Can you give us a brand name so we can know where to start? I don't know of anything that doesn't come with a wick of some sort, even direct drip atomizers have a little bit of wick. If you could also let us know what the PG/VG ratio of juice you were using, that would be helpful. We're all sorts of "I want to help" around here. I'm sure others will be along shortly to lend a hand.