It is with great pleasure to be reviewing the latest Squonk mod from DOVPO/Across Vape…the Pump Squonker. When we were asked by DOVPO to review their Pump Squonker I panicked a little as I wasn’t sure if any of my RDA’s/Drippers even had a Bottom Feeding (BF) pin. A BF pin is needed to “squonk” which replaces the 510 pin in a standard RDA allowing e-liquid to be fed from the squonk bottle up through the hollowed out 510 pin into the RDA deck.
Fortunately back in the Black Friday sales I treated myself to some really good bargains and amongst them were two RDA’s: the Mutant from Vandy Vape and a Rebirth from Hellvape, both coming with replaceable BF pins so panic over.
While not totally new to squonking, my experience is a little limited. I’ve used a DOVPO Topside which I borrowed from my son but unfortunately wasn’t allowed to keep it because he liked using it so much I had to give it back. I can’t even remember what RDA he had with it at that time.
What I can say though is I really do enjoy taking a break from my standard mods/pods I use during the day and fiddling with coil builds, different wicking techniques in the evenings and dripping on some of my weird and wonderful old time RDA’s and mech mods. It’s also a great way to experiment with wacky juice mixing.
Squonking can be a bit of an acquired taste, you either love it or hate it but has been around for several years now in different waves of popularity. There aren’t that many Squonk mods around and very few new ones to choose from so we were excited to put the Pump Squonker to the test. Obviously I’ve always tried to keep pace with what’s about and who’s doing what and DOVPO seem to be one of the leaders with high class squonkers.
Anyway, enough waffling, it’s time to try this really great looking Pump Squonker from DOVPO and see if it’s as good as people are saying. What’s intriguing though is the little squeezy silicone bottle we’ve come to know is gone, instead the Pump Squonker incorporates an electrically operated pump via a button to feed the e-liquid to your RDA from a rigid re-fillable and removable 9ml reservoir.
Overview
The Pump Squonker by DOVPO in collaboration with Across Vape is a semi-mechanical mod so its power output is derived from the combination of battery voltage and the coil/deck resistance of your fitted RDA. The added advantage being it’s not a pure mech mod but incorporates safety features so you’re getting the best of both worlds.
It doesn’t come as a kit, it’s the mod only, with spares of course so you’re free to use whatever RDA you have as long as it has a BF pin. It’s a semi-mechanical squonk mod with an electric pump and powered from either a single external 18650/20700/21700 battery (not included).
There isn’t a display as such; just a small LED to highlight the pump action when used and display the included safety features. There is no USB charging port so you have to charge your battery externally and it has two operating buttons; a fire button and an electrically operated pump button.
It’s a 510 threaded squonk mod with a 9ml capacity bottom located rigid semi-transparent e-liquid chamber (no soft squeezy bottle). The battery compartment is positioned to one side and is visible so you will see the battery wrap. The kit does come with Across Vape battery wraps so you can customize your battery if you wish. If you intend using an 18650 battery, the kit includes an 18650 battery sleeve adaptor.
Both the battery compartment and the e-liquid bottle are accessible via the bottom located CNC knurled threaded screw caps.
Manufactured out of aluminum alloy, stainless steel and polycarbonate, the dimensions of the DOVPO Pump Squonker are 81.8mm tall x 52mm wide x 25.5mm deep and it weighs in at a pretty lightweight 142 grams.
I would like to thank Daisy at DOVPO for sending me the Pump Squonker for the purpose of this review. As always this review is completely unbiased and only contains my honest opinions on the product. This post may also contain an affiliate link. If you purchase the product through our link we may receive a small commission (at no extra cost to you!). This helps us to keep the site running.
Carry on reading as we go through the finer details of the Pump Squonker, covering its design and operation while summarizing its overall performance.
DOVPO X Across Vape Pump Squonker Mod Review
Contents
- Overview
- Features and Specifications
- What’s in the Box?
- DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Design and Appearance
- DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Functionality
- DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Performance
- DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Battery Performance
- How Do I Fill The DOVPO Pump Squonker?
- How Do I Charge The DOVPO Pump Squonker?
- DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Price
- DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Verdict
- DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Summary
Features and Specifications
- Dimensions: 81.8mm x 52mm x 25.5mm
- Weight: 142 grams excluding battery
- Construction: Aluminum Alloy + Stainless Steel + PC
- Battery: External single 18650/20700/21700 (not included)
- Charging: External charging only, No USB
- Output Wattage: Battery/Coil dependant
- E-liquid Capacity: 9.0ml squonk reservoir
- Filling Method: Unscrew squonk bottle from bottom
- Resistance Range: 0.1 – 3.5 ohms
- Working Voltage: 3.2v – 4.2V
- Standby Current: <10 micro amps
- Display: Single LED
- Firing: Push button activation
- Squonk Pump: Electronic push button
- Safety Features: 5 (see functionality section)
- RDA Compatibility: Max 25mm with BF Pin
- Cut-Off: 10 Seconds
- 3 Color Finishes
What’s in the box?
- DOVPO Pump Squonker
- 18650 Battery Sleeve/Adaptor
- 2x 18650 Battery Wraps
- 2x 21700 Battery Wraps
- Pack of Spare O-Rings
- User Manual
- Battery Usage Warning Card
- Discount Card
The DOVPO Pump Squonker comes in a plain matte black cardboard box with a lift off lid. On the front are the words Pump Squonker with Across Vape & DOVPO in a black semi-gloss finish. The reverse bottom side of the box includes the package contents, Across Vape social media / website details, DOVPO address, an authentication sticker and the included color of the device.
There isn’t a USB charging cable included in the packaging because the Pump Squonker doesn’t have a USB charging interface port. It is a mechanical mod after all so wouldn’t have one, charging the battery is done using an external battery charger.
DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Design and Appearance
The DOVPO Pump Squonker is a semi-mechanical Squonk mod with a difference.
Firstly it’s basically a mechanical mod but incorporates a chipset that provides additional safety features which include:
- Overtime Protection (10s)
- Short Circuit Protection
- Low Voltage Protection
- High Temperature Protection
- Reverse Polarity Protection
Because of the chipset, this makes the Pump Squonker a full power mech mod where the output wattage is derived from the battery voltage and the coil/deck resistance (Ohms Law states: Power=V2/Resistance) of the attached RDA. BUT as mentioned, this has additional protection which makes this semi-mechanical.
Secondly the Pump Squonker is an electrically operated Squonk mod. This doesn’t use the traditional silicone squeezy bottle where the user squeezes the bottle to force e-liquid up into the RDA. Instead the Pump Squonker uses an electronic in-built pump operated via a push button to feed e-liquid from the 9ml reservoir to the RDA.
The DOVPO Pump Squonker is constructed out of aluminum alloy and stainless steel with a polycarbonate liquid reservoir. Its shape is a traditional rectangular design with opposing oval side edges that measures 81.8mm tall, 52mm wide by 25.5mm deep and weighs in at 142 grams excluding the battery and e-liquid.
As with all mechanical mods there is no User Interface display and this is no exception BUT it does have a small green LED located just below the pump button which highlights any safety protection features that arise. More detail on this in the functionality section of this review.
Powered by an external single battery, the Pump Squonker will accept either an 18650 battery when using the included 18650 battery adaptor or the larger 20700/21700 sized batteries. Because of the design, the battery compartment is located on one side of the mod but is cut away so the outer half of the battery will be visible.
Quite quirky to say the least and I’m not sure if this design is in the best interest of battery safety. Having a battery open to the elements could be asking for trouble. A slight knock or a drop could damage the battery wrap or worse still dent or puncture the battery casing.
Included in the kit are Across Vape battery wraps for both an 18650 and 20700/21700 battery so you can customize your battery and make it stand out if you so wish.
Access to the battery compartment is via the screw threaded knurled cap on the bottom of the Pump squonker which strangely enough is not solid but has two cut-outs which will still show the negative end of the battery.
I’m a little bemused why it’s like this because there won’t be a problem with battery venting as half the compartment is open anyway!
Orientation of the battery is clearly identified in the compartment with the + towards the 510 connector and the – towards the bottom battery cap.
Charging the battery can only be carried out using an external battery charger because the Pump Squonker doesn’t have a USB charging port. This isn’t a problem as we always recommend charging your batteries in a reputable external charger. If you’re not sure which one to get, please take a look at our Best Battery Charger guide for our recommendations.
The e-liquid reservoir has a 9ml capacity and is made out of rigid semi clear opaque polycarbonate (PC). This is positioned on the opposite side to the battery compartment and is removed by unscrewing the knurled cap that’s connected to the reservoir.
There is a rotation arrow on the base of the reservoir showing the direction needed to turn the knurled cap to open and remove the e-liquid reservoir away from the main body of the Pump Squonker. Be careful when unscrewing the bottle/reservoir as the top is open so ensure you keep it upright otherwise your e-liquid will spill out.
When the e-liquid reservoir bottle is detached, you can see the 2.6mm diameter stainless steel pipe/tube that carries the e-liquid from the bottle and then pumped up through the hollowed out 510 connector pin to your RDA.
As we’ve already mentioned, pumping the e-liquid is carried out NOT by squeezing the squonk bottle (you can’t squeeze it) but by pressing the pump button. This button is the lower slightly smaller circular button (7.4mm) positioned just above the small LED.
While pressing the pump button you will hear a slight whirring sound coming from the electrical pump motor, this is normal and nothing to worry about.
The slighter larger of the two buttons (9mm) is the fire button, which also turns the mod on/off, positioned towards the top of the Pump Squonker mod. Both these buttons have a positive click feel to them but do suffer from a very slight button rattle.
At the top of the Pump Squonker mod is the flush mounting circular 510 connector plate with the gold plated spring loaded 510 pin, all of which are securely held in place with two torx screws. The overall diameter of the 510 plate and outer case is 25mm so RDA’s up to this diameter will fit with no overhang.
Branding is very discrete with the words “Pump Sqounker” engraved into the central vertical brushed stainless steel band between the fire and pump buttons. On the top of the mod is “Across Vape & DOVPO” engraved around the curved edge.
3 different color options are available; Black, Sandblasted Silver and Gunmetal. The one we received for the purpose of this review was the Sandblasted Silver color. The overall finish does look very good with a combination of sandblasted silver aluminium alloy for the main body with a brushed silver stainless steel vertical band on the front of the mod and stainless steel banding around the top and bottom of the mod.
DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Functionality
Not too much to worry about because it’s a semi-mechanical mod and therefore has limited functionality. Two control buttons and a small user interface green LED complete all of the controls of the Pump Squonker as detailed below:
- Fire Button:- 5 clicks turns mod on/off. Single press fires the mod
- Pump Button:- 5 clicks locks/unlocks pump action. Single press pumps the e-liquid
The small green LED provides a visual indication of the safety features and protections:
- No atomizer (RDA):- LED slowly flashes 3 times
- Turning on/off the mod: LED flashes once
- Pump button locked:- LED flashes 2 times
- Low power:- LED flashes 5 times
- High Temperature:- LED flashes 4 times
- Over time cut-off:- LED slowly flashes 5 times
- Short circuit:- LED flashes 3 times
- Normal operation:- No LED
In normal operating mode i.e. when everything is on, working correctly and the pump button unlocked, the LED will not illuminate when the fire button is depressed.
If you’ve locked the pump button and then try and press the pump button, the small green LED will flash twice to remind you to unlock the pump button. Too many “pump buttons” in one sentence but I couldn’t describe it any other way!
DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Performance
The DOVPO Pump Squonker doesn’t have “Backflow” so be careful when pressing the pump button that you don’t leave it pressed for too long. Over pressing it will continually pump e-liquid into your RDA deck which will cause the deck of the RDA to flood and cause e-liquid seepage.
It did take me a little while to gauge the correct amount of time to press and hold the pump button when initially priming my RDA for the first time and then subsequently squonking during normal use. I found a 7 second press was about right to initially prime my Vandy Vape Mutant and then a 1-2 second press every 5 or so draws refreshed the wick.
I would recommend keeping a close eye on the juice well of your RDA at first so you can gauge the length of time needed for your particular RDA.
No leaking from around the threaded top section of the reservoir was seen, in fact I didn’t observe any leaking anywhere during normal use.
The e-liquid reservoir is very easy to remove and cleaning was no problem at all. I found this type of reservoir so much easier to remove, insert and clean than the other type of soft squeezy squonk bottles. E-liquid is clearly visible through the reservoir and the stainless steel feed pipe entry sits just above the bottom of the reservoir.
Having the ability to turn off the pump button and fire button independently was a great idea so as to not inadvertently flood the RDA or fire the device.
The fire button was very responsive and the pump button maintained a constant flow of e-liquid to the RDA when pressed.
Having used mech (mechanical) mods on and off over the years, I was impressed that the Pump Squonker is semi-mechanical so gave that little bit of assurance in terms of safety features. Knowing if your coil develops a short circuit or the battery is draining too low during use is a great advantage.
All in all I found using the Pump Squonker a pleasure to use. The unknown for me at this time is the longevity of the electronic pump motor. I’ve been using this for nearly 3 weeks and thus far the motor has worked every time.
DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Battery Performance
Because the Pump Squonker can use any of the 3 different sizes of batteries (18650/20700/21700) and their current capacities can vary greatly between each type, it’s very difficult to quantify how long the mod can operate before the battery drains down and requires charging.
Equally, depending on the resistance of the coil or coils in your RDA, the type of coil(s) and your draw duration, the time between charges can also vary greatly.
What I can say though is while I was using a pretty old 18650 battery (Samsung 20S) having a CDR value of 30A and a 2000mAh capacity, I was getting a good evenings squonking with a dual coil build of 0.2 ohms in my Vandy Vape Mutant before the battery died.
Swapping out the battery for a 21700 Samsung 40T having a CDR value of 30A and a 4000mAh capacity, I was getting over a whole days worth of squonking before it needed re-charging.
What was nice though while using the DOVPO Pump Squonker instead of a pure mechanical mod, the low voltage cut-off protects the battery from over dis-charging.
How Do I Fill The DOVPO Pump Squonker?
The DOVPO Pump Squonker incorporates a 9ml e-liquid capacity rigid clear opaque reservoir that’s located on the opposite side to the battery compartment. This reservoir is approximately 30mm tall and screws into the bottom side cut-out section of the mod body.
Unscrewing the reservoir is carried out by turning the knurled cap on the bottom of the reservoir in the direction of rotation as indicated on its base (anti-clockwise). This knurled cap forms part of the reservoir and it’s the top of the reservoir that’s threaded into the Pump Squonker body.
Once the reservoir is un-threaded, gently guide the reservoir downwards from the mod and clear of the stainless steel pipe feed. Do ensure the reservoir remains upright at all times otherwise e-liquid will spill from the top.
Fill the reservoir up with your e-liquid but leave a small gap at the top so when the reservoir is re-fitted the addition of the stainless steel pipe feed doesn’t cause the e-liquid to overflow.
Gently screw the knurled cap back up ensuring a secure fit but don’t over-tighten.
Press and hold the pump button for a few seconds to inject e-liquid through the pipe feed and into the RDA to ensure your wick and coil are saturated.
How Do I Charge The DOVPO Pump Squonker?
The DOVPO Pump Squonker doesn’t have a USB charging port therefore the single battery powering the mod will have to be removed and charged externally.
Unscrew the knurled battery cap at the base of the Pump Squonker and the battery will slide out of the battery compartment. Use an external battery charger to replenish the charge in the battery and once fully charged refit the battery and tighten the knurled battery cap back up.
Orientation of the battery is important and the mod will only work if it’s fitted the correct way round. There are + and – markings inside the battery compartment to show which way round the battery should be fitted correctly. The positive end “+” of the battery goes into the Pump Squonker while the negative “-” end will make contact with the knurled battery cap at the base of the mod.
I always recommend purchasing spare back-up batteries and keeping them charged so it’s just the case of removing the uncharged one and replacing with a fully charged one. That way you’re never without a working mod.
Ideally pick up 2 or 4 spare batteries and a 2/4-Bay battery charger. Take a look at our Best Battery and Best Charger guides if you need any further information.
DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Price
The DOVPO Pump Squonker is a medium to high end class device and as such is not overly cheap but then considering the build quality and design, coupled with the electronic pump and safety protections, it’s well worth the price tag.
Currently retailing around the minimum £70/$70 mark and in a lot of cases much higher on most websites, we’ve included a buy link to take you directly to DOVPO’s store.
DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Verdict
Pros
- Great design and build quality
- Lightweight yet robust
- Very simple to use
- 18650/20700/21700 battery options
- Electronic pump filling method
- 9ml e-liquid reservoir
- Easily fillable
- Easy to clean e-liquid reservoir
- Semi-mechanical
- Safety features
- Lockable Fire and Pump buttons
Cons
- Cutaway battery case *
* I’m not convinced I like the side cut-out of the battery compartment. Having half the battery exposed is not necessarily a good thing in terms of battery safety. The battery wrap could become split or worst case if the mod is knocked or dropped the battery could be damaged.
DOVPO Pump Squonker Mod Summary
The DOVPO Pump Squonker mod is a great semi-mechanical mod and a really great electronic pump squonker. The overall appearance and build quality are very good and being powered from either an 18650/20700/21700 single battery makes this very versatile.
Its added safety features make this pretty safe to use, even for a fairly novice vaper, but I do recommend reading up on battery safety, ohms law and mechanical mods to familiarize yourself with the potential pitfalls. Do take a look at our extensive range of guides on these topics to ensure your vaping experience is a happy one.
If RDA’s are your thing, whether it’s dripping or squonking, the DOVPO Pump Squonker will be a great device to have in your collection as it’s a superb squonker. A 9ml e-liquid capacity with an easy fill and easy clean reservoir make this a delight to use.
I’ve been dripping on and off for several years now and only very recently ventured into the world of squonking. I’m very happy to have been given the opportunity to review this Pump Squonker and can certainly say I WON’T be putting this down any time soon.
DOVPO are a renowned and respected company producing some really great devices, spending that little extra for a high class squonk mod will pay you dividends in the future.
Hope you enjoyed this review and found it useful. If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to leave us a comment below.
If you do decide to purchase one, please let us know how you’re getting on with it.