Image Of Kettle Saving Money

Is Your Humble Kettle Actually Wasting Your Money?

We’re British. Tea for us is more than just a drink; it’s a defining aspect of our character. You’re not truly friends with somebody until you know by heart whether they take milk and sugar. If they prefer coffee, forget it. The one thing every tea lover out there needs is an efficient kettle. That’s where we come in.

Kettles may be small appliances, but they use a fair bit of energy. According to npower, boiling the kettle (which only takes a couple of minutes) costs the same as keeping the fridge freezer on for two hours or a light on for five! Luckily, all of the below tips won’t just help your kettle boil more easily but will save you money at the same time.

Limescale Will Cost You

Beware! If you’re in a hard water area limescale is the natural foe of your kettle.

Kettle With Water Filter
Minerals that occur in hard water areas will leave scaly deposits on your kettle’s heating element as it boils water, causing the element to fur up. The result? Reduced boiling efficiency and eventually the death of your appliance.

Tackle limescale by:

  • Filtering your water before boiling it so minerals that cause limescale are removed.
  • Descaling regularly with a dedicated descaler (you can also descale your coffee maker at the same time).
  • Removing and washing limescale filters on a regular basis.

Avoid Over-filling & Under-filling

Only making one cup of tea? Don’t fill the kettle to the max!

Steam Coming Out Of Kettle
A smaller amount of water will boil more quickly and use less energy. Fill just as much as you need to and you’ll spend less time twiddling your thumbs waiting for the flick of the boiled switch.

Most kettles across the board have indicators letting you know the least and most amount of water they should be filled with.

  • Maximum -If you fill over the max line this can interfere with the temperature sensor and cause the kettle to keep on boiling even when it’s got up to temperature.
  • Minimum – Too little water (filling under the min line) means your appliance may boil dry, which could damage it.

Just remember, the advice for colouring in and filling your kettle is the same – stay within the lines!

Consider Getting an Energy Efficient Kettle

There will sadly come a day where your kettle will give up the ghost and can’t be fixed. (Though of course we always recommend giving fixing a try before any appliance is condemned to the scrap heap.) An eco model could be the right replacement for you if you want to save on your energy bills in the future.

Kettle Pouring Water Into Teacup
Some of the handy features eco kettles have to make them more efficient include:

  • Better insulation so less heat is lost during and between boils.
  • The option to cut out at lower temperatures (as 100°C boiling water actually burns coffee grounds and some kinds of tea leaves, making them bitter).
  • The ability to select the amount of water you want to boil. The rest of the water will be left cold – very clever!

If your next kettle is an eco kettle it’ll help you save money and the environment at the same time. Win, win.

Whichever side you fall on in the tea vs. coffee debate, follow our words of wisdom and you can enjoy your beverage of choice for less. For more tips on saving money on your appliance costs, don’t worry, we’re boiling over with ideas! (Yes, that was a kettle pun…)

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2 Comments

  1. Jacqui

    on September 11, 2016 at 1:29 pm - Reply

    My clever husband has a good idea to save energy. He has a small thermos flask beside the kettle. Any water left after making the tea or whatever, goes into the thermos, accumulates during the day and is used later to avoid boiling the kettle again. Every little helps!

    • mariya

      on September 12, 2016 at 12:57 pm - Reply

      Great idea, Jacqui. Thank you for leaving your comment – sharing is caring. 🙂

      Don’t forget to keep an eye on our blog for future posts & competitions.

      Regards,
      Mariya

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