New kettle advice.

elsmandino

Hi there.
My kettle is giving up the ghost and I am on the lookout for a new one.
I have been doing a bit of research and there is a staggering amount of models and advice on what to go for.
Based upon everything I have read, I have three requirements:
* Variable temperatures
* No plastic in contact with the water  - i.e. glass or steel 
* Less than 500ml minimum boil (not the end of the world, if it does not have this, but it does seem wasteful to keep boiling so much for a single cup of tea).
Whilst I would like something as economic as possible, I am not convinced by kettles that claim to have a "quick boil" function to save power - surely these put more power in, in a short time, so the net use of electricity is roughly the same.
Any advice or model recommendations would be much appreciated.

-taff

Variable temperature kettle? Do you use the kettle a lot for lukewarm or different temperatures?

elsmandino

This is one of the rare cases where I think I would actually use a function like this - we never use boiling water for making hot drinks, so my family tend to let the kettle boil and come back when the water has cooled down a little.  

Mistral001

My last kettle cost me £6 from Tesco, bought about a year ago.  Before that I had one from Sainsbury's which cost £5 and it lasted 10 years.  I have tried more expensive  "energy saving" kettles  before and none seem to last more than a couple of years. Over their lifetime they might save a £2-3, but long term they probably do not save energy if you take into account the energy used in their manufacture..

Purple_kitten

Ironically I have just had to replace ours, I used to shell out 40 / 50 but found out it seemed to be a waste of money, they were not superior and lasted less time. The one that lastest the longest was the cheapest six pound one from Tesco I think. Our latest one is an Argos one paid for using Nectar points.

The Dualit and Sage kettles seem to have superior write ups but also a price to match.

VJsmum

I agree that paying for expensive kettles is not worth the money - they don't really last any longer in my experience.

As for variable temperatures, i can't think of much (anything) that needs a specific temperature of water.  Can't you just add some cold water?  E.g. when i make coffee in the cafetiere, because you aren't supposed to use boiling water i either wait a minute or two, or I cover the grounds in a little cold water before pouring on the boiling. 

balabooberlies

All the best stuff I have ever had has been own brands.  Apart from my hoover.  Miele.

bala

phoebe1989seb

I disagree that buying cheap is best with regards to kettles.....

Our Michael Graves Alessi kettle was purchased in 2005 or 2006 (can't recall exactly, lol!) and is still going strong with no issues other than having a relatively small capacity which doesn't really matter as we only use it for boiling water for veg most of the time (neither DH nor I drink hot drinks). Iirc it cost around £150.

Otoh, when we bought our current house (a repo that wasn't move in ready 😉) our kettle was in storage along with most of our stuff for a few months. In the interim we picked up a cheap, £12 plastic kettle for temporary use from B&M.

After repatriating our Alessi kettle from storage we carried on using the cheapie upstairs for filling hot water bottles. It dribbled like crazy from the spout and stopped working within a year. As we'd become used to having a second kettle upstairs we purchased another cheap model, this time one costing £25. It too only lasted a few months before giving up the ghost.

I'll stick with my Alessi, lol 🤣

DS and his partner bought a cheapish bright orange kettle (not sure of the brand) which also failed after a reasonably short period of usage. They decided they wanted a variable temperature kettle and we bought them a KitchenAid model for Christmas (also about £150). So far they love it - will be interesting to see how well that lasts.....

coffeehound

Is your Alessi kettle a stove-top or electric, phoebe1989seb?

Manufacturing quality for a lot of products has taken a nosedive in the last decade or so.  My 2010 Asda £5 kettle continues to soldier on without missing a beat, in which time my parents have got through kettles like an elephant gets through sticky buns.  And theirs aren't cheapies; they are sort of £20 to £40 range.

When the Asda kettle finally goes north, I have a vintage 1970s Dimplex waiting in the wings.  No plastic, no automatic switch-off mechanism, and a replaceable element.

Mistral001

I think in the past, brand was a good indicator of quality, but now most brands are just labels as the actual kettle, iron etc is made in China or another country that can produce products at a fraction of the cost of producing them in the UK.  I suspect the brand company just do not have the technical staff to assess whether the product they are ordering from abroad will actually be a quality, long-lasting product and will concentrate only on the bells and whistles in order to increase the price tag of the product.

balabooberlies

Phoebe

thinking about it, this was years ago.  I now try and buy the best I can according to my pocket.

My father bought, reconditioned, and sold heavy duty catering equipment for over 40 years.  Now so much is made in China with no replaceable components (elements, thermostats).  So people think they are saving huge amounts of money but when they break, that's it !  Just tip worthy.

bala