Re-boil the kettle - or use a flask?

[Deleted User]

Drinking cold water has been claimed previously to make you burn fat to heat it up, but I have no idea whether that's actually true or not.

miff_2

You can cook grains and pasta in a food thermos just look at the tube. Sorry off topic.

theoretica

I make more than one cup of tea at once in the teapot - a great option if you are flexible about the timing of your cups and happy to drink a couple, then have a gap and then a couple more, rather than drink them evenly spaced.  Also if I am using teabags it saves on them, as I find one bag in a pot works for two cups for me, rather than using one for each cup.

TheGardener

This is just the kind of rambling convo on MSE forums I love

So @MattMattMattUK says: "she might save around £1-3 per year based on boiling 1.32 litres twice a day, rather than 330ml eight times a day, accounting for the additional cost of heating the thermal mass of the kettle the extra times (using a 65p per kWh cost)...The saving from only boiling 330ml of water at a time, rather than 660ml each time would save around £40-60 per year."

So if I read that right - boiling what she needs (and no more) rather than boiling full kettle twice could, potentially, save around £50 a year and provide a better quality cup of tea? 
We all have good flasks already so no additional outlay there
Another poster talked about feeling like you are in control - I actually think thats a really important thing - given our government is away on its summer jollies and no one has been left on duty in the wheelhouse...feeling like you are doing something can be a considerable help to those suffering anxiety (like my Mum) 
Someone mentioned Aldi coffee I tried that - its truly awful. 

Many of us who are worried have already done the big hits of insulation and lightbulbs and worked out its not enough! - many of us are now 'salami slicing' 50 quid here - 20 quid there - but a lot of slices a whole salami makes; and it is going to be hard to make these habit changes so that they become as natural as our previous more profligate use. 
I've spent a bit of time planning meals that either don't use the oven or if I really need an oven then batch cooking and make maximum use of the oven. I believe I will make some good savings there.

Just to really make my Mum feel better: BG sent her a letter dated 12 Aug that arrived this morning (25th) offering her a 1 year fix - we did the maths and she liked the idea of knowing how much the DD would be each month - she was just about to do the text reply and we noticed the offer expired yesterday...

flowercandle

i thought about this myself as i drink loads of tea every day.
I know i would not measure out the water and i would be boiling too much water each time.
Its probably not cost effective but when its freezing cold I like to make a huge teapot full of tea, and then put the teapot on a teapot warmer with a tealight candle underneath to keep it warm (and it does for as long as you want), i use two teabags and they last me all day, the tea is always strong and i have to wait for it to cool. Only be careful if the teapot is low as it will re-boil from the candle. You could probably argue that the teapot and tealight gives off heat too!
I dont think its particularly energy saving, it probably saves more on teabags as i would need to boil the kettle about 9 times a day to get the same cups of tea out of my big teapot.
I like the energy saving tips on here but little things like this dont help if you dont make sure you attic is stuffed with insulation for winter (and best time to get offers is during heatwaves)!!!! 

artyboy

This all reminds me a bit of how the proles are kept subjugated in 1984 - make them constantly focus on the minute details of day to day survival, and they will be distracted from the macro issues that could cause a revolution if they ever got the attention they deserved.

Not that I'm advocating revolt here, just another take on the comment about how people are happy to get into rambling debate on how to save a few pence!

Norman_Castle

2pints said:

SAC2334 said:

I m just experimenting myself

.If it's going to cost 75 p to £1 next year for each 1000 watts used I  may as well use the least amount of energy for my 4/5 cups a day 

 .Making sure to measure an exact amount of water for just one cup and using a kettle which has a flat bottom with no element to cover,it takes exactly 40 seconds to boil the water for my cup.

I will now measure 4 cups to see if it takes 4x40 secs  =2 mins..

Personally I m not going to get involved in filling a flask because it will lose heat over the day .

Making sure just to boil only a cup of water is  more important because I ve been overfilling a lot prior to me measuring an exact amount .
I just need to practice now in filling the kettle via the tap for exactly one cup.

I ve probably been guilty of boiling 2 cups of water  wasting energy all my life .

Or just fill a cup with water and pour it into the kettle.

I do that when I'm camping using a small gas cooker but most electric kettles need a minimum amount. Would it be worth her using a pan on the hob when at home?

Martin_the_Unjust

Norman_Castle said:

2pints said:

SAC2334 said:

I m just experimenting myself

.If it's going to cost 75 p to £1 next year for each 1000 watts used I  may as well use the least amount of energy for my 4/5 cups a day 

 .Making sure to measure an exact amount of water for just one cup and using a kettle which has a flat bottom with no element to cover,it takes exactly 40 seconds to boil the water for my cup.

I will now measure 4 cups to see if it takes 4x40 secs  =2 mins..

Personally I m not going to get involved in filling a flask because it will lose heat over the day .

Making sure just to boil only a cup of water is  more important because I ve been overfilling a lot prior to me measuring an exact amount .
I just need to practice now in filling the kettle via the tap for exactly one cup.

I ve probably been guilty of boiling 2 cups of water  wasting energy all my life .

Or just fill a cup with water and pour it into the kettle.

I do that when I'm camping using a small gas cooker but most electric kettles need a minimum amount. Would it be worth her using a pan on the hob when at home?

Electric kettles need a minimum amount only to make the auto switch off work. 

Boil a cup full and turn it off manually when it boils and you can easily boil just a cup full.