Wall kettles - any experiences - is the Redring one any good?

[tinnews]

We're considering getting a "fixed on the wall" water heater for instant hot water to use for making coffee and such.

A quick search turns up this:-

would appear to fulfil our fairly basic requirements and is a whole lot cheaper than anything else I can find, all the other more 'commercial' devices seem to be well over £200.

We sort of want to try the idea out before spending *lots* of money so this might be a way to do it. Does anyone have any experience/knowledge of this device?

[Owain]

Yes.

(a) they're not instant. It boils when you push the button and then turns off. How long it takes depends on how warm the water is.

(b) water can go through repeated boil-keep warm - boil cycles. This means it isn't fresh

(c) when you fill it you have to attach the hose to the cold tap and watch the level in the wall kettle. Inattention results in water pouring out the top of the wall kettle and going everywhere.

(d) someone will assume the water coming out of the spout is at hand- washing temperature when in fact it's near boiling

(e) someone always takes the last of the hot water and doesn't refill it

Owain

[tinnews]

I just realised this after posting the link. That Redring device isn't one that maintains the water at boiling point like the more expensive ones.

Do you find this actually makes tea (in particular) not taste so good?

Thanks for the comments.

[Owain]

It certainly didn't help the taste of the fairtrade teabags :-(

Owain

[Andy Champ]

> which would appear to fulfil our fairly basic requirements and is a

Used these kind of devices in student digs and several company kitchens since. They're always crap. Doesn't matter whether they're super cheap or horribly expensive, they always go wrong!

Now we just buy a new kettle every few months when the old one dies. (Highest power we can, to cut down waits). And yes, I do mean every few months, it was meant for domestic use not for 20 people!

Andy

[Brian Gaff]

So why don't they simply modify a power shower device to make hot water available straight away rather than have a receptacle like a normal kettle?. I can see that to boil water you might have a safety risk, but if its just water for washing stuff etc, it sould be fine I'd have thought. Brian

[Bob Eager]

Been around for years. Under-sink heaters. As you say, not boiling but...

[Derek Geldard]

At which point they leave screwholes and plumbing/cable entry points in the wrong place for the replacement ...

:-((

DerekG

[Theo Markettos]

Cafe espresso machines also do hot water. Ours can be set from 92 to 97C, and runs off a 13A wall socket (and water feed). However it has a reservoir of almost-boiled water which it keeps hot (don't know the volume, but only a few litres) and brings it back up to temperature after you've just drawn water. I suspect it also tops up the heating on the water output too (same machine can do steam out of another nozzle). It makes perfectly good tea.

But it's not exactly a cheap way to go...

Theo

[thirty-six]

You should never boil the water in tea-making unless you are making chai. If the water isn't safe to drink from the tap, buy bottled water for tea-making. Coffee isn't so fussy, you can boil the arse out of the kettle and bad coffee still tastes bad, just don't steep it so hot. Tea relies on oxygen content in the water to get the nicest extraction.

[Owain]

On the other hand, catering boiling tap machines can often be had for next to nothing on ebay if there's a local seller and no-one else locally buying - they're too heavy to post.

However I don't know how much lecky they use to keep the water hot.

Owain

[Doctor Drivel]

Sounds like you need two kettles.

[Andy Champ]

One kettle does the job. But because it's being boiled several times an hour rather than several times a day it doesn't last as long as it would in an ordinary home.

Andy

[Man at B&Q]

We have zip heaters at work and they are fine apart from needing the occasional descale.

MBQ

[Bob Eager]

So do we. OK if you don't want properly brewed tea.