1975 Goblin Teasmade Kettle Spout Gasket

[cd]

Just picked this relic up at car boot, tested the element before parting with my fiver. With such simple engineering it all works OK. The only issue is the outlet spout leaks when boiling.

For those unfamiliar the spout goes down to element level, when it boils, water is forced up & out into the teapot. The kettle base has a switch & spring in it, when the water has emptied sufficiently the spring lifts & the switch is opened thus cutting the power.

I digress, the spout assembly has a gasket on the inside, it has lost any flexibility it may have had hence the leak. I've nipped up as much as I dare to no avail.

There's no way I'll get an original gasket, so will need to make my own. Any idea if what material to use that will be non toxic & cab be easily fettled?

Here's some pictures:

Gasket (sits on spout assembly inside)

Top piece (goes outside) Top down view Top piece (underside)

Whole assembly (sans kettle)

[Owain Lastname]

We had one of those.

It leaked when boiling in 1975 too.

Original feature, innit.

Owain

[ARW]

Instant gasket that you would use on a car?

[Chris Bacon]

I would be inclined to use something like:

(checking it's OK for potable hot water), or look at gaskets for tea urns and similar. Unfortunately silicone RTV for cars etc is likely to cointain fungicides or other nasties. There may be some silicone sealant suitable for aquariums which would be OK.

[Jeff Layman]

Is it possible that you don't need the whole gasket? Perhaps an "O" ring would be sufficient assuming the metal top piece when screwed down would compress it. Or are those holes either side of the large hole meant for something other than screws?

[Brian]

I?d try and get a bit of silicone sheet and make one.

[Thomas Prufer]

- PTFE tape, wrap and build up

- "Tetrapak" i.e. laminated foodsafe cardboard

- silicone sheet thin, i.e. nonstick baking sheet/ rolling mat

- silicone sheet thick, i.e. silicone baking mould

(or a suitable thickness of limescale?)

Thomas Prufer

[cd]

I messaged them, they suggested this for potable water

is thicker than the existing one so should nip up well, rated for

110°C so within tolerance. Worth a punt at £3.55, I also have a set of hole punches somewhere that were for a caravan awning project that never happened.

[Brian Gaff (Sofa]

Yes, several people at the time used some kind of glue, urethane bond by Dow corning came to mind, but as to how toxic such stuff is, I have no idea, and its probably not available any more or called something else.. Brian

[newshound]

+1. Boil it in a pint of water for a few minutes if you are paranoid about chemicals.

If you are really paranoid look up "medical silicone sheet" which will find self-adhesive stuff that is used to reduce scarring.

[newshound]

IMHO it would be a bit hot for urethane, although the risk of toxicity is small. A better bet might be silicone "bath sealant" (avoiding ones that include fungicide for mould resistance) or two-part (RTV) silicones. (Assemble loose, and don't tighten up until it is cured).

[Andrew]

You can get 'food grade' silicone sealant

[Andrew]

From what I remember of them, they are very good at waking you up long before the nasty buzzer goes off.

You lie there listening to the noise of water coming to the boil waiting in anticipation for the alarm.

[cd]

The vent in the kettle lid is like a whistle.

The buzzer is loud enough to wake the dead. I shan't be using it to wake up, it's for the quite lucrative resale market.

[cd]

There's a lot of silicone baking stuff in the house, I'll sacrifice a piece & report back.

[cd]

We Have a winner. A butchered Silicone Cupcake case, some very rough holes in it, screws nipped up, works like a charm.

A rather garish colour

Cheers