Repairing a plastic kettle ..

[Jethro_uk]

SWMBO has just noticed a weep from our (admittedly cheapie) plastic kettle.

Close inspection reveals a hairline crack at radiating from the clear plastic "window" you use for gauging the level. Which also explains why it's not been noticed before as it's above the 2-cup level that we usually fill to.

My first instinct was that this is beyond the pale to repair ...

However, a curious googling reveals that quite a few people have repaired such kettles with leaks from the window (so clearly not uncommon) with food-grade silicon, and popping the window and and resealing (if you tube is to be believed).

Has anyone done this ? And given that I've got a crack in the plastic, not a leaking seal is it still fixable.

I know a new kettle is only a few quid, but given it will probably have exactly the same issue in a couple of years, I'd at least want to try once.

[Harry Bloomfield, Esq.]

Jethro_uk explained :

A leaking seal means any sealant applied will be trapped and held in place. A crack will have nothing to keep any sealant in place so unlikly to stay put.

Save you time and money - invest in a shiny new kettle.

[tabbypurr]

Plastic welding is an established practice and can be done with a soldering gun or iron. Obviously don't let either get too hot. I can't imagine it'd be worthwhile.

NT

[newshound]

FWIW I'd let it dry out and apply a drop of superglue and hope that this would be drawn in by capilliary action. A bit of PVC tape applied with tension would probably last a while. With the tiny exposed area I wouldn't worry about poisoning yourself.

[Clive Arthur]

Take out the window and block up the gauge with silicone if possible. These things are just a nuisance.

[Jethro_uk]

Thanks for all the repairs.

It wasn't the actual window seal that was leaking, so no point removing it.

After some reflection, I've had a go at going over the area from the bottom up with layers of sellotape. Previously it was weeping a drip every few seconds. After the patch it was bone dry for hours, and has boiled a few times since with no leak whatsoever.

Will it last ? Who knows.

My main gripe about buying anything new is that 80% of new anything these days is shit. Either it doesn't last, or it doesn't do the job.

If I had to hold up an example of the best kitchen appliance I've got in the past 5 years, it's a cast iron bottle opener that was free with some cast iron frying pans I bought online. It has outlasted 3 lever-arm corkscrews (which also had a shit bottle opener built in).

For corkscrews now, I just use a classic "T" between the knees and pull model. Bit of effort, but hasn't broken (yet).

[Andy Burns]

[Brian Gaff (Sofa]

Interestingly, I've had a few plastic jug kettles but never had a weep on any of them as the window seems to be held in by some form of plastic melting or a weld. Brian

[Brian Gaff (Sofa]

Yes, I had more issues with the old Swan metal ones myself, the feet seemed to be held on by something that made that point liable to leak, probably due to the thin metal used I'd suspect, also you can burn yourself on metal ones. Brian

[Harry Bloomfield, Esq.]

Jethro_uk pretended :

I know! No it will not, selotape adhesive becomes soggy in water.

[Harry Bloomfield, Esq.]

Brian Gaff (Sofa) formulated the question :

Our metal kettle developed a leak via the window. Descaling it, with strong citric acid cured it. My guess was that limescale build up was penetrating the window seal.

[Jethro_uk]

Now *that* is a kettle !

[Jethro_uk]

This was a hairline crack emanating (Comet stylee) from the sharpest point of the window curve ...

[newshound]

If it is in a crack perhaps ten microns wide but a few millimetres deep geometry will work in your favour.

[Jimk]

ISTR superglue will fail in moist environments, presumably being hot & moist will speed that failure up...

[Jimk]

Rriigghhtt...... which bit?