Overfilling The Electric Kettle

Thanks, great tip. My mother has burned out two Krups kettles. They were easily over $100 each. The first one Krupps fixed for free as it was under warranty and second one she threw out. I wonder if she was over filling them to save on electricity? I'll have to ask her. Now she has purchased a Black and Decker kettle that has lasted longer than the expensive one did. I like to fill the kettle full when I boil water too but never overfill it. I'll use the extra water in the kettle to pour down the drain. A plumber once told me to save your drains to pour a full kettle of water down the kitchen drain to flush out any grease in it.

 

Generally, slightly overfilling the kettle should not cause such dramatic damage, and the water should not be hot enough to melt the plastic of your kettle. The water is going to only be a 100 degrees Celsius at most, and if that melts the kettle, won't your whole kettle melt over since it contains the water? I would think your switch melted probably due to a short circuit or something similar rather than it being caused by the water spilling over. If it spoils that easily and you are paying such a high price, consider switching brands because having a safety cut-off not work is dangerous when electricity and water are at play. Also, just let your parents know that the more water there is, the longer it takes to boil, the more electricity it takes. You do not really save at all.

 

Thanks for the advice. I always watch out for small decisions like this where I think I'm saving but in reality I'm just setting up myself for more expense in the future. It's why I try not to be too literal or rigid with my saving style wherein I would only look at the immediate savings without paying attention to the long term effects. My parents used to do a lot of those that I now come to realize weren't really practical at all. For example, they would eat up all leftovers the kids left at the restaurant, but now looking back, even if they saved themselves from wasting the money they spent on the food, it only ends up making them unhealthy and now it will come back to them in the form of hospital and medical bills.

 

During weekends when I give our dogs their bath, I would heat a kettle of water. My husband would always check the kettle and he would tell me not to put too much water. There should be a leverage (is that what you call it?) so the boiling water will have some space otherwise a full kettle will just overflow when boiling. And it doesn't really save you because you lose hot water in the process. I would say amen to that.

 

That's a shame that that happened to a good quality kettle! As a general rule, I only ever boil enough water for whatever I need. if I'm making tea for me and my husband, I put in just enough for two cups, or just a little over to ensure it covers the element. I definitely will not over fill it, because then it boils over and you don't want any of the water spilling onto the wires. I never go over the maximum mark.

 

I too would agree that overfilling a kettle is not only dangerous but also a false economy - particularly as it generally uses double the amount of energy - which is why - its way better to fill a kettle with only the amount of water required - especially as just doing that can shave a very significant amount off energy bills.

However that said - as constantly over filling a kettle is likely to be more of a health hazard than it is to cause damage to a kettle and its usually under filling that causes them to burn out - the cause of the damage to your kettle - is more likely to be that the kettle was faulty rather than the fact that it was overfilled.

 

I do put quite a bit of water in mine, but thankfully, have never experienced this issue. I do have a glass kettle with the plastic lid, which isn't my favorite, but my old one was really heavy, which made it difficult for me to lift. I still miss it, though, because I really don't care much for plastic, and I don't like how flimsy the plastic lid feels. I'm going to make a concerted effort to not overfill my kettle, since I don't want to have to buy another one, at least for a while.

 

I don't overfill either. I don't see the point - after all, you're only going to have to reboil any water left in the kettle after the last time.

The best way to keep your kettle in good working order is to descale it regularly. You can do this with plain old vinegar so there's no need to buy any fancy product. Once all the scale is off the element, the kettle will boil much quicker.

 

That sounds a bit extreme just to save on some electricity. They are already saving on electricity by using an electric kettle in the first place since it operates faster and more efficiently than boiling water on the stove in the first place. To put things into perspective, a light bulb running 24 hours a day 365 days a year uses about $125 or so worth of electricity. Using an electric kettle a couple times a day for a few minutes a day - even if it were 365 days a year - is a teeny tiny fraction of that $125 per year. Those electric kettles, if used on average for 10 minutes a day every day, would only amount to a few dollars a year. Not worth burning them out trying to save a few pennies like that. As you noted, you're already way in the hole if you break it and have to buy a new one.