Eco kettles are a great way to save water, energy and money and reduce your impact on the environment. Every time you use a normal kettle, it is almost certain that you will boil a lot more water than necessary- wasting time, energy, and adding to carbon emissions. It is estimated that, on average, we boil twice the volume of water needed every time we use the kettle. This means we use twice the amount of energy needed which is the equivalent of wasting the energy of around 50 light bulbs (1). It also takes twice as long to boil. The average kettle in the UK is used to boil water seven times per day with the average Brit getting through 4.3 cups of tea and coffee per day, which means an enormous amount of energy and money is being wasted. Eco kettles are designed specifically to meet the challenge of reducing the amount of energy wasted by overfilling your kettle. Eco kettles use less water as they either have a water gauge or a valve button which releases a specific amount if water (1 to 8 cups) into the chamber for boiling. This means that you only boil the amount of water you need which prevents boiling too much water saving time and energy. They allow you to accurately measure the exact amount of water every time. They work at wattage of around 3KW which means they boil water very quickly and save around 33% of energy than conventional kettles (2). They generally come in recyclable packaging which ensures it is eco friendly from a recycling perspective as well.
There is a wide range of eco kettles on the market that have proved to be very popular. For example, The Morphy Richards Inteliboil Jug Kettle is clever in that it has three pre-set temperatures of 100, 95 and 85 degree Celsius which is ideal for different types of hot drinks (especially speciality teas) and an internal water window illuminator which intensifies as water temperature increases. This makes the kettle stylish as you can see the water temperature increasing as the colour changes. It also has a removable lime scale filter which makes it easy to clean.
The Eco Kettle 3 also has this neat temperature select feature (3). When the desired temperature is reached, an audible alarm will sound and your eco kettle will switch of automatically. These kettles with the temperature settings are the most sophisticated versions of the eco kettle on the market as they save even more energy. They cost around £49.
The Philips HD4671 has a cup water level indicator and allows you to witness the water boiling through the transparent chamber. In addition, it offers sufficient space for storing the power cord in the base of the kettle itself and has lid that stays cool for optimal safety. It is also easy to clean as it has a flat heating element and a double action filter. This model is supposedly one of the fastest eco kettles at boiling water, taking only 40 seconds to boil 1.5 cups (or a mug) of cold water. It is also quiet and does not splash when pouring.
The Tefal Quick Cup takes an average of 25 seconds to boil one cup and uses 3.85KW of power. You simple place your cup in the appropriate position, press a button and hot water is dispensed into your cup very quickly. However, it does not actually boil the water entirely so is not ideal for making tea. Moreover, it is priced at around £50 with cartridges on top at around £5 lasting between 4 to 6 weeks. It is therefore not cheap!
The Eco Cordless Jug Kettle, White 300W holds 1.5 litres of water ready for use and allows you to boil only the amount of water needed. It makes an excellent cup of tea because unlike standard kettles, it is not boiling water that has been boiled before, which really affects the taste. Effectively, you are boiling fresh water each time.
The Eco Kettle Chrome 2 has a dual-chamber design which holds 1.5 litres of water. By pressing a knob, enough water for one cup is released into the next chamber for boiling. It has a washable lime scale filter too.
The Kenwood SJM150 is only £25 and is much like the other eco models (perhaps not quite so stylish) but it has a flip lid for one hand operation. It is easy to fill, easy to pour, has a mesh filter to trap lime scale, dual water windows and an adjustable cord.
The eco kettle is one of the best selling and favourite eco products available and is essential for any eco friendly kitchen or workplace. The eco kettle is a lot more stylish in comparison to conventional kettles and it really does save you money, energy and water. Based on average usage figures, it has been estimated (according to the Energy Saving Trust) that eco kettles sold over the past two years have already reduced CO2 emissions in the UK by a staggering 500 tonnes. Furthermore, Defra estimated that if everybody in the UK used an eco kettle, we would save 1,270,000,000 KWH of electricity every year. This is enough energy to practically run all the street lighting in the UK. Thus, the eco kettle pays for itself in so many ways. It is an easy, simple and valuable choice to make. Invest in an eco kettle and help save the planet while on your coffee break!
(2) www.reuk.co.uk
(3) www.which.co.uk
