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Original poster

Hot water bottle

53 replies

Littleguggi · 14/10/2022 23:33

Can anyone recommend a decent hot water bottle that actually stays hot? I.e. it basically does what it's supposed to do!

The one I have currently, I am having to replace the hot water 3-4-5 times a day!

OP posts:
MissSmiley · 15/10/2022 08:29

My sister had severe burns from a hwb at night it didn't even burst, I swear by a wheat bag in the microwave, much safer and more comfortable

hugoagogo · 15/10/2022 08:35

Boots ones are the best or Fashy if you can find them. I probably should remember to replace my actual bottle.

sillyoldsausagechops · 15/10/2022 09:49

I'm not sure what they're like now but I've got a well used 20 year old M&S one that I break all the rules and boil water fill it up and go to bed with and it's still like warm in the morning!

sillyoldsausagechops · 15/10/2022 09:53

I would say that mine is extremely thick rubbery one.
I bought my dd one recently on Amazon and it's very thin and useless and no way would I dare put boiling water in it well tbh it's set aside for the bin. I do think you'd have to replace them more often than me though. But I go to bed in a thick dressing gown as well so there's quite a lot of barrier between me and hwb.

TeaAndStrumpets · 15/10/2022 10:16

I think the trick is to leave a little water in when you empty it, then filling from a recently boiled kettle should be about right. I change mine when I make a fresh pot of tea!

Liebig · 15/10/2022 13:16

blacksax · 15/10/2022 00:26

I've been doing that for years. Not when the kettle has literally just boiled, but certainly within a minute or so.

Show quote history

That’s fine. Putting immediately boiled water in is a no-no due to the possible impact on the rubber of typical hot water bottles. Most hot water dispensers will have water come out at 95°C or so rather than fully boiling, but if in doubt, just leave it a minute or so. It will be plenty warm and probably too warm to have up against you anyway.

LeMoo · 15/10/2022 15:58

Liebig · 15/10/2022 13:16

That’s fine. Putting immediately boiled water in is a no-no due to the possible impact on the rubber of typical hot water bottles. Most hot water dispensers will have water come out at 95°C or so rather than fully boiling, but if in doubt, just leave it a minute or so. It will be plenty warm and probably too warm to have up against you anyway.

Show quote history

That's helpful,thank you

WildRosie · 15/10/2022 16:06

Get a cat. They will happily insulate your hot water bottle for you.

Original poster
Littleguggi · 15/10/2022 20:14

So sorry to hear the awful stories about burns. I was going to get my DC hot water bottles but think I will pass now!

I try not to fill mine with boiling water but there are times I do.

My hot water bottle has a fluffy cover but I've figured through these conversations that the top bit (where you pour the water in) is exposed, it almost needs a flap!

I won't bother buying a new one as it seems it's normal to have to refill it every few hours, I'll just find a way of making it more insulated, maybe wrapping it in a thin blanket might help.

OP posts:
LeMoo · 15/10/2022 22:22

Many covers are envelope style - like a zip less cushion cover - so don't have an opening at the top.

DahliaMacNamara · 15/10/2022 22:34

Can't believe people fill their hot water bottles with boiling water. I'm a heavy daytime hwb user, and need to replace mine at least once a year due to ruptures, so I thought I was cavalier about them. If the kettle boils I wait at least 30 minutes before filling the hot water bottle. If I need it sooner than that, I don't let the water actually boil. I don't buy cheap ones, so when they burst it's slightly painful forking out to replace them, but nothing like as bad as getting serious scalds on my back.

OakleyStreetisnotinChelsea · 15/10/2022 22:43

If the hot water bottle were so insulated that the water in it stayed hot all night then the outside of the bottle wouldn't be hot. Kind of like the difference between a normal mug of tea you can warm your hands around but the tea will cool and s thermal mug where the tea stays hot but the mug isn't warm enough to warm your hands on.

My dc is those microwave things with barley or whatever in them. They stay warm for a fair while. But again, of course they cool, this is what allows them to feel to warm to you.

LadyHelenaJustina · 15/10/2022 22:50

I don’t use water from the kettle. I use water from the hot tap; anything warmer than that can scald or cause hot water bottle rash. And I have lovely silicon water bottles, so less prone to rubber degrading.

JohnsShirt · 15/10/2022 22:50

DahliaMacNamara · 15/10/2022 22:34

Can't believe people fill their hot water bottles with boiling water. I'm a heavy daytime hwb user, and need to replace mine at least once a year due to ruptures, so I thought I was cavalier about them. If the kettle boils I wait at least 30 minutes before filling the hot water bottle. If I need it sooner than that, I don't let the water actually boil. I don't buy cheap ones, so when they burst it's slightly painful forking out to replace them, but nothing like as bad as getting serious scalds on my back.

30 minutes?!
I know you aren't supposed to use boiling water but surely it's barely hot after 30 minutes.
I leave it for about two minutes and have never had an issue in my 30 odd years of filling them myself.

DahliaMacNamara · 15/10/2022 22:51

It's really very hot, honestly. Depends how much water is in the kettle. It's possible I kill my hot water bottles by over-feeding them.

Perfectlystill · 15/10/2022 23:00

Half an hour?

I have filled mine straight from the kettle for decades. Maybe I've been lucky?

HollyJollypup · 15/10/2022 23:09

I didn’t even know you were meant to fill it up straight from the kettle being boiled… I filled 3 up like this tonight and Iv never had a problem with it.

HollyJollypup · 15/10/2022 23:10

Weren't*

TheWolves · 15/10/2022 23:12

Fashy make the best HWBs. If you want it to stay hot, it needs to be very well wrapped up.

Best thing is an electric throw though.

TheWolves · 15/10/2022 23:13

I've been having mine with boiling water since I was a child. Obviously don't use any where the rubber may have perished.

PeloFondo · 15/10/2022 23:16

DahliaMacNamara · 15/10/2022 22:34

Can't believe people fill their hot water bottles with boiling water. I'm a heavy daytime hwb user, and need to replace mine at least once a year due to ruptures, so I thought I was cavalier about them. If the kettle boils I wait at least 30 minutes before filling the hot water bottle. If I need it sooner than that, I don't let the water actually boil. I don't buy cheap ones, so when they burst it's slightly painful forking out to replace them, but nothing like as bad as getting serious scalds on my back.

When I worked as a carer I found a guy filling his up with boiling water and then microwaving (the totally full and bulging bottle) it as "it wasn't hot enough Shock

Jellybean23 · 15/10/2022 23:36

It's cheaper to use an electric under blanket for half an hour than to boil a kettle full of water and the whole bed is warmed. We use wheat bags downstairs instead of hot water bottles if we need one. A couple of minutes in the microwave is long enough. 'Hotties' are microwaveable hot water bottles with fleece covers - they look good.

StillMedusa · 15/10/2022 23:49

sillyoldsausage please replace your HWB... they have a self life and it WILL blow!
I use one every single night for back pain (even took it to Hawaii :D) and like many I'm guilty of filling it from a just boiled kettle.

Last month I filled mine, only a year old, plonked it on the sofa as I sat down to give the cat a stroke, and it exploded, giving me very painful 2nd degree burns over my arm and elbow. Seeing my skin literally slide off was not nice, and the next few weeks were very uncomfortable, having dressings changed etc. I've now got tender new skin that has to be shielded from the sun for at least a year.

If I fill mine at about 10pm (I leave the kettle 10 mins now) it's still hot at 2am and vaguely comforting when I wake at 6am

Hereyeah · 12/11/2022 22:35

These are cute www.eclecticgiftstore.co.uk/hot-water-bottles and fleece lined. Probably asking a bit for a hot water bottle to stay hot all day though.

Needhelp101 · 12/11/2022 22:39

Salt! Put a teaspoon of salt in it.

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