How to keep descale new kettle without ruining it

[Squeezita]

Hi, I bought a glass kettle a year ago and, living in London, the hard water makes it fur up quite quickly.

I used one of those descaler sachets from Wilkos but they ended up burning the bottom of the kettle.

I now have a new glass kettle and want to keep it fur free without burning it.

AIBU to ask for your tried and tested suggestions?

I use white vinegar

Can you use filtered water only? Get a Brita filter jug and only fill from there.

I use filtered water only and it still doesn't help. I slice a few pieces of lemon and boil the water. Sorts is out.

A tablespoon of citric acid, half fill, boil and leave for 10mins and is good as new.

I don't think it's the descaled that is ruining the kettle but the actual scale that slowly destroys it. I just got used to buying a kettle pretty much every year in London. Didn't bother with expensive ones.

I think it's unlikely that de-scaler is damaging your kettle. As poster above said, more likely to be the limescale itself eroding it.

Try using filtered water and keep on top of it regularly with lemon/ vinegar.

I have a Brita kettle which I love (it has a built in filter). Had it a year and it's only needed descaling once. Downside is you have to replace the filters and it doesn't boil quite as much as a normal kettle, but still worth it.

It's the limescale damaging the kettle. In London and the SE the water is so hard the only option go slow down the ruining of your kettle is to use filtered water or to descale more regularly. I do mine once a month or every 2 months (whichever i remember lol). The kettle is 3 years old and looking pretty new.

I use the little metal sponge things you put in the bottom that collect the limescale. You then take them out and clean them. Makes a big difference.

Citric acid. Once a week, half fill it and boil, throw in a tablespoon of citric acid, leave for an hour or two and rinse.

We live in an extremely hard water area and for years never managed to keep a kettle for longer than a year or so despite regular use of commercial descalers, white vinegar, the little metal brillo pad things etc. Then discovered citric acid and it's made a huge difference. The current kettle (which is only a cheap one from Argos) has lasted three years and that's far longer than any other.

Thanks everyone, interesting that it’s the limescale damaging the kettle. Maybe the combination of the limescale + descaler + boiling water didn’t help.

Will make a note to descale once a month with lemon or vinegar or citric acid.

Is citric acid widely available?

I did mine yesterday. Bottle of white vinegar, boiled it a few times, rinsed thoroughly, good as new

Citric acid is great, doesn’t smell or leave a bad taste.

Do you literally pour a bottle of white vinegar, undiluted, and keep boiling that? Do you have to rinse a good few times to get rid of the vinegar taste?

Thats what I do @AutumnLeaves21. I rinsed it fully twice after wiping off any loose scale and boiled a full kettle with fresh water twice and had a coffee straight afterwards and it was fine.

Only use filtered water.

Is citric acid widely available?

It used to be easily bought in pharmacies then heroin addicts discovered you get a faster rush if you cut the stuff with it and I got some side-eye when I rocked into Boots to buy it for making elderflower cordial. But you can buy it in 100g packets from Asian grocers or larger amounts from eBay. (It's used for dyeing protein, among other things.)

I have a glass kettle. Vinegar is excellent - fill with vinegar/water (I put vinegar to the minimum line and then top up to maximum with water) and let it sit overnight. In the morning it will be beautifully clear.

@Sparklfairy thanks going to give this a try

You can buy Citric Acid in Wilko

www.wilko.com/en-uk/wilko-original-citric-acid-250g/p/0332009

You can buy it from Boots in a little box for descaling baby bottle sterilisers.

Also, don't re boil the water. Fresh water every time.

I'm in London/SE and gave up with my glass kettle in the end as was having to descale it so often to stop it looking manky.

I was using a Brita water filter with it, and descaling citric acid. Works really well and no taint to wash away

The water here in East Anglia is similarly hard. I use Kilrock kettle descaler as DH abhors the smell of vinegar. 50ml in half a boiled kettle does the trick. Then rinse out kettle once. I descale every 3-4 weeks. It works out cheaper than lemon juice, which I started using after complaints about the vinegar smell. Easier to buy than citric acid as they stock it in my local hardware store.

Use liquid descaled that you pour in to hot water. It’s the only type that works completely, it’s much better than sachets or tablets.

Kilrock is the best thing. I live near london, v hard water. I declare with kilrock 1-2 times per year, had the kettle 7 years, still going strong.