Boiling water taps, revolutionary or crap?

[BoilingTap]

We’re in the process of having a brand new kitchen done. I’m really keen on a boiling water tap (Quooker) whereas my partner thinks they are a waste of money (it is over £1k) and we can just get a kettle. His argument is we can get a nice looking kettle for a tenth of the price, it’s no faff, if anything goes wrong you just replace.

I quite fancy one as I cook a lot of pasta, rice, potato’s, as well as making teas and coffees. I also like the idea of having more worktop space and reducing the amount of things plugged in. Obviously it’s a big expense and I’ve also read they need regular maintenance, I don’t fancy spending over a grand on a tap and then shelling out hundreds in maintenance. Can anyone who owns one shed any light?

YABU - team DH, they are a gimmick and crap.

YANBU - team BoilingTap, they are revolutionary, go for it!

I decided against getting one as we don't use our kettle much, we also have a power-boost setting on our induction hob that boils quickly for pasta etc, they also take up cupboard space. Also it's a huge expense!

My main fear (possibly justified possibly not) was that my kids would scold themselves on the tap.

I wanted one when we had our kitchen done recently, started a thread like this, got a lot of negative responses, didn’t get one and regret it every day! 😫

I love our quooker.

We have a Grohe and I love it.

You need to let it run off for a few seconds, until you see steam, as there will be water left in the pipes from the last use that has cooled. If you do this the water is hot enough for lovely tea.

Also I’ve never had spluttering

I like the idea that it won't generate the clouds of steam that a kettle does, so you would reduce the humidity produced in the kitchen and in turn condensation.
But I haven't had one yet and an reading with interest as well be getting a new kitchen in a few months.

Absolutely love ours and use it loads - teas, coffees, pasta, eggs, making stock, cleaning baking trays.
Sometimes you just need a small amount of boiling water and that it’s not worth boiling a kettle.

I love mine. I have the 5 in 1

We love them. Had our first one about 12 years ago and became instant converts. Moved last year, re did kitchen in new house recently and it was non negotiable.
The new one takes up only a very small amount of cupboard space btw, not a whole cupboard which a pp referenced.
In both houses we chose to have a stand alone Qooker, and a normal
mixer tap separately. We stayed in a house with an all in one once and found it annoying not to be able to use both at once, and to have to think about water temperatures.

it's witchcraft! Expensive witchcraft.
We have one in work and it's plastered in 'BEWARE! HOT water' because it scalding. Except for when it's not hot enough...

We have one and absolutely love it. I realize there are worse hardships to endure than boiling a kettle, but this thing is our favourite luxury ever.

@oakleaffy
Next time rub washing up liquid over the outside of the pan before it goes on the fire. It makes it much easier to get the spot off 😁

Get a Breville hotcup water dispenser. Then you only need to get DH to fill it and you can make a brew whenever you want one. We had one of those before the qettle.
It only boils and dispenses one cup at a time so ideal for saving fuel and when you don't want to lift a kettle full of boiling water.

Crap. It was the aspirational kitchen knickknack du jour when I lived in an English village from 2012-19, and I must have had bad tea or coffee on a regular basis from about fifteen different Quookers. The owners were so proud of them it would have been cruel to say ‘This is dreadful’.

I love having one. Don’t get a Franke though - the water boiler on ours has failed for the 3rd time - first two were covered on guarantee but that has now run out. May just replace the whole bloody thing with a cheaper brand as looks as though it may cost the same as just the boiler from Franke.
had a Quooker for years in previous house with no problems at all

I'm quite happy with my kettle, we have boiling water taps at work and they never seem quite right (and always seem to be broken).
However I would seriously consider a pot filler tap, although admittedly I've done no research on these other than they look like a good idea.

I was thinking of getting one when we had our new kitchen put in 4 years ago, but then my daughter got one and I really don't like it. It sputters and spits and frightens me! I realise that not all not water taps are the same, but it put me right off. I do really like the idea though.... Ours was going to be at the bottom end of the (long fairly thin) kitchen at our coffee station, which is near the breakfast table and as far from the sink as it could possibly be. We got another kettle instead, but it is annoying to have to go right down to the other end of the kitchen to fill it.

This is exactly how I felt before we had one. DH was keen, and as part of a new kitchen refurb whats another thousand pounds…but now I’m a total convert, would be the first thing on the list if we ever move.
We have a Quooker. It’s fab.

MIL got a Quooker when she had her kitchen refurbished recently and I haven't liked the taste of the tea at all. I'm very easy to please in general , but I suppose tea is the one thing I'm a bit fussy about. It just tastes strange. The first time I was given tea made from it, I didn't know, but I still noticed the difference right away (obviously I didn't say anything to MIL!)

We have a Quooker for the past 8 years, and I can't imagine living without one. They are so handy for tea, coffee, washing frying pans and pots. It provides boiling water all Summer when we wouldn't have hot water from oil-fired heating being on. I'd really miss it if it were taken away.

Does anyone who owns one live in an area with hard water? We are in the SE. Have been reading lots of information about them and have come across people who have had issues with limescale and end up shelling out hundreds of pounds in filters / servicing…

We never get limescale in our kettle, I’m not sure if that’s a good indicator or not. We do get limescale on our black taps and shower head in the upstairs bathroom.

Yes, we're in London so have very hard water. We replace the filter ourselves once a year and have had ours serviced once in 5 years.

We put in a whole house water softener (the drinking water bypasses that) but before that, we had lots of limescale.

Of course you didn’t, because she was proud of her new gadget, which is why I conclude that many proud owners of Quookers and the like have no idea that, whatever their other virtues may be, they make poor tea and coffee, because they’re not fussy themselves, and other people are too polite to say ‘This is rank’ to someone who’s just spent quite a lot of money on something.

Thank you. The filter that you replace, is that the Scale R filter that you can buy separately to the Quooker? We do not have a water softener and have heard it’s not good for drinking water x

Got ours last year and wouldn’t be without it now. Kept my kettle in case of emergencies/Christmas dinner and the amount of things needing done. Hasn’t been needed once. Game changer.

I'd love one!