Boiling water taps

[weepingwillow22]

We are having a new kitchen and I am in a quandry over whether it is worth getting one of these and if so which one.

I initially thought they sounded like a good idea but then I read that the ideal water temperature for tea should only be about 70 degrees c and coffee 95 degrees c. I am wondering therefore if they are just an expensive gimmick. Do people use them to make hot drinks or just for filling saucepans?

I am also confused over which one to get. The quooker seems to be the only one that guarantees water at 100 degrees c but I can't see why you need it that hot anyway?

Also is it worth spending extra for sparkling or chilled water? Does anyone have the quooker cube? If we went for the cheaper quettle there is a water chiller that is much cheaper, has anyone installed this?

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Yes, yes, yes, get one!! They are life changing and fabulous!
Only Quooker are 100 degrees as you said.
I have a 4 in one Quettle (98degrees) . I like drinks hot so preheat the cup for a few seconds, but if you make drink into an unheated cup, that will take to temperature down a few degrees anyway. I don't know about tea, I don't drink it, but surely even with the kettle you don't wait for the temperature of the water to drop that much before you make it anyway?
My Quettle has filtered cold too, as well as the boiling and normal hot /cold. If I had unlimited money, I would get the Quooker ( I regularly use one elsewhere) but am very happy with my Quettle which fits my budget.

Thanks Cheshire. May I ask why would you choose the Quooker over the Quettle?

Also is the chilling unit for the Quettle noisy? I have been unable to find any reviews of it. I was put off it a bit becuase I read it needed lots of ventilation holes in the unit.

I would choose the Quooker simply because it is boiling and I like drinks nuclear hot 😀
I can't answer your question about the chilling unit I'm afraid, mine tap just filters cold, not chills. I have had it 18 months now, so it's perhaps an older model.

I have a pro oil 2 - pronteau. You can adjust the temperature so can have really boiling or just very hot depending on what you want.

When it's up high it spits out boiling water for a few seconds when it reboils after use. I've turned it down a bit so it doesn't do this. As any visitors seemed to think that it was weird and dangerous 🙄

Remember to turn it off at the plug when you go away.

I use it everyday for hot drinks and filling saucepans etc. Don't even have a kettle anymore.

However was it worth £900? Probably not.

My kitchen fitter didn't know how to fit it and broke it, then it took months for wickes to sort out a replacement and get it fitted by a professional. Then it broke a couple of times and ruined the cupboard it was in.

In hindsight I'd have been happy with a kettle. But my bad experiences are probably unusual and you probably wouldn't have any problems.

We went to centre parcs earlier this year and my 12 year old said 'oh look - a kettle! Who even has kettles anymore?!' 😂😂

Proboil not pro oil 🙄

We've had a quooker for 8 years now and would never be without it. When we bought it it was the highest temperature on the market and husband wanted it for his tea. We used it to sterilise items when the kids were younger. We constantly use it when cooking and it saves so much time instead of having to wait for saucepans to boil. It's really safe with the child lock and if you put your hand underneath it you won't end up at the hospital and I know this from experience; last weekend messing around in the kitchen whilst preparing dinner and I went to wash a handful of grapes but was laughing so much I washed them under the quooker rather than the cold tap! I could never go back to a kettle now.

I'm a bit of a dinosaur and really don't see the point of them. I'm a fussy tea drinker and they never seem to get the water hot enough to make good tea plus they are expensive and fiddly to repair when they break.

We had one in work and whilst it was okay for tea for coffee we had to put it in the mircrowave. I wouldn't bother

Black tea should be made with water that has just boiled. So you'd need the 100deg one.

Green tea (and various other types) should be made at 80deg. Coffee at 90deg.

I only drink green tea so I have a temperature controlled kettle that heats to that temperature. Boiling water taps are no use to me.

The last place I worked had them though and they broke every few months. I know they get more use at work but we had three of them and an average of about 150 people in the office at any time, of whom the vast majority seemed to go out for their coffee anyway.

We have one. I love the lack of noise and the fact that it's instant and no kettle clutter. For me it's worth it. We also have the accompanying descaler. Bloody expensive but lovely.

Thanks for all the feedback. How much are people spending on filters etc for these taps each year?

Also, those of you who have had a tap for a few years, have you had an maintainence issues with them? If so what brand tap do you have?

you can buy a lot of kettles for the expense and faf they are

We have these at work and they are brand new but break ALL THE TIME.

I also wonder about how green they are if they keep water permanently boiling ready to go, when you only need it for a few cups a day?

How do they cope if you live in a hard water area? We get through a kettle a year with monthly descaling.

We have one but a different brand. My husband wanted one so we didn't have a kettle cluttering up the side. We have it set to 80 degrees at the moment and I'm happy with both tea and coffee from it - if you're a parent of small children you only ever drink it cold anyway.

We have hard water but it's been fine so far (18 months in), and although it makes a noise every so often you barely notice it.

I have a Insinkerator one so I think it is 96 degrees or something, I have had it 7 years and I do not regret it for one second. If you like really hot drinks just pre-warm the cup using the hot water tap. Fill it let it sit whilst you get milk out, or the tea ready, dump the water and make your drink.

It cost £358 back then but I had to have a replacement tank due to it leaking. This is a well known problem with the Insinkerator old style tanks. What is shit is that they are still offering that for sale for £399 for the tap and the old tank. The new and improved tank and tap is £649.

If I could I would have a Quooker for the fact that it is truly a boiling water tap not a hot water tap. I use my tap daily for drinks, filling pans but also it is good for washing up water too if you only need a small amount (lunch boxes, drinks bottles)

We had one installed in our new kitchen back end of last year. I wasn't bothered but DH wanted one. Its great, we have it set at 98 degrees and works brilliantly for all our hot drinks. My only complaint is that it takes longer to make drinks if there is a crowd, current circumstances of global pandemic means this isn't an issue at the moment!

I have an insinkerator one and I love it. It’s great for veg and pasta and making tea and coffee.

We have one at work. It's handy, but does break more often than I'd like if I had to deal with getting it repaired!

I wouldn't bother getting one for my kitchen myself.

Are they not a hazard for kids?

They have a safety feature.

Thanks all for the feedback. I have decided against as I am not sure I want the ongoing cost and maintanance and still uncertain on the ideal temperature for drinks. Have decided to get a bean to cup coffee machine with the money instead!

A coffee machine usually needs to be filled with boiling water for hot drinks. A lot of my friends use their Quooker for that as for some machines itsneasier to fill from the tap rather than a kettle.

I’ve had my Quooker for 12 yrs. Have it serviced every couple of years - I live in a very hard water area. No problems so far...

@weepingwillow22 a bean to cup machine has a cold water tank (room temp), so it won't give up piping hot coffee. We have a Delonghi £350 Magnifica one (and that was half price believe it or not) it has a cup warmer on top, as again, if you want piping hot drinks you need to warm the cup first.

How do you make your tea now? Do you boil a kettle and let it sit? Before you were told by the "experts" what temperature tea was made at did you ever think hmmm this tea is lacking, maybe it is the water temperature?

A boiling water tap requires very little care. Like I said, I have had mine for 7 years. Yes I buy filters and change it twice a year, the same as I change the fridge filter for the cold water supply for that.