How common are electric kettles where you are?

Gamer87

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Nov 22, 2013
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Sweden here. The only one I know who has one is one of my friends who is a big tea enthusiast and addict. I myself drink both tea and coffee, but I usually just microwave water in a mug. I get how it's practical though if you are making more than one cup.
 

lacktheknack

Je suis joined jewels.
Jan 19, 2009
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They populate the houses of single people and public buildings here in Canada. The homes of couples, though? It's all stove-top.

I don't know what to make of this.
 

RedDeadFred

Illusions, Michael!
May 13, 2009
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Very common here in Alberta. I regularly make myself a cup of tea several times throughout the day and an electric kettle is SOOOO much faster. I don't use an electric kettle for coffee though, we have separate machines for that. I know of a few older couples who still use stove-top kettles but for the most part, I rarely see them.
 

J.McMillen

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Sep 11, 2008
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I live in Texas and I've had one for years. Great for small batches of tea, or for making stuff with hot water (like Jello). As someone who can get distracted I like the fact that it shuts itself off once the water starts boiling so you don't boil off all the water and ruin a perfectly good pot.
 

Lilani

Sometimes known as CaitieLou
May 27, 2009
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username sucks said:
I'm an American who drinks almost nothing but tea, and I have never even seen an electric kettle. I have always made tea with the stove, but judging by this thread an electric kettle sounds amazing.

I'll have to buy myself one of those once I get some money.
I got the one I have for like $20 at WalMart. And I don't know this for sure, but I feel like an electric kettle would be more efficient with electricity overall (unless you have a gas stove). So if you make tea every day, or even a few times a day, then getting in electric kettle would probably pay for itself in the end.
 

Lono Shrugged

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May 7, 2009
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In Ireland we use it for tea and most every home has one. Bit it's also useful for boiling water for making noodles or hot water for cleaning if you don't want to turn on the heating. Or just generally need hot water. It's hard to imagine not having one around, even without tea and coffee.
 

ClockworkPenguin

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Mar 29, 2012
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dyre said:
I don't own one personally, but my roommate had one (before he left it on for a night and burnt it out).

An automatic coffee maker serves the same purpose, so I just use that when I don't have time to boil water conventionally (on a stovetop). If you leave the coffee bean repository empty, it just gives you hot water.
Most electric kettle's can't be left on, as they automatically switch off when the water reaches boiling point. Although there have been stories of elderly people who where used to stove kettles melting the electric ones by absentmindedly putting them on the hob.

OT; I was unaware that they weren't universal modern kitchen staples like microwaves and toasters. I've literally never been in any accommodation which didn't have one. Shows what we take for granted I suppose.
 

snowpuppy

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Feb 18, 2011
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It would be strange indeed if someone didn't own one here in Australia. Boiling water for tea would be so SLOW otherwise.
 

Risingblade

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Mar 15, 2010
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I didn't even know electric kettles existed, I have a coffee machine but it looks like that's different.
 

Blue_vision

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Mar 31, 2009
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They seem really popular in Canada. I have an electric kettle which I use at least 3 or 4 times a day, both for making tea and for preheating water for cooking. But I also know a couple people (generally those who don't drink tea) who don't have an electric kettle, and some don't even have stovetop kettles.

Edith The Hutt said:
Standard UK BS 1363 plug sockets are capable of carrying about double the power of a North American NEMA 5-15R socket meaning that at max load a kettle in a UK plug socket should be able to boil water twice as fast.
Dunno if this is a very accurate appraisal of the situation. I don't know details of the British power system, but even if UK plugs had double the power output of North American ones, you have other considerations that'd affect how quickly water boils (thermodynamics, stress on your heating coils, etc.)
 

BitterLemon

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Jul 10, 2013
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I'm brazilian, never seen an eletric kettle before, but I used to have a coffee machine. When we boil water, we use a regular kettle on the stove and just... wait. We drink tea, but people drink it once a day, mostly at breakfast, so there's not much need to be tea efficient, I guess.

There's costs problem too. Eletricity is pretty expensive compared to the natural gas we use on stoves, so eletric kitchen utensils are not vey common besides microwaves ovens and blenders.
 

J Tyran

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Dec 15, 2011
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username sucks said:
I'm an American who drinks almost nothing but tea, and I have never even seen an electric kettle. I have always made tea with the stove, but judging by this thread an electric kettle sounds amazing.

I'll have to buy myself one of those once I get some money.
If you are just making tea for yourself get something like this [http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Browse/ID72/34524741/c_1/1%7Ccategory_root%7CHome+and+garden%7C33005908/c_2/2%7C33005908%7CKitchen+electricals%7C33007917/c_3/3%7C33007917%7CFood+and+drink+preparation%7C33016796/c_4/4%7Ccat_33016796%7CHot+water+dispensers%7C34524741.htm] if you can find them there instead of a kettle, most boil single cup of water in around 30-60 seconds and you save on energy as you are not boiling more than you need.
 

Get_A_Grip_

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May 9, 2010
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Irish here.

I've never been in a house or workplace that doesn't have an electric kettle.

Then again, Ireland consumes a metric fuck-tonne of tea.
 

Muspelheim

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Apr 7, 2011
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Queen Michael said:
Here in Sweden we've got pretty many. I've got one myself.
Every single workplace with some sort of kitchen I've seen has one, too. It just seems an integral part of the Folkhome, now. I'd not be surprised if they just sort of materialised on their own when they felt a place was approriately kitchen.

BitterLemon said:
I'm brazilian, never seen an eletric kettle before, but I used to have a coffee machine. When we boil water, we use a regular kettle on the stove and just... wait. We drink tea, but people drink it once a day, mostly at breakfast, so there's not much need to be tea efficient, I guess.

There's costs problem too. Eletricity is pretty expensive compared to the natural gas we use on stoves, so eletric kitchen utensils are not vey common besides microwaves ovens and blenders.
Interesting, since it's pretty much the other way around. I can't remember anyone not having an electric kettle, but I've never seen someone cooking with gas, until I started working in professional kitchens. Led to a few close self-immolations on the hob before I got the hang of it, but I do think I prefer them now.
 

elvor0

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Sep 8, 2008
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The lack of Electric Kettles outside of Britain frightens me. Boiling water on the stove takes fucking ages, I want as little downtime as possible between wanting tea and actually letting its refreshing, healing liquid touch my lips.

Not having a kettle in Britain (not that that ever happens) could be considered worse than screwing a mans mother.

That and you know, it's much quicker than boiling cold water for scratch for foods that require you to boil them.
 

Tuxedoman

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Apr 16, 2009
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Kiwi here, and I had assumed that electric kettles were common in every western country. I bought mine from the supermarket for about $40, and it has served me well ever since. Too hungry to wait for your pasta to boil? Boil the kettle instead, and put pre-boiled water into the pot!

That and Tea. And coffee. And soup.
 

Kinitawowi

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Nov 21, 2012
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Someone's been reading the Spot Of Tea page on TV Tropes, methinks.

British here, so not much to add, other than the thing I always add whenever tea and hot water comes up around here - we have a power station in Wales that exists solely to cover the making of tea.

This is not a joke.

They turn it on when Eastenders finishes, then turn it off after everyone's boiled the kettle.

This shit matters.