Quooker/Hot Tap Energy Usage

[Demon]

We've had a Franke omni 4 in 1 for a year now and for £690 (brushed stainless) it's been excellent, the convenience mainly, the Mrs does not want to go back to a kettle..

The franke has a pretty good filter system, it claims it can deal with limescale and not a sign in the boiler, or at the tap which is a first in our hard water area, and it's a true 100 degree high pressure system.

I was looking at quooker but felt the vfm and question mark over limescale buildup didn't stack up for double the cost.

 

[mattyg]

We've had a Franke omni 4 in 1 for a year now and for £690 (brushed stainless) it's been excellent, the convenience mainly, the Mrs does not want to go back to a kettle..

The franke has a pretty good filter system, it claims it can deal with limescale and not a sign in the boiler, or at the tap which is a first in our hard water area, and it's a true 100 degree high pressure system.

I was looking at quooker but felt the vfm and question mark over limescale buildup didn't stack up for double the cost.

I thought our was ok until it wasn't
Now i do this every year

QETTLE Annual Maintenance Deep Clean Guide

Follow our step-by step video to deep cleaning your QETTLE's boiler tank. 0:00 Introduction 0:14 Turn off the power to your boiler tank 0:24 Run the boiling ...

www.youtube.com

Found this site yesterday. Bought a chiller to add to the Franke 4 in 1 omni

 

[Demon]

I thought our was ok until it wasn't
Now i do this every year

QETTLE Annual Maintenance Deep Clean Guide

Follow our step-by step video to deep cleaning your QETTLE's boiler tank. 0:00 Introduction 0:14 Turn off the power to your boiler tank 0:24 Run the boiling ...

www.youtube.com

Found this site yesterday. Bought a chiller to add to the Franke 4 in 1 omni

For the ease of doing that, I’ll get that done every year just in case.

The tap is the only one that has no signs of limescale from the boiling side, my brothers quooker in the same approx water hardness gets obvious limescale build up after 6 months…

And did you have a link to the chiller you mentioned? Be nice to have that chilled!

I see the price of the omni has shot up! Our neighbour bought a franke instance 4 in 1 from howdens for £640 in their sale which is identical to the omni, just polished finish rather than brushed.. exact same boiler, filter, etc..

 

[Scam]

Interesting about limescale. We're in west London and it is a concern as our water is rock hard. Do Quooker not supply anti-limescale filters?

I'm still wondering if the Quooker is worth it over the Abode I linked to a few posts back. The Abode is only 98c but how much of a difference that makes I do not know.. I can't find any other Victorian/traditional styled ones in antique brass that are not no-name brands from Victoria Plumb etc.

 

[mattyg]

For the ease of doing that, I’ll get that done every year just in case.

The tap is the only one that has no signs of limescale from the boiling side, my brothers quooker in the same approx water hardness gets obvious limescale build up after 6 months…

And did you have a link to the chiller you mentioned? Be nice to have that chilled!

I see the price of the omni has shot up! Our neighbour bought a franke instance 4 in 1 from howdens for £640 in their sale which is identical to the omni, just polished finish rather than brushed.. exact same boiler, filter, etc..

Undersink Chiller - QETTLE

Buy our QETTLE Undersink Chiller to enjoy refreshing, chilled water straight from your QETTLE kitchen tap.

www.qettle.com

Mine should be here today. So i'll fit later and report back over the weekend
Its quite snug under our sink. Boiling tank, Insinkerator and the chiller..

 

[b0rn2sk8]

We tried to fit the chiller unit when we got ours but it will not fit under a Belfast sink, it’s too tall.

It wouldn’t go into the cupboard next to it as that is filled by a softener and the other side is a dish washer so we ended up sending it back.

 

[HungryHippos]

Interesting about limescale. We're in west London and it is a concern as our water is rock hard. Do Quooker not supply anti-limescale filters?

I'm still wondering if the Quooker is worth it over the Abode I linked to a few posts back. The Abode is only 98c but how much of a difference that makes I do not know.. I can't find any other Victorian/traditional styled ones in antique brass that are not no-name brands from Victoria Plumb etc.

They do have a limescale filter thing for hard water you can buy. It's a scale thingy on the site as one of the options when I was doing mine.

I went for a whole home water softener instead, cost a bit more but I guess some other pros/cons to doing it.

We tried to fit the chiller unit when we got ours but it will not fit under a Belfast sink, it’s too tall.

It wouldn’t go into the cupboard next to it as that is filled by a softener and the other side is a dish washer so we ended up sending it back.

That's the thing with these units, they're fairly chonky, and take up a lot of cupboard space.

 

[robj20]

That's pretty crap then surely? Why would you want 100c water straight out of the tap.. Sounds like an accident waiting to happen to me.
If you could set it to say 60c or 70c it would be better.

When you consider how expensive they are I'd expect them to come with a fully adjustable thermostat that you can control manually and from your phone lol

Straight over your head this thread goes.

I like the idea of the boiling tap but not the tank.

 

[413x]

I love my gadgets and my tea, but have never convinced myself that I want one of these.

Same

Thought they looked interesting.
But
-maintenence
-up front cost
-how long do they last
-doesn't really save much time vs a kettle.


Really a WiFi kettle is probably better.
-Boil water from upstairs office
-by time down stairs and mug out its ready
-top up to usual level before taking mug away.

It feels like one of those things with so little benefit and added maintenance/replacement costs

 

[HungryHippos]

It's a luxury item, you don't buy one if you're looking to save money.

Pros and cons to having it though for sure, so far seems OK not really needed maintenance, though I have been meaning to ask my kitchen installer if it needs any (same for water softener).

I've used it a lot, and it means I don't need a separate kettle on the counter top, especially useful since wfh came in. Does save me a bit of time each time I use it.

 

[Scam]

They do have a limescale filter thing for hard water you can buy. It's a scale thingy on the site as one of the options when I was doing mine.

I went for a whole home water softener instead, cost a bit more but I guess some other pros/cons to doing it.

Oh gawd I hate water softeners with a passion. My Dad had one at his flat and it was horrid. Showering was a nightmare; felt like you couldn't rinse out your shampoo etc! I'd never get one!

That's the thing with these units, they're fairly chonky, and take up a lot of cupboard space.

See, in the kitchen shop he showed us a Quooker install and we immediately dismissed it as taking up too much space. But that must have been a huge boiler (in litres, I mean). Because for example the Proboil 2X that comes with the Abode tap is only 2 litres, and barely 300mm high by 200 wide and 200 deep. Yes, it's only 2 litres, but for two people I can't see why we'd need more.

-doesn't really save much time vs a kettle.

We have a filter kettle so it'd definitely save about 4-5mins per boil I reckon. 2-3mins for water to filter (more if you need to completely fill the kettle, tedious), 1min to boil.

especially useful since wfh came in

This is what I'm thinking too. My other half and I are never on the same schedule so we're probably boiling the kettle at least 5-6 times a day for drinks when WFH (2-3 each), plus always boiling it for dinner e.g. pasta. As said above you don't buy these to save money, but I think with more WFH happening it definitely means you'd get more use out of your boiling water tap and make it slightly more economically viable.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

Oh gawd I hate water softeners with a passion. My Dad had one at his flat and it was horrid. Showering was a nightmare; felt like you couldn't rinse out your shampoo etc! I'd never get one!

We live in a very hard water area and in all honesty I think the softener was a better purchase than the boiling water tap.

I’ve divested my vikal collection since we got it (not literally but I have not bought any since). It makes cleaning so much easier because you don’t have limescale caked on everything 24 hours after you last cleaned it.

The solution to your last issue is to use less soap, it’s an error that everyone who is used to hard water makes but you adjust accordingly and it lasts so much longer with soft. Offsets the cost of salt somewhat.

See, in the kitchen shop he showed us a Quooker install and we immediately dismissed it as taking up too much space. But that must have been a huge boiler (in litres, I mean). Because for example the Proboil 2X that comes with the Abode tap is only 2 litres, and barely 300mm high by 200 wide and 200 deep. Yes, it's only 2 litres, but for two people I can't see why we'd need more.

That’s about the same size as ours, it’s quite compact really and just sits in the back of the cupboard.

 

[jpaul]

We usually boil about 1.2L for a teapot full - those big Alan Partridge pint mugs -
if the hot tap has a 2L container will it manage to deliver 1.2L boiling, or, it has started refilling with cold, so the end of that 1.2L you draw, comes out at 60degrees say.

 

[Scam]

if the hot tap has a 2L container will it manage to deliver 1.2L boiling, or, it has started refilling with cold, so the end of that 1.2L you draw, comes out at 60degrees say.

I guess if someone's just made a cup of tea then you wouldn't expect a full 2L, but otherwise why wouldn't you get the full amount?

 

[jpaul]

as you empty the tank it gets refilled with cold water, so if you are draining a significant part of it's capacity the later water will not be boiling;
doesn't matter for cooking vegetables/pasta, but if your use of a kettle includes several 1.2L pots of tea a day, not just cup-fulls, it wouldn't work.

e: when making tea , I dump a full kettle of water into the teapot in a 5seconds or so , also, taking the kettle to the tea-pot. ..
carrying a full teapot(or saucepan) is a lot less stable/safe than carrying a kettle with it's big handle to the pot, so a hot water tap is less safe I'd say.

 

[HungryHippos]

I believe it would give you the full 1.2L of boiling water before it refills, I think it would only re-fill once you finished pouring it out. It's not going to re-fill with cold water as you empty it on the fly (my best guess).

 

[jpaul]

if the hot taps behave like my (1.5L) hx coffee machine, when providing hot water, you have a pump on the cold side that refills it as you take water out and the level drops,
it gets refilled from the bottom, so convection will prevent new water mixing with hot water to some extent.

 

[wesimmo]

I'm very bad at overfilling it (well, completely filling it) most times I use it. I absolutely can't stand putting hot drinks into a cold mug so I'm very OCD about filling my mug with boiled water to warm whilst I brew my tea/coffee.

And thanks for the above @jpaul

So, do all taps filter water ala Brita? Or is that an extra?

I put my mug upside down over the spout while the kettle boils, collects enough steam to ensure a nicely warmed mug.

 

[b0rn2sk8]

You should get the fill 1.2L from the tap, I’ve certainly filled large pans full of water no problem. Boils instantly once it hits the hob.

There are no pumps in these units, they act in the same way as hot water tanks and work under mains pressure. They refill as they empty.

The reason why the cold water doesn’t mix with the hot is called stratification, it’s the same reason as why the water at the top of your hot water tank doesn’t cool down when you use hot water and it fills from the bottom.

The water essentially exists in layers in the tank, hot at the top, the cold sinks to the bottom.

 

[Freefaller]

I personally love them. Convenience and energy usage is negligible Vs kettle. It's my espresso machine that uses more since it gets a hammering! Also it clears the worktop from appliances means that you can keep your kitchen neater etc.

It's not for everyone of course.

If you have an induction hob you don't really need to worry about boiling the water for the pan since it gets up to hear so quickly. But if you don't you can at least save some boiling time by adding the hot water into the pan. True probably less safe than carrying a kettle but marginally I guess.