Should I Get a Boiling Water Tap?

You’ve seen that they’re popular, but are boiling water taps really worth it? Read our expert breakdown of the benefits, drawbacks and costs of a boiling water tap.

Are boiling water taps really worth it?

Boiling water taps provide an instant supply of boiling water straight from the spout. As you can imagine, this has made them an increasingly popular choice for household kitchens. But are boiling water taps worth it?

By providing you with boiling water at the turn of a handle, these taps do have some pretty good uses, and not just for typical kitchen tasks. Of course, giving you instant boiling water means that they’re useful for cooking and hot beverage making. Say goodbye to waiting around for the kettle to boil!

But they also come in handy for those when you might need to remove labels from packaging and produce, fill hot water bottles and even sterilise a baby’s bottle.

All things considered, this seems like a pretty tempting kitchen update. So what are the benefits to this new kitchen technology, and what are the drawbacks?

Benefits of having a boiling water tap

• Instant boiling water
• Filter feature
• Saves water and energy
• Saves Space
• Safety features included

Instant boiling water

By providing you with boiling hot water straight out of the tap, this drastically decreases the time spent waiting around for kettles to boil or pans to heat up on the stove. This also makes your cooking a much easier and more practical process. The tap can supply you with boiling water on demand because of its specialised heating tank which boils the water and keeps it at the set temperature throughout the day.

Filter feature

Many boiling water taps also feature a specialised carbon filter. This filter removes impurities in the water supply to improve the clarity and overall taste of the water. A tea drinker’s dream!

Saves water and energy

You might not realise it, but a fair amount of water and energy gets used and wasted when using kettles or boiling pans of water. How often do you fill the kettle up without thinking about how much water you add, only to use a third of it before the rest gets emptied down the drain? Not to mention every time you boil your kettle it uses energy too. Well, with a boiling water tap all of that waste and usage is eradicated.

This is because where the boiling water comes out instantly this uses less energy. In addition, because it comes straight from the tap, you can be far more accurate with how much boiling water you want.

Saves Space

Most boiling water taps provide both a boiling hot water supply and standard water supply. This means that you can have boiling water, warm water and cold water all from the same spout! There’s no need to worry about having multiple taps installed in your kitchen with different functions. With no need for a kettle, this should earn you some valuable counter space too.

Safety features included

The thought of boiling water being accessible at the turn of the handle is understandably concerning to some. But most boiling water taps have a safety procedure in place.

This often comes in the form of a spring lock button on the side of the boiling tap handle that must be pushed in in order for the handle to turn. Once the lever is returned to its off position, the button will reset and have to be pushed in again in order to get more boiling water. This makes them great for households with small children (and adults who operate autopilot before they have their morning coffee!).

Drawbacks of having a boiling water tap

• Replacing the filter
• Cupboard space
• More expenses

Replacing the filter

As the filter gets rid of hard water and any other impurities this does make the filter, and therefore the water tank, more prone to limescale build up. This does mean that the filter has to be replaced fairly regularly. Depending on which brand of boiling water tap you have will impact how often the filter needs replacing but this should be somewhere in the range of every 6 months.

Cupboard space

Whilst a boiling water tap will save you counter space, in order to fit the water tank you will have to give up some of the under the sink cupboard space. However, due to their sleek and compact designs this shouldn’t be too intrusive.

More expenses

As you can imagine, because of all of their additional features, the price point for boiling water taps tends to be higher. On top of this, there’s then the filter replacement to consider, as well as initial installation costs.

Costs of a boiling water tap

With the acknowledgement that these taps are likely to cost more than your average kitchen tap, how much does an instant hot water tap cost?

In regards to just the tap itself, typically you’re looking within the region of £500 to over £1,000 depending on how many fancy features you want your tap to come with. At Victorian Plumbing, the range of boiling water taps we supply starts at £399.95 with the Arezzo matt black instant boiling tap. At the very top end of our selection is the Grohe Red 2.0 Duo Instant Boiling Water Kitchen Tap at £1522.45.

The cost to replace a boiling water tap filter typically falls within the range of £40 to £150 depending on the brand. However, it’s worth noting that some filters can reach costs of over £400.

Whilst it is possible for you to install a boiling water tap yourself, installing a boiling water tap is a little more complicated than fitting a standard kitchen tap. It’s best advised that you hire a professional to do this and so you might want to factor this into the cost of a boiling water tap as well. Most tradesmen will do this for around £40-£50 depending on where in the UK you are.

Popular brands

Grohe boiling water taps and Bristan boiling water taps are some of the most popular choices amongst households, and for good reason!

The Bristan Gallery Rapid 3 in 1 Boiling Water Tap provides you with instant boiling water as well as a hot and cold tap. Its safety features include a push safe button release and a thermostatic valve so it remains safe to touch the spout of the tap without getting scolded. It also comes with 7 temperature settings.

When it comes to Grohe instant boiling water taps, Grohe have a great range. The Grohe RED Duo Instant Boiling Water Kitchen Tap provides you with water at 99°C straight out the tap. Their water tank comes in a sleek cylindrical design and the tap itself comes with a unique, TÜV-certified child lock and safety feature to that helps to eliminate the danger of scalding.

Now that you’ve read our expert breakdown, it’s time for you to weigh the pros and cons and decide if a boiling water tap is right for you!