Life hack: Here's the real reason you should always put cold water in your kettle

'Hot or cold?' That's a good question when it comes to filling the kettle. There is actually a variant that will save you energy and therefore money in most cases.

Cold water in kettles actually saves energy

As the Berlin consumer advice center, among others, explains, cold tap water should be preferred to preheated water in most cases if you want to save energy. This is because the water in the kettle is heated locally - and usually so quickly that the preheated temperature hardly makes a difference.

However, if you have the water heated by the boiler beforehand, you pay extra - because the water usually loses a few degrees during transportation through the pipes. And then has to be heated again locally.

Read more:Never drink hot water from the tap, it could be bad for your health

This is the exception

However, if you use a solar thermal system to heat your water, it is better to use the water that has already been preheated. And if necessary, you should also turn the tap to 'cold' to prevent additional artificial heating - and energy use.

In general, however, it is best to use the water as it comes out of the tap - for example, don't let it flow and wait for it to reach the desired temperature before pouring it into the kettle.

Read more:How to remove limescale build-up in your tea kettle?

Beware - this is what matters above all

Overall, however, there should be no definitive and unambiguous assessment of which tap water temperature contributes to the lowest energy consumption.

In contrast, however, one thing is certain: if you only heat as much water as you need at that moment, you will save the most energy and money!

Read more:Here's how to use boiling water to make your kitchen squeaky clean

This article has been translated from Gentside DE.

Sources used:

Frankfurter Rundschau: Temperatur spielt wichtige Rolle: Sollte warmes oder kaltes Wasser in den Wasserkocher gefüllt werden?

Berliner Verbraucherzentrale: Kosten für Warmwasser senken: Das können Sie als Hausbesitzer tun

Berliner Verbraucherzentrale: Warmwasser im Alltag sparen: So geht's