Is boiling water as essential as we think or will near-boiling do everything we want as well?
If you’re in the market for a steaming hot water tap – either as a side tap or a combination all-in-one unit – then you’ll likely have come across both ‘boiling hot’ and ‘near-boiling’ models.
(If you’re not in the market for a steaming hot water tap, then let us change your mind!)
The difference, unsurprisingly, is the temperature dispensed by the taps. A boiling water tap dispenses water at 100°C. A near-boiling or steaming hot tap dispenses water a shade below – this varies by manufacturer, but our own steaming hot water taps can be set to dispense anywhere between 88°C and 98°C.
To see if there’s a difference, let’s have a look at the most common uses.
Hot drinks are the first thing most people think of using a hot water tap for, and it’s no surprise – an estimated 90% of the British population drink tea or coffee daily.
Twinings – who know a thing or two about tea – recommend that you never use boiling water to make a cup of tea. Instead, you should wait for water in the kettle to cool for a couple of minutes before pouring. If you’re using a boiling water tap, you don’t have that luxury – but if you have a steaming hot tap, you do. If you drink green or white tea on a regular basis, you’ll want to drop the temperature further – these delicate leaf teas can’t withstand temperatures above 90°C. If you don’t have an adjustable heat setting on your hot water tap, make sure to add some cold water before the boiling, or stop the kettle before it hits a rolling boil.
So what about coffee? The National Coffee Association and the Specialty Coffee Association of America are in complete agreement here – coffee should be brewed with water between 90 and 96°C, and never using boiling water. Water at 100°C will burn the beans and destroy some of the natural flavours in your coffee.
Hot water taps are also a real time-saver when cooking. If you need to boil a pan of water or fill a steamer, you can dispense straight into the pot – no waiting for the kettle to do its job, or for the hob to heat water from the tap.
Here, there’s no practical difference – waiting for a pot of 98°C water to boil will take a few seconds more than a pot of water dispensed at 100°C. Either way, you’ve saved a couple of minutes compared to waiting on the kettle or hob!
Stubborn stains and stuck-on food sometimes require really hot water to deal with. Dispensing steaming hot water straight from the tap is certainly easier than waiting for the kettle to boil!
When it comes to cleaning power, is there any difference between 100°C and steaming hot water? As with cooking, not really – a couple of degrees makes no practical difference. Although it varies from household to household, pure hot water at the tap is generally around 55°C. When you’re almost doubling the temperature of water from the tap, a couple of degrees either way has no noticeable effect.
Of course, water from a dedicated hot tap (whether boiling hot or steaming hot) should be treated with the same care you’d treat water from a kettle. If using the tap for washing up, we recommend wearing rubber gloves and only running the steaming hot tap in short bursts. Never fill a sink from a steaming hot tap!
So, what’s the difference between a boiling water tap and a steaming hot water tap? Very little – unless you like a hot drink! If you’re a part of the approximately 24 million British households who do, a steaming hot tap with an adjustable temperature control on the tank is the clear winner, ensuring the perfect temperature for the perfect cuppa – every time.
