I was making myself a cup of coffee and while the kettle was heating up I started thinking about the effects of limescale on the energy usage of a kettle.
Does limescale make your electric kettle less energy efficient?
Yes, the buildup of limescale definitely makes your kettle less energy efficient. Limescale is a hard deposit of calcium carbonate. This layer forms over time on mostly the heating element of your kettle and acts as a heat insulator. In other words, this layer of limescale makes it difficult for heat generated by the element to reach the water.
In this article I will discuss:
Introduction
Without being a fanatic climate activist, I acknowledge that we as inhabitants of this planet need to be more conscious of the power we use.
Given that a lot of this power comes from the burning of non-renewable fossil fuels, being power savvy actually becomes a responsibility.
Most of us use an electric kettle on a daily basis. And not just to make coffee or tee, but for a range of other uses around the kitchen.
All this energy used adds up and therefore everyone should try to find out where they could save.
A good place to start is you kettle. And more specifically, the limescale in your kettle.
What is limescale
In short, limescale is the hard white layer of calcium carbonate deposits in mostly appliances that heat water.
To get a more in-depth explanation of limescale and how and where it forms, I recommend reading this article.
This calcium carbonate layer is not so great when it comes to the conduction of heat.
The consequence of this is that the heating element needs to generate much more heat so that the water can actually heat up.
More heat generated means more energy used to do the same job a clean element would have done.
How to handle limescale
The easiest way to make a quick difference, especially when there is an electricity bill involved, is to get rid of the limescale.
It is not so easy to get rid of limescale, though. That layer was built up over time and calcium carbonate is not very dissolvable.
That is why you will have to descale your kettle.
We did a whole article on this and recommend reading it here, it will make life a lot easier and cheaper!
Conclusion
It is easier to save energy than you think.
It’s all about the small little changes you make around your kitchen and your home.
Every little bit of energy you save adds up and at the end it is absolutely worth it!