Having an electric kettle can be great for your morning routines, a cup of tea or a coffee is easy with just one streamlined click.
However, if you don’t keep your kettle clean then it is going to ruin the flavor and aroma of the tea or coffee that you make with it.
This is because when you boil the water from your tap, the energy separates the natural minerals that are in the water and these can build up over time in your kettle, which won’t only affect the taste and smell of your tea or coffee, but it will also affect the efficiency and performance of your kettle.
In this article, we will be discussing the different ways to clean your kettle and how to make sure your kettle is thoroughly cleaned before usage.
What Makes An Electric Kettle Dirty?
When heating water in your kettle, the water will leave behind different mineral deposits such as calcium deposits from the minerals that you find in usual tap water.
The amount of buildup and the frequency of the buildup is mainly linked to the hardness of the water in your area and this will affect the taste of your tea or coffee.
How Often Should You Clean And Descale An Electric Kettle?
If you want your morning cup of tea or coffee to taste as good as it can, then it could be a good idea to clean your electric kettle daily, making sure to descale it on a regular basis.
If you use your kettle daily then it is best to descale your kettle once a month, but this may change depending on the hardness of the water that you use in your kettle.
What Is Descaling?
Descaling is when you remove the limescale buildup from the inside of your kettle, this buildup will come from magnesium, calcium, and other minerals that are found in your water.
If the water in your area is hard, or the water you use for your kettle is hard, then you may need to descale your kettle more often than if the water in your area is soft because hard water has a higher mineral content than soft water.
Cleaning Your Kettle With Vinegar
Vinegar is a very popular way to clean a kettle due to its mild acidity. This mild acidity is very good at breaking up that mineral buildup that you get from using an electric kettle.
It is very accessible and does the same job as any specialized descaling agent that you can buy from any supermarket.
Cleaning your kettle with vinegar is a simple process that requires just a few items that you can find around your house.
To clean the exterior of the kettle all you need is a damp cloth and some polish, you should be doing this daily. To clean the interior of your kettle with vinegar all you need is around one cup of white vinegar.
How To Clean The Inside Of Your Kettle With Vinegar
The first step to cleaning your kettle with vinegar is to fill up your kettle with a mixture of water and white vinegar. This mixture should be about three parts water with one part white vinegar.
Next, use your kettle to bring this mixture to a boil, then you should leave your kettle overnight for the mixture to do its work. When you wake up you can empty the solution by disposing of it properly down a drain.
After you have disposed of the mixture that has been left overnight, fill your kettle with clean water and bring it to boil once more, then drain this water.
Repeat this process two or three times to clear out any taste or odor of the lingering vinegar in your kettle, then your kettle will be ready for use again.
Other Ways To Clean The Inside Of Your Kettle
White vinegar isn’t the only way to clean the inside of your kettle, you can also do so with lemon juice, flat soda, baking soda, and citric acid.
However, each method will differ in time and volume, here is a brief guide to cleaning your kettle’s interior with these household items.
Using Citric Acid Or Lemon Juice To Clean Your Kettle
Lemon juice and citric acid are great cleaning agents for cleaning kettles. The acidic properties of both cleaning agents act as a natural antiseptic and bleach. It also does a great job at getting rid of the mineral buildup inside of your kettle.
Another benefit to using lemon juice and citric acid is the nice smell of lemon that adds to your kitchen after doing so.
The cleaning of the interior of the kettle with citric acid or lemon juice is similar to the method used when using white vinegar to clean your kettle.
First, take a tablespoon of citric acid powder or lemon juice and pour it into the kettle. Then, add enough water to the kettle that you cover the base of the kettle floor and can turn the kettle on to boil.
After the kettle has boiled, discard any remaining water and put it onto the boil once more.
This method is much faster than the white vinegar method but we have seen that the white vinegar method provides a more thorough clean.
However, this method is great if you have soft water and not a lot of mineral buildup.
Using Baking Soda To Clean Your Kettle
You can also clean your kettle with baking soda, which is a common household item and easy to get a hold of.
Firstly, add one or two tablespoons of baking soda to your kettle, then fill the kettle with water and bring it to a boil. Once your kettle has finished boiling, leave it to sit for around ten minutes.
After the ten minutes is up, take a non-abrasive brush and gently scrub the inside of your kettle, after the water is cool to the touch, rinse the kettle out with clean water and dry with a dishtowel.
Cleaning The Exterior Of Your Kettle
Keeping the outside of your kettle clean is a lot simpler than keeping the inside of your kettle clean, you can simply use dish soap to clean the outside of a kettle.
Use your household dish detergent to clean the outside of your kettle, then take a damp cloth and wipe away the dish detergent from the outside of the kettle.
It is important to not get dish soap inside the kettle as that could affect the taste of the tea or coffee you make from that kettle.
When you have wiped away all of the dish soap, wipe the outside of the kettle with a dry cloth to make sure that there are no watermarks left on there.
Final Thoughts
An electric kettle can be your saving grace in the mornings for quick and easy cups of tea or coffee, but to maintain the classic aromas of tea or coffee, you need to have a properly maintained electric kettle.
Thankfully, an electric kettle can be very easy to clean with items that you already have in your kitchen, and if you follow the steps provided, you’ll get back to having tasty tea in no time.
