Bleary eyed and feeling as if my throat had been cut I stumbled out of bed, fell over the dog, and fumbled my way into the kitchen to turn the kettle on in preparation for my wake up cup of tea. I sat at the breakfast bar, head in hands, staring vacantly out of the window waiting for the familiar rumble from my ancient kettle to signify that it had boiled…….I waited and waited…..nothing. Finally I heaved my aching bones out of my chair and discovered that my old faithful kettle had finally given up the ghost, the water in the kettle was icy cold and even though I tried to resuscitate it by changing the fuse and wiggling the cord it became apparent that it had steamed its way up to the great kettle grave in the sky. I was distraught….I simply CAN'T function without a cup of tea to start the day……so I filled a pan with water and put it on the hob whilst I surfed the internet in search of a new kettle.
I paddled my way over to Argos and before my pan of water had even reached boiling point I had identified the kettle I wanted, ordered it, paid for it and arranged to collect it later in the day.
The kettle that caught my eye was a Breville KT17 traditional cordless stainless steel kettle priced at £24.99 from The Classique range. This 1.7 litre capacity kettle featured 3kw fast boil with concealed element and rear water gauge, it has a 360° swivel base and a removable, washable filter.
In my opinion a kettle is a kettle is a kettle and I didn't want to pay a ridiculous amount of money on some fan dangled, all singing, all dancing appliance with built in FM radio, crazy frog ring tone, Bio Rhythm predictor and remote control for the space shuttle ! I just wanted something that would boil water quickly and efficiently and would blend into my kitchen along with all my other kitchen appliances and utensils.
I felt this kettle fitted the bill as it offered all the requisite requirements of a kettle and in particular I liked the traditional dome shape of the Brevillecordless kettle from the Classique collection as I felt it was in keeping with my traditional kitchen and I found it aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Feeling quite chuffed with my little self I tootled off back to the kitchen to make my cuppa before going to pick up my new kettle.
Several hours later, hot, harassed and parched, I returned from Argos and hastily unpacked my new kettle from its box. I wasn't disappointed and whooped with pleasure when I pulled out the shiny new silver kettle. I know, I know……isn't life exciting?
The kettle features a dome shaped, highly polished, stainless steel body with an easy grip handle which is black to match the knob on the lid and the swivel base. The spout on the kettle is short and wide; the rear of the kettle features a water gauge and an on/off switch which flicks down for on and up for off….isn't technology amazing or what. On the base there is the power on neon indicator which lights up orange when the kettle has been switched on and underneath the base is a niche and groove which stores the cord away making the appearance of the appliance very neat indeed; the length of the cord is adequate and I would guess its approximately 25 inches long; this kettle also features a scale free, stay clean, concealed element.
Assembling (if that's the right word to use) the kettle was child's play. I positioned my new kettle on a dry, level and secure work surface as instructed by the accompanying booklet. The booklet advised that the kettle was boiled and emptied once to remove any residue that may have remained from the manufacturing process but before I plugged the kettle in I checked that my mains supply voltage was compatible with the kettle as indicated on the bottom of the appliance. I then proceeded to fill the kettle to the maximum capacity which was easy to do by viewing the external water gauge on the rear of the kettle. The water gauge is marked off by cup amounts with one cup being the lowest amount (approx 0.4 litres), then three, five and seven cups being the maximum of 1.7 litres. I then sat the kettle on the power base and plugged in the kettle. I was immediately impressed at how quickly and quietly the kettle sprang to life and came to the boil. My recently expired kettle sounded like a steamtrain in comparison to this silent stealth boiler.
I was desperately in need of a coffee by this point so I proceeded to refill the kettle. The booklet is emphatic that this kettle is not filled through the spout. Ooops…..I wished I'd read that earlier….guess who had nearly sent her new kettle to an early grave then.
Anyway this time I proceeded to remove the lid by gripping and pulling the knob (the things a girl has to do to get her thrills eh?) in an upward motion. I must confess that I did actually find this quite difficult as the lid was very tightly fitted and it took several attempts at pulling and wiggling before I managed to get the lid off. Then I positioned the kettle under the cold water tap and proceeded to fill it - all the while keeping my eye on the external water gauge; there is an internal marker by way of an ugly plastic red marker on the inside of the kettle but I found it easier to observe the external water gauge. Once I had filled it to the required amount I replaced the lid and found this much easier to do, it snapped back into place easily. Even when filled to the maximum the kettle is light and easy to manipulate and the easy grip handle ensures no accidental loss of grip and consequent accidents. I then flicked the on/off switch into the down position and immediately the orange neon indicator light came on. Within seconds the kettle began to gently hum and very quietly went about its job of boiling water. After approximately two minutes the water reached boiling point and a small amount of steam emerged from the spout before the kettle automatically switched itself off and the orange neon light went out; incidentally this kettle can be switched off manually by carefully lifting up the on/off switch.
I then proceeded to make that much needed cup of coffee and found that the water poured smoothly from the wide spout into my cup without splashing a drop elsewhere and I noticed that all those horrible little bits of lime scale were captured by the filter rather than escaping into my drink. Feeling very satisfied with it's performance so far I settled down to enjoy my first ever drink from my new kettle. Ahh bliss.
Several weeks later I decided the kettle needed a bit of a clean. The outside of the kettle is easy to do and all that is required is a quick wipe over with a slightly damp cloth and then buff up with a soft dry cloth. I find that the best way to shine up the kettle is to do it whilst the kettle is still slightly warm. As the kettle is made from a very shiny stainless steel it is not advisable to use steel wool pads or abrasive cleaners of any description.
The filter inside the kettle needs periodically cleaning and should be cleaned whenever there are any noticeable deposits left on the filter. I live in a very hard water area and although the element is designed to remain scale free I find scale does still build up on the base; so I tend to clean the inside of the kettle once a fortnight by using a proprietary descaler. Cleaning the filter is quite fiddly and if you haven't got small hands or you suffer with less than nimble fingers this procedure may prove troublesome, and it's best to remember to empty any remaining water from the kettle and wait until the kettle is cold before proceeding.
To access the filter the lid of the kettle must be removed, once the filter is located (with this kettle the filter is easily identifiable as it sits just behind the water spout and accessibility is fairly easy) grip it between thumb and forefinger and pull gently upwards and backwards. It did take me several attempts to get the knack but once I knew what I was doing I found it very easy and the filter slid out smoothly without me having to resort to brute force. I rinsed the filter under a running tap at the same time brushing the filter with a soft brush (I used a new toothbrush but any soft brush will do) At this point I use the aforementioned descaler but this may not be necessary if you don't live in a hard water area. Refitting the filter is straightforward and after returning the kettle to it's powerbase and making sure the kettle is switched off it's just a case of slotting the filter into the runners behind the spout and pushing firmly into place, the only thing to be wary of here is damaging the mesh of the filter as pushing on that would cause perforation.
The Breville KT17 also features 'lift off, switch off' technology. This means that should the kettle be accidentally lifted from the power base whilst still switched on, it will switch off automatically. I find this a handy little feature as I am very absent minded and more often than not lift the kettle from its base before it has turned itself off.
The instructions specify that the kettle must be filled with no less than the minimum amount of water which is approximately 0.4 litres and no more than the maximum capacity indicated on the external water gauge or internal maximum mark. There is a warning that if the product is filled above the maximum level, hot water may be ejected so it's advisable to be mindful and check the water gauge with the kettle positioned on its power base to avoid a nasty injury. There is no mention of what would happen if there isn't enough water in the kettle but I would presume lack of water when the kettle was in action would damage the element in some way.
The swivel base is very handy and can be rotated through a full 360° and as my daughter is left handed she really benefits from this feature. As the kettle has a concealed heating element it never comes into contact with the water inside the kettle which means not only is it more hygienically designed and makes cleaning easier it also means it keeps cleaning to a minimum…..oh how I love keeping cleaning to a minimum! The power base remains cool throughout the boiling procedure meaning it's perfectly safe to worktops and won't cause discolouration; a point worth mentioning here though is that this kettle is not of the cool wall variety so care has to be taken not to touch the metal sides of the kettle when in use or for sometime afterwards as I would imagine doing so would result in a very nasty burn as this kettle gets very hot.
There are a few minor niggles with this product, one is that the tightness of the lid when trying to remove it can be quite difficult and I do struggle at times to remove it and usually only succeed by wrestling the kettle into a death roll and head lock between my knees and pulling for dear life. Secondly removing the filter can be quite fiddly and definitely wouldn't be suitable for any person with arthritis or joint problems of the hand. Thirdly despite the anti scale feature I am finding that the kettle is 'furring' up quite badly and requires frequent cleaning and descaling and finally that the outside needs frequent buffing to keep it gleaming and mark free.
Overall, though, for £24.99, I feel the kettle was a satisfactory buy and I am really pleased with it. It performs its function simply, quietly and rapidly and sits nicely amid my other appliances. Even when filled to the maximum the kettle is light and easy to manipulate and the easy grip handle ensures no accidental loss of grip and consequent accidents.
The kettle carries a one year manufacturers warranty and comes supplied with an instruction booklet.
Phewww and after writing all that I think it's time for a cuppa.
Hey jb below said I would get on with you and here I see you also review kettles and Breville ones at that...lol Susie x
jonathanb 05.10.2005 16:19
Help! What happened there, then? A half-finished version of my comment seems to have appeared as well as the completed version. Clearly this is the result of a major computer malfunction and nothing to do with my own clumsy fingers...
jonathanb 05.10.2005 16:14
And they said it couldn't be done - an entertaining review about boiling a kettle! Liked the reference to paddling and surfing around the 'net and was reassured to see that you managed to get a knob gag in there too. I'm intrigued though, does the first paragraph refers to your normal condition in the morning or had you indulged in a few too many alcopops the night before?
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