Posted By Tony Hamill Small kitchen in office area has a kettle that is in constant use. The concern is that in small area an accident could happen. How can I persuade office manager that a fixed hot water dispenser would be safer?

Posted By Mark Large Tip the kettle on him when he goes for his cuppa? Repeat till he gets the message. Important Note: Don't boil the kettle first!!!

Posted By Nigel Hammond We had a fixed hot water dispenser at my last job. You couldn't make a decent cup of tea because the water was not boiling. It was set lower for safety reasons - so staff went back to kettles!

Posted By Graham Bullough There are a number of arguments you could use to support having a water boiler rather than a kettle: If the boiler is hard wired in to the electrical supply, you can dispense with the regular PEAT tests which would be needed for a kettle. With a properly installed boiler there's less chance of users getting electric shocks or scalds than they would with a kettle. If it's wall mounted a boiler can be neater and free up worktop space, especially in small kitchenette areas. However, as time/money saving factors tend to hold more sway than health and safety factors with employers, a significant factor in favour of a boiler is that you get your boiling water immediately so staff are not hanging around filling up kettles and waiting for them to boil. Also, I am told that it's cheaper for a boiler to keep water at or very near boiling point than to keep using a kettle to heat up cold water - although surely this depends on the average daily number of hot drinks required. I imagine other readers of this thread are intrigued like me as to the alleged "safety reasons" mentioned in an earlier response for turning down the thermostat of a boiler. Whether water is at boiling point or a few degrees less, it still has the ability to scald – whether it comes from a boiler or a kettle.