Though a tea-loving nation, there are still plenty of us who enjoy several cups of freshly brewed coffee to perk us up through the day. But can your home or office coffee maker also provide you with steaming hot water? It may be possible but there might also be some limitations or issues to deal with.

How hot does hot water need to be?

Water boils at 100ºC (212ºF) which is around the perfect temperature for making a cup of tea. By reaching temperatures of over 95ºC, hot water mixes with the tea to release the fullest flavour for maximum enjoyment. But while this temperature is excellent for tea, it isn’t ideal for making coffee.

Coffee is a temperature-sensitive product and using near-boiling water can give you over-extracted coffee. This happens when the coffee loses more of its natural flavours thanks to the high temperature. So for a coffee that offers you the best taste, your water only needs to be around 55ºC (130ºF).

Hot water, but not hot enough

While a coffee maker is a way to get great coffee and fresh hot water, there’s a good reason why it’s probably not the best idea to use it for both. Apart from taste contamination, a coffee maker can only produce hot water rather than boiling water, so the water never gets hot enough to kill off any potential bacteria that may be lurking. To do that, water must reach the boiling point of 100ºC (212ºF).

If you’re going to use your coffee maker to supply hot water as well, it’s always best to use clean, fresh water in your coffee maker each time (try not to store water overnight in the unit). And double down on regular cleaning of the system and kit for the best taste.

So, by default, a coffee maker can give you a steady stream of hot water to use for giving you the best-tasting, aromatic coffee. But it won’t give you near-boiling water you need for tea or other hot drinks and snacks that are popular in the office kitchen.

So why not leave the coffee maker to do what it does best and you can focus on taking advantage of a cost-effective and energy-efficient hot water dispenser to deliver the near-boiling water you need?

Hot water on tap from Thirsty Work

A coffee maker for hot water can be sufficient. But a hot water dispenser really can be a game-changer for your office, in addition to your bottled water cooler or mains fed water cooler, and it comes with plenty of good reasons on why you should install one.

Every Thirsty Work model can deliver up to 30 litres of near-boiling water on demand while keeping it hot all day. It can also be fitted with an advanced Pura filtration system to remove odours, limescale, and trace plastics.

To find out more about our range of water dispensers, get your free quote, or start your no-risk, 10-day free trial, contact our customer service team today on 01392 877 172 or email us at hello@thirstywork.com.