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   Dan Neuman (dan613@ottawa.place)'s status on Sunday, 18-Feb-2024 08:43:53 JST Dan Neuman

   in reply to

   • Ross of Ottawa
   • The S Kate M 💛💙

   @ottaross @skatem Yes, for radiant heat loss it is the 4th power. But for convection heat loss it is linear. But every bit helps over the long run.

   • Embed this notice
     Dan Neuman (dan613@ottawa.place)'s status on Sunday, 18-Feb-2024 08:43:54 JST Dan Neuman

     in reply to

     • Ross of Ottawa
     • The S Kate M 💛💙

     @ottaross @skatem While a microwave doesn't have to heat a container as well as the water, it does lose energy in converting electricity to microwave. And the container has to heat up anyway for the water to boil, so I think it's a wash. Another con is knowing exactly when to stop, whereas a kettle nor dispenser have this problem. An electric kettle has a thin bottom above the heating element, and so has less material to heat up. I'm thinking that is probably the way to go if you put in the *exact* amount of water needed.

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     Ross of Ottawa (ottaross@mastodon.social)'s status on Sunday, 18-Feb-2024 08:43:54 JST Ross of Ottawa

     in reply to

     • The S Kate M 💛💙

     @dan613 @skatem makes sense, the precise fill is likely optimal.

     Temperature dissipation, if I remember my thermodynamics, is a bit weird. I recall it drops as the fourth power of T, so it really plummets from the boiling point. A hot vessel is pretty helpful at keeping your cuppa warm.

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     Ross of Ottawa (ottaross@mastodon.social)'s status on Sunday, 18-Feb-2024 08:43:55 JST Ross of Ottawa

     in reply to

     • The S Kate M 💛💙

     @skatem @dan613 I think a microwave is more efficient. But I find getting a rolling boil in a mug is messy - needs an oversized container. And unless it hard-boils it tastes a bit off and is foamy. :(

     Further, microwaves have a safety risk as they can create superheated water, which explodes into a boil with disturbance. So some downsides.

   • Embed this notice
     The S Kate M 💛💙 (skatem@mstdn.social)'s status on Sunday, 18-Feb-2024 08:43:56 JST The S Kate M 💛💙

     • Ross of Ottawa

     @ottaross I’m sure some clever person can calculate the most efficient way to make hot water. Lots of variables of course, like number of cups to be filled, the power of the microwave, the efficiency of the kettle (gas stove, electric, stove, vs electric) but is the microwave more efficient? Cc @dan613