Top 10 green living myths – 4. What they tell you: Don't overfill the kettle

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What they don’t tell you: It’s not just how much water you boil that determines the carbon footprint of your tea or coffee, but also the type of kettle you use. Jug kettles are fast and convenient, but their fuel – electricity from the national grid – produces almost three times more greenhouse gas for each unit of heat than burning gas in the home does.

Hence switching to a stove-top kettle on a gas cooker will usually reduce emissions – especially in colder months when any heat from the flames that escapes around the side of the kettle will warm the room, reducing the burden on the central heating system.

via Top 10 green living myths | Duncan Clark | Environment | guardian.co.uk.

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