Does a left on kettle still burn power and if so how much?

[Accy cyclist]

I keep doing it. I've tried to train myself to leave the kettle off the stand,so it can't burn power if left on accidentally,but for some reason i sometimes put it back on the base with it switched on. If i'm making a cup of tea,it doesn't happen as i let the water boil,then the kettle switches itself off,but as we aren't supposed to put boiling water on coffee i take the kettle off the base before it's boiled and can switch itself off. Then about half an hour later i'll hear a clicking noise and think Oh no,i've left the bloody thing on again"!!. Surely if the kettle was accidentally left on(burning power)for half an hour,it'd burn itself out...wouldn't it?

Edit.. There is no water in the kettle when left on, if that's any help to you.

 

[Tanis8472]

impossible unless its broken

 

[Tanis8472]

the click you are probably hearing is the thermal switches

 

[classic33]

Never leave a kettle dry. Always leave it with some water in.

 

[Accy cyclist]

the click you are probably hearing is the thermal switches

But is it burning power at a rate of 50p a minute,or something scary like that?

 

[S-Express]

But is it burning power at a rate of 50p a minute,or something scary like that?

Stop it.

 

[amasidlover]

I'd expect it to still be using its full rated power until some kind of thermal cut-out kicks in, it probably won't be doing it much good... I always leave enough water in to cover the element to avoid this occurring and wasting power (or causing a fire if the cut-out fails); it means I boil slightly more water than necessary, but not a lot.

 

[ColinJ]

Yes, it is burning power, yes, it will probably burn itself out, and yes, I can't type fast enough on this tablet!

 

[Accy cyclist]

Yes, it is burning power, yes, it will probably burn itself out, and yes, I can't type fast enough on this tablet!

But if it's still burning power,surely the elements would burn themselves out? I remember the old electric kettles that didn't have a turn off switch. If left on the elements would be black and burnt out by the time you realised it'd been left on quite a while. These new ones don't burn out,so i'm assuming they turn themselves off when there's no water in

 

[TheDoctor]

There's normally a thermal switch. A kettle with water in can only ever get up to 100 degrees C, if there's water in it.
Once there isn't, it'll get up to somewhere hotter before the thermal switch cuts in.
Do that often enough and yes, the element will eventually give up.
I don't know what the click is that you hear - could be the thermal protection cutting in or resetting once it's cooled, could be the kettle contracting as it cools down.

 

[TheDoctor]

Actually, I've gone back and re-read the OP, and I've found the root cause of the problem.
Stop drinking instant coffee.

 

[subaqua]

the click you are probably hearing is the thermal switches

this.

sad as I am i know our kettle is on the slippery slope to WEEE waste as the click is taking longer, I havent created a spead sheet but have made a note in one of the multiple notebooks i have ...

 

[marinyork]

But is it burning power at a rate of 50p a minute,or something scary like that?

Nope.

1 electrical unit is 3.6 Mega Joules. If you left a 1000 Watt device on for an entire hour it'd use 1 unit. Obviously a kettle may be 2000-4000 Watts.

Are your units about 12p each?

 

[Yellow Saddle]

Your observation of a light clicking noise is interesting and could be a mechanical thermal switch that operates whether it is powered or not. All thermostats work like that. On my kettle it isn't a switch that's clicking, it is noise from thermal contraction in the kettle itself. As the kettle cools, materials contract. Because there are different materials in a kettle, they contract and expand at different rates and move against each other. Show us a picture of your kettle and let's see if we can spot where the click happens. It is usually not where the element screws into the vessel because there's a rubber grommet there. But fancy kettles have ornamental escutcheon plates around the handle etc.They click like hell.

 

[subaqua]

At what point will you use this data to tell you it is time to get a new one?

Just after it stops working .....