Your coffee machine is great at creating a hot cup of Joe, but do coffee makers boil water? Just how hot does the water get?
You already know your coffee machine can make coffee. The name gives that one away! You can also use it make to hot chocolate and tea. But can you use it to just boil some water?
Here’s the quick answer. Most coffee machines do not boil water. It simply doesn’t get the water hot enough to boil it. And that’s probably a good thing. Otherwise, you might accidentally burn yourself every time you make a cup of java.
But there are some other great reasons why your drip coffee maker doesn’t heat water to its boiling point. Read on to find out why.
Jump to:
- How do coffee makers heat water?
- What is the perfect temperature for water in coffee machines?
- Why don’t coffee machines boil water?
- Can you use a coffee maker to boil water?
- Can a Keurig machine boil water?
- Do coffee makers kill harmful bacteria?
- Can you still use a regular coffee machine to just heat up water?
- More coffee-related answers
How do coffee makers heat water?
The inner components of a coffee machine efficiently work together to quickly hot water, and therefore make hot coffee in just a few minutes. Here’s basically how a coffee maker works.
First, a heating coil heats up water traveling out of the water reservoir and up through an aluminum tube. At the top of this metal tube, there’s a spray head that disperses the hot water over the coffee grounds in the filter basket.
A more powerful heating element can warm the water more quickly and produce a full pot of brewed coffee in a shorter amount of time.
In most cases, coffee makers will heat water while brewing to a temperature range of about 180-205 degrees Fahrenheit or 82-96 degrees Celsius. That’s somewhat below the boiling point of water at 212° F (100° C).
Once brewed, the coffee can cool fairly quickly if left in the carafe (unless you have a hot plate built in).
What is the perfect temperature for water in coffee machines?
To get a great-tasting cup of coffee, your coffee maker should heat the water to between 195 and 205° F. This optimal temperature range allows the right amount of contact between the grounds and the water to produce the perfect cup of coffee without burning it.
Why don’t coffee machines boil water?
Coffee machines don’t boil water when brewing for a few very good reasons.
- Boiling water can burn the coffee grounds, resulting in an unpleasant bitter taste.
- It can also lead to a weak-tasting cup of coffee as the water and grounds would not have enough time to brew together before burning.
- Finally, boiling water can damage components of the coffee maker over time, making it unsafe to use.
By heating the water but not boiling it, the coffee machine can let the water stay in contact with the grounds for a longer period of time. This allows for more extraction and a fuller flavor, so you get the best-tasting coffee.
Can you use a coffee maker to boil water?
You might be tempted to use a coffee to boil water. It could be a quick way to do it with little clean up. But as we’ve seen above, most drip coffee manufacturers aim to keep the water temperature below boiling.
However, there are exceptions. Here’s how to use a coffee maker to boil water. You just need the right kind of equipment.
Boiling water in a coffee percolator
A coffee percolator works by using gravity to cycle boiling water through the grounds in a basket at the top until the coffee is brewed. So boiling water is required.
To simply boil water without coffee, add water to the percolator, but don’t add the coffee basket to the machine. Then heat the percolator on the stovetop (or by plugging it in if it’s electric).
You should have boiling water in a few minutes.
Boiling water in a Moka Pot
A Moka Pot is a type of stovetop coffee maker. It includes 3 chambers that work together to brew coffee. The bottom holds the water. The coffee grounds go in the middle. And the brewed coffee ends up in the top chamber.
When the Moka Pot is heated up on the stove, steam from boiling the water forces the water up from the bottom into the chamber with the grounds. Then it brews the coffee and deposits it in the top section.
To use it just boil water, first thoroughly clean it to remove any old coffee grounds. Then fill the bottom chamber with cold water, attach the upper chamber, and heat it on the stove. You should get boiled water in about 5 minutes.
Can a Keurig machine boil water?
Highly popular Keurig machines use K-Cup pods, which are single-serve coffee containers, as part of their brewing process. Keurig brewers push hot water through the cup’s contents to result in a hot cup of coffee very quickly — much more quickly than with a regular drip coffee maker.
But a Keurig machine does not boil water. It can reach a maximum temperature of only about 192° F (89° C).
However, you can use one of these high-end coffee makers to heat up water. Just add water to the reservoir then start the brewing cycle for a large cup of coffee, without adding a pod. That will result in plain hot water.
Do coffee makers kill harmful bacteria?
In most cases, to purify water and kill bacteria, you need to boil it for an extended period of time — usually a rolling boil of a few minutes.
Since they don’t boil water, drip coffee makers can’t kill all bacteria to purify the water, but they are effective at eliminating some.
Many forms of bacteria will start to die at temperatures ranging between 140 to 165 degrees Fahrenheit. So coffee makers will destroy these types once they reach their ideal brewing temperature of around 195°-205° F.
However, some bacteria will persist at temperatures above that. To make your coffee as safe as possible to drink, try to use filtered water or bottled water instead of tap water. And drink the brewed coffee when it’s fresh
Can you still use a regular coffee machine to just heat up water?
Yes, you can. If you simply want to heat up water (but not boil it), the best way is to just add water to the reservoir as you would normally, but don’t add any coffee grounds to the coffee filter basket. Then start the brewing process.
The countertop coffee maker will heat the water and deposit it in the coffee pot, which you can then use to make tea, ramen, hot chocolate, and more.
If you really need to boil water, the best option is either heating it up in a sauce pan on the stovetop or in an electric kettle.
More coffee-related answers
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