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| by
Martin Zibauer
photos by Roger Yip |
HOT WATER DISPENSER |
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Add convenience to your kitchen sink with this hot water
dispenser |
The prospect of boiling water straight from a faucet didn't
bring out the gourmet chef in any of us. "Instant noodles,"
laughed photographer Roger Yip, "I could live on a diet of instant
noodles." Art director Paul Lewis wanted to use the hot water
dispenser for hot chocolate. I thought of instant oatmeal and
Jell-O. While we joked about a diet of all convenience foods,
it was clear this little kitchen luxury would be well used.
 A
hot water dispenser is an electric water heater that sits under
your sink, with a faucet above. A thermostat-controlled element
keeps the water near boiling in a small, well-insulated tank.
Prices range from $150 to $300, and the units typically cost
about 6 cents a day to operate. Some units can be fitted to
provide chilled or filtered water, too.
The installation was surprisingly easy — it can be done
in an hour or two and you don't need plumbing skills.
You will need an electrical outlet under the sink. Be sure it's
a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) outlet, which will
prevent a life-threatening shock. If you have any doubts about
working with electricity, hire a licensed electrician to install
the outlet.
In our installation, we needed to cut a mounting hole in the
ledge of the sink. The instructions suggest a chassis punch
or an expandable wood bit, but we had neither on hand so Paul
improvised with an old 35 mm bit for European hinges. It worked
beautifully, making a clean, smooth cutout.
 There
are two ways to tap into cold water. One choice is to install
a T-fitting (with shut-off) in the existing cold water supply
pipe. Or use a saddle valve, which clamps onto the pipe's surface
with no soldering. A twist of the valve's handle pierces the
pipe to let water flow through. You don't even have to turn
the water off to install it. Saddle valves aren't infallible
— they occasionally clog, or leak, and they're banned by
some plumbing codes. Here, the valve is accessible and visible
— if it ever fails it will be noticed before it does damage.
The other plumbing connections use compression fittings —
also quick, convenient and solder-free.
Once the tank is mounted, the connections are made, the saddle
valve is opened and the tank is filled, plug the unit in and
let it heat. The tank will gurgle and water may sputter from
the faucet when it heats initially. Once it's hot, run the water
for a few seconds and let it reheat. Do this a few more times
and the system will settle down.
And, while it's heating, do as we did — walk to the nearest
convenience store for some instant noodles.
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| What You'll Need |
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 Get
in hot water with a drill, an appropriate bit for drilling
the sink, or a chassis punch, 1/2" and 9/16" wrenches,
screwdrivers, a tubing cutter, safety goggles and a saddle
valve. Our hot water dispenser is Insinkerator's model GN-3C.
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