I love the convenience of filtered, almost-boiling water being ready anytime for hot drinks, filling pots while cooking, and for cleaning items. I find I’m drinking a lot more delicious tea than I ever did before since it’s so fast and easy now. I’m also a huge fan of the Instant Pot electric multi cooker and found that starting my recipes with near-boiling water makes them cook about 5 minutes faster (since less time is required for the Instant Pot to turn the water to steam and come to full pressure). The price point for the Ready Hot was great…this unit with the dual faucet cost way less than just the similar faucet alone for a competing brand. The faucet is attractive and operates very smoothly. I hooked this up to a Filtrete Maximum undersink filter and love the hot and cold functionality out of a single spout (with just one extra hole in the sink). One big advantage of this unit over competing hot water dispensers is that although the hot water has a safety feature to prevent it from being turned on accidentally, you don’t need to keep holding the lever to fill a large pot…it stays open by itself. However, just to be extra safe, since I installed this shortly before a whole bunch of houseguests came to visit, I put a small sign on the wall right behind the faucet warning folks that the water is extremely hot. I found the included faucet pairs really nicely with the main Delta Trask faucet on my sink. I opted for chrome for both my main faucet and Ready Hot since I wasn’t sure about how well the brushed or satin finishes from different manufacturers would match. I did wonder about the power consumption of keeping 2.5 quarts of water at near-boiling temperatures 24 x 7. Using a plug-in Kill-A-Watt meter, I measured the power consumption for 12 hours of standby (i.e., with no water drawn out) and found it to be 0.21 KWH (e.g., 0.42 KWH for 24 hours). At the electric rates here, that comes to $0.05/day or $18.87 per year, which is well worth the convenience I am getting. I expect the heating costs for the actual hot water I draw from the Ready Hot to be a little less than heating it in a kettle on my electric stove. The Ready Hot is well-insulated and I’m not going to be heating any extra water like I usually wind up doing in a kettle…it just needs to re-heat the exact quantity of water that I actually dispense into my cup. To minimize the potential for burns, I set my unit to provide water at 190 degrees. Also, for those concerned about electrical/fire safety, the heating unit bears the Underwriters Laboratory (UL) marking. I’ve noticed in other reviews that some folks have reported issues with flow rate and taste. The cold water doesn’t come out with great force but it’s an improvement over the flow rate in my fridge dispenser so I’m not bothered by it. I have a sensitive palate and haven’t detected any off tastes whatsoever on the hot water, although the water passes through a Filtrete Maximum before it gets to the Ready Hot. I did flush the system for a full 5 minutes through the hot faucet before connecting the power for the first time. The hot water comes out with adequate force. I notice that very occasionally (every couple of months), the unit spits out a little hot water after it completes a heating cycle. Also, if the unit happens to be heating the water in the tank while you are dispensing cold water, the cold water spurts a little while dispensing (since the tank vents through the spout). I can also sometimes hear the water sounding like it’s approaching a boil, but all of these are very minor annoyances to me. At 1300 watts (10.8 amps at 120v), this unit draws a lot of current and per its manual (and the National Electrical Code), it should be connected to its own dedicated 15 or 20 amp 120V circuit rather than a shared lighting or appliance circuit. However, if it’s not convenient to install a new circuit for the water dispenser and you have a disposer that’s already on its own dedicated circuit, you could consider an InSinkErator STS-00 dual outlet air switch. This toggles the power from your disposer to the Ready Hot whenever the disposer is not in use. Please note that I have the manual dial Ready Hot and the dual outlet switch mentioned would work with that but might not work with the digital display Ready Hot since sometimes heating devices with electronic controls revert to a default temperature setpoint when power is removed and reapplied. If you go the dual outlet air switch route, since a lot of current passes through that switch when the unit is heating, for safety reasons I’d personally go with the UL-listed InSinkErator air switch over some of the cheaper knockoffs out there that seem to completely lack any safety certifications. The Ready Hot installation was not difficult (I have experience as a homeowner with plumbing) but I thought the installation instructions were terrible. I did like the convenience of installing the faucet completely from above so I didn’t need to contort myself to fit under the sink. The prevailing opinion based on friends who have had them and the many reviews I have read is that under-sink instant hot water heaters will likely leak over time (regardless of manufacturer) and can cause a big mess. So I also invested in a FloodStop FS3/8CD device and an Xtreme Mats Under Sink Kitchen Cabinet Mat to provide an alarm and automatic shutoff in case unwanted water is detected under the sink. I’ve written separate Amazon reviews for those. These additional purchases doubled the cost of the project but it feels good to know my cabinets and floors are well-protected and I will avoid a whole lot of aggravation from a leak or flood. I’m sad to report that in September 2020, just 16 months after installation, my Ready Hot stopped heating. It visibly appeared to be working (the red LED lit up) but the water never got hot. But I’m happy to note that it was completely painless to get it replaced under the 3 year warranty. The toll free number was answered directly by a live person who handled the whole transaction for me…no annoying phone menus! I had the replacement unit in my hands at no charge less than a week after I called them and emailed my original Amazon proof of purchase. While it’s disappointing that the Ready Hot failed less than halfway through its warranty period, since they handled it so smoothly and it only took 20 minutes to swap the units under the sink, I’m not going to deduct any stars for that. During the time I was waiting for the replacement unit, I had to heat water manually every day. I used my old methods of a kettle on the stove and a cup in the microwave, and the added inconvenience and time constantly reminded me of what an awesome time-saver the Ready Hot is. Last but not least, given the relatively low price point of the Ready Hot and how indispensable it has proven to be, even if I need to replace the unit again after its 3 year warranty expires, I won’t be that disappointed. I’ve gotten very spoiled and should I ever move, I will definitely want one of these in my new place!
