What's your next new piece of kitchen equipment?

SatNavSaysStraightOn said:
..... an amazing lack of electricity sockets in my kitchen.
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My kitchen used to have only four sockets (incl. the cooker socket); now it has 12! All but four are in constant use, but these four are still used very regularly. Two sockets have adapters plugged in to them - one for the microwave and smart meter, which use very little power, and one for the kettle and coffee maker, on the principle that I very rarely need to use both at the same time. Two of the others seem to have chargers plugged in them 24/7 for phones, electric carpet sweeper, toothbrush and battery chargers. There is one socket that is more or less a spare, as it is not in the most convenient place, but I have found that if I plug my vacuum cleaner in there, it will reach all the way round the ground floor, up the stairs, the landing, the bathroom and the loo, and the small front bedroom, as well as the back bedroom. The only room it will not reach is the larger front bedroom, but that has goatskin rugs on the floor - it's easier to pick them up and shake them out of the window than it is to vacuum them :giggle:
 
I was very specific about the number of sockets to be installed in my kitchen. I specified 3 x doubles above the worktop and 2 x doubles at floor level. Unfortunately, I paid less attention to the lounge and had 4 x doubles, one installed at each "corner". We now have satellite tuner, tuner/amplifier, CD player, DVD player, TV and subwoofer all fighting for a twin socket. I had to buy a plugbar and two of the other doubles are rarely used.
 
The other day, I was visiting the kids whom I often babysit,

The 3-y-o was trying to stick her finger into one of the electrical outlets!! She got scolded for it. Luckily, she did not get electrocuted at all.
I suggested to her mom that she get some covers to go on the outlets to keep that from happening again!! :eek:
 
My front room is bad too as far as sockets are concerned. I live in a timber-framed house which was built in the mid-1970s when the four sockets in there was more than adequate. One of the sockets is installed in the brickwork between my house and next door, and two (double socket) in the brick "column" between the windows and the front door. The other is in the thick, solid plasterboard wall between the front room and the kitchen. One socket is used exclusively in winter for my electric fire, and depending on the weather the fire may be plugged in for part of autumn and spring as well. In summer it's an idea socket for my keyboard as I use headphones with it instead of the speakers it came with. The double socket has two plugbars - one for the TV, Sky box, BT TV box, and VCR/DVD recorder; the other for my headphones charger, landline, clock/radio or CD player or keyboard (in winter), and the loop system. That socket also has an adapter for my porch light (the lead isn't long enough to reach the plugbars!). The remaining socket is for my broadband system, which also has provision for a third plugbar which is used for the chargers for my laptop, mobile phones, loop system accessories. The power supplies for my router and one external hard drive are plugged in there permanently. I have a lamp, laptop speakers and a further external hard drive which are only plugged in when needed, so the lack of spare sockets on the bar can be got round. It sounds awful, and it can be, but I have it on good authority from an electrician that none of the wall sockets is overloaded. I did ask about having extra sockets put in, but the cost was prohibitive, apart from having to drill through brick walls to lay cables and fit extra sockets.
 
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After years of frustration with cheap can openers I have taken the plunge and invested £16 in a new Swiss designed Kuhn Rikon opener. I totted up that I'd spent the best part of £40 over the last 10 years on poorly designed openers that aren't up to the job. Here's hoping this one does the business.
 
Master Cutler said:
View attachment 13228 After years of frustration with cheap can openers I have taken the plunge and invested £16 in a new Swiss designed Kuhn Rikon opener. I totted up that I'd spent the best part of £40 over the last 10 years on poorly designed openers that aren't up to the job. Here's hoping this one does the business.
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That is quite a lot to pay for a tin opener! I hope it works well. I've found that the mechanism on that type of tin opener sometimes doesn't work with certain types of tins. It somehow doesn't grip the rim. I now use a simple butterfly tin opener which seems to do the job on any kind of tin. You can get one for about £1.50.

httpwww.zodiacspco.co.ukuserproductslarge90833.jpg

That is not to say that yours won't be the Rolls Royce of tin openers!
 
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Much of the tinned produce here (with the exception of tomatoes) are now ring pull.
 
There are very few canned goods in the pantry - mostly tomato products. My old OXO opener does the job. @Master Cutler how does it work? Does it require turning? Mother has arthritis in her hands. Opening cans is painful for her.
 
Hi Elizabeth, yes it has a handle to turn but automatic release after the can is opened when the handle is turned anti-clockwise. So far it has opened a tin of salmon and a tin of Morrisons sweet corn with ease and efficiency. So far so good.
 
morning glory said:
That is quite a lot to pay for a tin opener! I hope it works well. I've found that the mechanism on that type of tin opener sometimes doesn't work with certain types of tins. It somehow doesn't grip the rim. I now use a simple butterfly tin opener which seems to do the job on any kind of tin. You can get one for about £1.50.

View attachment 13229

That is not to say that yours won't be the Rolls Royce of tin openers!
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I bought one like that when I first moved here. It didn't last long. It broke within about 6 months! Bought a Swing-away.
 
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