Why does my kettle water taste of plastic?

In a new kettle, trace volatiles from the mouldings leaching out — this fades within a handful of boils. In an older kettle, the more likely cause is limescale or a corroding element, both of which affect taste more than the plastic does.

Why it happens

The distinction matters because the fixes are opposite. A new-kettle taste is temporary and self-resolving; you simply need to run several boils and discard the water. A taste that develops in a kettle you have owned for a year is telling you about the element and the scale on it, not the plastic.

Scale traps residue and provides a surface for it to sit on, and an element running hot under an insulating scale layer can produce a distinctly metallic or burnt note. Both improve immediately after descaling.

Standing water is a third cause and the easiest to test. Water left in the kettle overnight picks up flavour from every surface it touches, plastic or not.

What to do about it

1. 1Run three full boils, discarding each, if the kettle is new.
2. 2Descale, then boil and discard once more to clear the descaler.
3. 3Empty the kettle after use and fill fresh each time rather than reboiling standing water.