Keep Your Coffee Hot for Hours Using These Innovative Methods

A steaming cup of hot coffee can be an instant mood changer. Be it in the early morning hours or during sleepy afternoons, coffee is a “lifesaver” for most people these days. You can physically feel the pent-up stress and tension slowly seep away from your body and replenish your energy in the process. Most modern workplaces value the consumption of coffee to such an extent that they try to place instant coffee machines on various counters for the employees to drink whenever they feel the need. It is one of the most consumed drinks in the world. The global market for coffee is worth a staggering 102.02 billion US dollars per the latest statistics. Knowing a thing or two about it will surely make your life easier and more convenient, especially if you are passionate about it.

The biggest setback in the consumption of coffee is associated with science and not coffee itself. The mere fact that it needs to be drunk while still piping hot has certain drawbacks. The coffee will turn cold eventually, even if you are drinking it under the sun in the Mojave Desert. You can surely imagine what the case would be if the location was a cold one, like Oregon or Utah, where the weather is generally ice-cold during the winter months. This article describes a few innovative ideas to keep your coffee hot for hours. Never again will you have to shake your head in disappointment after sipping an already cold and stale cup of coffee.

Buy a Mug Warmer

Once it turns cold, warming coffee cup with a mug warmer can be the most ideal solution to the dilemma. If you have this brilliant device, all you need to do is reheat the coffee to enjoy it again. A mug warmer is very portable and can be placed on any surface that has a power socket nearby. Some of them do not even need an electric power supply as they can operate using batteries or USB adapters.

Mug warmers come in a variety of shapes and sizes, along with an array of different functionalities. Make sure you choose the right variant based on your budget and needs. Usually, mug warmers come in standard sizes, enabling them to be perfectly placed on most cup holders in cars or cups in general. In fact, due to the high portability of the device, you can carry it around with you. You never know when you might need a mug warmer to properly enjoy a cup of coffee.

Get an Immersion Heater

An immersion heater is an extremely handy device that is used by people in more or less every possible sector. Mountaineers carry it to keep their coffee hot in immensely high altitudes. Corporate office employees use it to sustain the heat in their coffee during long meetings. The uses are evidently manifold.

The mechanism involved in an immersion heater is quite simple. Dip the metal extensions protruding from the handle into the coffee. Turn the device on after plugging it into a power supply. The metal will start to heat up, and in very little time, depending on the device, begin to heat the coffee as well. This occurs due to conduction and convection phenomena inside the cup, which keeps the fluid warm and ready for consumption.

There is a myth that you should never keep an immersion heater switched on, even after the drink has been fully heated. While this does save some power, it certainly is not a necessity. The strips of metal take some time to reach a sufficient heat level. Imagine doing this every time you want your coffee hot and fresh!

Heat Your Mug Before Making the Coffee

Pre-heating your cup can be a great way to decrease the rate at which the coffee cools down. The best way to execute that is to heat some water and pour it into the cup. The higher the water temperature, the better the results. This will induce heat to the entire cup, making it ready to preserve the heat of the coffee that is to be poured in afterward. While this does not sound like much, it does slow down the rate of heat loss, rather than letting the coffee cool off rapidly. Do not forget to dry the cup after the water has done its task, as you definitely do not want to dilute your coffee.

Using this technique of pre-heating the cup before pouring coffee in or simply brewing it inside is a great practice. In certain situations when, say, you are trekking through a forest or hiking on a mountain, not all forms of heating devices may be available to you. This preheating method can be applied in such situations, without the need for any electrical appliances, which is greatly beneficial for travelers on long tours. Make sure you do not empty the container immediately after filling it with hot water. This is because the mug takes a little time to absorb heat from the water and might not fully heat up in case the water is not kept in it for long.

Use a Lid

While it is true that using a lid on your coffee cup can prevent unintended spillage, this is not the best reason to get one. The lid mainly provides a layer on top that enhances the internal convection of hot vapor inside. The heated air can not escape and is constantly moving around internally. The heat is preserved as much as possible until the lid is opened. The use of lids can also keep your drink free of contamination from exterior germs and microorganisms.

The expenses involved with this are almost negligible as a lid is not an appliance or electrical device but is simply a small, circular piece of plastic built to preserve the heat inside cups. Make sure you have the proper size of lid for your coffee mug. A lid that is smaller than the opening of your cup will serve absolutely no purpose as it would not be able to cover the whole opening. If it is a flat piece of plastic, you can use it on smaller cups as the lid will be able to cover it with ease. In case the lid acts as a clip or is specifically designed for certain variations of cup models, larger ones might not work as well.

Acquire a Thermos

“How do you keep your coffee hot for hours?” Ask this to any random person and, chances are, you will be recommended to buy a thermos. This is the go-to appliance for most people when it comes to keeping their drinks searing hot. The mechanism involved with a thermos is quite straightforward. These devices are manufactured with specific materials that provide insulation. Usually, these insulation sheets are made of silicone, plastic, or stainless steel, all of which are great in preventing the passage of heat through them.

Various types of thermos are available in the market, with different features and price ranges. Some might only be capable of keeping the drink hot for 5-6 hours, while others may achieve higher limits like 24 hours! Even the cheapest thermos is definitely more expensive than, for instance, a lid. Furthermore, it is not just coffee that you can keep warm by using a thermos. These brilliant devices can sustain the heat of anything that flows,  as long as the liquid does not damage the thermos in any way.

Additionally, a thermos can serve as a means of storage during long trips or hikes. Surely you do not intend to carry a cup of steaming hot coffee all the way up a mountain that you are climbing, with the intention of drinking it when you reach the peak. This is easily possible with a thermos and is arguably the best way to do so.