Question on heating elements and boiling water

Aimpoint · 2013-04-07T16:02:05.000Z

So I noticed in crafting both a water purifier and a hotplate, they require a heating element. What exactly is that? I assumed it was the hotplate itself but it was a bit redundant to require a hotplate to make a hotplate.

Also I’m not sure how to boil water. I have a pot and a hotplate, but I can’t seem to use the hotplate on the pot (says that I have no wounds to cauterize). What am I doing wrong here.

BTW I’m using .4 pre-release v2

qurvax · 2013-04-07T16:09:43.000Z

You need to “craft” it, just like cooked meat. It’s under crafting/Drinks AFAIR.

youtoo · 2013-04-07T16:52:21.000Z

finally you can boil water. That is how you survive early.
Do I need a certain survival level?

btw, you can get a heating element by lighting bushes on fire outside. I prefer to save hotplates for other crafting items.

Soron · 2013-04-07T20:58:28.000Z

Boiling water is a 0-difficulty Cooking recipe, actually. It’s something that you can always craft (with appropriate tools and ingredients), luckily.

youtoo:

btw, you can get a heating element by lighting bushes on fire outside. I prefer to save hotplates for other crafting items.

That’s fire, not a heating element. Fire does, of course, work for cooking/boiling things. Sorry to be pedantic, but I just want to clarify that you can’t use flaming bushes in order to craft hotplates.

Aimpoint · 2013-04-07T21:19:49.000Z

Thanks for the help with the water boiling, I can’t believe I completely missed it in the crafting section. However its been explained what isn’t a heating element. What would be an example of a heating element? I would really like to get the water purifier crafted.

Soron · 2013-04-07T21:27:59.000Z

Disassemble hotplates, or (possibly) raid electronics stores.

Hmm… there should probably be a heating element recipe as well, that takes mostly mechanics. I mean, really, it’s basically just a coil of iron or steel. adds to to-do list

Aimpoint · 2013-04-08T06:57:51.000Z

[quote=“Soron, post:6, topic:718”]Disassemble hotplates, or (possibly) raid electronics stores.

Hmm… there should probably be a heating element recipe as well, that takes mostly mechanics. I mean, really, it’s basically just a coil of iron or steel. adds to to-do list[/quote]

Ahh thanks, that solved it. I’ve never run into a heating element and never thought to disassemble existing components. Welp I guess I gotta find a couple more hotplates, they seem more common than water purifiers.

Miloch · 2013-04-08T13:15:53.000Z

In my current run hotplates are as common as dirt. I think I’ve found about six of them in 15 houses. Anyway, I think we should be able to disassemble a oven and get heating elements and a bunch of scrap metal.

Iosyn · 2013-04-09T12:28:00.000Z

Do you have a kitchen at home? what about a kettle? open the top of the kettle and look inside.
That’s a heating element. It’s generally a coil of metal that just gets hot. There are also heating elements in most household boilers.

Hotplates and water purifiers tend to be rare as hell for me, I’d love something more common that I could butcher for heating elements-- i.e something like a kettle. What, you americans don’t have a need for tea or hot water?
Generally I find hotplates in electronics stores, but electronics stores tend to be rare. I’ve been finding a lot of water purifiers in sports goods and military surplus stores though, which is a bit unfair. I’d like to craft them instead of just looting them.

As for making the heating element itself, yeah you should be able to craft them very easily. I still remember making several in my old science classes.

The_Darkling_Wolf · 2013-04-09T12:36:33.000Z

Y’all realise that the water purifier recipe used to require a pair of hotplates rather than two heating elements, right? It’s not like I’ve made the recipe any harder. Just means your resources stretch a bit further.

Sirian · 2013-04-10T21:21:42.000Z

You should be able to get heating elements from disassembling soldering irons, they tend to be somewhat more common than hotplates. Also I found some RV kitchen units in a garage once, maybe you can disassemble them as well ?

Miloch · 2013-04-11T04:23:42.000Z

I’ve been wondering if this would work…
Start a vehicle next to an open window. Hell, it’ll be easier to draw this. Obviously the solar panel is outside.

[font=courier]
R = RV Kitchen set
B = Board
P = Solar Panel
| = Kitchen Wall
|
PBR
|
[/font]

sodapop · 2013-04-12T03:56:38.000Z

Iosyn:

…What, you americans don’t have a need for tea or hot water?..

A kettle? I think we use coffeemakers mostly.

Sirian:

You should be able to get heating elements from disassembling soldering irons, they tend to be somewhat more common than hotplates. Also I found some RV kitchen units in a garage once, maybe you can disassemble them as well ?

I like this idea.

MisterCrow · 2013-04-12T12:10:24.000Z

You know whats easier than crafting a hotplate/waterpurifier and more abundant… Making a fire. Alls you need is a pot and you are as good as gold

Psiweapon · 2013-04-12T22:19:33.000Z

Fire? That flaming stuff that eats the whole building?

Flare · 2013-04-12T22:52:44.000Z

Yes if you make one anywhere other than on the srove.

Sirian · 2013-04-13T10:30:35.000Z

Using a hotplate and water purifier is way better in my experience. Not only is it 100% safe and foolproof, but it’s also much more convenient. You can purify up to 100 water at a time with a purifier, against 1 at a time with fire, plus all the juggling containers. It’s also much faster in game time. A hotplate can just sit on the floor next to your pile of meat and you can come by anytime you’re hungry to make some cooked meat, no hassle and no need for firewood.

A stove requires finding an LMOE camp, I believe (but those lack lighting), and a brazier requires crafting skills and equipment for welding.

You might think that, batteries being a limited commodity compared to wood, they shouldn’t be wasted on a recurring need, but you can find/craft so many of them, and cooking/purifying consumes so little, that in practice they’ll last you a lifetime. Just in case you didn’t know, flashlights among other common drops, will spawn with batteries that you can (U)nload.

Benedict · 2013-04-14T20:54:58.000Z

MisterCrow:

You know whats easier than crafting a hotplate/waterpurifier and more abundant… Making a fire. Alls you need is a pot and you are as good as gold

Definitely faster to just use a water purifier - and not just IRL. It takes basically no time, in game, and you can purify up to 100 units of water at once, where the fire method takes about 5 mins per unit, which means you’ll need to drink some of what you’re producing, and dedicate an hour or so a day to boiling, just to stay even.

Fire is an alright method, but make a purifier when you can, cos it’s much better.