# Novelty dribbling coffee urns

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/novelty-dribbling-coffee-urns/252403>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 27, 2004, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/novelty-dribbling-coffee-urns/252403 "2004-06-27T15:04:45Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\
**Post date:** [June 27, 2004, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/novelty-dribbling-coffee-urns/252403/1 "2004-06-27T15:04:45Z")

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What’s the deal with coffee urns nowadays? At my previous job we had Bunn coffee makers. No problem with the urns. I used a Gemco (remember them?) urn or a Braun espresso mini-urn at home. No problem with those.

A friend has a Black & Decker coffee maker. You have to pour the water into it _very_ slowly, lest it start dribbling. The cofee maker at my current job does the same thing. I bought a different B&D coffee maker from my friend’s, which has a different shape to the urn. Pour too fast, and the water winds up on the floor or the coffee winds up on the counter. My coffee maker is a few months old. My friend’s is probably more than a decade old.

Why does this poor design still exist?

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**Author:** ![beltbuckle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3da27b/32.png) [@beltbuckle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beltbuckle)\
**Post date:** [June 27, 2004, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/novelty-dribbling-coffee-urns/252403/2 "2004-06-27T15:51:29Z")

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Just correcting your terminology. What you call the urn is called teh carafe.

And I share your concern. My parents own a cooking store, and I have noticed the same thing. I have not heard a good reason as to why they do this, but I have noticed it on many brands. You have to pour very slowly to avoid a spill. I have noticed it more on the cylindrical carafes moreso than the ball shaped carafes that have a more tapered top. It could be that the cylindrical ones yield a higher capacity, but sacrificing the good spout.

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**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\
**Post date:** [June 27, 2004, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/novelty-dribbling-coffee-urns/252403/3 "2004-06-27T15:57:36Z")

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I chose a spherical carafe specifically because my friend’s cylindrical carafe dribbled. It didn’t work.

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**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\
**Post date:** [June 27, 2004, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/novelty-dribbling-coffee-urns/252403/4 "2004-06-27T17:10:19Z")

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Beat the shit out of me. Our previous Krups dribbled like hell. Our new Cuisinart DOES NOT DRIBBLE  
::: Rick does happy dance:::

I bought a cheap ($20) B&D for a friend and it also doesn’t dribble.  
So my experience  
$20 no dribble  
$80 Dribble  
$100 no dribble  
:dubious:

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**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\
**Post date:** [June 27, 2004, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/novelty-dribbling-coffee-urns/252403/5 "2004-06-27T17:14:32Z")

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I just showed this thread to Mrs. Rick and she reminded me that we also had a Kitchen Aid ($80) that dribbled, and I bought a Westinghouse ($20) for my office that did not dribble.