When you have a thermal carafe coffee maker, you have a vacuum coffee pot that will keep the coffee hot for hours without using any electricity. It doesn't matter what size of thermal carafe you have or whether you have coffee pot from Delonghi, Cuisinart, Black and Decker or one of the many other coffee pot manufacturers. The coffee pot will shut off when the coffee is brewed and the coffee will stay hot in the thermal carafe sitting on the flat bottom of the machine for hours. There is no warmer in the flat bottom, so there is no possibility of children burning their finger if they should accidentally touch it.
There are other advantages to having a coffee pot with a thermal carafe as well. The lid of the carafe seals in the flavor and the freshness of the coffee. To open it to pour out a cup of your favorite beverage, you simply turn the lid counterclockwise until the open notch lines up with the spout of the carafe. Then when you have your cup filled, you replace it on the flat bottom and line up the close notch with the handle of the pot. You can remove the pot from the bottom of the percolator and take it with you. If you prefer to leave it there, the coffee will not stay hot as long because the brew head will depress the ball in the lid of the pot and allow some of the heat to escape.
You can use all flavours of coffee in a machine with a thermal pot. There are also espresso machines from the coffee maker manufacturers that have thermal pots and you can even get these in machines that grind and brew the beans for a fresh pot every time.
The thermal carafe is very versatile. You can also use this machine for making tea and if you wish to serve cold beverages such as iced tea, the thermal insulation keeps the beverage icy cold for the same length of time. With the many different designs and colors that these coffee pots come in, you won't have any problem finding the one that matches your kitchen decor. They are not expensive, so when you are in the market for a new coffee percolator, you should look at the selection of this type of coffee maker.