Boil with or without a lid?

[Wobbler]

Is there an optimum temperature for boiling the wort with the hops? I used to boil with a lid on my 10 gal plastic boiler, which has 2 x 2750w elements, only use the second element to get up to the boil.

I started to worry about the wort that would sometimes drip down onto the socket, and then the lid got brittle and split, so I've just started boiling without a lid. When I used a lid, the wort would climb up the boiler and seemed a fair bit hotter.
Is a single 2750w enough without a lid?

TIA

[delboy]

I think conventional wisdom is lid off during the boil, you want to get rid of some of the nasty tasting volatiles DMS (cooked cabbage taste) and also to reduce the volume to up the strength etc

[AT]

I think once you have a good rolling boil you'll be fine, as far as i know it's very important to boil with the lid off so you can boil off the nasties you don't want in the finished product

[AT]

grrrr beat me to it

[Wobbler]

Thanks chaps, I'll keep boiling without a lid.
The only beer I've tasted that I boiled without a lid doesn't seem as bitter as it should be. That's what got me wondering. I feel happier that it was some other factor now.

[oblivious]

Also most programs will account for a loss of volume during the boil