History of Water Heaters | Water Heater Pros | Sacramento, Ca

History of Water Heaters

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Life is not the same with the invention and use of water heaters.

It is hard to imagine living without immediate access to hot water, but some people do it daily, and water heaters are not always a part of everyday existence.

Here are some more interesting facts about the history of water heaters.

Before water heaters, people had to find natural ways to heat water, such as fire and hot springs.

The Romans produced hot water more than 1800 years ago; we'll discuss that later.

It was not until 1889 that Edwin Rudd invented the automatic storage water heater, which most of us are familiar with today.

In 1896, Clarence Kemp took the next step with his solar-paneled heating system. This type of hot water heating utilizes solar panels to heat the water—a popular choice in sunny areas worldwide.

The modern tankless water heater, as we know it, was introduced in the 1960s. This type of water heater heats the water inside copper or brass coils, known as a heat exchanger; therefore, no storage tanks of heated water are needed.

The heated circulation system was introduced in the 1970s. It provides pre-heated water circulated throughout your home to meet your needs on demand.

Bet you didn't know?

12 – The average lifespan in years of a tank-type storage water heater.
25 – The average lifespan in years of a tankless water heater.
64 – average gallons of water used by a person per day.
400-600 – the average number of dollars a family spends yearly to heat their water.

Knowing the history of water heaters and other interesting facts should help you appreciate this handy appliance in your home even more. Without it, you would be forced to heat your water using manual traditional methods.

WHO INVENTED THE FIRST WATER HEATER

Before the invention of the water heater, hot water was a time-consuming luxury.

Anyone wanting a hot bath had to heat the water in small batches over an open fire or a stove and transfer it one bucket at a time to a bathtub.

First Instantaneous Water Heater

In 1868, a British decorative painter named Benjamin Waddy Maughan patented the first instantaneous water heater for household use.

Maughan's Geyser

Called the "gas geyser," Maughan's invention used natural gas to heat the water as it flowed into the bathtub. The guys didn't have a way to vent gas vapors, so using it was dangerous.

Ruud's Success

In 1897, Rudd established a company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, dedicated to manufacturing residential, domestic, and commercial water heaters. The Ruud Manufacturing Company has become an industry leader in water heating products and is the oldest American water heater manufacturer.

First, the Automatic Storage Water Heater

Maughan's design inspired mechanical engineer Edwin Ruud, a Norwegian immigrant to the United States, to invent the successful "Thermal Valve Model" Type "F". Edwin Ruud patented his automatic storage water heater on September 6, 1898.

Ruud's Invention

Ruud's water heater was a gas-heated, cast-iron appliance with a copper coil heat exchanger. When the bather opened the hot water spigot, it would then cause an actuator valve to turn on the central heater's burners.

HOW THE INVENTION WORKED

• Popularity was slow in coming as Americans were skeptical of such a device.

• It wasn't long before indoor automatic water heaters were a welcome sight.

• Erwin Ruud invented the "Actuator Valve" that led to a working gas water heater while working as an apprentice for George Westinghouse Jr. (October 6, 1846 – March 12, 1914) in the late 1800s. Westinghouse would allow his employees who invented products for his company to keep the patent rights.

• The actuator valve, which is a device that would activate due to water pressure loss in the hot water pipe that was connected to the actuator valve which was attached to the gas valve at the water heater, as the pressure dropped in the pipe when a hot water spigot was turned on, the actuator valve would then activate by opening the main water heater gas burner, allowing gas burner to come on heating the water as it was flowed through the pipe to the opened spigot.

• Now you know how it all got started.

Bet you didn't know?

Why is the hot water valve always on the left?

Since cold water was readily available before the invention of the water heater, the first plumbing in a home ty a water pump at the kitchen sink.

Since most people are right-handed, it only seemed practical to place the well pump on the right side of the sink by hand pounding and forming a sheet of copper into a sink with a lead drain pipe leading outside.

When it was time to install a hot water faucet, the only place to put it was on the left side of the sink, so now you know why hot water is always on the left and cold on the right.

Antique water heaters on display in Sacramento, Water Heater Pros office

Romans Produced Hot Water, more than 1800 Years ago!

Hundreds of slaves worked through the day and night, burning wood in 50 brick ovens to ensure the water was hot 24 hours a day.

Just one of these ancient ovens, which helped supply 15 gallons of water per second, was discovered in Ancient Rome through underground tunnels.

One of the brick ovens that kept hot water pumping into the ancient baths of Caracalla, Rome (pictured) 1,800 years ago, is now on display for the first time.

The steamy secret to how the Romans ran a piping hot bath: Slaves burnt tonnes of wood in 50 brick ovens that kept water in the ancient Baths of Caracalla warm 24 hours a day

The Baths of Caracalla in Rome, Italy, were built under Emperor Caracalla in 216 AD.
At the time, it supplied 15 gallons of water a second and accommodated 5,000 people.
Directors have opened a section of tunnels with oven-heating baths for the first time.

In the modern world, most people don't think about the source of the hot water running through their taps.

And neither did the 5,000 Romans who used the Baths of Caracalla every day more than 1,800 years ago—but if they had, the steamy secret was being kept right under their feet.

Hundreds of slaves working through the night burnt tonnes of wood in 50 brick ovens to ensure the water was hot 24 hours a day, reports the Times.

Now, one of these ancient ovens, which helped supply 15 gallons (70 liters) of water per second through underground tunnels, is being displayed for the first time.

Director Marina Piranomonte told the Times: 'This is the technological heart of the baths. Everyone should see it — not just academics with torches.'

The Terme di Caracalla was built in 216 AD while Emperor Caracalla ruled and remained in use, cleaning 5,000 Romans daily until 537 AD when it was closed. It was closed after the Ostrogoths destroyed the aqueducts supplying water to the baths.

Contemporary descriptions of the grand structure mention marble columns, floors, glass mosaics, and hundreds of statues. Unfortunately, the marble was eventually stripped away; however, the site remains one of the best-preserved ancient spa complexes.

Nearly two miles of lead pipes underground kept the pools at 40 °C (104°F), which may have contaminated the water.

POMPEII ITALY

Old boiler: The world's first central heating system on display as -- Ancient boilers from Pompeii, the partially-buried Roman settlement near Naples in southern Italy.

Ancient Roman boiler from Pompeii. It produced hot water while resting on an iron tripod: bathtubs, boilers, and the world's first underfloor heating System.

The recreated Pompeii villa offers a rare glimpse into Roman life.

A Roman villa had technological innovations, such as a boiler that warms bathwater in Pompeii.

The exhibition "Pompei: The Art of Living" at Musee Maillol in Paris has been set up as a Roman villa, built around a garden atrium, offering a composite look at the decor of a Pompeian domus.

Ancient boilers were discovered in Pompeii, a partially buried Roman settlement near Naples in southern Italy.

THE HISTORY OF ELECTRIC WATER HEATERS

Water heaters have become ubiquitous in modern housing in the industrialized world. However, before industrialization, they were a luxury. Electric water heaters became available during the Industrial Revolution.

Inventor

The Norwegian-American engineer Edwin Ruud invented the first electric water heater in 1889.

Storage Tank Water Heaters

The storage tank heater, still the most common type of water heater in the United States, heats a supply of water and stores it for later use. Newspaper advertisements from 1945 suggest that an "automatic gas or electric water heater" could help keep a constant flow of hot water to the home.

Tankless Water Heaters

Tankless water heaters are now commonly used in Europe and much of Asia. They use a series of tubes running through electric elements to heat only the amount of water needed for a particular purpose.

The first electric instantaneous (tankless) water heater was invented by Stiebel-Eltron in 1929.

by Sharon J. Rehana

WE'VE COME A LONG WAY

In 1889, George Eastman began selling his Kodak flexible roll film for the first time; the World’s Fair opened in Paris with the completed Eiffel Tower; Daniel Stover and William Hance patented a bicycle with the back-pedal brake; and Edwin Rudd, a Norwegian mechanical engineer and inventor who immigrated to the U.S. was awarded a patent for his design of a tankless water heater.

It had a cast-iron body with a copper heat exchanger, and his patent was for a gas actuator valve, which turned on the burner when a water faucet was opened.

Things have changed since then. Today, tankless water heaters are used worldwide and have gained significant popularity in North America.

They last longer than tanked heaters, provide hot water when and for as long as needed, and will save consumers money each month because they reduce the energy used.

EWART & SON,

THE ROYAL GEYSER

This royal British water heater, which is gas-fired, dates back to approximately 1895.

Typically, it was installed in the bathroom above or near the bathtub, where showers were virtually non-existent.

To operate it, you light the pilot, turn on the water, and then turn on the gas valve.

Be Careful when filling that bathtub.

The temperature was adjusted by adding the correct amount of cold water to the hot water, thereby controlling the temperature.

When shutting off the water heater, you had to be very careful not to shut off the water before turning off the gas.

If you did forget, the heater would quickly be ruined—probably melted down since copper is a very soft metal.

Shepherd's Crook

This water heater works by mixing hot gases and water, which, although very efficient, isn't particularly clean. British heaters had an interesting safety device built in, which you can see on the side of them.

The "shepherd's crook" fills the air gap in the water supply.

This prevents tainted water from the heater from potentially contaminating the water supply (a relatively modern concept).

The slightly tainted hot water was intended for use only in bathing. This heater would burn roughly 100,000 BTU per hour.