HOW IT ALL STARTED THE HISTORY AND THE EVOLUTION OF THE TANKLESS WATER HEATER

The first commercially available storage tank water heater was invented in 1889, and it was highly energy efficient because of its thick copper tank design—but that also made it expensive. However, gas tankless water heater development wasn’t that much farther behind. Erwin Ruud invented the gas actuator valve in 1889 and thus came the automatic or instantaneous gas water heater as it was known back then. It wasn't till the early 70's that the name was coined "Tankless" and became most popular in europe and asia as a point of use water heater both in gas and electric. 

There were some early and highly inefficient experiments with them in the 1890s. In 1929, Stiebel-Elton invented the first electric tankless water heater, which made the system more easily available. However, the gas-powered models were more efficient, and were the ones that people bought and used, which became more popular.

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Still, not until the 1970s, the technology of tankless water heaters was simply not effective enough to make them a viable alternatives to the standard water heater industry in America. Efficiency started to increase, and Europe and Asia began to adopt more and more of these space and energy-saving systems. This led to the gas tankless water heaters making a bigger impact on the U.S. market in the mid 1990’s. Now they are a major competitor along with electric heat pump water heaters, with more and more homes discovering their immense advantages. If you want to know more about what a tankless water heater can do for your home and budget, simply give us a call for a free in home no obligation quote.

Now Let’s Go Through The Water Heater Timeline

In 298 AD–306 AD the Romans built large baths with heated water, while these were not individual water heaters, this was a first step towards water heating that we know about.

Then after many centuries in 1868, Benjamin Waddy Maughan was a English painter who patented the first instantaneous water heater. He invented the "Gas Geyser" instantaneous water heater; however, this water heater did not include a vent and was dangerous for using in daily life purposes. This gas-powered unit was the first to heat water as it entered the bathtub.

Later on in 1889, Edwin Rudd used the ideas of Mr. Waddy Maughan and upgraded his design of the water heater to include additional safety features and took us one step forward to the modern water heater. It was the first automatic storage tank-type gas water.

In 1890 many different designs of water heaters were invented around the turn of the century, including electric and solar water heaters. Solar water heating started catching on around the turn of the century. Originally there were batch heaters, now called internal collector and storage (ICS) units.

Back to tankless water heaters, not until the 1890's, all forms of water heating took place, this included both heated and stored the water. Many types of gases provided another option. Kerosene, gasoline and a variety of other gases have been used to heat water. Some gases, such as acetylene could even be made on site. With the advent of high-energy liquid and gaseous fuels, instantaneous heating became possible. These fuels were much easier to regulate automatically than wood or coal. Sometimes tankless water heaters are called an in-line water heater, as it only heats the water it needs as it passes through the unit, and therefore energy is not wasted by heating extra water all day that is not being used.

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The tankless water heaters that were commonly used in Europe and much of Asia, used a series of tubes running through electric elements to heat only the amount of water needed for a particular purpose. the first electric tankless water heater was invented by Stiebel-Eltron in 1929. The bath heater was one of the first instantaneous type of water heater.

Nowadays many different brands and styles of tankless water heaters are available in today’s market, but recent manufacturers have started to design high efficiency condensing gas tankless units that uses a smaller amount of fuel to produce the same amount or more hot water than traditional storage tanks or tankless water heaters of the past. If you are interested in high efficiency water heating, you can review some of our newest tankless water heaters on this site, click here to see and learn more about the quality brands water heater pros recommends and installs.

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It’s hard to imagine living without immediate access to hot water, but many people in the past have and even today throughout parts of the world. Here are some more interesting facts about the history of water heaters.

• In 298 - 306 AD the Romans had large baths facilitated with heated water. Although not considered real water heaters, many people regard them as a pioneer work for water heating.

• An English painter named Benjamin Waddy Maughan patented the first water heater in 1868. His water heater is the first residential water heater. It used natural gases to heat the water, but it didn’t have a flue to vent gas vapors, which made it unsafe to use in households.

• Waddy Maughan inspired Edmund Rudd. He took the design forward when he added the safety features which was the initial step toward the invention of the modern water heater.

• In 1896, Clarence Kemp took things one step further with his solar paneled heating. His invention used solar panels for heating the water which is a popular choice in sunny regions of the world.

• The modern tankless water heater made its debut in 1970.

• 1990 is considered the golden period for water heater inventions. Many people advanced the design in the 90s. It was also the time when the heated circulation system came about by providing pre-heated water circulated throughout your home or business on demand.