Electricity: The Complete History and Future of Electric Heaters
Today’s modern room heaters are powered by electricity on one end of the spectrum or gas on the other.
But both have their roots in 19th-century history that put them into our homes and offices today. Here’s how it all began…
Just over 150 years ago, two tiny wires would have been enough to strike fear into anyone of a nervous disposition. One was insulated with cloth, while the other was bare metal – so they were called ‘life’ and ‘dead’ respectively – but if you touched them at the same time this ingenious contraption could do far more than just give you a shock. It could also light up your home idea behind this. The first electric lamp was invented by a British inventor – none other than Sir Humphry Davy, who had found fame in 1801 when he managed to isolate the element sodium.
By 1809 he had developed an early type of arc lamp after meeting with the ingenious Italian physicist and fellow scientist, Alessandro Volta. A prototype was presented in 1810 but it wasn’t until later that same year that his invention was demonstrated to members of the Royal Institution, whereupon it created such a sensation that for some days ‘all London was illuminated’. It didn’t take long for others in Europe and America to develop their own designs and within just a few years, DC and AC arc lights were in vogue all around the world.
Electricity became more readily available to the masses when it was used to power our modern world. This time, it would be driven by water which created hydroelectric power – not dissimilar to what we see today. The first hydroelectric plant in New York City opened in 1882 while London got its own version in 1894. It didn’t take long before these early generators. Were being built on a larger scale with the creation of Niagara Falls. Which began generating electricity just three years later. By 1895 Edison’s DC grid was providing 425 kilometers of service while Westinghouse had around 10 percent market share. But his AC system took off after former employee William Stanley introduced an improved transformer. That got rid of the need for input voltages over 15kV.
By the early 20th century, electricity was taking over the world. In 1917 it provided around a million and a half American homes. With power followed by similar numbers of British homes 12 years later. Although the costs were high from both energy and financial standpoint at this time. New inventions improved both these factors to bring them more in line with what we see today.
In America, there were several patents for electric heaters that came into light before World War II. But it wasn’t until 1946 that US retailers began selling their own models. While Britain’s first official electric heater went on sale in 1948. Today they are widely used all around the world. While also being some of the most popular forms of renewable energy sources. Even more so than solar panels or wind turbines.
Electricity has come a long way in its relatively short lifetime. And we wouldn’t be surprised if alternative forms of technology were invented over the next few decades or beyond. Perhaps fusion energy, which is currently being researched? This would make it environmentally friendly and cheap to produce. While also providing us with electricity without having to rely on fossil fuels like Coal and Oil. For now, though, we can expect this form of energy. To continue powering our world for some time until something more efficient comes along. That’s not to say that research isn’t already taking place, however.
Conclusion:
The invention of electricity enabled us to create so many things in our world today. And we would be lost without it. What do you think about the history of electricity? Tell us in the comments below.
Did you know that Thomas Edison invented crayons because he was unhappy. With the waxy mess created when color ended up on his hands while working with them? Then, when visiting a school, he noticed how much children enjoyed drawing with them. And this inspired him to continue developing his product. So far, there are around 36 different types of crayon available today – one for every shade imaginable! One final thing that makes these interesting is the fact. That they don’t need sharpening but instead has a solid core.
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