The history of air conditioning

Most of us cool our homes at the touch of a button and barely give it a thought. Air conditioning as we know it, though, is a surprisingly recent invention. Here is a quick look at how people kept cool through the ages, and how the modern system in your ceiling came to be.

Keeping cool in ancient times

The idea behind air conditioning is thousands of years old. The ancient Egyptians hung wet reeds in their windows so that the breeze blowing through was cooled as the water evaporated. Persian and Chinese households had their own clever tricks, from wind towers to hand cranked fans, to take the edge off the hot season. Nobody understood the science yet, but the principle of evaporative cooling was already at work.

The 19th century breakthrough

Real progress came in the 1800s. Advances in chemistry showed that evaporating certain liquids could pull heat out of the air quickly, which laid the groundwork for mechanical cooling.

In 1902 an American engineer named Willis Carrier built the first modern electric air conditioner. He designed it to control humidity in a printing plant rather than to cool people, but it did not take long for businesses and homeowners to see how useful the technology could be for comfort as well.

Air conditioning today

Air conditioners have changed enormously since then. Today’s systems are quieter, smaller, far more energy efficient and much more affordable than the early models. Melbourne homeowners also have more choice than ever, from ducted reverse cycle systems that heat and cool the whole house to split systems for individual rooms.

If you would like to talk through the right air conditioning option for your home, get in touch with the team at Beyond Heating and Cooling.