The first kind of water heater was said to have been incepted by British painter Benjamin Waddy Maughan, who in 1868 invented the first instantaneous domestic water heater, which did not make use of solid fuel. The invention worked via means of hot gases originating from a burner at the bottom, which heated the cold water flowing through the device. The invention though effective was rather dangerous due to the fact that there was no ventilation for the gases to escape the room. This contraption was referred to as a geyser.
Maughan’s invention later resulted in the first automatic storage type gas water that was developed by Norwegian engineer Edwin Ruud in 1889. The success of the invention led to the opening of the Ruud Manufacturing Company by him, which is still in existence today. The company is responsible for many innovations in tank type and tankless water heater designs and functions.
