The Beginning of Home Heating

Before I delve deep into the past and give you the low-down on the chequered history of the radiator, it’s important for us to look at how heating our homes has developed over time.

Obviously, our cave dwelling ancestors didn’t benefit from all of the creature comforts that we enjoy today – they were much more inclined to gather around a pit fire, with thoughts of central heating and fireplaces undoubtedly far from their tiny prehistoric minds.

Heating has evolved beyond all recognition since those days – for a start, we heat ‘homes’ now and not caves and – as you may expect from a species that boasts roughly 6,500 different languages – there are a number of different cultures that have contributed to how we go about keeping those homes warm.

Neanderthal Man

Far from being brutish thug-like creatures with huge heads and a dumb outlook on the world, Neanderthal man was quite the innovator when it came to heating his home.

Evidence suggests that, 420,000 years ago, hearths were being used in what is now modern-day Ukraine.

Made from Mammoth bones and featuring a grass roof, these little pods were the first examples (after caves) of humanoids employing primitive home heating techniques.

It’s a mystery why they died out really, considering they had the forethought to build a house they could take anywhere, and that could accommodate a fire to keep them warm.

The Romans

Elsewhere in Europe, our old ‘friends’ (and invaders) The Romans can be credited with an early form of central heating, thanks to the invention of the hypocaust.

Vitruvius – the famous Roman author – attributed the invention of this early home heating technique to Sergius Orata, a hydraulic engineer and celebrated Roman innovator.

The system was used for heating public bath houses and various other buildings and consisted of hot air and smoke from a furnace being circulated through an enclosed area under the floor – an early form of underfloor heating you might say.

The warmth and smoke passed under rooms that required heating and out through flues in the walls; a system that required constant attention and a ready supply of fuel to keep the fire stoked.

This design shows that the Romans clearly understood the principles behind heat transfer systems and what forcing heat through the hypocausts would achieve.

But it wasn’t just our Roman chums that operated this kind of home heating.

In The East

Bronze Age Koreans were using a similar setup, known as Ondol, as far back as 1000BC – a design that’s possibly even older than the Roman hypocaust.

Found at many archaeological sites throughout present-day North Korea, this traditional type of architecture was very similar to the Roman model, using direct heat transfer from wood and smoke to heat the underside of a deep masonry floor.

The key difference between the Hypocaust and the Ondol was the latter’s long winding underfloor flue, which channelled air to keep it moving towards the exit at a faster rate.

Unlike its Korean counterpart, the hypocaust floor was ‘just’ an open chamber that didn’t direct the smoke or air in any way – though both designs were equally very clever.

The Korean system was arguably more efficient than the Roman’s, as the ondol used heat from the kitchen fire to warm the entire house – effectively doubling the use of the heat source – a very energy conscious approach for something that’s over 3000 years old!