Who invented clothes dryer

The drum-type model was built and eventually picked up by Hamilton Manufacturing in Wisconsin. The new dryers were sold under the name June Day beginning in In England and France during the end of the 18th century, clothes dryers were being made.

Called ventilators, these large contraptions were made of metal. The drum had ventilation holes in it that allowed heat into it while it was hand cranked over an open fire. This invention was used for decades. As time moved on, America caught onto the idea of these ventilators. Unfortunately, the clothing consistently smelled of smoke, was covered in soot and occasionally caught on fire during the drying process.

George T. In , only 10 percent of U. The earliest clothes dryers were made in England and France in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Known as "ventilators," they were large metal drums with ventilation holes, powered by hand cranks, and used over open fires.

Their invention can't be traced to any one person, but perhaps no one would have wanted the credit, since the clothes always smelled of smoke, were often covered with soot and sometimes caught fire. An American inventor, George T. Sampson of Dayton, Ohio, came up with a better ventilator-type dryer. It had a rack and used heat from a stove, rather than an open fire. He was granted a patent for his invention in on June 7, Wooden tubs were replaced by metal tubs and it was game on for electrified washers and dryers.

The machines were still out of reach for many people but the factories of the Industrial Revolution, increasing success in mass production, and improved designs that made all the new-fangled stuff work better and better broadened washer and dryer appeal as the new century dawned.

Electric dryers went mainstream in the s. All those women in the workforce during WWII had no time for domestic chores. Efficiency ruled and, once war manufacturing stopped and factories returned to normal production, the marketplace obliged with vigorous competition, making the machines more affordable and reliable. By about , dryers featured timers, moisture exhaust vents, front panel on-off and temperature controls, and cool-down cycles.

Returning veterans and their expanding households welcomed the innovations. Contemporary washers and dryers come in an infinite variety of configurations , from compact, all-in-one, mini-washer-dryer units to energy-efficient, water-saving models, to "smart" washers, LCD touchscreens, designer colors, LED panel lighting, and noise and vibration reduction.

The days of hand-cranking wooden wash tubs and clumsy wringers and manglers are a quaint note in the history books. The Evolution of the Clean Machines The washing machine and the dryer are relative newcomers in the catalog of human tools. Briggs is awarded the first U. It is clever but imperfect. The machine was probably called a "ventilator" and consisted of a perforated metal drum that sat over the fire in the hearth on a kind of barbeque spit, and was turned by a crank. Into this drum went your wet wash, which promptly got smoked, often came out sooty, and occasionally caught fire or singed.

The concept needed some work. Turnbull in Canada obtains a patent for a washer with an attached wringer to squeeze the water out of the clothes. You could feed the wet laundry straight from the tub into the wringer and the water would drip back into the tub -- handy for re-using the same water for the next tub of wash.

The mid-to-late 40s saw the addition of temperature controls, timers, exhaust mechanisms and a cool cycle. In the s a dryness sensor was invented, meaning that the dryer would automatically switch off when the clothes were dry - an innovation that saved time and money for consumers. In the mids a microelectronic controller facility was added to tumble dryers - a feature that improved on the dryness sensor that effectively controlled all aspects of the drying cycle, including the length of time and levels of dryness.

These features were impressive enough, but, to paraphrase the pop song, things can only get better — and they did. Saving energy is the 21st century mantra, but in the mids this was a revolutionary way of allowing people to monitor and conserve their energy usage.

Since then — and certainly since its humble and basic beginnings — the tumble dryer has transmogrified into a 21st century technological marvel. Further advances have been made to cater for the green culture and modern obsession of energy efficiency, and these developmental leaps mean money and natural resources continue to be saved. The Hydronic Dryer was created by Hydromate Technologies, and uses hydronic power to dry clothes.