Wednesday, October 19, 2011

History of the Clothes Dryer


Have you ever wondered where the dryer you are renting from AZUMA Leasing originated? Here is some info about where the clothing dryer came from:

In the early 1800s, clothes dryers were first being invented in England and France. One common kind of early clothes dryer was the ventilator. The ventilator was a barrel-shaped metal drum with holes in it to allow the heat to escape. It was turned by hand over a fire until the clothing inside was dry. Can you imagine having to do that? Talk about a hazard for the launderer!! One early American patent for a clothes dryer was granted to George T. Sampson on June 7, 1892. Sampson's dryer used the heat from a stove to dry clothes and it had a rack for the clothing. This dryer was also a ventilator dryer.


Electrical clothes dryers appeared around 1915. We take them for granted now, but clothes dryers are a fairly recent invention. In 1955, only 10 percent of U.S.households had one, probably because they were fairly expensive. Inventor J. Ross Moore lived on a North Dakota farm in the early 20th century. Tired of hanging wet clothes outside in the frigid winters, he built a shed, installed a stove and hung the clothes there to dry. Over the next 30 years, Moore developed his idea for an automatic clothes dryer. He finally built a drum-type model that worked. He developed both gas and electric models but, due to financial difficulties, needed to find a manufacturer to produce them. After many rejections, he struck a deal with Hamilton Manufacturing Company of Two Rivers, Wis. Hamilton began selling the new automatic clothes dryer, named the "June Day," in 1938.

Here are a few important dates in dryer history:
  • In 1946, dryer manufacturers moved controls to the front of the dryer, added a timer, an exhaust for moist air, temperature controls and a cool-down cycle.
  • In 1958, a 30-inch-wide dryer using a negative pressure system was first offered to the public. This system is still used in dryers.
  • In 1959, dryness-sensors were first used to shut off the power when the load was dry.
  • In 1965, dryers with permanent-press cycles were introduced.
  • In 1972, manufacturers put electric starters on gas dryers.
  • In 1983, the first clothes dryers with delayed start timers allowed users to run dryers in off-peak hours.
Hope you found this interesting! Just goes to show ya, there is always something new to learn. Until next time, keep it clean!!!

No comments:

Post a Comment