Need help? Hire the professionals

Get a free quote from the London Property Service specialists here at My Plumber

Get a free quote right now

The History of the Central Heating System: From Early Boilers to Modern Radiators

Central heating has transformed home heating, providing consistent warmth and comfort. Understanding when central heating was invented and how it evolved is essential for appreciating modern radiator systems, boilers, and hydronic heating. This guide explores the history of home heating, the development of central heating technologies, and the innovations that shaped today’s residential heating systems.

Today we tend to take for granted living indoors at a comfortable even temperature. In winter especially, central heating has really changed our lives quite dramatically.

Early Home Heating Systems

Before the invention of central heating, homes relied on open fireplaces and wood or coal stoves. While these provided localized warmth, they were inefficient, posed safety risks, and required constant maintenance.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, innovators began experimenting with steam and hot water systems to distribute heat more efficiently. This marked the early stages of what we now recognise as central heating.

Who Invented Central Heating?

The modern concept of central heating is often attributed to Angelo Salvi (Italy) and Benjamin Franklin (USA) for early innovations. However, the first practical central heating system using hot water circulation was developed in the 19th century, primarily in Europe.

Key milestones include:

Late 1700s: Benjamin Franklin experimented with hot air heating.
1800s: Steam boilers and radiator systems became widespread in wealthy European and American homes.
1855: Franz San Galli, a Russian-born engineer, invented the modern radiator, improving heat distribution.

When Was Central Heating Introduced in the UK?

Central heating systems were gradually adopted in the United Kingdom during the 19th century, primarily in industrial buildings, large estates, and Victorian homes. Steam and hot water systems became increasingly popular after:

1840s–1850s: Wealthy households in London and Edinburgh installed early radiator and boiler systems.
Late 19th century: Central heating spread to schools, hospitals, and public buildings, driven by industrialisation and urbanisation.
Early 20th century: Middle-class homes began to adopt gas-fired boilers and hydronic heating, making central heating more widespread.

The UK played a significant role in refining steam and hot water heating technologies, influencing modern residential radiator systems still in use today.

Evolution of Radiators and Boilers

Radiators revolutionised how heat was delivered in homes. Early steam radiators were bulky but provided uniform warmth. Over time, hot water radiators and hydronic heating systems became popular due to efficiency and ease of installation. Key developments:

Steam Radiators: The first widely adopted form, powered by boilers.
Hot Water Systems: Introduced more control and energy efficiency.
Electric Heating: Enabled modern homes to adopt central heating without fuel storage.
Gas Boilers: Made central heating accessible to the middle class in the early 20th century.

Central Heating in Residential Architecture

The invention of central heating transformed home design:

Victorian homes incorporated radiators into rooms for uniform warmth.
Underfloor heating emerged as a luxury in European mansions.
Thermostats and push button radiator controls allowed for precise temperature regulation.

As boiler technology evolved, central heating became standard in urban housing, replacing open fireplaces and inefficient stoves.

Modern Central Heating Systems

Today, central heating systems are more efficient and eco-friendly. Key innovations include:

Hydronic heating systems using hot water for energy efficiency.
Smart thermostats for automated temperature control.
Advanced radiators designed for aesthetic and thermal performance.

Modern systems also integrate with HVAC technologies, providing heating, ventilation, and air conditioning from a central source. Since then many different type of central heating have been developed, but the hot water and radiator type has remained the most common. Let’s not forget about the smart heating systems that have recently flooded the market.

The Romans

The Romans used to heat their homes and very sensibly never let their fires go out if they could possibly help it.

At first the Romans simply has a fire in the middle of their living room. The Latin for hearth is ‘focus’. The fire was literally the focus of the room, but they probably had trouble with smoke as the Latin for living room is ‘atterimus’, as in ‘ater’ meaning black. So they started putting the fire outside in a furnace with cavities under the floors and in the walls. But the Romans were rather decadent and just as they were getting comfortable their civilisation declined and fell, and houses once again became very smokey.

The Normans

The next attempt to improve matters was made by the Normans. They made holes in their castle walls and tried to funnel the smoke out sideways. However, the hot gasses from a fire naturally rise so to make a chimney draw it really has to point upwards. The Normans finally realised this in the early thirteenth century when castles started to incorporate true chimneys.

The Eighteenth Century

By the eighteenth century chimneys were regarded as indispensable in Britain and hardly any buildings were put up without them. Even Chiswick House, which was intended to be an exact replica of an italian design by Palladio. At the last minute the design was modified to include 4 large chimneys on each side. Lord Burlington had the house built after returning from the Grand Tour of Europe, fired with an enthusiasm for Palladion architecture, but he obviously felt that comfort was more important than aesthetics. People were enjoying the comforts of their home, that kept them warm in the winter.

Although well designed open fires made houses almost comfortable, this sort of heat was totally unsuitable for the tropical greenhouses that came into fashion in the eighteenth century. An even heat was required for the plants that was totally smoke free. At first the Roman system of central heating was revived. Fires were lit behind the greenhouse and smoke was drawn up through cavities in the walls. The walls became hot and this created the warmth the plants needed.

The Industrial Revolution

The eighteenth century was also the start of the industrial revolution and steam power was really the miracle of the age. So all the fires behind the walls were replaced by a central boiler and steam, or hot water, was fed through these enormous pipes that acted as radiators. In fact these systems are remarkably similar to the modern domestic central heating systems. These pipes took up much more space than todays small bore pipes and ultra thin radiators but the principle is really exactly the same.

One of the worst problems of using steam is scale. High temperatures increase the effect. Even using a water softener causes all sorts of difficulties. Steam is also very hard to regulate.

Steam heating remained popular in America for large buildings but hot water systems have far fewer problems and quickly replaced steam for domestic use.

Commercial exploitation of central heating systems for private houses didn’t really start until he 1920’s. At first it was only installed in luxury houses but it quickly spread to the mass market, first being incorporated on a wide scale in the new suburban housing estates of the 1930’s.

If you liked this post you might also be interested in: Condensing boilers – explaining the myths