Each year we all reach for our telephones to book in our annual boiler services with companies like Cheltenham Boiler Service business http://www.blu-fish.co.uk to ensure that our heating systems are in full working order for the colder weather. But over the centuries human beings have developed some extraordinary ways in which to keep their homes warm. We have the most sophisticated systems now and they only appear to get more and more sophisticated over time. Here is a look back over the ways in which humans have heated their homes in the past.
Fire – fire was one of the first ways in which early humans created warmth. Initially this would have been in a camp fire type setting outside of the dwelling areas. Over time early humans learnt how better to control the fire and this was then utilised inside buildings such as black houses and buildings made from waddle and daub, with a thatched roof. The smoke levels would have been immense but at least they were kept warm during the cold winter months.
Hot Air – the Romans are to be credited with one of the first established ways in which to heat a room from underneath the floor. The Hypocaust was a number of stone columns built into the floor underneath a room, usually the bath house or dining room. To one side of these columns would a tunnel that would directly to an outlet that would be connected to the furnace located in the kitchen area. The furnace would be on all day long and the heat from this would travel along the tunnel into the open floor space. Then, as we all know, hot air rises up through the floor space and heats the room above.
Hot Water – in more recent times we established a way in which to utilise hot water that was passed through pipework in our homes and would collect in the radiators that were placed at strategic points throughout the rooms. These radiators would heat up and the warmth would then radiate out into the room. It is this system that boiler service companies check each year to ensure that they are running smoothly and that no harmful gases are escaping into the home. We now have the ability to be able to heat our homes to our desired temperature and can even switch our heating on from a distance via mobile apps.