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1901 - Vacuum
On August 30th, 1901 British engineer, Hubert Cecil Booth patented a motorized vacuum cleaner. Booth's vacuum was horse-drawn and reached the inside of homes and building by using long tubes that were attached and led inside through windows and door openings. The vacuum made carpet cleaning easier because before it had to be removed and shaken out/washed outside. It wasn't until later years that American inventors advanced Booth's technology to create the household vacuums like we have today. -
1902 - Central Air Conditioning
In 1902 the first electrical air conditioning unit was invented by Willis Carrier. There were numerous inventors post Carrier that tweaked his work before it was added to homes and high-rise buildings in the 1930's. The cooling system worked by sending air through water-cooled coils. -
1908 - Washing Machine
Although it was not the first machine around, the Thor washing machine invented by Alva J Fisher was a drum like washing machine with a galvanized tub and an electric motor. Thor was manufactured by the Hurley Machine Company in 1908. By the 1920s, washers were being manufactured all over the world but due to the economy, most people didn't indulge in the leisure. Bendix introduced the first automatic washing machine in 1937. Automatic washing machines made washing simplistic and time efficient. -
1910 - Automobiles
By 1910, automobiles had changed household management drastically. Automoblies helped void the gap between urban and suburban life. What someone would take a day to create, could now use their automobile for traveling where they could purchase said item. The automobile not only made travel time more efficient, but the time it took for tasks in the home as well. -
1914 - The Refrigerator
The Domelre fridge, invented by Fred W. Wolf in 1913 was a box with an electric fan. It was designed to be mounted on top of an ice box and kept things cool b by blowing air over the block of ice. In 1914 the compressor which was a device that compressed gas into a liquid to absorb heat, was invented and used for large applications like grocery store coolers. Engineer Nathaniel Wales invented a home-sized refrigerator. Temperature controlled storage meant no longer worrying about spoiled food! -
1967 - Microwave Oven
The purpose of the microwave was accidentally discovered in the mid 1940's by Dr. Percy Spencer. In 1954, a commercial microwave was introduced and by 1967, a domestic microwave was brought to the market. Microwave ovens use a magnetron tube that generates high-energy, short radio waves that agitate the water molecules in food, cooking it faster and more evenly. Ultimately, microwaves reduce cooking time and are convenient for busy lifestyles! -
1965 - Electronic Smoke Detector
Although they were first patented in 1890, it wasn't until 1965 that the electronic smoke detector became affordable for average households. By 1984, nearly three-quarters of American households had at least one functioning smoke detector. Although the smoke detector doesn't help households perform a specific task, they made households safer by alarming families of smoke and potential fires. Smoke detectors save lives by alarming families, particularly at night while the families are sleeping. -
1929 -Electronic Dishwasher
Josephine Cochrane invented the dishwasher because she was tired of her servants breaking her fine China. Dishwashers weren't too useful until the 1920's when permanent plumbing was installed. The electric top-loading dishwasher was then launched in Europe in 1929 but failed due to economy. William Howard Livens invented front-loading dishwasher in 1940. Automated model was introduced in 1960 and they were common in most households by 1970s. The dishwasher made cleaning up after meals so easy! -
1972 - Automatic Coffee Maker
Most people think of the drip coffee pot, but that's not where it began. The history of the coffee maker changed forever in 1972. Mr. Coffee was the first commercially successful automatic drip coffee maker. Mr. Coffee came on the scene, revolutionizing the way we drink coffee and changing the history of the coffee maker forever. -
1978 - First Electronic Sewing Machine
Singer introduces the Athena 2000, the world’s first electronic sewing machine. A wide variety of stitches, from basic straight to complicated decorative, are available at the touch of a button. The "brain" of the system is a chip that measures less than one-quarter of an inch and contains more than 8,000 transistors -
2002 - Release of the Robotic Vacuum
A robotic vacuum cleaner, often called a robovac, is an autonomous robotic vacuum cleaner that has intelligent programming and a limited vacuum cleaning system. Some designs use spinning brushes to reach tight corners. First released by Dyson in 2001, then iRobot in 2002. They were a huge convenience but high in price and fell off the market and returned in 2014 with Dyson with a hopeful comeback.
