HVAC history

He received a patent in 1851 but failed to bring it to market when his main financial backer died.

However, it wasn’t until 1902 that New York engineer Willis Carrier invented the first true air conditioning system to control climate.

The year 1904 was the first time when a large portion of the public was exposed to the wonders of air conditioning.

In 1914, the first home air conditioning unit was installed in a Minneapolis residence that belonged to Charles Gates, son of barbed wire manufacturer John Wayne Gates.

In 1920, Carrier created a smaller version of his cooling unit.

In 1922, he created the centrifugal chiller.

And in 1925, Carrier convinced Paramount Pictures to install an air conditioner in its Rivoli theater in New York City.

So, in 1932 H.H. Schultz and J.Q. Sherman created a unit that could fit in window sills.

Packard introduced the first air-conditioned automobile in 1939.

In 1942, the first summer peaker plant was built in the United States to accommodate the high demand for electricity thanks to the increasing use of air conditioning in homes and businesses.

In 1944, the Carrier Corporation received four patents for their Conduit Weathermaster systems.

By 1953, over a million units were being sold annually.

In 1956, Carrier won a contract to supply central air conditioning to 700 upscale homes in Pennsylvania.

Since many countries had banned freon, Carrier developed Puron – a more environmentally-friendly refrigerant – in 1998.