Edwin Ruud, a Norwegian mechanical engineer invented the electric water heater in 1889 that has now become an indispensible part of every household and certain commercial organizations and industries. He founded the Ruud Manufacturing Company where these devices were manufactured and sold. Ruud’s design had a large tank for storing hot water and a heat source for warming it to the required temperature.
An electric water heater uses electricity as its main power source for heating water. There are three different types of electric water heaters. They are the conventional electric water heater with a tank, electric water heater without a tank and immersion water heater.
The conventional electric water heater, has a storage tank and has very low energy efficiency among the available water heaters. Hence many engineers do not recommend it unless there are no other options available. The efficiency of the electric water heater can be improved by better insulation, selection of the right size and accurate temperature control.
The tank-less water heater does not store water. These are also known as instant heaters as the water is heated when needed. This is done by running water through pipes with heating elements. Water is heated almost instantly and more efficiently.
Yet another type of water heater is the immersion type where the coil with built-in heating element is immersed in a container with water for heating.
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