A Peek into the History of the Electric Powered Ceiling Fan
It was way back in 1882 when Philip Diehl, who had designed the electric motor that was used in the first Singer sewing machines, adapted the motor to be used in a fan that was mounted on the ceiling, thus inventing the first ceiling fan that was electrically powered, which became an instant commercial hit. Diehl continued making improvements to his brainchild, one of them being a ceiling fan light kit, called the ‘Diehl Electrolier', which he fixed onto the fan in order to compensate for the displacement of light fixtures due to the ceiling fan being installed.
By the time of World War I, instead of the two blades that they originally had, ceiling fans had begun to be manufactured with four blades. This resulted in the motors being used more efficiently, because the fan circulated more air, plus, the fan became much quieter too.
Ceiling fans became quite commonplace by the 1920s in the US. But then, the advent of the Great Depression saw it fading out of vogue, and by the time World War II ended, ceiling fans had practically disappeared, and remained so until the 1950s. Although they continued being popular in countries that had war climates, where air conditioners were too expensive to use.
By the turn of the 1960s, ceiling fans started catching on again slowly when they were imported to the US by some Asian manufacturers. But, when the energy crisis struck in the 1970s, there was a huge demand again for ceiling fans, since they consumed much less energy compared to air conditioners, and their popularity remained high right up to the late 1980s. This was the time that saw the rise of well known fan manufacturers like Casablanca Fan Company, Hunter Fan Co., FASCO, Lasko, and Emerson Electric. But, by the early 1990s, the sales of ceiling fans started plummeting because of them becoming more expensive due to the high cost of American labor and parts, plus the ever reducing prices of amenities like air conditioners.
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