Do-it-yourself clean energy

Chinese farmer assembles solar water heater from hoses, used beer bottles.

Here’s a story that combines three of my favorite things: clean energy, technology for developing countries, and beer.

The beer bottles lie on a board in rows, all connected by hoses which allow cold water to flow through them and be heated by the sun.

“I invented this for my mother. I wanted her to shower at any time more comfortably,” says Ma Yanjun, a carpenter, of Qiqiao village, Shaanxi Province.

If you want to bulid your own solar water heater, the Make: blog has details, along with links to instructions on-the-cheap solar air heaters as well.