Using trash in a brilliant and creative way an entrepreneur in Kenya is utilizing discarded plastic soda bottles and converting them into bottle bulbs.
By scaling the simple idea, people in Kenya can afford light on sunny days in dark rooms they otherwise would have had to pay dearly for electricity to illuminate.
Missionaries departing from Wake Forest to locations in disadvantaged communities might want to learn more about this cost efficient illumination technique also known as the Moser Lamp after inventor Alfredo Moser.
Almost any clear plastic bottle can be crafted into a Moser Lamp. The instructions are simple.
- Remove all labels on the plastic bottle and clean the plastic bottle well.
- Fill bottle to top with clean water.
- Add two capfuls of bleach to water to keep water clear.
- Tightly tighten cap and a used black film container can be used to cover the cap.
- Insert the bottle through a hole cut in the roof and seal the area around the bottle where it penetrates the roof with an appropriate caulking to prevent leaks.
“Although he charges a few dollars for installation, the invention was never meant to be a “get rich quick” scheme. Moser still drives a 1974 car and lives with his wife in a simple house. But he’s proud that his lamp has given others a little bit of hope.
“There was one man who installed the lights and within a month he had saved enough to pay for the essential things for his child, who was about to be born. Can you imagine?” he said.
By next year, the “Moser lamp” is expected to brighten the lives of at least one million people — at their homes, schools, or stores. It’s already made headway in at least 16 countries, including the Philippines, India, Bangladesh, Tanzania, Argentina, and Fiji, the BBC reports.
The MyShelter Foundation in the Philippines creates houses using sustainable products. Moser’s invention caught the eye of Illac Angelo Diaz, the organization’s executive director. He started the Isang Litrong Liwanag (A Liter of Light) project, which has already helped install about 140,000 lamps in the Philippines.” – Source
For more on this great idea and to watch the construction of the Moser lamps, watch the video below.