apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time


DIY Sun Tube Skylight from Soda Bottles

4-6-09suntube0.jpgI've dreamed about having suntube skylight like those from SunTek or other manufacturers ever since I first saw one. While this DIY suntube won't replace those from traditional manufacturers, it would work well in a shed or unpowered cabin.

 
 

4-6-09suntube4.jpg

Unfortunately, there aren't any still photos from this video that showing how surprisingly well the soda bottle light works. I've posted a few screen captures below but the main idea is that the soda bottle, filled with water and mounted in a hole in the ceiling, collects light from the sun and distributes enough into your space to supply adequate light for your daytime needs.

See a detailed video here on Youtube.

4-6-09suntube2.jpg

4-6-09suntube5.jpg

4-6-09suntube3.jpg

Make via Lifehacker.

Tags

creative reuse, soda bottle

Related Links

Share

Comments (2)

wow, that video was really good.
I always wanted to get the solatube installed in our bathroom (we don't have a window). Its cool to see that people in countries where its harder economically that they can save money from their electricity bills

but why do they put bleach in the bottle? is it to keep the water clean?

posted by witchbaby on April 7th 2009 at 8:57am
view witchbaby's profile

The bleach is almost certainly to make sure nothing grows in the water (eg: algae), which would obscure the light.

posted by minimalia on April 7th 2009 at 9:14am
view minimalia's profile