Sometimes the best ideas are born in the simplest way. That was what José Alano, a retired mechanic from Tubarão, Brazil, demonstrated when in 2002 he decided to give a new use to the plastic bottles and milk cartons that filled the trash in his city. Nobody could imagine it but with them he created a homemade solar heater, cheap and effective, that today is already used by thousands of families and allows them to save up to 30% of energy!
What began as a personal solution to a waste problem ended up becoming a social and environmental project that has inspired entire communities. But… How did he do it?!
How the idea was born
Alano realized that in Tubarão there was no recycling system, and that this caused more and more garbage in the city. Unable to accept that so much plastic and cardboard ended up in landfills, he decided to look for a way out. With the help of his wife he gathered 100 PET bottles and 100 milk cartons, and with that he built the first prototype. The result exceeded his expectations, the system really worked, it used the accumulated waste and also reduced the electricity bill in his house. A true novelty for his neighbors, who began to pay attention.
Little by little he became “famous” in his community and local media, even winning an ecology award from the magazine Superinteressante. From there, his story and his invention went viral.
How the invention works
The system uses the basic principles of solar thermal energy. The transparent bottles work as conduits that concentrate solar radiation. The cartons painted black absorb the heat and transmit it to the water that circulates through connected pipes.
It seems like real madness but the design is simple and anyone can build it at home with recycled materials! Each heater means less waste in the city and lower electricity bills for the families who install it, we like that, since electricity has been very expensive lately!
The impact on communities
Over time, Alano’s invention spread throughout southern Brazil, especially in Santa Catarina, where he himself has given workshops and talks in schools and community centers.
Beyond economic savings, the project helped create a recycling culture in a region where there was hardly any selective garbage collection. Even the city of Tubarão itself adopted periodic collection programs thanks to the popularity of this system.
A green innovation with a human face
Alano has shown that to create his heater you do not need a big laboratory or a lot of money, only the will and creativity. With determination you can achieve a real impact on people’s lives!
Each installed system is equivalent to hundreds of bottles and cartons that will not end up polluting rivers or landfills, and knowing how we are leaving the planet with waste it is more than incredible, in addition to the fact that these families save on electricity consumption!
When the small transforms the big
The invention of José Alano is much more than hot water. It is environmental awareness, it is savings and hope. What began in a retired man’s workshop ended up giving relief to thousands of Brazilian homes. And this is the example that whoever wants to change things, changes them, it is enough to look at the trash and give it a new life. High technology is not needed, big brands are not needed, but the certainty that you can change someone’s life!