The cheapest sustainable light bulb in the world can be found in your garbage can

Isang Litrong Liwanag

(CBS) - Imagine lighting your house with a soda bottle, water and bleach. In a small village in Manila, that's exactly what they're doing.

The project is called Isang Litrong Liwanag (A Liter of Light) and is providing sustainable and affordable solutions for lighting.

According to the website, the project was "designed and developed by students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT); the Solar Bottle Bulb is based on the principles of Appropriate Technologies - a concept that provides simple and easily replicable technologies that address basic needs in developing communities."

So how does it work?

A plastic bottle is filled with water and bleach. That's it. That water refracts light from the sun in all directions and disperses the sun's rays that would otherwise go in one direction inside the home. The bleach prevents algae and particle build-up, keeping the water clear. Once the "light bulbs" are assembled, they are put through holes in the roof. The process can be done in an hour.

The light bulb shares the same cycle as sunlight, but families could save precious money by reducing electricity bills. Not to mention, the countless plastic bottles are recycled and put to good use instead of going to landfills.

See the lights in action here. 

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[Bojax39]

Don't think I'd use it in the house but I have an old, dark shed on the back 5 that could use a bit of bright. Think I'll make one and put it in the sunlight streaming in that little shed window though. Wouldn't want a bottled chunk of ice sticking out of the roof in winter. :-)

[rf35]

I don't know what houses are like in Manila, but I get light from the windows here and rarely use electrics when the sun is up.

[erasmus111]

Very good. I'll punch some holes in my roof and give it a try.