This story originally appeared at Do You Remember by Jane Kenney.

Calling all homeowners who are looking to save money on those energy bills! Whether you live in extremely warm temps, cool temps, or a mix of both throughout the year, this DIY project is for you. If your house gets ridiculously hot in the summer or freezing cold in the winter, your utility bills most likely skyrocket up to hundreds of dollars. One man decided enough is enough and made his own DIY project to help him save big bucks on utilities.

Terry Johnson is an electrical engineer who likes to dabble in DIY projects. “We needed something to make it thermally efficient but didn’t have a big budget,” he said, explaining the inspiration for his project. You’ll never believe how he accomplished this seemingly impossible task!

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Terry had actually discovered a plan for a solar heat collector composed of empty aluminum cans. Using this method, Terry was able to change the temperature in his house up to 7 degrees and it costs only $1.50 a year to run. That’s right, only $1.50.

Via Stuff|Mel Mcminn

So, how exactly can empty soda cans help with the temperature in your house? The simple answer is that they suck in the cool air from the house, heat up the air inside, and send the warm air back out into the house using a fan and vent system.

Plus, the cans were painted matte black to help absorb the sun’s rays even more efficiently. This helps makes the empty soda cans as warm as possible, which helps keep your house nice and warm!

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As you might have guessed, this DIY solar panel works best when it has as much access to the sun as possible. If you live in a generally overcast or rainy area, or the solar panel is located in a somewhat shady spot, you may not have much luck with it.

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If you live in an area with tons of sun, you can sleep comfortably at night knowing you can save hundreds of dollars on your utility bills per year by using this DIY hack. This is the perfect time of year to try out this DIY, with fall and winter just around the corner! Start saving up your soda cans now!

Via Stuff|Mel Mcminn