In the heat of summer a tall glass of fresh, brewed iced tea can be refreshing. Keep a pitcher handy by making your own using solar power. All you need is a glass jar, water, tea and a hot sunny day.

J A Bowman from Dallas, TX says:

Make Sun Tea in any clean closed glass container. Fill container with water, add tea bags, close container and place in the sun until the tea is the desired darkness.

Yes it really is that simple.

Or instead of tea bags you can try steeping fresh, organic herbs. Here’s a few suggested combinations from Mother Earth Living:

• Chamomile with hibiscus flowers
• Elderflowers with peppermint or yarrow
• Hibiscus flowers with rose hips
• Marigold petals with mint
• Mullein with sage, chamomile or marjoram
• Pennyroyal with any of the other mints
• Rosemary with hibiscus flowers
• Sage with lemon verbena
• Strawberry leaves with woodruff
• Yarrow with peppermint

And a cautionary note about sun tea from LifeHacker (this is also noted elsewhere):

According to the Centers for Disease Control, using the sun’s rays to make tea can facilitate the growth of bacteria. Tea steeped in a jar on your porch won’t get any hotter than 130 Fahrenheit, about the temperature of a really hot bath and not nearly hot enough to kill nasties lurking either in the water or on the tea itself. For that, water needs to be heated to 195 for three to five minutes.

As an alternative you can steep the tea or herbs in the fridge over night; or boil the water, steep and refrigerate. (I know, that takes the ’sun’ out of ’sun tea’ but it is still a refreshing summer treat all the same).

Amy says: To change it up a little when brewing my own, I throw in a few bags of orange spice tea or other fruity, herbal flavored teas.

Mother Earth Living

Life Hacker - How To

Colorado State University - Is Sun Tea Safe?

You Grow Girl

Green Options - Eco-Effective Decisions: Ten Ways to Celebrate Electrical Energy Independence.

For suggesting today’s tip, J A Bowman will receive two months of wind power from Renewable Choice energy.

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