Grand Central Station lighting goes green

How many people does it take to change every light bulb in Grand Central Terminal?

Six, it turns out. And it’s a full-time job.

On Tuesday, those wiremen — their official title — unscrewed the last remaining incandescent bulbs in the building, replacing them with compact fluorescent bulbs and completing the greening of the lighting system at the bustling station.

While the wiremen worked, photographers snapped pictures, and officials applauded the efforts, reminiscing about the days when both the station and the light bulb were young.

The bulbs in question were on one of the 10 huge Beaux-Arts chandeliers in the main lobby. Adorned with gold detail and banded with 110 bulbs, the 96-year-old globe-shaped chandeliers hang above the Main Concourse balconies like luminescent Fabergé eggs.

Fluorescent bulbs last longer and use less energy, saving money and helping advance the city’s environmental goals.

They were first installed in the terminal in the mid-1980s, with tube-shaped fluorescents hung on the train platforms largely to brighten them, said Marjorie S. Anders, a spokeswoman for the Metro-North Railroad. About seven years ago, compact fluorescents, which can be screwed into standard light sockets, were installed in the cornice that rings the ceiling of the Main Concourse, 75 feet above the ground, largely because frequently replacing the old bulbs was a risky and labor-intensive chore.

And as the technology and aesthetics improved — the bulbs became less distinguishable and could be dimmed — the bulbs were added everywhere from the departure board to the chandeliers.

“If you see an incandescent bulb in this place, call me,” said Steve Stroh, the terminal’s electrical and mechanical superintendent, who has overseen the replacement effort. “We’ll have it changed, because we may have missed one or two.”

Mr. Stroh would not even hazard a guess as to the number of bulbs throughout the terminal, which covers 48 acres on two levels, but he estimated that the annual light bulb budget was less than $100,000. Its costs about $1,100 to replace all the bulbs on a single chandelier.

Replacing the roughly 4,000 bulbs in the public areas of the terminal — which doesn’t include the platforms, the train yards, or office space — will save an estimated $200,000 a year, Ms. Anders said. The payback on the initial investment will take just months.

However, with the bulbs burning 24 hours a day, the shift will not be putting any of the terminal’s six wiremen out of work, Mr. Stroh said. Even with the fluorescents, he said, “it’s a big job.”

Read more: Grand Central Terminal Lighting Goes Green

Battery-powered bicycle [Video]

Brian Sauer has always had a fascination with transportation. He’s been building things from about the age of four.

“I almost considered building an ultra-light airplane, but I decided I didn’t want to go that route. It takes longer to heal when you get older, and I don’t want to get injured if I can avoid it,” said Sauer with a laugh.

Instead, the Cleveland Clinic engineer built a motorized bicycle in his basement that is fit for the elements. Sauer calls it the “Bricycle.” It’s technically a bicycle. It’s small, chic, and functional. It has brake lights, turn signals, and headlights too. And it runs off batteries. It’s better for the environment and, as Sauer claims, good in the elements.

“I’ve driven it when the temps have been in the 20s, and it’s reasonably warm. My hands get cold, and my feet get cold. But there’s not wind in your face,” Sauer said.

It may be easy for Brian to drive, but is it for everyone?

“I’ve had my son-in-law. He loves it. My daughter. I’ve taken my granddaughters for rides,” Sauer said.

While his mom won’t try out the Bricycle, she’s still proud as can be.

“Oh I think it’s wonderful,” she said. “I think it’s one of the cutest things I’ve seen in a long, long time. Maybe it’s because he’s mine, I don’t know.”

Watch this story: Battery-powered bicycle keeps you out of the rain

Buddhist temple built with 1.5million recycled beer bottles

 

Built using more than a million beer bottles, this incredible temple in the north-east of Thailand is a novel way to recycle any empties.

Sometimes known as Wat Lan Kuad, or Temple Of A Million Bottles, the temple uses the discarded bottles to construct everything from the crematorium to the toilets.

Altogether there are about 1.5million recycled bottles in the temple, and the monks at there are intending to recycling even more.

‘The more bottles we get, the more buildings we make,’ says Abbot San Kataboonyo.

The design is amazing. Read more: The Buddhist temple built using 1.5million recycled beer bottles

Click the pictures to see larger images.