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Design of Solar Cookers
The Box Cooker
The seemingly simple design is
actually a family-sized cooker that can handle an entire meal on a
sunny day. It features an insulated box with a glass or
heat-resistant plastic cover that also serves as an oven door.
Sunlight passes through the glass or plastic into a dark cooking
area.
Additional sunlight is reflected into the box cooker by a shiny
lid attached to the box.
When in use, supports made of cord and wood hold the reflector
above the cooking area.
Cardboard box cookers are light, compact, and easy to store or
move. Heavier wooden models are more useful for the backyard or
patio. Depending upon their construction, these cookers typically
reach temperatures of 120 to 225 degrees.
Slant-Faced Solar
Cooker
Many do-it yourself buffs choose the
slant-faced solar cooker. These are often highly efficient cookers
and very portable, folding to a size of a suitcase.
Hinged reflectors direct the sun’s rays through a slanted glass
lid. Some reflectors are made of shiny aluminum; others are
mirrored or use aluminum foil glued to a sturdy backing. The
reflectors are usually collapsible, folding and clamping onto the
top of the cooker for easy carrying
To use, the slant-cooker-face
is pointed toward the sun and the reflectors are secured in the
open position. Some cookers feature built-in height adjusters for
more direct aim at the sun.
Multi-Mirrored,
Cone-Shaped Cooker
The cooker style features many small
mirrors, curved in a cone-shape around the cooking area. This
reflector often spans four feet in diameter and with a lid can
double as a patio table.
These cookers reach temperatures, of 300 to 450 degrees and cook
food in the same time as a conventional cooker. The cooking area
is large enough for a turkey.
Concentrating Cookers
Concentrating cookers, or “hot plates,” employ
dish-shaped reflectors aimed at the sky like radio receivers. The
reflector is designed so that direct light bounces on to a single
point. At this point, a cooking stand holds a pot of food or
water. The stand can be attached to the collector or be separate.
Concentrating cookers can
generate temperatures of 600 degrees Fahrenheit or more and must
be constantly attended as the sun moves across the sky. The
reflector must be repositioned to follow the sun and keep the
focal point on the food being cooked. When left unattended,
concentrating cookers have been known to set wood on fire and even
burn the ear of a curious dog unlucky enough to be in the wrong
place at the wrong time. These cookers also have a dangerous
tendency to tip in windy weather.
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