AreWeLostYet
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Making a solar oven with reflective mylar.
Making a solar oven with reflective mylar.
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Help Support Van Living Forum:
good film but it should be watched in conjunction with this one from the same guy.
He is showing that solar oven setup in use. He was cooking his Thanksgiving Turkey dinner with all the trimmings. But it was a frozen TV turkey dinner
. His oven does not get really hot at that time of year so it took 90 minutes to cook a TV dinner that went in frozen. Well it did give me a good laugh
He is showing that solar oven setup in use. He was cooking his Thanksgiving Turkey dinner with all the trimmings. But it was a frozen TV turkey dinner
. His oven does not get really hot at that time of year so it took 90 minutes to cook a TV dinner that went in frozen. Well it did give me a good laugh 
highdesertranger
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x2. Big Jim has it down. highdesertranger
AreWeLostYet
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maki2 said:good film but it should be watched in conjunction with this one from the same guy.
He is showing that solar oven setup in use. He was cooking his Thanksgiving Turkey dinner with all the trimmings. But it was a frozen TV turkey dinner
Actually, unless you have a microwave like Bob says he has, frozen meals are the ideal reason to have a solar oven. Though some places this time of year you could just set them out in the sun half an hour and they've steaming hot.
highdesertranger
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yes people please take the time to explain what you are linking to. also it is always better to explain something than to link to a video. many members here have limited data so watching countless videos is out of the question. highdesertranger
DannyB1954
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I just had a thought, (look out!). Get some old fiberglass tent poles, the longer the better, (the kind that bend). Fasten emergency space blankets to it. With the right bend it would work as a parabolic reflector. Fasten the ends of the poles to the ground and elevate the middle of the poles with another pole or stick. In the winter you could sit in the middle of it it and get a tan.
For a deluxe version put a table in the middle and put a fish tank with lid on it. This will be the oven.
For a deluxe version put a table in the middle and put a fish tank with lid on it. This will be the oven.
jimindenver
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I believe the video said it got up to 350 degrees. That's plenty hot. My ovens rarely get that hot and I cook whole turkeys on Thanksgiving.
I use mine for frozen dinners, burritos, pizza, pizza pockets, hot pockets, along with the normal types of foods.
I use mine for frozen dinners, burritos, pizza, pizza pockets, hot pockets, along with the normal types of foods.
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highdesertranger
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ok I just deleted a whole series of back and forth bickering posts. please try to post something that will be helpful. highdesertranger
I will take the time to summarize the solar oven in the video. It was between 5 to 6 feet in height. The reflector structure was made of heavy plywood that was glued and screws together. It was not collapsible or anywhere near being portable. The reflector top was a tapered hexagon structure that would be difficult for the average person with few tools to construct. It attached to a wood box that that was attached to a steel frame that pivoted. It was located at a man's off grid shack in the desert area. If you tried to transport it you would find that it pretty much took up all the space inside of a smaller sized cargo van. There would be no room left inside for any normal day to day activities. The reflective suface was cut up pieces of a space blanket.
But it you really wanted to create it in a smaller size I did a tutorial a few years ago on how to cut and assemble a tapered multisided structure using a 10" tablesaw.
But it you really wanted to create it in a smaller size I did a tutorial a few years ago on how to cut and assemble a tapered multisided structure using a 10" tablesaw.
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Yesterday, I made a solar panel cooker from four 14x14 pieces of Reflectix scraps, an 8x8 piece of cardboard, a shoelace and 3 clothes pins. It is the "Copenhagen" design. I followed these instructions, but used Reflectix for durability:
Besides being very compact, easy to assemble and durable, it out-performed a couple other designs I tried and was much simpler to make. I don't have a black pot or spray paint, so I used a microwaveable plastic container with a clear plastic cover. I placed this, filled with water, inside two Pyrex bowls, like he did in the video. An oven thermometer was set on top, inside the Pyrex "cover".
Wow! I caught morning sun beginning around 8:45, and by 11:00 had 210F. At 12:30, the temp was 250F and, yes, the water was boiling! At 1:00, the thermometer read 260F. Droplets from the steam are beginning to cloud the Pyrex bowl (there was a small hole in the plastic cover), and I don't expect the temp to rise much more.
Tomorrow? Food!
Besides being very compact, easy to assemble and durable, it out-performed a couple other designs I tried and was much simpler to make. I don't have a black pot or spray paint, so I used a microwaveable plastic container with a clear plastic cover. I placed this, filled with water, inside two Pyrex bowls, like he did in the video. An oven thermometer was set on top, inside the Pyrex "cover".
Wow! I caught morning sun beginning around 8:45, and by 11:00 had 210F. At 12:30, the temp was 250F and, yes, the water was boiling! At 1:00, the thermometer read 260F. Droplets from the steam are beginning to cloud the Pyrex bowl (there was a small hole in the plastic cover), and I don't expect the temp to rise much more.
Tomorrow? Food!
Very cool, thanks!
Did you glue the reflectix or use tape?
Did you glue the reflectix or use tape?
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For the 14x14 panels, no need to do anything but cut them out. They don't need to be stuck to anything else. I did glue an 8x8" piece of Reflectix to the cardboard base with Elmer's School Glue (any glue will do) and let it dry. After that, just line the panels and base up like in the video, number the panels and sections of the base and poke holes (I used an awl)
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Another option that would be more durable than foil might be a mylar emergency blanket. In that case, it would need to be glued to something like poster board.VanFan said:
Oh, and you need 4 clips (not 3 like I said above).
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Today I made banana bread for one in the DIY Copenhagen cooker, using this recipe: https://onedishkitchen.com/banana-bread/ in a 3x5 foil loaf pan. I sandwiched the pan between two black plastic microwaveable bowls from some frozen dinners, placed them in the Pyrex bowls set on a canning jar ring and started baking at 10:00. At noon, the bread was done.
It was brown on top, but since the maximum temp was 275F, there was no peak. The bottom was moister than I liked, so I flipped the loaf on its head in the pan and returned it to the cooker for another hour. That browned the bottom, and it was yummy!
If there is sun tomorrow, I think I'll try a stacked chicken enchilada dish.
It was brown on top, but since the maximum temp was 275F, there was no peak. The bottom was moister than I liked, so I flipped the loaf on its head in the pan and returned it to the cooker for another hour. That browned the bottom, and it was yummy!
If there is sun tomorrow, I think I'll try a stacked chicken enchilada dish.
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It was excellent!VanFan said:
As easy as this cooker w/b to disassemble/reassemble, I'm thinking about ways to make it even simpler. Instead of the shoe lace, the video presenter mentioned twist ties. I wonder about snaps or magnets. Will update if I pursue this further.
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Today, mini (pot pie size) apple pie made with fresh apples and half of a boxed crust mix (also used sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, lemon juice and nutmeg as well as part of an egg for egg wash on the crust). I put in/on the cooker at 11:00 a.m., and took it off at 5:00. The pie was done and reasonably browned, but I popped it in a regular oven for about 5 minutes to brown a bit more. I lost time and heat today trying something a little different, there were clouds off and on. Still, I would call this a success and continue to be very pleased with the prospects!
