Ask A Scientist© Environmental Science Archive

Author:      kathy stonequist
I am interested in making a solar cooker.  Any ideas?

Response #:  1 of 1
Author:      mortis
Solar cookers were suggested as a possible answer to fuel wood shortages in 
developing countries during the last few decades.  You could probably get 
plans from the Peace Corps, or by writing to Pax World Service, 111 Sixteenth 
Street, NW, #120, Washington, DC 20036.  The solar ovens were often rejected 
by people who tried them, because they do not work at night when most cooking 
is done.  You can buy parabolic mirrors, convex lenses, and fresnel lenses to 
use as heat concentrators from Edmund Scientific Catalog, which you can get 
for free by writing to Edmund Scientific Company, Department 13DB, C922 
Edscorp Building, Barrington, NJ, 08007.  Be careful though, they offer a 
solar furnace kit for $30 that can heat up to 2000 degrees F!