32 replies to this topic

[Dustoffer]

My Global Sun Ovens ARE impressive and the food is not dried out.  It saves a lot on propane use from late spring to early fall.  I even cooked a Thansgiving turkey in it once, but it took two days!   We use both at once if we have a lot to cook.  We cook delicious zucchini bread often during the season, and the sun oven whole chicken is the best!

[ChanellG]

Earthling, on 17 December 2012 - 02:08 AM, said:

Are you saying that you rely completely on electricity for cooking?

Thankfully, no. I have multiple options for cooking, though I often try to have foods that don't require any cooking at all. I use the toaster oven and rice cooker the most, and only put something in the microwave to reheat when I'm too lazy to do it another way or when baking a potato.

[tigerlily78]

Dustoffer, on 17 December 2012 - 09:18 AM, said:

We use both at once if we have a lot to cook.  We cook delicious zucchini bread often during the season, and the sun oven whole chicken is the best!

I am really interested in getting one for the cumulative effect of both saving gas/power by using the sun, and moving the cooking process outdoors in the summer to further save energy by not heating up the house. I make banana bread on a nearly weekly basis and lots of stews, chili, and other crockpot style meals that would seem to make just as much sense to cook in a sun oven for 8 hours as in a crockpot for four. We also eat brown rice as our main side many times a week, so it would seem that would also be completely fine cooked in a sun oven.

[ChanellG]

Okay, I am all for solar anything possible, but two days to cook a turkey? That just wouldn't work for me, lol. Granted, I wouldn't ever be cooking a turkey, but anything took that long would not have an end that justified the means.

What kinds of things can be cooked in a short time in a solar oven?

[ChanellG]

Earthling, on 25 December 2012 - 01:19 AM, said:

Chanell, here a good starter video:

Thanks for that! Four hours is way better than two days. I am guessing if it were just vegetables and no chicken the cooking time might possibly be cut in half? I suppose the best thing for a beginner would be to make a simple one science experiment style and then see how long it took to bake a potato.

[Dustoffer]

You can still get them for $177 at ebay with free shipping;
http://www.ebay.com/...=item3f207fa581
Aim it every 1/2 hour to hour and a chicken takes us just 2 hours.

[ChanellG]

Dustoffer, on 28 December 2012 - 11:44 AM, said:

Aim it every 1/2 hour to hour and a chicken takes us just 2 hours.

Wait, are you saying I will have to go out every half hour and re-position it? That was something I hadn't considered. Is it still feasible to try and use one during the winter? Some days there isn't much sun out... what about on overcast days?

[tigerlily78]

ChanellG, on 29 December 2012 - 12:09 PM, said:

Wait, are you saying I will have to go out every half hour and re-position it? That was something I hadn't considered. Is it still feasible to try and use one during the winter? Some days there isn't much sun out... what about on overcast days?

Repositioning the sun oven every 30 minutes or so will maximize the sun exposure and keep the temp inside at it's maximum. If you aren't available to reposition it that often then the temp would drop down slowly over time, but for many things the lower temp will still keep the food "cooking" just not as quickly. It might be more like roasting a chicken at 300 degrees instead of 400 degrees.

[ChanellG]

tigerlily78, on 29 December 2012 - 04:01 PM, said:

Repositioning the sun oven every 30 minutes or so will maximize the sun exposure and keep the temp inside at it's maximum. If you aren't available to reposition it that often then the temp would drop down slowly over time, but for many things the lower temp will still keep the food "cooking" just not as quickly. It might be more like roasting a chicken at 300 degrees instead of 400 degrees.

Hmmmm... I would have to plan that out carefully. As I've said before I wouldn't be roasting a chicken so hopefully my cooking time would be a lot less. How long does it take for the oven to reach 300 degrees on a sunny day?

[tigerlily78]

I didn't know the answer right off, but one FAQ I found online says between 15 and 30 minutes.

[Dustoffer]

That is right, I take my sun oven out and preheat it 20-30 minutes.  Less on a day that is warm.  I found that when the outside temperature is below 40*F the sun oven no longer cooks well.  Sometimes I will position it just once an hour with a lead on the aim.  Also, with variable raising of the back post or blocks under the oven back to keep it more aimed, i.e. morning and late or early in the year  a 2" to 4" block, or raise of the post, in summer lessening to zero toward noon.  Sunglasses are a must.  Sometimes the screw for the cover holder must be tightened.   Over time the paint chips or peels and the cleaned inside needs a little primer and flat black enamel.   On the bolts holding the platform, I put nuts to keep it from getting loose and falling on one or both sides.  Sometimes I remove the platform to fit in a cake pan  with ears bent up.  The inside glass and bottom need cleaning every time, and the top and mirrors occasionally.   A damp rag or paper towel works fine.   There is a point in shimming up the back where grease can pour out of the pan, so watch that.  With chicken, sometimes I will pour off the grease/oil  into a grease can before bringing it in, use mitts.   It is important to balance loads of bread on the platform for uniformity.  Cooking with the solar oven becomes second nature after a short time.  I have a close by section of the yard that is level enough and has good exposure all day.  When the wind is over about 30mph, it can blow over.  Cooking times are from 40% more to double cookbook standard oven times(double is more usual), depending on what it is and how sunny and warm it is.  You have to estimate how long clouds kept the temperature down and add that to cooking time.  I have over-cooked fish and undercooked bread.   You develop a feel for it.

[ChanellG]

tigerlily78, on 29 December 2012 - 04:49 PM, said:

I didn't know the answer right off, but one FAQ I found online says between 15 and 30 minutes.

Dustoffer, on 30 December 2012 - 08:44 AM, said:

That is right, I take my sun oven out and preheat it 20-30 minutes.  Less on a day that is warm.  I found that when the outside temperature is below 40*F the sun oven no longer cooks well...
...Cooking times are from 40% more to double cookbook standard oven times(double is more usual), depending on what it is and how sunny and warm it is.  You have to estimate how long clouds kept the temperature down and add that to cooking time.  I have over-cooked fish and undercooked bread.   You develop a feel for it.

Wow, thanks for the very thorough and detailed answer. I had seen a science project article that described how to make a solar oven from a pizza box, but it seems that doing so would hardly be worth it if you really wanted to cook with it on an ongoing basis. It makes more sense to me to have something that could accommodate several servings worth of food since it takes a while to cook.

I have too many other projects on the back burner at the moment, but I am still interested in building one as long as it would cost effective in relation to buying one.

[Shortpoet-GTD]

Check them out on You Tube too.