Move over solar panels, there’s a new kid in the sandbox and its name is the solar powered oven. Who could have ever imagined that just a brief century ago that the solar powered oven would be a reality?, after all, this is the stuff that wouldn’t go amiss in a Jules Verne science fiction novel.
It’s fast becoming apparent that we are just beginning to scratch the surface in terms of solar technology and that its applications are limitless and far reaching across all types of industry.
In fact in April of 2009, inventor John Bohmer used the basic fundamentals of solar technology to create his own environmentally friendly version of a solar powered oven using card board boxes, black paint and a piece of aluminum foil, aptly named the “Kyoto Box” embodying grassroots ingenuity as its finest.
What began as a serendipitous accident turned into a big find as its application was mind boggling in its simplicity yet could be used on a far greater scale for developing nations across the globe, the implications were huge. So refreshing was his discovery that he won the FT Climate Change Challenge, which was on the lookout for the most innovative and direct solution to climate change.
So simple was his creation that it made you rethink that perhaps we overcomplicate our existing solutions to climate change. Bohmer, however wasn’t the first to pioneer the homemade solar powered oven as it was documented as early back as the 1960’s in a Peace Corps manual and yet couldn’t be more timely considering our current global and economic climate.
So clean is this method of energy generation that if everyone were to use it, would drastically cut global emissions and global warming associated with wood fire cooking while decreasing the rate of deforestation to satisfy the demand for it. It’s as simple as using existing materials without requiring any further resources or the use of recycled materials instead of new, pristine ones.
While building your own solar powered oven may not be your cup of tea there are some readymade versions available out there in the market.
Sun Oven is a company with its own range of affordable solar powered ovens. They service a global market and have customers from the ice fishers of Minnesota to the Middle East. Anyone who has access to a decent amount of sunlight make great candidates for their products. They moved into the solar realm to take advantage of the expanding technology and for its environmental benefits and believe that by using their products consumers will not only reduce the amount of emissions that come with conventional ovens but also their carbon footprints as well.
There are no limitations to the types of foods that can be cooked with the solar powered oven as it acts just like a regular oven only that you don’t need electricity to power it.
The oven reaches temperatures of 360 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit ideal for baking, boiling and steaming and best yet, the food does not scorch and is very difficult to burn giving even the hopeless of cooks a fighting chance.
Using a solar powered oven isn’t rocket science to figure out although ironically is based upon science used in the NASA program for solar energy harnessing. The reflectors are the magic ingredient to the success of its cooking ability and are made from mirror like anodized aluminum. It works in practice much like a greenhouse trapping the longer waves of the suns energy converting it into enough heat to cook food with.
Some of the benefits of the solar powered oven:
* Save money on electricity that regular ovens use
* Clean form of energy generation
* Reduce environmental impact
* Affordable
* Can be widely used anywhere
Disadvantages of the solar powered oven
May not work as efficiently on overcast days or for those who live in less sunny climates.
If you’re interested in taking your culinary skills into the next generation and want to take advantage of sustainable solar technology then the solar powered oven might be just your thing.
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