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Last edited: 19 November 2020      
19 degree no reflectors

19 deg Orientation No Reflectors

Most solar oven manufacturer's don't seem to provide an [Oven Temperature versus Time Of Day] Plot. This is would be a big help to any prospective user of a solar oven. You have probably seen articles on [when] to start cooking and [how long] to cook. You might wonder... how the author of the article got their information. I built a solar oven and decided to do a field test run by recording data of the oven temperature at various random times of the day. This wiki article shows what data I recorded, the time of day, temperature, and cloud effects.

TEST NOTE: The Oven for this test was empty, except for a black aluminum pot. Not food was placed inside the oven. This was a dry run test.

Degree F (Vertical Axis) versus Time of Day (Horizontal Axis 24 HR Time).

Min Oven Temp: 100 F.

Max Oven Temp: 264F. (UV Index for Dec 23rd was 2 at 2:25PM MT)

Outside Temperature: 41 degree F at 10am to 50 degree F at 3pm.

Wind Speed: 10 to 15 mph gusts.

Skies: Mostly Clear with some very thin high haze clouds which caused the UV index to drop. The UV index for Dec 23rd was 2.

Humidity: approx. 42% (High humidity reduces UV. Best when humidity is below 15%)

Sun Angle From Horizon: approx. 28 degrees

Weather Data Tucson, Dec 23rd, 2009

Dec 23 2009 weather data

Dec 23rd Weather Data

GPS Data

Date: December 23rd, 2009

Elevation 2500 Feet Above Sea Level.

N: 32deg 12.844 min.

W: 110deg 59.945 min.:

Plot dec 23 2209 solar oven

Temp VS Time of Day

Note: Dips in temperature are due to clouds blocking sun for short periods of time.

Oven Construction[]

  • Corrugated cardboard packing boxes from Home Depot.
  • Each section of the oven cut from boxes using a utility knife.
  • Inner box and outer box separated by R-Tech Firm Foam commercial insulation. (approx 2 inches)
  • Bottom of oven includes 1.5 inch of R-Tech Firm Foam commercial insulation as well.
  • Solar Entry: Dual pane glass 3/32" thickness, separated by 1/4".
  • Reflectors are simple Aluminum Foil sheets glued to cardboard panels:

Basic Initial Construction[]

Building shell inner box

Building The Basic Inner Shell

 

Reinforced corner joints

Strengthen the Corner Joints

 

Raw Data[]

Time(24HR) Temp
1005 100
1014 120
1020 125
1038 145
1052 175
1056 200
1059 210
1100 220
1105 225
1108 226
1112 230
1124 230
1128 220
1131 205
1135 200
1140 205
1145 230
1148 235
1155 240
1205 235
1218 249
1220 250
1227 252
1238 250
1255 250
1312 251
1331 252
1337 255
1400 260
1410 261
1420 264
1440 264
1451 261
1456 251
1504 251
1516 249
1522 240
1530 242

Picture of Completed Box Solar Oven[]

Interior Cooking Space Dimensions: 15" X 11.125" X 9.25"

19 degree no reflectors

19 deg Orientation No Reflectors

71 degree no reflectors

71 deg Orientation No Reflectors

DSCF0472

Oven with Reflectors

File:SolarOven2.jpg

Views of Oven