SAMFA Eco Fair 2008

Saturday was the 2nd annual San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts Eco Fair and Family Fun Day.

I was there to promote Solar Cooking and the class I would be hosting the next weekend through Angelo State University's Continuing Studies Division.

The day was absolutely perfect! Clear skies, nice and cool (below 80F) until late in the afternoon.

I took these cookers with me:
My twin steel bowls with windshield shade
My shiny roaster oven with windshield shade
A third windshield shade shaped into a funnel, but set on its side
A CooKit variation made from 2 Pecan Sandies case boxes
A small box corner panel cooker with David Delaney's Soda Bottle water pasturizer

As an afterthought, my husband sent his 'Bass Fish' Thermometer with me... that is on the 4 wheel dolly in the back ground (top left corner).

The 'sandwich' sign stand had my posters on the 3 basic principles of Solar Cooking (you can find these in other posts) and a collection of photographs of different types of cookers.

I was busy talking to folks, so I only got pictures at the beginning of the day, before anyone was there.

Late Afternoon Focusing

These are photos of my twin steel bowl cooker late in the afternoon. I tip the bowls forward to capture more sun.

I have been trying to make the bowls, reflector assembly 'as bright as possible' when trying to focus the cooker to maximize the heat capturing potential.

To make sure the cooking vesel and glazing bowl are in sun, I look for a reflection of the reflector on the glass lid used for glazing.

Today, I took small bowls of navy beans straight from the freezer and in 3 hours the beans were ready to eat.

Hot Soup!

After I completed all my experiments, the sun was still high, so I dumped about 2 cups of soup into the same pot that had boiling water in it.

Within an hour, the soup had gone from 35-40F to 200F.

Yeah, I like my Steel Bowl Cooker.

Experiement Conclusion

At 12:30, I had to move the cooker out of the shade, and onto a bucket. I tipped it back slightly to capture more sunlight.

I put 2 cups of tap water out, again at 85F in the same configuration as the distilled water.

At 12:55, the water temp had climbed to 150F.

I didn't check this again for 45 minutes, and the water was up to 200F. I repositioned the cooker, to face the sun better.

At 2pm, the water was boiling.

Pros of this cooker:

I am pleased with this cooker, and its cooking capabilities.

It is definitely more 'permanent' than my cardboard panel cooker, and much easier to store.

The steel bowls are light weight and relatively inexpensive. The two bowls cost $10 each, and I will need a new reflector soon, so for about the price of a CooKit, I have a cooker that will last for years, instead of one season.

Finally, the bowls can be used for other things.

If you don't have a resturant supply store in your town, check my links for online stores where you can purchases these mixing bowls.

Cons of this cooker:

The interior of the cooking bowl will need a lot of protection to prevent scratches marring the surface.

I will need to experiment more to perfect the focusing of this cooker to maximize the solar capturing and heating potential. I may need to raise the pots higher for instance.

With a panel cooker, all the research has been done; you just set up the cooker and face it towards the sun.

Experiment Details

I set the cooker out, on the cement, at 11:30 am with 2 cups of distilled water.






By 12 noon, the temperature had gone from 85F to 150F. I turned the cooker a small amount to keep it focused on the sun.


By 12:30 pm, the temperature was up to 200F... when I brought that water in the house to make tea.

Experiments- This cooker Boils!

July 21, 2008, with a UV Index between 11-12, I did an official experiment with my twin steel bowl cooker.

I used:

* A 3 cup pot & a glass lid (that I removed the plastic handle)

* A pyrex mixing bowl

* On top of the Bowl is a lid from an old crock pot.

The pot sits on a black candle holder, to elevate it off the bottom of the bowl. That is the shiny surface in the bottom of the bowl.

The bowl sits on what I'm guessing was a plate stand or plant stand of some kind. Having the bowl in this stand allows me to tip the bowl- as the cooker must be tipped to catch the sun- and still keep the pot level.

More about the Steel Bowl Cooker

I used pinch style paper clips to attach the ends of the windshield shade to lip of the bottom bowl in the front.

I used a third clip at the back (where the depression is for the rear view mirror) to fill in that gap and get the shade to conform to the shape of the bowl better.