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Object 4

Object 5

Object 2

Object 7
1
6

It's current controlled to make clear, stable colloidal silver that's

rich in isolated ions and small particles!
Basic DIY designs.
Can't afford a fully automatic Silver Well just yet? Then experiment with a
simple home-made generator.
Object 3

Why are we showing you these?

Because we hope it will help you
to see the difference between an
advanced, fully automatic
colloidal silver generator like the
Silver Well, and some other
'bought' generator that will
frustrate you from the first day
you use it! The main thing we
hope you will realise by
examining these pictures is that many retail generators costing
$100 to $200 are no better than these. They may hide the batteries
in a plastic box, or have some gadget to hold the silver wires, but
in terms of actual performance they offer nothing more than these

designs. Basically they are just common transformers, or battery

boxes, re-packaged as 'generators'. If you look back at the Silver
Well system you'll see that the power supply is actually a
relatively minor part of our overall package. Its the circuitry in
the white 'head unit' (the brains of the system) and the stirring
unit, that makes the Silver Well special.
These are the more common styles of do-it-yourself colloidal silver
generators. If you build one from scratch for a few dollars you'll
probably have fun and learn a few things. If you pay someone
$100 for the same thing you'll probably feel ripped off. The
simplest possible design is just a battery or transformer connected
to 2 silver wires. Of course it will have NO current control, NO
automatic shut-off , NO stirrer, and you'll have to watch it like a
hawk, but at least its cheap.
CLICK ON ANY PHOTOS TO ENLARGE.
Basic advice for making colloidal silver with a simple home made
generator ...

If you are making colloidal silver for regular human

consumption ALWAYS use high quality distilled, demineralised,
deionised, or R.O. purified water. No exceptions ever! You'll
probably have to buy it, but its not expensive. Water from
simple, cheap 'under-sink' filters is usually not good enough.
And never add anything to the water. Do not add salt or baking
soda or any other impurity to the water to speed up the process.
Any water that produces white mist soon after the power is
applied is definitely no good! Read more about this on our
'Controversies' page.

The following method will at least produce colloidal silver with

a useful silver content .
Start with a small clear glass jar - I suggest about 250 mls at
first, until you become more experienced. The electrodes should
be kept parallel, about 3 to 4 cm apart, and off the bottom of
the jar. - For your first few batches apply the power until the
water develops a tiny bit of color. This may look grey, pink, or
yellow, but whatever color it is it should be almost
imperceptible. (Stand a glass of clean water next to the brewing
jar so its easier for you to detect the color change). Stir the
water occasionally. The time it takes will vary from about 30
minutes to hours depending on volume, voltage, water quality,
temperature, electrode spacing and stirring. Switch off the
power as soon as the water begins to change color. If this batch
stays nearly colorless or turns very pale yellow overnight its
OK to drink - but its not perfect. Ideally you should be trying
to produce a batch that has an effective silver content but is
clear and colorless. So if all else remains the same (volume,
voltage etc) your next brews can be shortened by 5 or 10
minutes each time until you arrive at a brewing time that
produces a nearly colorless batch. (But don't shorten it too
much or you might have almost no silver in the jar). It takes a
bit of practice but water is cheap. And if you make a really bad
batch you can still use it as a topical spray. While the batch is
brewing take notice of various indicators such as bubbles on the
electrode, smoky tendrils falling from the bottom of an
electrode or golden trails drifting from the electrodes.
Observing and noting the time these appear will help you arrive
at an optimum brewing time.
Higher voltages give a fast clean result but generally speaking

its best to slow the process as much as is convenient by using

low voltages and keeping the electrodes well spaced. Higher
voltages make colloidal silver faster, but lower, slower, voltages
make colloidal silver better - this is one reason why the Silver
Well automatically, progressively, reduces the voltage from
about 30 to 3 volts. Slower speeds also make the process a bit
more predictable. The higher the voltage, the further apart the
electrodes should be.
A bit of fuzz on the electrodes is normal. It's only the color of
the water that's important.
(For more information about ions and particles theres a lengthy
discussion at the bottom of the 'Making CS. FAQ's' page.)
9999+ Silver 18cm Straight Electrodes........$30 a pair

$35 a pair.

If you still want to make your own simple

generator, you've probably already got everything
you need except silver wire. We have straight 7"
(18cm) 12 gauge* (2.05mm) 99.99% silver
electrodes. This is top quality wire.
DELIVERY WITHIN AUSTRALIA AND NEW
ZEALAND IS FREE. (Anywhere else is $2)
(*Precious metals use AWG gauge
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_wire_gauge
)

Power Supplies

To build a very basic generator you really only

need a low voltage DC power supply and two silver
wires to use as electrodes. Low voltage DC Power supplies are
everywhere. The picture shows a few common types. All
batteries are DC power supplies so they will do for a start. And
most small transformers (also known as 'wall plugs' or
'adaptors') are DC power supplies too. You probably have a
half a dozen in your home right now. For example, the
transformers you use to charge phones and cordless tools. Any
battery or DC power supply from about 6 to 40v will work.
Note: When using a small transformer make sure its 'DC
output'. A few (not many) are AC output. AC output does not
work.
ALL these transformers and batteries are CONSTANT
VOLTAGE power supplies, so don't be impressed if someone
offers a generator with 'constant voltage technology'. Don't
confuse 'constant voltage' with constant current or
CONTROLLED CURRENT as is used in a Silver Well
Generator.
Single 9V Battery

This is about as small, simple, and cheap as a colloidal silver

generator can get - but it will make colloidal silver as well (or as
badly) as any other D.I.Y. generator on this page. The battery is
about $2 and the rest of the parts are worth about $3 from a
store like Dick Smith's. The only 'expensive' part is the silver
wire. You can usually get that from a silver or gold smith, or
jewellery supplies dealer in the Yellow Pages. (Or from us).
Make sure it's at least 999+ silver purity. Don't let the silver
wires touch or you will flatten the battery fast. You could also
add a little light or switch to one of the wires to prevent short
circuits. One opportunist on the internet is selling the 'Plans' to
build this generator for $5.
The common '3 nines' generator

In this set-up '3 nines' doesn't refer to the quality

of the silver wire. It refers to the three nine volt
batteries. Clipped together like this they make 27
volts. (Higher voltages make colloidal silver faster).
You can also clip on a fourth battery if you wish and make a
36v system, or remove a battery to make 18v. (You probably
never realised this but 9v batteries clip together like LEGO).
Now put the 3 batteries in a plastic box and you have a
'generator' you can sell on the internet for about $100. (See
item 4 on our Links page)
Note. The rapidly developing white cloudy look indicates the
glass at left contains ordinary tap water instead of pure water.
Thats definitely no good . You must use distilled or
demineralised water. (Distilled water might go greyish after a
while but it doesn't go white.)

BELIEVE IT OR NOT one rip-off merchant in the US is

actually selling the 'plans' to make this generator for $45
(Thats just for the plans). Or complete 'ready made' generators
for $180 US. That's about $240 Australian! And he's including
'electrolyte tablets' (probably just salt tablets) to boost the
conductivity so it will work faster. Thats just plain reckless - it
produces a mass of silver chloride. Check this out.
http://www.macrobiotic.org/csgenerator1.html
DC Wall Adaptor or Transformer

Here's a basic setup using an old cordless drill

charger with a couple of alligator clips attached to
the end. The block holding the silver wires is
simply a strip of electrical connectors from an
electronics store. (About $2).
Using a wall transformer like this saves batteries but in terms
of performance theres no difference between this and an
ordinary battery of similar voltage.
Bigger isn't always better...

Here's a basic set-up using a $35 Chinese-made

transformer from JayCar or Dick Smith's together
with $3 worth of electrical wire and alligator clips. The big box
looks impressive but it's just another transformer. The
amperage (1.5 amps) is about 1000 times too high to make good
colloidal silver. Ideally the current must be maintained at about
1 milliamp to produce the smallest particles but theres no
automatic current control here. A cheap little wall plug

transformer, or a 9v battery performs just as well as a whopper

like this.
Someone locally is calling this a 'generator', adding some silver
wire, and charging $139. They even say they are '100%
Australian' and this thing is 'Australian assembled'. Well I
guess attaching the alligator clips could be called 'assembly'.
Until recently they also tried to claim it was 'current protected
so the current won't increase and produce big particles'. But
that was just blatant rubbish. The only current protection in
this is meant to stop the transformer from going over its rated
limit of a whopping 1.5 amps and burning out. There's
absolutely nothing but water resistance stopping it from
cranking out its full 1500 milliamps (and big particles begin to
be made at just a few milliamps)
The truth is this is just an ordinary DC transformer, that
would normally be used to power a kids train set or some
electronic project. It has absolutely no features that are
specifically designed for colloidal silver production.
See BUYER ALERT 2 at the bottom of this page for another
another example of a basic transformer being marketed as a
generator.
Fork Connector

This is just another way of connecting the silver

wires to a $10 transformer. We have seen set-ups
like this advertised for about $100.

Adding a light bulb to prevent short circuits

Adding a light to one of the leads from the battery

or transformer will indicate if the silver wires have
accidently touched causing a short circuit. It will
save the battery from going flat too quickly, or the transformer
from burning out.
Adding a multimeter to show the current

This set-up uses a 9v 350 milliamp power supply. A

multi-meter added to one of the leads will show the
current flowing between the silver electrodes. Here
at the start of batch, in very pure water, its just one
tenth of a milliamp. It will increase as silver ions
are released into the water. Ideally it should be limited and
maintained at one milliamp, but without any form of current
control it can rapidly accelerate (beyond a milliamp) and
produce more oxide fuzz than ions.
Current limiting circuit

Heres a simple circuit posted in the files of the

Yahoo colloidalsilver2 discussion group by a good
man known as 'Herx13'. (Click the picture to enlarge it). This
circuit will limit the current to a few milliamps depending on
the resistor you chose. Most 'bought' systems don't even have a
basic current limiter like this. Limiting the current means the
batch takes much longer but the particle size is smaller and the
batch is more stable. (Of course it still won't switch off
automatically like a Silver Well does.)

An aquarium bubbler to stir

A stirring system is an excellent addition to a home

made kit. An aquarium bubbler (as illustrated
here) is popular for this purpose. There is some
debate about whether introducing air and air-borne dust into
the system is a good idea, but at least a bubbler is easily
installed, reliable and reasonably cheap. This set-up also uses a
simple 'wall plug' power supply, and the silver wires have been
mounted tidily into the lid of a jar.
BUYER ALERT #1

Battery powered generators are the most common

generators advertised on the internet. You'll see
these basic set-ups everywhere, advertised for anything from
about $35 to $200 including overpriced silver wire. The
batteries are always hidden in a plastic box. Sometimes a little
wall transformer will also be offered as an option to bypass the
batteries. Either way, they never show you what's actually IN
the box. People trust the sales pitch about how easy it is to
make colloidal silver and buy one of these simple set-ups. Then
they spend the next 2 months on a colloidal silver discussion
group asking questions about why their CS doesn't look like
they thought it would, or is it safe to drink. And pretty soon
they also start wondering if they are making anything useful at
all. Obviously that's not a happy situation to be in. The fact is
that making colloidal silver IS easy, but making GOOD
colloidal silver isn't. Before you choose a generator have a good
think about what you want to achieve and whether a basic

generator like this can deliver the goods. The Silver Well
Generator is not the cheapest system but it makes high quality
colloidal silver easily and automatically. It's a true 'set and
forget' system that will allow you to make and drink colloidal
silver every day with minimum fuss and maximum confidence.
BUYER ALERT #2

Re-labelling inexpensive AC/DC adaptors

(commonly called transformers) and selling them
as generators is another popular 'scheme'. The
setup at left is actually being sold in New Zealand
for about $130. It's similar to the transformer we
use in our kit except we only use it to power the
generator and the stirrer. In this NZ kit it IS the
generator!
CAUTION!
Water and electricity can be a dangerous combination so exercise caution. And never make colloidal silver for
human consumption with anything other than good quality distilled, demineralised, or reverse osmosis water.

Copyright Silver Well Aust. All rights reserved.

This is something I made on a whim.

Its very simple to do and the pictures pretty much self-describe the directions to make it. Any old 2 liter

plastic soda bottle will work. I made a 2 liter small one and a larger jumbo 3 liter.. But you can even
use a 1 pint plastic soda bottle or even a larger water bottle of some type. The options are endless.
( elongated design ) The key with this is the flip back catch edge trough that collects the water.
Materials:
2 liter soda bottle
utility knife
lighter
Black rag
Step 1 - cut the bottle in half using the utility knife
Step 2 - fold a 1" or 2" lip back into the inside of the bottle ( this is the trough ) Use the lighter if you
need some heat to help it bend back in. Sometimes, you can do it without the lighter.
Step 3 - wet down the black rag with the nastiest water ( urine? ) you can find and set it in the sun. The
nasty water will evaporate and condense on the inside sides of the bottle and find its way down into the
trough.
Step 4 - when you notice enough water has collected in the trough, carefully remove the bottle from the
nasty black rag and flip it over quickly.. The water now flows the other way and ends up in the cap..
Carefully remove the cap and drink the water.

Object 8

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Step 1: Cut the bottle in half

Object 9

Remove the labeling and mark the bottle about halfway. Next, cut the bottle in half using the utility
knife or scissors.

Step 2: Creating the trough

Fold a 1" or 2" lip back into the inside of the bottle ( this is the water trough ) Use the lighter if you
need some heat to help it bend back and in. Sometimes, you can do it without the lighter. The lighter
isnt always necessary.
PreviousNext View All Steps

We have a be nice comment policy.

Please be positive and constructive.

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Object 10

How to make a solar still

A solar still is an easy way to procure water. Building one only takes a few minutes and if you set up
several you will have a plenty of water to keep you alive.
A solar still works on the principles of evaporation and condensation. The air inside the still is heated
by the sun then the moisture makes its way into the air and finally it hits the cooler plastic and forms
condensation which in turn drips into the container at the bottom.
Building a solar still

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Start by digging a hole about one foot deep and three feet in diameter
Pour seawater, urine, or place green plants in the bottom
Set a cup or similar container in the center of the hole
Cover the hole with a piece of plastic
Seal the plastic by putting weight on the edges
Place a small rock in the center above the cup
Within 24 hours you will have a decent amount of purified water

A solar still will desalinate and purify urine or seawater and allow you to extract all the moisture from
plants. The amount of time it takes for the still to create water is the reason you will want to set up as
many as you can. This is considered a renewable water source and will keep you alive as long as you
continue to refill it.
Posted by Robert Brammer
Email ThisBlogThis!Share to TwitterShare to FacebookShare to Pinterest

How to Make Distilled Water

Three Methods:Distill Tap Water with a Glass BowlDistill Tap Water with Glass BottlesConvert
Rainwater to Drinking Water
Distilled water is very easy to make, and there are several methods used to make it at home. When you
remove the minerals and chemicals from the water, you make distilled water. People make distilled
water for a variety of uses, including drinking, watering plants, filling humidifiers, steam irons and
even fish tanks, aquariums and etc.

Method 1 of 3: Distill Tap Water with a Glass Bowl

1.

1
Fill a 5-gallon (18.927 L) stainless steel pot about halfway full with tap water.
Ad
2.

2
Place a glass bowl in the water. Be sure it floats. The bowl should not touch the bottom of the
pot.
If the bowl doesn't float, remove it from the water and set a round baking rack on the
bottom of the pot. Then place the bowl back in the water
3.

3
Watch the water collecting in the bowl. This water should be hot but should not boil. If the
water begins to boil, turn down the heat on the stove.
4.

4
Create a condensation effect with a hot/cold barrier. You can do this by inverting the pot's lid
and filling it with ice. When hot steam hits the cold lid, it will create condensation.
5.

5
Boil the water in your pot. As the water continues to boil, it will cause steam to rise and
condense on the pot's lid. The condensation will drip into the bowl. Allow the distillation
process to continue until you have enough distilled water in the bowl for your needs.
6.

6
Remove your pot from the heat and take off the lid.
7.

7
Take the bowl of distilled water out of the pot of boiling water. Use caution when doing this
so you do not burn yourself. You can allow the water to cool before removing the bowl, if you
prefer.
8.

8
Allow the distilled water to cool before storing it.

Method 2 of 3: Distill Tap Water with Glass Bottles

1.

1
Get 2 glass bottles for making distilled water. This process works best if at least 1 of the
bottles curves outward from the neck, preventing the distilled water from sliding back into the
other bottle.
2.

2
Fill 1 bottle with tap water. Stop filling about 5 in (12.7 cm) from the top.
3.

3
Join the 2 bottles together at the neck and secure them tightly with duct tape.
4.

4
Use a 5-gallon (18.927 L) stainless steel pot of boiling water to distill the water. You want
just enough water to cover the bottle filled with tap water.
5.

5
Tilt the bottles at about a 30-degree angle, leaning the top, empty bottle on the inside of
the pot's rim. The angle makes it easier to collect the evaporated distilled water.
6.

6
Rest an ice pack or a bag of ice on top of the bottle on top. This will create a hot/cold barrier,
causing the evaporation of water in the filled bottle to condense into the cooler bottle.
7.

7
Continue the distillation process until you collect enough distilled water in the bottle for
your needs.

Method 3 of 3: Convert Rainwater to Drinking Water

1.

1
Put a large, clean container outside to catch the rainwater.
2.

2
Leave the container outside for 2 full days to allow the minerals to dissipate.
3.

3
Store the distilled water in clean jugs.
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Object 11

Tips
Lift the inverted lid occasionally to be sure that the steam water is collecting into the bowl.
If you think the tap water is not pure enough, it is safer to use distilled water in your saltwater
aquarium. You must mix the distilled water with a saltwater mix before adding the solution to
your tank.
Ad

Warnings
You will need to add the appropriate chemicals to distilled water to support aquatic life before
using it in your fish tank or aquarium. Without these chemicals, the distilled water will not be
able to support life.
Only the water in the bowl or bottle will have distilled water. The remaining water will contain
all the impurities you removed from the distilled water.
Make certain glass bowls and bottles can withstand boiling water.

Things You'll Need

5-gallon (18.927 L) stainless steel pot

Tap water
Glass bowl
Round baking rack
Pot lid
Ice
2 glass bottles
Duct tape
Ice pack or a bag of ice
Large container
Rainwater
Jugs

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Sources and Citations

http://www.thefrugallife.com/distilled_water.html

Article Info
Categories: Science | Food Tricks
In other languages:
Espaol: destilar agua, Deutsch: Wasser destillieren, Portugus: Fazer gua
Destilada, Italiano: Distillare l'Acqua, Franais: fabriquer de l'eau distille, Nederlands: Water
destilleren, : , :

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Object 14

How to Make a Solar Still. Make your own distilled water from stream or lake water, salt water,
or even brackish, dirty water, using these DIY Solar Still plans. With just a few basic building
materials, a sheet of glass and some sunshine, you can purify your own water at no cost and with
minimal effort.

Food solar dehydrator for vegetables, fruits and herbs

Solar
Solar ovens are another excellent alternative for cooking your food. Solar energy is free,
and simple solar stoves are surprisingly easy and inexpensive to make. Below are a few
simple designs. There are excellent online sources where you can get plans for building a
solar oven, including http://solarcooking.org/.

Perhaps the simplest and easiest design for a solar oven is the box type pictured above.
This homemade solar oven consists of a wooden box with a double paned sliding glass
top. The outside of the box is painted black with nontoxic paint for maximum heat
absorption. There are two different opinions as to whether the inside should be painted
black as well or coated with a reflective material such as aluminum foil. Even though the
oven in the picture above has been painted black on the inside, I believe that it is usually
better for the inside to be reflective material. If the box is black then the box will certainly
heat up, but the idea is to heat up the cooking container inside the box, and my experience
has been that a reflective material inside the box does a better job of that.

Regardless of the design, most solar ovens require a reflector, such as the one pictured
above, to concentrate the light and heat from the sun. The reflector above was made by
simply covering a piece of cardboard with aluminum foil. The aluminum foil is stuck to
the cardboard using a spray on adhesive. You can also use ordinary multipurpose glue,
thinned slightly with water so that it will spread on easily with a paint brush.

These two 100% whole wheat French baguettes were cooked to perfection in a baguette
bread pan inside this simple solar oven in about three hours. A more efficient solar oven
will do the job in less than half the time. The efficiency of a solar oven can be improved
by insulating the box or improving the reflector.

Another creative design for a solar oven is the inner tube oven pictured above. It consists
of a large black inner tube sandwiched between two panes of glass. The pan inside the
oven should be black to maximize heat absorption. The oven pictured above is sitting on a
smooth blacktop surface so the bottom pane of glass was omitted. It is important that the
glass fit smoothly against the inner tube all the way around to seal the inside from heat
loss. Even though this photograph does not show a reflector, this type of oven will also
require a reflector like the one pictured with the box oven above.

Solar cooking pots

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Deutsch, Espaol, Franais, Indonesian, Italiano, Kiswahili, Kreyl ayisyen, Melayu,

Portugus, , Soomaaliga, Tagalog, Ting Vit, Trke, , , ,
, , , ,

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Last updated: February 15, 2015

The third type of solar oven that I will mention here is the parabolic type. At the end of
this chapter I have provided step by step instructions on how I made the parabolic solar
cooker pictured above from an old satellite dish. For more creative and innovative designs
for all types of solar ovens visit http://solarcooking.org/.

Cooking in a Solar Oven

Solar ovens generally do not get as hot as conventional ovens, so a longer cooking time
will often be required. For example, when I make whole wheat bread in my kitchen oven
I bake it for 30 minutes at 350o F (177o C.) Baking a similar loaf in a simple box-type
solar oven can take up to three hours, depending on the efficiency of the solar oven and
the amount of sun. I have successfully baked bread at temperatures as low as 155o to 175o
F (68o to 80o C.) On the plus side of solar ovens, it is nearly impossible to burn anything.

If you cook meat in your solar oven I recommend that you use a meat thermometer. You
may never get your meat to the temperature recommended for conventional cooking and
so again a longer cooking time may be required. I recommend that you strive for an
internal temperature of at least 165o F (74o C) as measured by a meat thermometer.

Food Safety When Solar Cooking

Regardless of the cooking method, the danger zone for cooked food is between 50o and
125o F (10o and 52o C.) It is recommended that cooked food be kept either above this
zone or below it. When cooked food has been in the danger zone for three to four hours it
should be discarded due to the possibility of food poisoning by botulism or salmonella.
Spoiled foods may contain dangerous toxins without showing any noticeable signs of
spoilage. Suspect foods should not even be tasted since even a small amount of toxin can
be very dangerous. Reheating food that has been in the danger zone for too long will not
destroy the toxins nor render the food safe.
When using a solar oven the danger occurs when the food is partially cooked and then
allowed to remain in the cooker too long after the oven temperature falls into the danger
zone. This is not usually a problem because it is not difficult to keep the temperature
above the danger zone. The problem could occur if food remains in the oven for hours at
the end of the day or after the sun is obscured by clouds. If the food in your solar oven is
not done due to one of these conditions then another method of cooking should be used to
finish the job. For additional information on solar cooking safety see
http://solarcooking.org/foodsafety.htm.
As long as the above precautions are kept in mind, solar cooking lends itself very well to
absentee cooking. Raw, refrigerated or frozen foods, even meat or chicken, may be placed
in a solar oven while it is still dark outsideseveral hours before the sun begins the
cooking process. The food will remain cold enough to prevent spoilage and when the sun
rises the cooker will reach a safe level of heat quickly enough to prevent it from being in
the danger zone too long. Since it is difficult to overcook or burn food in a solar oven,
when the food is done it will simply stay hot and above the danger zone until your return.

Solar cooking pots

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Last updated: February 15, 2015

Inexpensive solar cooking pots can be ordered online from Solar Cookers International.

Contents
[show]
Whenever we hear reports of people having trouble cooking in a solar cooker we most often find that
they were using normal pots whose finish reflects the light away from the pot instead of absorbing it.
Unless you're cooking with a parabolic solar cooker where the light is being focused in on the bottom
of the pot, it is very important to use dark colored pots. Pots of thin material heat faster than thick ones.
Metal heats faster than ceramic or earthenware. Cast iron is slow to heat initially but will work during
good solar cooking conditions.
Occasionally it is fun to see the cooking. Lids may be left off of dark cakes, some cookies, corn chips
with melting cheese, and a few other foods if desired. More moisture will condense on the glazing and
the food will heat more slowly. Moisture condensing on the inside of the glazing may be wiped off
intermittently with a clean soft cloth. In a box cooker if steaming persists and there is good sunlight, a
small pebble or stick temporarily may be placed under the glazing frame or around the access door to
open it slightly and allow moisture to vent. Lids can be either dark or clear.
Foil is not generally recommended to wrap food for solar cooking; however, temporary pots or lids
may be formed out of one layer of darkened foil in absence of any other equipment. Conventionally
foil-wrapped food cooks very slowly if at all because shiny foil, particularly in multiple layers,
insulates by reflecting sunlight and heat away. Garlic bread wrapped in foil (and possibly other foods)
will do much better in a solar oven if the foil wrapped loaf is covered by insertion in a thin black
cotton-blend sock or black tube made from cotton tights.
Shiny pots or bread pans may be placed into brown paper bags or dark cloth bags to successfully cook
without painting them. If using paper bags or cloths, heat them alone for several hours before using
them with food in order to drive off any unwanted vapors. Alternatively, a number of separate foods
may be cooked in small, clear jars all under one dark tray or dark lid of a roasting pan.

Glass jars

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00:54
Solar cooking food in jars to put in solar ovens
Solar cooking with glass jars
Glass jars make good pots although they cook better if darkened rather than left clear. Also, darkening
the outside of food containers will protect some of the B Vitamins. When painting the jars, a strip of
masking tape placed from top to bottom before painting can be removed when the paint is dry to leave
a tidy strip of clear glass for visual inspection of the inside.
When using jars for cooking, make a hole in the lid of any non-canning jar, such as mayonnaise jars,
peanut butter jars, etc., to prevent steam buildup. Dome and ring canning jar lids that are designed for
food preservation automatically release excess steam pressure yet are safe only when used on canning
strength, food preservation jars. The thickness and strength of non-canning glass jars is not intended to
take the strain of steam under pressure and could break explosively unless vented.

Earthenware pots

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Some low-fired earthenware pots do not initially cook well although dark colored, hard-fired
earthenware pots with glazing work very well. Perhaps the poor performance of some earthenware is
due to liquid soaking through and evaporating on the outside, or perhaps it is due to the thickness and
porous nature of low-fired clay pot sides. Experimentally, in the efforts to use low-fired, unglazed
earthenware, the goal has been to approximate the hard-fired pots by filling the pores and to providing
a form of glazing. On a homecraft basis, this has been done by saturating the pot with food-type oil, fat
or natural resin which both closes the pores and changes the surface. Oil also will conduct heat rather
well and this may be part of what improves cooking in low-fired, earthenware pots following oil
treatment. Light colored earthenware needs to be darkened on the outside only, perhaps by rubbing a
dark food, nontoxic dark powder or soot from clean wood into the oil coating. Even so, there may be
forms of low fired earthenware that are difficult to use for SBCs.

Gourds

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Gourds to be used as pots need to be fully ripened, scraped and cleaned to a thin hard shell and, if of a
light-skin variety, need to be darkened on the outside. Gourds almost completely filled with food
cooked better than gourds with a little food in the bottom. Experimentally, like with low-fired
earthenware, treating inside and outside surfaces with vegetable oil or animal fat seems to improve the

cooking times. Low temperature oils which scorch to a useful dark brown are olive oil, used lard, and
peanut oil. The point at which oils will darken can be lowered by utilizing old oil that has been used for
cooking, perhaps which still has food particle in it, or which has an added emulsifier.
The Santa Domingo gourds tested were kept sitting upright while they grew. After harvest, they were
dried outdoors in the shade for some months until the seeds begin to rattle. Then the tops were cut off
and the seeds and inner pulp removed. They were scraped to a hard surface inside and out. Our test
gourds held between 1 and 1.5 quarts (.95 and 1.4 liters) and after preparing as pots were almost
spherical with 3 inch (7.5 cm) openings. The sides were approximately 1/8 inch thick (.3 cm).They held
liquids, did not flavor the food and produced cooked food over a period of many weeks. Heat seemed
to penetrate slowly. Gourds cooked faster with lids made of a small squares of clear glass rather than
dark lids, which sacrificed some level of B Vitamins in some foods. This was judged to be a minor
effect compared to the convenience of being able to grow your own solar pots in some cases.

Solar cooks in Bolivia painting their standard aluminum pots black on the outside
On an experimental basis, where very large gourds are available their shells might be evaluated for use
as inner boxes. If they proved successful, used in conjunction with gourd pots in an insulated pit or
other outer insulation, the materials needs for low temperature SBCs in equatorial regions might be
reduced to simply foil for the inner surface of the large gourd and the glazing...or perhaps to only the
glazing? This is highly speculative and cannot be appropriately evaluated at 34.4 N. Latitude where our
work is done.

The EuroSolarPot (prototype ESP-28) is the innovation of Andrew Kotowski. Built by Andrew and
Margot, it has been tested successfully in France and Poland. The pot is designed for use in solar panel
cookers, especially in the Nordic countries. Thanks to the greenhouse effect, its thermal properties are
improved compared to traditional solar pot. Click here for more information.

Pot lids can be homemade by turning the pot upside down on a flattened piece of metal and drawing an
outline. Cut the metal about inch (.6 cm) outside the line. File or sand the sharp edges to dull the cut
surfaces and protect the fingers. This may be done simply by rubbing a rock along the cuts. Working
regularly around the lid piece with pliers, bend the edge down at the line. Sometimes the fluting looks
nice. If necessary, cut from the edge into the line to allow the pieces of edge to overlap. Darken the
outside of the lid and heat it for several hours before using it with food. Temporary lids made be made
by the same method using a brown paper bag and creasing the paper at the line. These also need to be
heated alone for several hours before being used with food. Sometimes small holes are punched in a lid
to allow moisture to escape and produce a drier crust on foods such as breads or breadcrumb toppings,
cakes and cookies.
Nutritional research in great detail has been done by Professor George Hammons and others at
Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas, USA. After analysis of many different nutrients in
food cooked equal times by conventional methods and by solar box cookers using dark pots with lids
they concluded that solar cooked foods retained nutrition as well as or better than foods cooked by
conventional methods in spite of the longer cooking times required.

Metal pots can be painted black for use in a solar cooker.

Small pieces of glass may serve as lids on many different pots, as mentioned previously. The question
as to how much vitamin loss occurs when food is cooked without a pot lid or under clear glass needs to
be researched. Judging from color changes, there may be some vitamin or nutrient change if food is
exposed to bright sunlight while cooking. This may be more important when cooking liquids than when
cooking solids, since liquids will circulate by convective flow exposing a greater proportion of the food
to the sunlit edges. Riboflavin, a major B vitamin destroyed by light, is found in milk and milk
products, eggs, liver, kidney, grass, fruits, leafy vegetables, yeast, etc. These foods with light-sensitive
vitamins definitely should be cooked in dark containers.
Research is still needed comparing the effects of solar cooking with food exposed to the sunlight after
it has passed through various layers of glazing with solar cooked food using lids. Research is also
needed on whether or not there are significant amounts of aluminum compounds absorbed into the food
from aluminum pots when foods, particularly acid foods, are cooked at the relatively low temperatures
for extended periods of time typical of solar box cooking. Until the facts are established, foods should
be cooked with dark covers and aluminum pots not be used unless no other pots are available. Also,
there are unresolved questions at this time about the possible uptake of metal compounds into food

cooked in tin cans.

David Delaney recommends creating a "greenhouse pot" for solar panel cookers. Details can be found
in the following articles:
Pot with Integrated Greenhouse for Solar Panel Cooker - David Delaney
Comparison of Lids for Greenhouse Pots for Solar Panel Cookers - David Delaney
Improvising a Greenhouse Pot for Solar Panel Cooking - David Delaney

Tips and tricks

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Glass bowls and pie pans can be used to raise the pot
Dr. Steven Jones found that raising the pot on off of the bottom of the cooker (note that the pot would
a wire frame improved cooking greatly when normally be enclosed in an oven cooking bag when
cooking in a Panel cooker.
using a panel cooker). In some cases, they may provide
more stability used upside-down.

Alternatives to plastic oven bag pot covers

L. to R. Clear plastic/acrylic bowl (cheap
seasonal purchase) over 4 qt. Pyrex bowl,
straight-sided glass vase (from Michael's Craft
Store) cover with candle-plate base (holds up
to a half-gallon cooking jar), glass apothecary A dark bowl placed inside a glass casserole dish works
jar, plastic canister over glass candle-plate. In very well for solar cooking. No plastic bag is
cold or windy conditions, solid pot covers

give a definite advantage over oven bags.

necessary.

A double Pyrex style bowl enclosure with

clips.

Pot risers

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Faustine Odaba's wire pot riser made from coat hangers. Photo: Faustine Odaba

"Minimum" Solar Box Cooker

The "Minimum" Solar Box Cooker is a simple box cooker that can be built in a few
hours for very little money. When we designed this cooker, we named it the "Minimum
Solar Box Cooker" because, at the time, it represented the simplest design we could
devise. What we didn't communicate with that name was that this is a full-power cooker
that works very well, and is in no way minimum as far as its cooking power goes.

Contents
[show]

What You Will Need

Two cardboard boxes. We would suggest that you use an inner box that is at least 38 cm x 38

cm (15 inch x 15 inch), but bigger is better. The outer box should be larger than the small box
all around, but it doesn't matter how much bigger, as long as there is 1.5 cm (a half inch) or
more of an airspace between the two boxes. The distance between the two boxes does not have
to be equal all the way around. Also, keep in mind that it is very easy to adjust the size of a
cardboard box by cutting and gluing it.
One sheet of cardboard to make the lid. This piece must be approximately 4 to 8 cm (2 to 3
inches) larger all the way around than the top of the finished cooker (the outer box).
One small roll of aluminum foil.
One can of flat-black spray paint (look for the words "non-toxic when dry") or one small jar of
black tempera paint. Some people have reported making their own paint out of soot mixed with
wheat paste.
At least 250 g (8 ounces) of white glue or wheat paste.

One Reynolds Oven Cooking Bag. These are available in almost all supermarkets in the U.S.
and they can be mail-ordered from Solar Cookers International. They are rated for 204 C (400
F) so they are perfect for solar cooking. They are not UV-resistant; thus they will become more
brittle and opaque over time and may need to be replaced periodically. A sheet of glass can also
be used, but this is more expensive and fragile, and doesn't offer that much better cooking
except on windy days.

Building the Base

Fold the top flaps closed on the outer box and set the inner box on top and trace a line around it onto
the top of the outer box, Remove the inner box and cut along this line to form a hole in the top of the
outer box (Figure 1).

Decide how deep you want your oven to be. It should be about 2.5 cm (1 inch) deeper than your largest
pot and about 2.5 cm (1 inch) shorter than the outer box so that there will be a space between the
bottoms of the boxes once the cooker is assembled. Using a knife, slit the corners of the inner box
down to that height. Fold each side down forming extended flaps (Figure 2). Folding is smoother if you
first draw a firm line from the end of one cut to the other where the folds are to go.

Glue aluminum foil to the inside of both boxes and also to the inside of the remaining top flaps of the
outer box. Don't bother being neat on the outer box, since it will never be seen, nor will it experience
any wear. The inner box will be visible even after assembly, so if it matters to you, you might want to
take more time here. Glue the top flaps closed on the outer box.

Place some wads of crumpled newspaper into the outer box so that when you set the inner box down
inside the hole in the outer box, the flaps on the inner box just touch the top of the outer box (Figure 3).
Glue these flaps onto the top of the outer box. Trim the excess flap length to be even with the perimeter
of the outer box.
Finally, to make the drip pan, cut a piece of cardboard, the same size as the bottom of the interior of the
oven and apply foil to one side. Paint this foiled side black and allow it to dry. Put this in the oven so
that it rests on the bottom of the inner box (black side up), and place your pots on it when cooking. The
base is now finished.

Building the Removable Lid

Take the large sheet of cardboard and lay it on top of the base. Trace its outline and then cut and fold
down the edges to form a lip of about 7.5 cm (3 in). Fold the corner flaps around and glue to the side

lid flaps. (Figure 4). Orient the corrugations so that they go from left to right as you face the oven so
that later the prop may be inserted into the corrugations (Figure 6). One trick you can use to make the
lid fit well is to lay the pencil or pen against the side of the box when marking (Figure 5). Don't glue
this lid to the box; you'll need to remove it to move pots in and out of the oven.

To make the reflector flap, draw a line on the lid, forming a rectangle the same size as the oven
opening. Cut around three sides and fold the resulting flap up forming the reflector (Figure 6). Foil this
flap on the inside.
To make a prop bend a 30 cm (12 in) piece of hanger wire as indicated in Figure 6. This can then be
inserted into the corrugations as shown.

Next, turn the lid upside-down and glue the oven bag (or other glazing material) in place. We have had
great success using the turkey size oven bag (47.5 cm x 58.5 cm, 19 in x 23 1/2 in) applied as is, i.e.,
without opening it up. This makes a double layer of plastic. The two layers tend to separate from each
other to form an airspace as the oven cooks. When using this method, it is important to also glue the
bag closed on its open end. This stops water vapor from entering the bag and condensing. Alternately
you can cut any size oven bag open to form a flat sheet large enough to cover the oven opening.

Improving Efficiency
The oven you have built should cook fine during most of the solar season. If you would like to improve
the efficiency to be able to cook on more marginal days, you can modify your oven in any or all of the
following ways:
Make pieces of foiled cardboard the same size as the oven sides and place these in the wall
spaces.

 Make a new reflector the size of the entire lid (see photo above).
Make the drip pan using sheet metal, such as aluminum flashing. Paint this black and elevate
this off the bottom of the oven slightly with small cardboard strips.

Making this cooker collapsible

Main article: Collapsible Solar Box Cooker

The Collapsible Solar Box Cooker

Plans in other languages

Arabic
French

The Pot-in-pot Cooler, based on by ancient techniques, was designed by Mohammed Bah Abba who
won the Rolex Prize and who has been promoting this process thoughout Nigeria. The concept takes
advantage of evaporative cooling. Two terra-cotta pots are used, one inside the other, allowing for
approximately a 3-4cm (1.5-2in.) gap between the smaller and the larger pot. The gap is filled with
sand and then saturated with water. Some of the water will seep into the clay pots as well.
Fruits and vegetables are placed inside the small pot, and the cooler is covered with a wet towel. As the
water slowly evaporates from the cooler, heat is taken from clay pots, keeping the food a cool temper
temperature inside. Water will need to be added to the sand depending upon the air temperature outside.
Left in the shade, the Pot in Pot Cooler will keep foods fresh for some time.
I decided to make a pot-in-pot cooler and here are photos of it. The basic unit has two large unglazed
pottery pots which I commissioned to be made without bottom holes by Panama Pottery in Sacramento.
One pot fits inside the other with a layer of sand in between the pots. Alternately, I could have used
normal pots and sealed their holes with wax or waterproof tape.

I am using my watering pot here to wet the sand layer, which I do every morning. Inside the inner pot,
there is a watermelon, a cabbage, a bag of carrots and two apples.

I have a folded towel on top of the pots and produce and I am wetting the towel to provide additional
evaporation through the cloth top. I moisten the cloth twice a day.
Folsom, California, is typically hot in the summer, but this is an exceptionally hot day at 109F in the
shade. It is an excellent opportunity to test this cooler.

Here the temperature inside the pot is 74F degrees. It is 35F degrees cooler inside the pot than
outside. I have now had these fruits and vegetables in the device for a week and they are perfectly
fresh. The daytime outside temperature has varied this week from the high of 109F degrees to 90F
degrees and the temperature inside the pot has varied from 75F degrees to 62F degrees.

If you would like to learn more about this device, go to http://rolexawards.com/en/thelaureates/mohammedbahabba-the-project.jsp

Carol Veder
Sharon Cousins discovered that it is important to weight the inner pot when initially moistening the
sand or it will try to float and the sand will slip and pile up underneath. This is a very effective way of
keeping vegetables fresh. Sharon bought large plant pots on sale and used pieces of plastic jug glued on
with Shoe Goo to seal the drain holes.

Audio and video

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Windshield Shade Solar Cooker

Last updated: February 15, 2015

Kathy Dahl-Bredine developed the Windshield Shade Solar Cooker while experimenting with
various designs of cookers to introduce in the indigenous communities where Kathy lives and works in
southern Mexico. She hit upon an utterly simple way to make an instant portable solar oven by taking
an automobile windshield shade and turning it into a solar funnel.

Contents
[show]

Materials needed

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Reflective accordion-folding car sunshade

Black pot
Bucket or cardboard box
Oven cooking bag

 Cake rack (or wire frame or grill) (optional)

12 cm. (4 in) of Velcro (optional)

Instructions

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(Note that the windshield shade can be attached to itself by means other than Velcro.)

Making the funnel

1. Lay the sunshade out with the notched side toward you, as above.
2. Cut the Velcro into three pieces, each about 4 cm or 1 inches long.
3. Stick one half of each piece, evenly spaced, onto the edge to the left of the notch. Attach the
matching half of each piece onto the underneath size to the right of the notch, so that they fit
together when the two sides are brought together to form a funnel. (I first tried sewing these on
a sewing machine, but found it cut through the reflective material.) If using stick-on Velcro, you
can align the two pieces easily like this: Stick down one side of the Velcro, then press the two
pieces of Velcro together, fold the shade into the funnel shape and stick down the second side.
4. Press the Velcro pieces together, and set the funnel on top of a bucket or a round or rectangular
plastic wastebasket.
5. Place a black pot on top of a square cake rack, placed inside a plastic baking bag. A standard
size rack in the U.S. is 25 cm (10 inches). This is placed inside the funnel, so that the rack rests
on the top edges of the bucket or wastebasket. Since the sunshade material is soft and flexible,
the rack is necessary to support the pot. It also allows the sun's rays to shine down under the pot
and reflect on all sides. If such a rack is not available, a wire frame could be made to work as
well. Note: The flexible material will squash down around the sides of the rack.
See also Solar Funnel Cooker.

Tips

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Cooker with stabilizing stick

The funnel can be tilted in the direction of the sun.
A stick placed across from one side of the funnel to the other helps to stabilize it in windy
weather (see photo).
After cooking, simply fold up your oven and slip the elastic bands in place for easy travel or
storage.
Kathy Dahl-Bredine writes: "I have found this totally simple solar oven extremely practical, as it is so
lightweight and easy to carry along anywhere. But in addition, it has reached a higher temperature in a
shorter time than all the other models I have experimented with so far (I havent used a parabolic) - a
little above [177 C] 350 degrees F. I have cooked black beans in about the same amount of time as on
a gas stove; Ive used it to bake breads, granola, brownies, lasagna, all sorts of vegetables, and to purify
water. The sunshade may not be available everywhere, but I suspect it can be found in most urban
areas, since I found it here in southern Mexico. The Velcro was also available in fabric stores. Cost of
the sunshade was about $3.00 USD; the Velcro about $0.25."

Steven Dufresne offers the suggestion to clip a perimeter wire support around the cooker for reflector
support.
It is clear that the windshield style cooker is somewhat flimsy in any sort of windy conditions. One
approach is to tie a horizontal support brace across the front of the cooker. This is often done with
something like an untwisted metal coat hanger. A perimeter wire can also be used, held with stationary
clips, as seen in the adjoining photo.

Variations

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"Super-size" variation

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Size comparison between car windshield shade cooker and the super-size version.
Sharon Cousins has come up with a super-size version made from a windshield shade cover sized for a
large pickup truck or SUV. The larger size requires something on the order of a tub instead of a bucket
for support. The 48 cm (19 in) round grate from a broken fan helps hold the windshield shade in the tub
and helps maintain the shape. Pots rest on a flat grate laid across the edges of the round grate, which

lets a lot of light get under the food.

Close-up of Sharon Cousins's supersize windshield shade cooker showing details of double grate
system. Since this photo, Sharon has realized it works just as well to slip the bag over the top and sides
of the water boiler, which is much easier than trying to insert the boiler into the bag. Very little heat is
lost through the bottom. Just slide it over top and sides and tuck a bit at the bottom.
This cooker is vulnerable to wind, so put some weight (such as a large rock or two or three) in the tub,
and if it is very windy you can also put a few foiled rocks on the grates to help hold it all down. This
super-size version can handle up to two gallons of food or up to ten pounds of meat in decent sun. In
really good sun, it has gotten a full two-gallon water boiler hot enough for dishwashing (too hot to put a
bare hand in) in less than an hour This cooker gets almost hot enough to saute, and will get smaller
amounts of food very hot very quickly. In one soup stock cooking adventure at the height of summer
'07, a 1 L (1 qt) cooking jar stuffed with the bones and skin of a roast chicken, some seasonings, and
water with a little wine to fill, was set to cook on a glass plate under a glass cover. The contents reached
a good boil and fat from the top began boiling over and out of the jar, where it not only continued to
boil and bubble on the glass plate under the cover but also bubbled on the plate outside of the glass
cover where it was seeping under the edge! NOTE: The double-grate system will work with a smaller
shade, too... usually around 33-36 cm (13-14 inches) in diameter is about right for the broken fan grate.
At least in the developed world broken fans are not hard to come by. Double-grating probably gives
more benefits to those suncooking in the north than it would closer to the equator.

Steel bowl variation

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Inside this cooker is a Pyrex Pie Plate on a short candle stand. On top is a Pyrex Bowl. More info:
http://arnies-solarcooking.blogspot.com/2008/06/steel-bowl-cooker_22.html

The picture above was my first attempt using an 1.024 mm (18 gauge) stainless steel mixing bowl and
a windshield shade. I used the buckets (weighted with rocks inside) to hold the shade around the bowl.
I could get water temperatures up to 150F, but not much higher. I bought the bowl at a restaurant supply
house in my home town.
I struggled for a month to find some way to attach the shade to the bowl... eventually I thought I need
something the same shape as the bowl to easily hold it in place, hence, the second mixing bowl.
I used silver 'pinch' style paper clips to hold the ends of the shade onto the bottom bowl, and at the back
where the rear view mirro depression was to help the shade conform more to the bowls.
With this design, I have been able to get 237 mL (2 cups) of water to a boil within an hour. Larger
amounts of soup- with broth, vegetables and meat- will get to 93 C (200 F) easily.

I have more photos of this cooker at my blog.

I live in The Middle of Nowhere, Texas (San Angelo) Lat: 31.38 Lon: -100.5 Elev: 1916

UltraLightCooker variation

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The UltraLightCooker uses foam panels for support, and was designed by Andrew Kotowski. He built
this cooker specifically for this trip to Poland. The objective was to build a simple cooker, collapsable,
light, cheap, and easy to carry. It is useful for demonstrations and to cook simple meals.
Materials used: Sunshades car and plate of polystyrene (1.5 cm, or approximately 5/8 inches, thick).
Weight: 0.5 kg (1 lb) (no recipient).
See more information on this variation on the French Wiki - (English version).

The Haines variation

See Haines Solar Cooker.

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Haines Foam Insulation Cooker

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See Haines Foam Insulation Cooker.

400px

Kettle Cooker variation

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Converted kettle grill cooker meets the sun for the first time

View of top of kettle cooker.

Sharon Cousins built this powerful cooker from an old kettle grill. The addition of windshield shade
reflector at the back makes it a very strong cooker. On its maiden flight, temperatures in the cast iron
fry pan under the glass lid reached 107 C (225 F) by 8:30 a.m., 121 C (250 F) by 8:45 a.m., and by
mid-afternoon it was running just shy of 163 C (325 F). The tilt angle of the reflector can be adjusted
to keep the hot spot over the pan. This is a very good cooker for demos, as it can turn out a hot
quesadilla or pan of nachos (slip black plates or shallow pans of nachos into the pre-heated cast-iron
fry-panuse an upside down Pyrex pie pan or bowl for a lid if your glass lid is too shallow for a pile of
nachos) in under ten minutes.
A disposable aluminum pie pan is used to close the hole in the bottom of the kettle and the rest of the
kettle is lined with heavy-duty aluminum foil. The fry pan rests on the grill that formerly held the
charcoal and is covered with a glass lid from a thrift shop. The top of this kettle is covered with a
61x76 cm (24 in x30 in) oven bag, available from restaurant supply stores that carry specialty bags
such as the Webstaurant Store. It is laid flat, so it is actually a double cover, and held on with binder
clips. As shown, the cast iron pan with glass lid gets very hot, but the ambient air temperature in the
kettle is not tremendously hot, so any clear plastic might be worth a try if you do not have access to an
extra-large oven bag, or you could cut open two turkey-size bags to get large flat pieces and cross them
over the opening, which might work depending on the size of your kettle. Sturdy spring clamps are
used to secure the windshield shade and adjust the angle. If you still have the metal cover to your kettle
grill and you are in the time of year when you use your kettle cooker almost daily, you can cover your
cooker (at least if you used small binder clips, which do not interfere) and leave it out without having to
end up with dew residue and excess dust clouding your cooker top. In the morning just take off the
cover, clip on the booster, and let your pan start heating. To perform well, the cast-iron must be preheated, so if you're going to use it, the sooner you start it heating the better.
Part of what makes this arrangement so hot is the thermal mass of the cast iron. One attempt to bake
bread in it indicates that lighter pans would need to be oven-bagged or otherwise greenhoused in
addition to the clear cover on top of the kettle. Sharon believes that this cooker will cook in alternative
pans, but only with an additional greenhouse around the pan. This is a case where cast iron gives vastly
superior performance, but only if it is well pre-heated.
Sharon has since switched to the poster-board relector panels (See Aluminum Roasting Pan Solar
Cooker and click on the project sheet link for information on making these powerful reflectors) and is
reaching temperatures up to 204 C (400 F) in the glass-lidded fry pan. This has turned into a terrific
cooker for quesadillas, among other things. Sharon is planning to give this cooker its own wiki page as
soon as she can make a little more time for it. This jury-rig cooker is really a prototype for something

that could be ground-breaking, and Sharon would welcome contact and feedback from other solar
cooking engineers and innovators on how to maximize its potential.

Armando Herculano variations

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Other designs using windshield shades by Armando Herculano in Portugal

HVAC insulation variation: 1

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Stacy Ryerson has made a cooker using a material similar to the windshield screens. It is a quilted
insulating plastic covered with mylar. However, it differs from the typical windshield screen because it
is designed to bend in only one direction, and sold on a roll, intended for wrapping heat ducts. This
means it appears to stand vertically on its own without support, except for lateral wind bracing. The
windshield screen must bend in two directions to conform with the complex shape of the glass. This
allows it to form a funnel shape cooker, but the cooker usually requires additional support aids. This
cooker is sturdy and is able to pack flat for transport. The back cardboard panel is shingled with strips
of duct tape to make it waterproof.

HVAC insulation material is sturdy and supports

itself.

HVAC insulation variation: 2

The cooker still needs to be braced in windy

conditions.

Edit

Solar Cooker at Cantina West offers another inexpensive design possibility using reflective HVAC
insulation. The Reflectix bubble insulation can be purchased in a roll, (7.5 m x .5 m, or 25 ft x 2 ft)
allowing you to make several reflective panels, or you can buy a pre-cut length in some home
improvement stores. This particular reflector panel is a 1 m x 1.5 m (3 ft x 2 ft) panel. The flat sheet
first has a tab cut at the base, which is folded up. The adjacent bottom tabs then fold underneath. The
tabs can be secured with various clips available at office supply stores. The edges of the cooker can be
covered with reflective tape. A dark colored pot enclosed in an oven roasting plastic bag sets in the
center for cooking. It is best to raise the pot up, off the reflector, with a trivet or small stones or sticks
for better heating. See more detailed instructions...

A simple tab is cut at the base of a flat sheet of The tabs at the bottom are folded under each other and
insulation.
clipped together.

With a pot in a plastic cooking bag you are ready to cook.

Wheelbarrow variation

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Windshield shield cooker made mobile with a

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Food cooking in the mobile windshield

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Solar Cookers International continues in 2014 to provide grant funding to current partners with solar
cooking programs in Kenya. They are Dinah Chienjo, Friends of the Old (FOTO), John Amayo with
Sustainable Use of Renewable Energy (SURE), and Faustine Odaba of Natural Resources and Waste
Management. Solar Cookers International (SCI), the sponsor of the Solar Cookers International
Network and this site, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, non-governmental organization that spreads solar
cooking awareness and skills worldwide, particularly in areas with plentiful sunshine and diminishing
sources of cooking fuel. SCI alone has enabled 30,000 families in Africa to cook with the sun's energy,

freeing women and children from the burdens of gathering wood and carrying it for miles. Tens of
thousands of individuals and organization from all over the world have learned about solar cooking
through SCI's international programs, education resources, and information exchange network.
SCI has consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.
SCI sponsors the Solar Cookers International Network website (this site), an internationally
recognized Internet resource for solar cooking information.
SCI publishes the bi-weekly digital Solar Cookers International Digest covering solar cooking
developments throughout the world.
SCI is affiliated with the Solar Cookers International Network, a confederation of
approximately 400 NGOs, Manufacturers, and individuals involved in promoting solar cooking
throughout the world.
SCI won an Ashden Award in 2002 for their work with solar cookers in Kenya. In August 2006,
SCI was the winner of the World Renewable Energy Award.
SCI's Worldwide Office is located in Sacramento, California.
Solar Cookers International continues in 2014 to provide grant funding to current partners with solar
cooking programs in Kenya. They are Dinah Chienjo, Friends of the Old (FOTO), John Amayo with
Sustainable Use of Renewable Energy (SURE), and Faustine Odaba of Natural Resources and Waste
Management Alliance (NAREWAMA). The funds allow the distribution of solar cookers, Safe Water
Packages, provide training in their use, and a follow-up program to help insure continued use of the
new technologies. In August, 2013, SCI began a partnership with the Foundation for Sustainable
Tchnologies (FoST), in Nepal. Like SURE and FOTO, FoST benefits stressed families living in
environments that are deforested. The FoST program empowers single mothers and orphanages in
Kthmandu and Lalitpur with skills to make and use solar cookers, dry foods with solar cookers,
retained-heat cooking, and manufacture of fuels briquettes from biomass wastes to use when the sun
isn't shining.
If you would like to promote SCI's global work to introduce solar cooking technology to 20% of
families around the world to improve health, quality of life, and the environment, please donate and
make a difference making a donation on-line or to the postal address below. Interested in buying a solar
cooker or cooking accessories? Shop at the SCI marketplace. Your purchase helps fund SCI's programs.
The majority of SCI's funding comes from individual donors and environmentally conscious people
such as yourself. We will put your contribution to very good use by helping gain a better quality of life
for people in communities much less fortunate than yours. Only with your continued support can SCI
meet the ever-expanding needs of the worldwide solar cooking community.
See SCI's organizational site for detailed information about SCI.

Contents
[show]

Most significant solar cooking projects

Refugees from Sudan are trained by Solar Cookers International in the use of their new CooKit solar
cookers.
A refugee camp in Kenya was the first to receive a large scale solar cooking project - The
Kakuma Refugee Camp was formed in 1972 when Sudanese refugees first arrived in Kakuma,
Kenya. Introducing solar cooking to the camp was Solar Cookers Internationals first large-scale
refugee project, beginning in January 1995. Kakuma had considerable refugee turnover, but by
2004, when Solar Cookers International (SCI) concluded the project, the camp had tripled in
size to nearly 90,000 refugees. Though rapid growth posed problems for assisting all those who
wanted to solar cook, SCI ultimately served over 15,000 families. This project was one of the
earliest to use the CooKit solar panel cooker to introduce solar cooking. The program also
extended solar cooker technology to schools, especially primary school, through
demonstrations, poems, songs and drama.
See other Most significant solar cooking projects worldwide.

Events
See Calendar of events

News and recent developments

Missed the SCInet Solar Cooking Convention 2014? - Watch all the presentation videos
online...

Attendees of the SCInet Solar Cooking Convention 2014.

July 2014: SCI sponsored and organized the two-day SCInet Solar Cooking Convention 2014
in Sacramento, California.
April 2014: Afzal Syed wishes to report that he has received Verizon's Employee
Environmental Excellence Award, for his volunteer work for starting recycling at Dar Alnoor
mosque in Manassas,Virginia, USA, and for voluteering to promote solar cooking. Thanks go
out to the congregation at Dar Alnoor, members of Solar Cooking International, Solar
Household Energy, STAR TIDES at NDU, and family and friends for their support.
March 2014: Pat McArdle was interviewed for the feature story in this month's edition of the
TIDES (Transformative Innovation for Development & Emergency Support) newsletter. She
describes her role, and that of Solar Cookers International, to introduce solar cooking to, as Pat
puts it, "people in sun-rich countries in the developing world who were running out of wood to
burn." Solar cooking was unknown in this part of the world at the time. Many of the early
projects were started in the late eighties. She also explains how solar cooking is a key
component of the practical integrated cooking method. Read the interview...

Dar Curtis with a HotPot solar cooker

Darwin Curtis receives SCI Order of Excellence 2013 - In the 1980s, Dar Curtis made his
own solar box cooker from SCI instructions in the Sonoran Desert. Inspired, he began
volunteering for Solar Cookers International. Together with SCI volunteer Louise Meyer, they
created a new model of solar cooker: the HotPot. Together with Louise, Dar cofounded Solar
Household Energy, Inc., (SHE), which is a public charity dedicated to introducing solar cooking
where it can add quality to life and alleviate stress on the environment. Today, Dar works with
SHE in developing and demonstrating the effectiveness and practicality of solar cooking
technology, as well as training thousands of solar cooks.
February 2014: Read the recently released annual report for Solar Cookers International at:
SCI Annual Report July 1, 2012 June 30, 2013
September 2013: Inspiration from Solar cookers International fosters a CooKit
introduction project in Malawi - Claudia Sansone, whose interest in solar cookers began when
she met with current Solar Cookers International board member, AJ Lederman, and then SCI
board member Pat McArdle, at a UN Commission on the Status of Women in New York in
2011. Sansone says that after she read McArdles novel Farishta, she was convinced that solar
cooking could be successfully introduced in Malawi. With guidance from SCI executive
director Julie Greene in Sacramento, California, USA, Sansone purchased several CooKits. She
used these cookers to make templates, and then produced a number of the solar panel cookers to
distribute. Traveling with her family to Malawi, she hosted classes and demonstrations on solar

cooking with the CooKits. With a friend, she taught the women at Elizabeth Chikoyas
Womens Development Center and members of the Gogo Grandmothers how to make more
solar cookers with locally available materials. Read more at: Malawi and Solar Cookers
International
August 2013: Partnering in Nepal to promote integrated cooking Solar Cookers
International began a partnership with the Foundation for Sustainable Tchnologies (FoST), in
Nepal in August 2013. Like SURE and FOTO, FoST benefits stressed families living in
environments that are deforested. The FoST program empowers single mothers, and children in
orphanages, in Kthmandu and Lalitpur with skills to make and use solar cookers, dry foods with
solar cookers, retained-heat cooking, and manufacture of fuel briquettes from biomass wastes to
use when the sun isn't shining.
July 2013: Julie Greene, SCI Executive Director, interviewed on The Renewable Energy
Hour - Julie Greene discusses Solar Cookers International's mission and the effect of solar
cooking in developing countries. Visit the show page or listen to the interview.
June 2013: A roundtable discussion helps smaller organizations to share ideas - Julie
Greene, the Executive Director of Solar Cookers International, took part in a virtual
roundtable discussion on May 30th with leaders from three other organizations, to share ideas
ranging from communication techniques to fundraising approaches. Even though the groups
have different missions they face similar hurdles getting their message out. Julie describes how
solar cooking can help solve the mostly unrecognized problem of respiratory illness faced by
the three billion people on the planet cooking over open fires. Often their cooking takes place
indoors with little or no ventilation. Listen to the roundtable discussion.
May 2013: Safe water packages helping in Kenya - Solar Cookers International released
information on the their latest efforts to offer safe water packages to low-income families in
Kenya. The package contains all the necessary components to use the integrated cooking
approach, which means using the solar panel cooker to heat water and kill pathegins when it is
sunny, and use an efficient fuel stove when it is not. A heat retention basket is included to keep
cooked food warm, and to extend cooking times. Working with their partners, who provide the
training and follow-up, they have distributed 212 safe water packages from November 2012
through April 2013. These packages have provided over 1,000 people a virtually cost free way
to maintain a healthy water supply and prepare their meals. SCI has set a goal to increase the
number of packages they fund from 35 per month to 100 per month through the fall of 2013.
Please consider donating to SCI to help reach this goal.

04:44
Solar Cookers & Safe Water 2013 Goals

 April 2013: Again, SCI wishes to thank the many volunteers that have recently provide support.
Read more about upcoming events and requests in the SCI Volunteer Newsletter, April 2013.
We are looking for volunteers to demonstrate solar cooking at events in the Sacramento, CA
area. There have been requests for solar cooking demonstrations, but not enough trainers to
meet the need. julie@solarcookers.org
March 2013: SCI wishes to thank the many volunteers that have recently provide support. Read
more about upcoming events in the SCI Volunteer Newsletter, March 2013
February 2013: The March 2013 issue of Solar Cooker Review is now available online - Read
the latest issue or see back issues.

Julie Greene, SCI Executive Director, and Tom Sponheim and Paul Hedrick, SCWNet Administrators,
attended the recent ETHOS Conference in Bellevue, Washington, USA.
January 2013: SCI Executive Director and SCWNet Administrators attend the 2013
ETHOS Conference - Julie Greene, SCI Executive Director, and Tom Sponheim and Paul
Hedrick, SCWNet Administrators, attended the recent ETHOS Conference in Bellevue,
Washington, USA. The national conference is held to exchange design technologies and
promotion strategies for fuel-efficient wood and biomass cookstoves. It is encouraging that
there seems to be more acceptance of solar cooking in this traditionally fuel-burning cookstove
community, and that combining various cooking approaches will ultimately help more people
and the environment. Julie was asked directly if Solar Cookers International would be interested
in preparing a presentation for next year's conference.
December 2012: SCI Executive Director Julie Greene gives TED Talk on the promise of
solar cooking

15:18
Harnessing the Sun to Improve Health and Environments Julie Greene at TEDxGrassValley
November 2012: Anywhere under the Sun is a recently released solar cooking eBook
featuring recipes from around the world. Heather Stevens, Australian solar enthusiast and editor
of the book invited solar chefs from around the world to submit their favorite recipe, photos and
comments on solar cooking. The book is a visually stunning and comphrehensive, with recipes
from around the world. The book can be downloaded as an eBook for $1.99(AUD) from
http://www.thesunskitchen.com. 100% of the sale price is donated to Solar Cookers
International to assist with their work encouraging solar cooking in the developing world.

58:01
EmeraldPlanet - Paving the Way to 2050 (Future Earth 4) Technologies; Services; & Products
Former SCI board member Pat McArdle is interviewed on Emerald Planet - During the
interview Pat McArdle discusses the history and mission of Solar Cookers International, the
importance of increasing access to solar cooking technology, Bob Metcalf's Portable
Microbiology Laboratory for testing water in remote locations, the work of Jewish World Watch
in Chad, and more.

02:45
Solar Cooked Snowbank Chicken Soup-0
October 2012: Recent natural disasters abound: Bangladesh floods and landslides, June 2012;
Assam floods July, 2012; Haiti floods and mudslides August, 2012; India floods September,
2012; Vietnam, Philippines, Southern China typhoon, October 2012; Eastern United States
hurricane October, 2012. All of these natural events disrupted people's lives, even changing
them forever. In the recovery stages after natural disasters, people's basic needs don't change:
they still need clean water, food, safety, and shelter. In the bleakest situations, solar thermal
power can begin to meet two important needs: a solar oven can pasteurize water and cook food.
If you are an experienced solar cook, please contact people in your circle of influence in these
affected areas. Share your knowledge of solar cooker construction and use with people who
need it most. This YouTube video shows solar cooking done in the snow after power was lost in
northern Virginia in a February 2010 storm.
October 2012: SCI has initiated two new partnerships, one with Friends of the Old (FOTO)
(Dinah Chienjo and John Amayo are on the ground in Kenya), and the other with the Natural
Resources and Waste Management Alliance (NAREWAMA) (Faustine Odaba is the point
person in Kenya). These community-based organizations work to provide solar cookers and safe
water packages to elders and grandparents, many of whom are raising orphaned grandchildren.
SCI's collaboration will dramatically expand the reach of these programs.
March 2012: For almost twenty years, Solar Cookers International has supported branch
operations in Kenya. Our field projects have served tens of thousands of families in various East
African countries. Due to the overwhelming logistical and financial challenges SCI has
encountered in its efforts to effectively manage and restructure an operation 9,000 miles away
from its home office in California, the Kenya operations have now been suspended. We are
confident that SCIs many years in that country have educated and inspired individuals and
organizations in Kenya to continue with the very important work of spreading the use of solar
cookers throughout Eastern Africa.
October 2011: Patricia McArdle, of Solar Cookers International, demonstrated solar cooking
with Afzal Syed and volunteers, Sherry and Cecily, at the TIDES exhibit on the campus of the
National Defense University. Afzal brought several pots of raw ingredients for Pakistani dishes
that were prepared by his wife Samina, including: masoor dall, spiced potatoes, okra, and
chawal rice. Patricia baked a loaf of banana bread, which was consumed in less than five
minutes. They used the parabolic SK10 (similar to the SK12), purchased from Deepak Gadhia
several years ago, to keep a pot of water boiling from 9 a.m. in the morning until the event
ended at 5 p.m. There were a number of senior military visitors from other countries. Several
have expressed an interest in learning more about solar cooking technology and how it can be

used in their countries. The most surprising visit yesterday was from a Vietnamese general, the
most senior Vietnamese military officer to visit the U.S. since before the war with Vietnam
started in the sixties. Several 'very important people' who came to the demonstration assumed
that it would take us 10 to 12 hours to cook food in a panel or box cooker. They were astounded
that the food was cooked in less than three hours--in October-- in Washington D.C.--which is 40
degrees north of the equator.

Patricia McArdle and volunteer Cecily, remove

Pakistani okra from a CooKit panel cooker at
TIDES 2011.

Afzal Syed opens a pot of Pakistani dall at TIDES

2011

People continue to be amazed--especially that it

Everything was cooked by one p.m. and gone by 2 takes only twenty minutes to boil a pot of water at
p.m. at TIDES 2011
TIDES 2011.

August 2011: The Spendid Table radio show interviews SCI Board Member Patricia
McArdle - Listen to Patricia discussing solar cooking in Afghanistan.

The Solar Cooking Project in Jinja, Uganda.

July 2011: The Solar Cooker Project from Light Gives Heat is moving full-force ahead. Just
recently, John and Julius from the Solar Cookers International in Kenya, traveled to Jinja,
Uganda to continue the training on the maintenance of the solar cooking products and creating
outlets for our Suubi women and Epoh tailors to sell products to their friends and local
community.
July 2011: Solar ovens, renewable energy offer hope for Afghanistan (Reuters) - At first,
she noticed Afghan children hauling brush. Then, in Afghan family compounds, she noticed
women tending small fires and trying to cook over them. But it wasn't until U.S. diplomat [and
Solar Cookers International Board Member] Patricia McArdle realized how often it was sunny
in Afghanistan that she put it together with a youthful memory of cooking with solar ovens and
realized this was a low-tech option offering long-term hope to the war-torn nation, which is
preparing for a draw-down of U.S. troops. At first, she noticed Afghan children hauling brush.
Then, in Afghan family compounds, she noticed women tending small fires and trying to cook
over them. But it wasn't until U.S. diplomat [and SCI Board Member] Patricia McArdle realized
how often it was sunny in Afghanistan that she put it together with a youthful memory of
cooking with solar ovens and realized this was a low-tech option offering long-term hope to the
war-torn nation, which is preparing for a draw-down of U.S. troops. Read more...

Participants at the Light Gives Heat and Solar Cookers International solar cooking workshop in
Uganda.

Light Gives Heat and Solar Cookers International solar cooking workshop in Uganda.
July 2011: Light Gives Heat on their solar cooking workshop in Uganda: "We have given up
any notions that we can bring about health simply by stumbling upon it in the same way that we
stumbled upon destruction. There must be changes in the way that we think and live. To bring
about these changes we teamed up with Solar Cookers International (SCI). With the help of SCI
we are enabling the SUUBI and EPOH artisans to cook their food and boil their water with the
free power of the sun. This reduces the emissions of charcoal that the women would normally
use, benefiting the women monetarily and environmentally. One artisan reported that she spends
$5 a week on charcoal. With the help of LGH, she can make a one-time purchase of a solar
cooker for about $5, and save on the weekly expense of charcoal." Read more...
June 2011: Solar Cookers International is now an official Partner in the Global Alliance
for Clean Cookstoves - SCI works with the Global Alliance on its goal of enabling 100 million
households to adopt clean and efficient cooking solutions. The zero emissions solar cooker is an
excellent clean cooking solution to alleviate the household air pollution afflicting the nearly
three billion people who eat food cooked over open fires.
June 2011: Solar Cookers International is proud to partner with the Aprovecho Research Center
and join their Summer Stove Camp "Fuels of the Future" on the grounds of the Aprovecho Labs
in Cottage Grove, Oregon, USA. Those committed to improving the use of fuel for cooking will
gather to spend one week learning, innovating, and creating improved designs and prototypes.
Event details...
May 2011: Proceeds from plastic bottles or aluminum cans in Truckee, California will help
purchase solar cookers for people in economically disadvantaged countries, thanks to the efforts
of Sierra High School seniors. Sierra High School requires all seniors to participate in a service
learning project, explains principal Jane Loomis. The school has a long history of service
learning that has benefited our community over the years including the Humane Society, Tahoe
Forest Hospice, a student clothing bank and literacy awareness. This years service learning
project is a community effort that benefits Solar Cookers International (SCI). Seniors are asking
local businesses, agencies and schools to participate in the program by placing recycling
containers at their site. Proceeds derived from the recycling will go to SCI, which will in turn
purchase solar ovens for needy countries such as Haiti, Pakistan, India, Africa. The SCI website
explains that refugees and other displaced people frequently lack access to sufficient cooking
fuels and safe drinking water. When infrastructures are in ruins and no energy or gas is
available, solar cooking utilizes the sun to cook hot food. Additionally, when fuel is scarce,
cooking with the sun offers a clean, workable solution. Importantly, solar cookers fight cholera
by heating water to pasteurization temperatures. And finally, using a solar cooker requires only

the sun, and does not necessitate searching for other forms of fuel. Its really convenient for
Truckee businesses to participate, Loomis said. A senior is assigned to each site. They are
responsible for delivering the recycling box to each business, monitoring and collecting the
contents. Sierra High School seniors are actively searching for businesses and public entities
that have room for a 32-inch by 18-inch recycling container. Those interested in participating
should call Sierra High School at +1 (530) 582-2640.

Uganda LGH Director, Amberle Reyes, visits Solar Cookers International demonstration in Kisumu.
March 2011: Light Gives Heat visits Solar Cookers International demonstration in
Kisumu, Kenya - Light Gives Heat is a non-profit promoting grass-root economic
sustainability and creative endeavors in Africa. Ugandan Director, Amberle Reyes and a staff
member recently visited a demonstration of sustainable cooking methods sponsored by Solar
Cookers International. It included traditional fixed and portable earthenware stoves, called upesi
in Kiswahili, which more efficiently use charcoal or wood as fuel, CooKit solar panel cookers,
and Heat-retention cooking baskets. They were most interested in solar cookers and fireless
baskets. Locals were initially attracted to solar cooking not because of the possibility of saving
money by buying less fuel, or the health benefits of indoor smoke reduction, but because solar
cookers can bake cakes. Cake is seen as a "rich person food", and LGH saw an entrepreneurial
opportunity: Cakes are sold for weddings and birthdays. Most people cannot make high quality
cakes because of the irregular temperatures of charcoal and wood stoves, but solar cookers bake
perfect, moist cakes with very little worry of burning or overcooking. At the end of March, SCI
staff will bring CookIts and fireless baskets to Jinja and demonstrate first-hand their
effectiveness to all their employees. Light Gives Heat has received an 8,000 USD grant to
supply their Uganda Artisans with these solar cookers. More Information and photos...

Solar Cookers International exhibition at the UN.

 January 2011: Solar Cookers International exhibition and reception at the United Nations
a success! Representatives from non-governmental organizations and interested supporters
attended the three-hour, open-house event on January 18th. The concept of solar cooking is so
important, that representatives from Nigeria, the Middle East, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and
Somalia made it through freezing, blowing rain to attend the exhibition. A wide variety of solar
cookers were on display with informational material accompanying the cookers. Video loops
played throughout the evening showing real people around the world cooking with the sun and
training others to do so. There was a real urgency at the exhibition that the message of solar
cooking be strong, unified, and be present in global discussions of development and progress for
people around the world.
January 2011: Clean Currents Donates 100 Solar Cookers to Primary Schools in Port-auPrince Joining the movement to train primary school students and provide them a solar cooker
is Clean Currents, a Mid-Atlantic green energy provider. Announced on Jan. 12th, it will be
purchasing 100 solar cookers to benefit schools in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Solar Cookers
International will be distributing the solar cookers and will provide on-site training through its
network of staff and volunteers in Haiti. "Reaching students in their classrooms and teaching
them a new lifestyle habit like solar cooking is a positive and accessible way to improve lives
and the global environment," said AmyJo Mattheis, former Executive Director of Solar Cookers
International.

January 2011: Haiti - One year later: Haiti continues to benefit from solar cooking. Solar
Cookers International (SCI) and International Child Care Ministries (ICCM) are working to
expand a project in the schools around Port Au Prince to integrate solar cooking into the 5th
grade science curriculum. The goal is that each student will receive a CooKit to use each day in
preparing and cooking their lunch, all the time learning about science. Training and certification
of teachers continues, as do SCIs efforts to secure funding to provide 2000 more CooKits for
this school project. To date, SCI has provided 200 CooKits, pots and Water Pasteurization
Indicators (WAPIs) for four schools. With your help, we will achieve our goal of 2000 more!
Reaching students in their classrooms, teaching a new lifestyle habit, while at the same time
providing environment education is a winning program. Background: SCI, in collaboration with
Sun Ovens International and ICCM, distributed over 400 CooKits in Haiti immediately
following the devastating earthquake there. Near the community of Pigeon, 135 Haitians were
trained in solar cooking by Programme Energie Solaire. Each participant received a CooKit, a
pot and a WAPI, giving these earthquake survivors a method to cook their food and pasteurize
their water without need of scarce and expensive fuel. Solar cooking is technology that offers
relief in disaster situations: 1) When infrastructures are in ruins and no energy or gas is
available, solar cooking utilizes the sun to cook hot food; 2) When fuel is scarce, cooking with
the sun offers a clean, workable solution; 3) Solar cookers fight cholera by heating water to
pasteurization temperatures (65C or 150F); and 4) Using a solar cooker requires only the sun,
and does not necessitate searching for other forms of fuel. Families can stay together and remain
safe. SCI thanks you for your ongoing support for solar cooking in Haiti.

See older news...

Focus
SCI promotes solar cooking and solar water pasteurization worldwide, especially in developing
countries where their use can literally save lives. According to the their website, SCI's mission is to
assist "communities to use the power of the sun to cook food and pasteurize water for the benefit of
people and environments" by focusing in the following areas:
1. Influencing others in support of solar cooking and water pasteurization/testing.
2. Developing programs, in partnership with others for the purpose of promoting solar cooking,
and water pasteurization and testing. In addition, in parts of Kenya, the focus is to achieve
independent spread of solar cooking and water pasteurization/testing.
3. Facilitating broader access to solar cooking and water pasteurization/testing knowledge,
including marketing educational materials and solar products.
4. Partnering with other relief agencies to assist refugees and disaster relief with solar cooking and
water pasteurization/testing training and support.
SCI is paving the way for mass solar cooker acceptance and use through promotion of such products as
the CooKit solar cooker and the WAPI water pasteurization indicator; field projects in communities and
refugee camps; development and dissemination of education resources; and advocacy with the United
Nations and other governmental and non-governmental institutions.

Why solar cookers?

Depending on need and climate, there are many types, sizes and designs of appropriate solar cookers;
however, SCIs simple and effective CooKit is a low-cost cooker that is especially well suited for the
developing world since it is made of cardboard and foil which are readily available materials in most

communities.
Each group of items costs 75 Kenya Shillings (about US$1) as does the pile of charcoal shown. By
using a CooKit or other solar cooker, people can buy food instead of fuel.

Solar cooking is beneficial to anyone who lives where there is an abundance of sunshine, and
especially where traditional cooking fuels are progressively being depleted. Women in developing
countries often walk many miles to collect wood to cook with, or must purchase cooking fuel with
meager incomes and/or trade food or goods for cooking fuels. In addition to this physical and monetary
stress, women and children who habitually cook inside are subject to severe upper respiratory problems
caused by household air pollution from smoky fires. Perhaps most disturbing is the fact that women
and girls living in refugee camps risk injury, rape and even death when forced to forage for wood
outside the compound.
In many cases, fuel wood is too scarce to use to boil water as well as cook with, so people drink water
from contaminated water sources, causing millions to get sick and/or die every year from preventable
waterborne diseases. An estimated 1.5 billion cases of diarrhea occur each year, resulting in the death
of nearly 2 million children. Solar cookers provide a practical method of heating water to the point of
pasteurization, requiring only time and the sun to kill the most common waterborne pathogens and
making water safe to drink.

When there's no sun

SCI promotes the Integrated Cooking Method, whereby solar cookers are used in conjunction with
fuel-efficient stoves and heat retention devices (sometimes called hay baskets) to cook food and
pasteurize water with a minimum of fuel. By using the sun when possible, and supplementing with
fuel-efficient cooking technologies, fuel wood consumption and subsequent deforestation around the
world can be drastically reduced.

Water testing
In addition to the basic fundamentals of solar cooking and water pasteurization that SCI has promoted
for years, SCI has developed a revolutionary method of simple scientific water testing that requires no
electricity or refrigeration. Most rural areas are unable to adequately test their water because the
process of gathering samples and transporting them to a certified laboratory in an urban area is simply
too expensive. SCIs Portable Microbiology Laboratory (PML) contains laboratory materials small
enough to fit in a Ziplock bag, and has already been adopted by the Kenyan Ministry of Health and
Water Resources Management Authority. We are working closely with these government institutions to
bring accurate and reliable water testing to rural areas that previously had no practical resources
available with which to test their water sources.

Solar Cookers International: Mission

SCI focuses on four core areas to promote solar cooking globally: projects, partnerships, advocacy,
and education.

Projects

Women in Kajido, Kenya stand with their CooKit solar cookers.

SCI began the first and largest refugee camp solar cooking project in Kakuma refugee camp, Kenya.
Sunny Solutions began in 2003 to introduce and create a market for solar cookers in the Nyakach
district, Nyanza province, Kenya. Partnering with Nyakach Community Development Association
(NYACODA), SCI demonstrated solar cooking introducing the CooKit solar cooker and the
WAPI water pasteurization indicator. During the 5-year program, 80% of the population (113,000
people) were introduced to solar cooking, with 2,593 households purchasing one or more
CooKits. SCI was one of several non-governmental organizations introducing solar cooking to the
refugees in the Iridimi and Touloum refugee camps in Darfur, a region in Sudan in 2006. The primary
goal was to reduce the neccessity of women and children leaving the camps to collect firewood.

Partnerships
SCI has developed an extensive worldwide network of solar cooking partners and helps create
connections for collaborative projects and mentoring. In addition to facilitating working partnerships,
SCI partners with community-based organizations in different countries to provide solar cookers and
water pasteurization tools to people who live where fuel is scarce and sunshine is plentiful--and free.
SCI does not accept unsolicited grant proposals.

Advocacy
SCI builds awareness for solar cooking and solar water pasteurization among policy makers, including
closer collaboration with United Nations agencies. SCI was instrumental in the formation of the Solar
Cookers International Association later renamed Solar Cookers International Network (SCInet) which
is an association of 500+ non-governmental organizations, government agencies, and individuals
promoting solar cooking, water pasteurization, and food processing. Promoters in many regions find
regionally-specific information and guidance on this SCInet wikia. SCI has hosted regional and
international solar cooking conferences, most recently the Solar Cookers International Conference held
in Granada Spain in 2006.

Education
SCI's focus on education is evident in the solar cooking and related information available on the Solar
Cookers International Network wiki, which SCI sponsors. The wiki includes over 1900 articles
categorized by country, manufacturers and vendors, solar cooking basics, and solar cooker designs. The
global solar cooking community findsAlso included is information regarding related technologies such
as heat-retention cooking; water pasteurizing, solar food processing, solar food drying, solar
autoclaving, and solar canning. Classroom resources for teachers are available, free, for teachers
around the world.
Also available via the Internet are several key booklets published by SCI to help solar cooking
promoters succeed. Our plans booklet, Solar Cookers: How to Make, Use and Enjoy, provides step-bystep construction plans for panel-type and box-type solar cookers. Our field guide, Spreading Solar
Cooking, helps promoters plan solar cooking projects. Our trainers manual, Teaching Solar Cooking
helps solar cooking instructors stay on task and monitor their students progress. All three booklets are
available for download on the Solar Cookers International Network site, or for sale along with solar
cookers, cookbooks and related supplies on SCIs web site. Booklets are mailed free of charge to select
individuals and groups in developing countries where Internet access is difficult.
SCI digitally produces and distributes the Solar Cookers International Digest which provides important
updates and opportunities for the global solar cooking community.
SCI also provides personal responses to over 100 inquires each month. Over the years, SCI has helped
thousands of people answer important questions, find local experts, and access critical resources
needed to successfully achieve their solar cooking goals.
If you are interested in starting a solar cooking and/or water pasteurization project, please see
promoting solar cooking. You can also connect with people and programs in your own country by
visiting our pages about solar cooking in each country. Basic information on solar cooking, frequentlyasked questions and instructions on how to build various solar cooker models are also available. Large
sections of the Solar Cookers International Network site have been translated
into French, Spanish, Catalan, and Portuguese, and translations of articles can be found in languages as
varied as Farsi, Chinese, Vietnamese, German, Italian, Urdu, and Arabic.

Events
See Calendar of events.

History
Solar Cookers International (SCI), originally called Solar Box Cookers International, was founded in
1987 by 17 solar cooks residing in the sunny Central Valley of California. Among the founders were
Bev Blum: first president and executive director of SCI from 1989-1999 and 2003-2006. She
developed a mass-producible, foldable box cooker in 1992, and coordinated the development of
the CooKit solar cooker. In 2009 she was the secretariat of the Solar Cookers International
Network (now the Solar Cookers International Network, or SCInet).
Barbara Kerr: co-developer of the Kerr-Cole solar box cooker built from two nested cardboard
boxes. She co-founded the Kerr-Cole Sustainable Living Center in Taylor, Arizona, USA. She
received the "Women in Solar Energy" award from the American Solar Energy Society in July,
2006.

 Dr. Bob Metcalf: professor of microbiology at California State University at Sacramento and
was selected as the 2000-2001 Outstanding Teacher in the College of Natural Sciences and
Mathematics. He is well known for his work on solar water pasteurization.
SCI produced and distributed manuals describing construction and use of solar box style cookers. SCI
advocated for solar cooking to be incorporated into development and relief agency programs. SCIs
role evolved into networking with other solar cooking organizations worldwide, hosting forums for
dialogue including co-sponsoring three international solar cooking conferences with the University of
the Pacific, USA in 1992; the National University of Costa Rica in 1994; and the Deemed University,
Coimbatore, India in 1997.
SCI also administered a series of solar cooking field projects. Since 1995, SCI has managed or comanaged solar cooking projects in the Nyakach district, Kenya; in the Kakuma refugee camp, Kenya;
in the Aisha refugee camp, Ethiopia; in various communities, Zimbabwe; and in Dadaab refugee camp,
Kenya. See Programs & Projects section above for a description of the Sunny Solutions program in
Nyakach, Kenya. For information about refugee camp work in Darfur, Sudan, refer to the refugee camp
article.
SCI supported the development of the CooKit, a mass-producible, foldable solar cooker in the 1990s.
This simple, panel-style solar cooker remains the most recognized solar cooker in the world.

Organization
SCI is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit non-governmental organization whose Worldwide Office is located in
Sacramento, California, USA.

Anahat Solar Cooker

Solar food drying is a very simple, ancient skill. It requires a safe place to spread the food where air in
large quantities can pass over and beside thin pieces being heated by the sun. However at a slower rate,
dry cold air from any source will dehydrate food. Draping food over branches or spreadi.. olar food
drying is a very simple, ancient skill. It requires a safe place to spread the food where air in large
quantities can pass over and beside thin pieces being heated by the sun. However at a slower rate, dry

cold air from any source will dehydrate food.

Contents
[show]

Solar food drying background

Edit

Draping food over branches or spreading it on wide shallow baskets on the roof is an old widespread
tradition still in use around the world. Many other arrangements have been used to support a thin
spread of food pieces. Some options that have been used are to thread the pieces on a cord or a stick
and hang it over a fire, wood stove or from the rafters. Or one can bundle herbs or strawflowers and
suspend them from bushes or a door knob or nails in rooms with good ventilation. Screen doors placed
across chairs or sheets hung between clothes lines or possibly on a quilting frame have also been used.
Vans, clean garages, or backseats of cars can be safe places to spread trays of drying food just as well
as specially constructed cabinets. In the pioneer tradition food might be spread in the attic or in an
upstairs room with screened windows wide open.
Modern variations are to build special enclosed drying racks or cabinets to expose the food to a flow of
dry air heated by electricity, propane or solar radiation are a modern variation. These are refinements
not essential to the basic process but handy, particularly in the humid tropics or when the rainy season
coincides with the harvest.
Natural ventilation may be used in dry areas such as the American southwest or the Arctic. If necessary,
the drying capacity of the air can be increased by heating it, which lowers the relative humidity. While
any source of heat may be used, solar energy is free and usually plentiful in season. A solar heating
panel screened on both ends with air intake on one end and opening to the food at the other is
universally used to solar heat air. Hot dry air may be moved over the food by use of natural convection
or a solar chimney or a fan run on solar electricity.

News and recent developments

Edit

Diagram showing the role the solar dryer plays in helping produce dried fruits, vegetables, and
briquettes for fuel-efficient cookstoves.

 December 2014: Joshua Guinto, a specialist with Appropriate Technologies has provided an
update on recovery developments in the Philippines in the wake of typhoon Haiyan. Their focus
has been providing solar dryers to dry fruits and vegetables, as wells to dry wood for bio-char
and briquette production for use in fuel-efficient cookstoves. Read more at: The Approtech
Training for Salcedo Eastern Samar - Joshua Guinto, November 2014
November 2014: Brian White reports: I have a thing in the works for solar drying with calcium
chloride as a desiccant. Dry calcium Chloride absorbs water and becomes liquid in the water
that it absorbs. It actually has a pretty complex series of Christal hydrates that all absorb water
and calcium chloride is cheap and food safe.So, I am planning to use a solar cooker to drive off
the water and "recharge" the calcium chloride. My main problem with solar cooking is that I am
rarely home during the day. Using a solar cooker to build up a big store of very dry calcium
chloride to dry fruit in the fall might be a good idea. Then you put the calcium chloride in a
closed solar dehydrator with the fruit and a little fan and the water gets transferred to the
calcium chloride, which drips out of the thing as it becomes liquid.I am also looking into
making calcium chloride from limestone and brine. It can be made with a solar panel
electrolyzing the salt. You get hydrogen and chlorine that you can recombine above in moist
limestone chips.This converts some of the calcium carbonate in the limestone to calcium
chloride. This might seem like a waste of a solar panel but the industrial process to produce
calcium chloride is similar.
October 2014: Bernhard Mller is working on the development of a counter-current solar food
dryer which saves 50% on space and materials compared to common solar tunnel dryers.
Involved in the development are Faustine Odaba of NAREWAMA, John Amayo of SURE, Prof.
Wilson Ogola of the Technical University of Kenya as well as some experts from Uganda.

Sizzling Solar Systems dehydrator

Heating the thermal mass (water bottles) to help provide stable nighttime temperatures, and avoid mold
formation on the fruit.
November 2012: Solar Food Dehydrator - Stan Cajdler of Brisbane, Australia has developed a
solar food dehydrator, which significantly reduces the formation of mold spores caused by the
nightly cooling of food. Typically, the drying process can last for several days for successful
solar food drying. In this design several water containers (for thermal mass) are positioned in
the lower chamber of the dehydrator. As the collector plate heats up, it heats up the surrounding
air, which rises through the drying chamber. During the day, radiant heat from the collection
plates also heats the water containers, which slowly release heat overnight. This overnight
thermal air movement through the upper chamber dramatically reduces the formation of mold
spores. For more information on Stans solar cooker designs check out: Sizzling Solar Systems

UC Davis team demonstrating the solar dryer.

October 2012: Foresight Technology has developed a lightweight, large capacity, portable,
solar food dehydrator. It is highly effective. Its unique four sided absorber design allows for an
extended daily drying period. It is available for shipping.
February 2011: A group from the UC Davis Program for International Energy Technologies
installed a solar box dryer for drying fruit in Nicaragua. They worked with the local
organizations Grupo Fenix and the Solar Women of Totogalpa. They also connected with
students and faculty at the Alternative Energy Program at Nicaragua's National Engineering
University, and the directors of the new dried fruit export company SolSimple. They plan to
send a follow-up trip the summer of 2011. More Information...

 May 2006: John Maina of Kenya wins the Energy Globe Award for 2006. Employing solar
energy for drying food & gaining income security In Kenya, 30-40% of vegetables and fruits
are lost due to poor post-harvest handling. The lack of firewood, which is necessary for drying
and treatment of durable goods, is one of the major reasons for the loss. Since 2002 SCODE
(Sustainable Community Development Services) has employed a solar dryer in Kenya for the
drying of harvesting produce. The advantages are obvious: solar energy is free and available
virtually everywhere. The fresh produce can be made durable in a cheap way and market value
will be increased. Through the fast drying process the farmers can raise harvesting production
and therefore able to generate additional income. This means up to 50% more productivity. The
time needed for collecting firewood before, can now be used for various other activities and
deforestation is reduced as well. Currently 30 solar dryers have been installed and 920 farmers
have been trained in the use of these. Thirty craftsmen have also been trained in the construction
and installation of these solar dryers. The project contributes to an overall improvement of
living conditions, family nutrition, environment protection and income generation. At the
moment the project is implemented in the Rift Valley in Kenya and has the potential to be
duplicated in other areas.[1]

Types of solar dryers

Updraft solar dryers

Edit
Edit

Updraft solar dryer design schematic. - Mother Earth News

Updraft solar dryer designs are the most frequently seen in cabinet form. With this design, the hot air
flows upward through a solar heat collection trough and enters the bottom of a cabinet underneath the
food. The dry air rises through the trays and around the food, exiting through a vent at the top or near
the top of the shadowed side. (See the Bibliography -- Valdez) The theoretical basis for this design is
that hot air rises and therefore when heated, the air flows naturally upward through the trays of food.
See: plans for the Dennis Scanlin (Appalachian State University) solar dryer from Mother Earth News.

Direct heat dryers

Edit

Example of a direct heat solar food dryer - Tom & Erin - "This Bahamian Life"
Directly heated cabinet dryers allow the sun to heat and dry the food inside an enclosed well-ventilated
one-piece cabinet. Direct heating tends to be very efficient and produces fast drying. Proper air flow is
essential to achieve maximum performance.
Solar food dryers can be hybridized so they continue to dry during cloudy weather. Removing a tray or
two from the bottom, a very small flame from a 16 oz. or picnic size propane burner can be placed on
the bottom. Alternately a small electric heating unit may be used. Heat rises and triggers the same effect
as the solar heat. It is important to avoid overheating the food, maintaining temperatures below 49C
120F.

Solar tunnel dryers

Edit

Solar tunnel dryer, - Klaus Triebe

Farmers and agricultural processing companies have taken the solar drying approach to the next level.
In order to be able to dry significant quantities of product at one time, structures are used incorporating
long narrow drying chambers, usually vented by electric fans powered by photovoltaic panels (PV).
Typically, a long drying table is put in place and then an enclosure framework is erected and covered by

clear or translucent plastic sheeting. Fans are installed at one of the open ends, which drives the moist
air from the harvested food out the other end. Using a lightweight system and photovoltaic power
allows the dryer to go into the fields and process foods were they are harvested. This saves time and
allows transporting less weight after the food is dried.

Solar Bubble Dryer developed by GrainPro, Inc. in partnership with the International Rice Research
Institute (IRRI) and Germanys Hohenheim University. Read more... - Solar Thermal Magazine
Some systems, called solar bubble dryers, use fans powerful enough to actually inflate the enclosure,
avoiding the necessity of erecting a skeletal framework to hold the plastic covering in place. In
developing countries solar drying may be the cheapest and most feasible method for drying foods, but
in developed countries, with more processing options, relying on the availability of enough sunshine
can put crops at risk.

Tray Design

Edit

Screen materials

Edit

Trays need not be bulky and in fact lightweight ones with open screening block less airflow and so are
preferable. Screening may be woven out of local materials or may be commercial screen of non-toxic
materials such as nylon and some plastics. Fiberglass window screening is not recommended as it is
coated with vinyl that may contain flame retardants and other chemicals. Open weave organic fibers
and nylon material works fairly well, but can be difficult to clean. The usual commercial bridal veil is
too fragile to last as screening on the trays but may be spread over top to control insects. Avoid screen
materials that may contain toxic chemicals or additives. Galvanized metal screens or aluminum or
copper screens are not recommended as potentially toxic salts can migrate into the food. Top quality
food drying screens are made from food-safe plastic screening, such as polypropylene, which is
available from Living Food Dehydrators and Sunworks Technologies. (See Bibliography)
One or two heavier screens made from 2.5 cm. (1") x 5 cm. (2") pine and covered with galvanized
hardware cloth, are useful for drying non-food items -- clothing, wool, kindling and so forth. For
support of extra heavy loads, rigid galvanized trays may be used under food safe screen. Galvanized
screens may also be used to make fruit leathers. The sauce is protected from the galvanized metal by a
sheet of Tedlar or of regular kitchen plastic taped to the frame.

Tray frames

Edit

Trays, if used, are sized to comfortable dimensions (70 cm. (24") x 70 cm. (24") or 51 cm. (20") x 76
cm. (30"), for instance). Then a supporting rack is made to that size. Air flow is essential so it is
important that trays be sufficiently far apart to ventilate properly -- 15 cm. (6") to 20 cm. (8") if using
natural ventilation. Less for forced ventilation. Tray frames should be light, but strong -- 3 cm. (1.25")
x 6 mm. (1/4") or 2 cm. (3/4") x 1.25 cm. (1/2") small wood strips are sufficient for most purposes. The
wood strips for the tray frames are cut to the full length and the full width of the tray. They are overlaid
at the corners, notched if they are very thick, glued and screwed. Or they may be nailed with small nails
which are bent over on the under side and pounded flat. Screen is stapled on. It may be secured with
silicon sealant or thin lightweight wood or both.

Working with your trays

Edit

Indoors, it is easy to use screened trays placed around on chairs or saw horses. No further equipment
may be needed. Outside, the food must be protected against insects and animals and moved or covered
in case of rain or blowing dust. Exposed trays also must be carried in at night and out again in the
morning to prevent rehydration from the dew even in the desert.
A single layer of trays outdoors may be covered with sheets of cotton, glass or plastic through which
the sun falls on the food. Sunlight heats the food driving out moisture. The moisture-laden air falls
down from the bottom of the screened trays. In this generic design, the food is usually exposed to direct
sunlight. Direct sunlight destroys some of the more fragile vitamins and enzymes and the food loses
color. The better quality food is produced by flat screen designs having a dark sheet of cloth or metal
that shades the food. This metal shield slows the drying but these designs are still very productive.
Their disadvantages are they spread out over a larger area of ground than the cabinets and they tend to
blow over in gusty wind.
One simple, open-air dryer design that can be used indoors or outside is called the Kerr-Cole Z-dryer.
This is a rack of trays 15 cm. (6") to 20 cm. (8") apart stacked in a frame. The frame of open racks is
braced with a diagonal piece of wood forming a Z. (See the bibliography). The frame can be sized to fit
an available space such as the back of a car, or some place in a well-ventilated room, etc. Also Z-dryers
also can stand in the yard, optionally covered with a light cloth. Or one can be fitted to go into a solar
heated, ventilated cabinet such as a downdraft solar food dryer. Without increasing drying time very
much such an open rack may be covered with a lightweight cloth to protect from insects. Ants and
other crawling insects may be blocked from the trays of food by placing the feet of a rack in containers
of water. Such moats can be used with any of the stacked designs. If ants and some other insects invade
the drying racks, it is difficult to remove them. However, they will go home at night. Protective
measure instituted early the next morning can block their return.

Solar dried foods

Food preparation for drying

Edit
Edit

A solar box cooker being used as a solar food dryer

Food drying is not difficult, although some books give considerable details on handling each food
differently. Special guidelines are needed for handling jerky and fish. (See bibliography and your own
recipes.) General guidelines for fruits and vegetables follow:
Good quality food cut in thin pieces, not more than about 6 mm. (1/4") to 1" (3/8") thick
Spread thinly on trays initially so there is a third to a half of the screen area clear for the passage
of air. Can be more compact after the first moisture is gone.
Label all food on the trays and carry the label along through processing to storage.
Thick vegetables need to be blanched or lightly pre-cooked. Leafy vegetables may be wilted slightly
with steam, or dried directly from the garden. Cook potatoes and green beans completely. Fruit is
pretreated by dipping in quite sour lemon water, or Ascorbic Acid (Vit.C) 2000mg (.07 oz.)/1.1 litre (1
quart). After a short soak, the fruit is drained and spread on trays. This retards browning. (Later, the
sour soak water flavored by the fruit can be used as a concentrate for making cool drinks.) Sugar,
honey or salt are optional. Sulfuring is no longer used in most homes due to the possibility of breathing
the hazardous fumes and allergic reactions to sulfur compounds. It has been found to be unnecessary
anyway.
To test if food is sufficiently dried, remove a piece and let it cool. Vegetables should be brittle. Fruits,
because of their sugar content, may never get beyond a firm bend or leather quality and it is okay if
they become a little brittle.They just need a little more soaking or chewing time for full flavor to
develop.
All dried foods may be pasteurized after drying except for the greens and herbs. Spread dried food no
more than 2.5 cm. (1") thick on a metal tray and cover it with another dark metal tray. A solar oven is
excellent for this. Place it in an oven at temperature between 93C (200F) and 105C (220F) for 10
minutes. Stir and leave another 10 minutes. Do not overtreat. Cool and package immediately. Store in a
dry location as cool as possible.

Storing solar dried food

Edit

For people on the move or with limited storage space, plastic freezer bags are safe, durable and easily
transported. Food should be put in small clean bags, labeled and dated. The smaller bags can be
grouped into larger freezer bags, giving larvae two layers to penetrate if they attempt to invade. For
those who avoid plastic, glass jars or metal containers with tight lids do well. Pack to eliminate air.
Indians in the American Southwest sometimes stored dried food in large earthen jars packed very
tightly and covered with leather tied on tightly. These jars were kept on the roof and so were subject to
low temperatures at night. Others stored dried food in hay-lined pits lined with flat rocks to deter
rodents. These pits were so deep a person had to be assisted to get out. These were covered with leather
or boards as a rain protection.
All stored food should be checked periodically for weevils. Weevils are a small, relatively clean insect.
Infestations come from eggs hatched in your storage area. They grow to about 13 mm. (1/2") long and
then go into a small webbed cocoon. The mature form is a thin, gray-brown moth about 13 mm. (1/2")
long. Infestation can be controlled by eliminating the adult moths before they lay their eggs. Once
hatched, the larvae feed only on your clean food. The form most prevalent in the USA is found as
white, soft-bodied active "worms" with dark heads. Since they feed only in the stored food, they do not
usually carry disease or toxic contamination. Even if the larvae themselves are not visible, weevil
infestation is easily recognized. Small brown granules in the bottom of the packages or 13 mm. (1/2")
bits of white webs indicate infestation. The same pasteurization method can be used to kill adult and
immature weevils. Treat and then sift out the residue. Pasteurized dried goods rarely show infestation if
stored in airtight containers. If stored in bread bags, they almost always will.
Cooked weevil infested food is usually safe to serve and eat if food is scarce. Some cooks on seeing
larva facetiously say "Just a little clean protein ... God's gift to vegetarians." But prevention is the best
policy. Clean, quick handling and good packaging is the key along with storing at the lowest available
room temperature. Below 70 degrees there is little or no weevil activity.

Cooking with dried foods

Edit

Drying and storing food is a simple process. Using dried food can be equally simple. Fruits or
vegetables may be eaten out of hand. Or fruit may be rinsed with water, drained briefly, and placed in a
closed jar in the refrigerator to soften. Any of the dried produce may be covered with boiling water to
slightly above the food level. Food should then be tossed to insure all parts of the dried bits are in
contact with water. Most foods are allowed to stand for 15 minutes (equal parts packed food and water)
before being added to standard recipes. Heavier pieces may require more time to rehydrate to the
center. Easier yet, they may be just thrown in dry by the handful into soups or casseroles. Crisp dried
foods may be pulverized in a blender and added by the spoonful to recipes for breads, soups,
casseroles, sauces, etc.
For instance, greens can be used as a regular dish by pouring boiled water over them and then
continuing steaming for a few additional minutes depending on the type of green. Dried squash and
small pieces of potatoes can be covered with boiling water plus about 13 mm. (1/2") depth. They are
then allowed to stand for 20 to 30 minutes to become moistened to the center before starting to cook.
Larger pieces of potatoes require soaking for several hours.
Nutritionally, dried food is ranked by the USDA as better than canning, just under freezing. The tastes
are related to the food, but there is some uniqueness in their flavor and texture. This is similar to the

differences between fresh, frozen, and canned foods...another variation in taste.

Documents

Edit

March 2011: Analysis of the Drying Kinetics of S. Bartolomeu Pears for Different Drying
Systems - Electronic Journal of Environmental, Agricultural and Food Chemistry
January 2009: Studies on Fortification of Solar Dried Fruit bars - G. Sarojini, V. Veena, M.
Ramakrishna Rao
January 2009: Solar Dryers For High Value Agro Prodcuts at SPRERI - T. V. Chavda &
Naveen Kumar
January 2009: Practical Application of Solar Tunnel Dryers - Klaus Triebe
January 2009: Perspectives of solar food processing in India - C. Palaniappan
January 2009: Drying Studies of Single Layer Thompson Seedless Grapes - R.L. Sawhney,
D.R. Pangavhane, and P.N. Sarsavadia
January 2009: Micro-enterprises in Solar Food Processing Technology - Case Study - M.
Ramakrishna Rao, D.J. Rao, S.L. Kumar
January 2009: Solar drying of fruits, vegetables, spices, medicinal plants and fish:
Developments and Potentials - B. K. Bala & Serm Janjai
January 2009: Solar drying of mushroom using solar tunnel dryer - B. K. Bala, M. A. Morshed,
and M. F. Rahman
January 2009: Studies on Fortification of Solar Dried Fruit bars - G. Sarojini, V. Veena, M.
Ramakrishna Rao
January 2009: Thematic studies for processing and preservation of food supplement, chilies
and ginger by drying through solar energy - Ranjita Bezbaruah Sharma
NEW: January 2009: Processing of Vegetables in A Solar Dryer in Arid Areas - Navratna
Nahar
July 2006: Penetration Curves of Solar Heat into Date Fruits as a Mean to Control Insects Alhussein Assiri
July 2006: The Granada conference paper covering the construction and use of a solar coffee
bean dryer in Chiapas, Mexico - Maria Cristina Martnez Sosa and Cesar Estrada Aguilar
November 2000: International Conference of Solar Cooking: Solar Drying - David Whitfield
November 1984: Understanding Solar Food Dryers - Roger G. Gregoire, P.E.

See also

Edit

Solar food processing

Using a box cooker as a food dryer
Simply Solar

Example of Village Development in Afghanistan Based on Renewable Energy

Information on solar dryers - Solar Energy Society of South Africa
Khan's Solar Food Dryer
S. Padmaja has a company that sells solar dried fruits and vegetables in India.
Dada Zanzibar produces jams and dried foods using solar cookers and dryers in Tanzania.
NEW: Solar Tent

External links

Edit

NEW: Best-Ever Solar Food Dehydrator Plans - Mother Earth News

Construction of Solar Cookers and Driers - Christelle Souriau & David Amelin (This is an
excellent overview of solar cooking basics and simple solar cooker and dryer construction
methods.)
State Of The Art Solar Bubble Dryer Promises To Help Farmers Dry Their Commodities Solar Thermal Magazine
Handbook of Solar Air Heating for Drying and Space Heating - Planters Energy Network
Fabrication de cuiseurs et schoirs solaires - Ce guide technique prsente des mthodes simples
de fabrication et d'utilisation des cuiseurs et schoirs solaires: un cuiseur bote, un cuiseur
panneaux ainsi qu'un schoir solaire direct et un schoir solaire indirect. Ils permettent de
satisfaire faible cot les besoins de transformation alimentaire de diverses populations. Ils sont
conomiques, respectueux de l'environnement, facilement ralisables et peuvent tre utiliss en
toute autonomie.
Detailed Project Report on Solar Fruits and Vegetables Dehydration - Planters Energy Network
Detailed Project Report on Solar Air Heating for Paddy Drying - Planters Energy Network
Dissemination of Solar Drying Technology for Industrial Sector Including Agro-Industries in
the Country - Planters Energy Network
Development and Market Analysis for Integration of a PCM Storage in Solar Drying Systems Planters Energy Network
Solar Food Dehydrator - Sunkeep: lightweight, effective, large capacity solar food dehydrator
Country Lore: Super-easy, Low-cost Solar Dehydrator
Chris's ENGR305 Solar Food Dehydrator (made from cardboard) - Appropedia
The Solar Food Dryer: How to Make and Use Your Own High-Performance, Sun-Powered Food
Dehydrator, by Eben Fodor (2006)
Solar Drying - presented by David Whitfield at the International Conference on Solar Cooking
in Kimberly, South Africa in 2000 (PDF version here)
El Paso Solar Energy Association materials on solar drying
Solar food dryers at Build It Solar
Guia de Uso de secaderos solares - Martin Almada (English version)
Full text of book: Solar and Energy Conserving Food Technologies: A Training Manual - (US
Peace Corps, 1984, 175 p.)
Solar Drying - Practical Action
August 2012: Argentino desenvolve fogo solar e invenes ambientais, no ES - G1 ES
(English version)

Solar food drying bibliography

Edit

Erickson, Duane, produces a small, hanging, screened food dryer. Duane Erickson Enterprises,
1170 Elgin Avenue, Salt Lake City, Utah. 84106.
Fodor, Eben, The Solar Food Dryer: How to Make and Use Your Own High-Performance, SunPowered Food Dehydrator, 2006 by New Society Publishers.
Jagadeesh, A. Director, Shri AMM Murugappa Chettiar Research Centre, Tharamani, Madra 600 113 INDIA. Designs of simple basket dryers.
Kerr, Barbara. The Sustainable Living Center. 3310 Paper Mill Road, Taylor, Arizona 85939
USA. Schematic of downdraft design.
LIVING FOODS DEHYDRATORS, 3023 352nd SE, Fall City, WA 98024. A source of foodsafe plastic screening. They also supply an electric heating rack that might be used for
hybridizing a solar drying cabinet.
MacManiman, Gene, DRY IT -- YOU'LL LIKE IT. MacManiman, Inc., P. O. Box 546, Fall
City, WA. 98024. 1973. (Non-solar as of 1992, but a good source of drying literature, materials
and recipes. Their very fine design of drying cabinet depends on electricity but the trays can be
placed in racks for solar drying if desired, returning them to the electric cabinet only when solar
heat is not sufficient.)
Susan McClure and the staff of the Rodale Food Center. PRESERVING SUMMER'S
BOUNTY, a Quick and Easy Guide to Freezing, Canning, Preserving and Drying What You
Grow. Rodale Press, Book Readers' Service, 33 East Minor Street, Emmaus, PA 18098. 1998
ISBN 0-87596-979-8

Drip bottle irrigation Grow vegetables with 10

times less water with "Solar Drip Irrigation.
This is how we can eliminate completely the
evaporation losses!