Solar Oven

Contents
• Purpose
• Materials
• Procedure
• Observations
• Conclusions
• Big Idea
 Materials
A Very Hot Sunny Day Scissors

Pizza Box Ruler

Black Construction Paper Marker

Wide Aluminum Foil String

Sheet Of Plastic Nail

Glue Skewer

Tape Choice Of Food To Cook

Purpose
Solar energy can change directly or indirectly into other forms of energy,
such as heat and electricity. But can you cook with it? Make a solar oven
and find out.
Procedure
 Procedure
1. Tape the foil to the inside bottom of the clean
pizza box.
2. Cover the foil with the black paper. Tape it do
wn.
3. On the top of the box, draw a line 1 inch (10 c
m) from all sides.
4. Cut along the front and side lines. Do not cut
along the back. This will be the hinge for the
flap. Carefully fold open the flap.
5. Cut a piece of foil the same size as the flap. Glue
it to the side of the flap that faces into the box.
Flatten out any wrinkles.
6. Wipe any glue off with a damp towel before it d
ries.
7. Tape the plastic to the inside of the box. Make it
tight so it looks like glass.
8. Tape the other edges. Make sure it is tight so no
air can get in.
1. Cut a piece of string as long as the box. Tape
one end to the top of the flap.
2. Push a small nail into the back of the box so y
ou have a place to tie the string.
1. Poke a metal skewer through the middle of
your food.
2. Put the hot dog in your solar oven. Place the
oven in a hot spot. The sun needs to shine ri
ght into the box. The best time to use your s
olar oven is between 12 and 2:00 p.m. This i
s when the sun is at its strongest.
 Observations
• Food that cooked from fasted to slowest
– Butter
• Melted in less then 15 minutes
– It was the hottest hour
– Chocolate
• Melted in about 20 minutes
– Sausage
• After two hours, cooked but not completely
– As you can see in the picture, there are little holes in the midd
le. That means it cooked a bit.
 Conclusion
• I learned that…
– The solar oven has to face the direction of the sun
or the food will not cook thoroughly.
• The foil surface has to face in the right direction.
– It takes many hours for the food to cook.
– Sunlight hits the reflective foil surface. It focuses o
n the food held in the center and that cooks it.
 The Big Idea
• This is really useful…
– Because it will stop bad things from happening…
• It will stop pollution in the air
• It will help the environment because to use it you only need the sun
.
• The only materials you need are very environmentally friendly.
• It will help our society…
– We will not have to use electric stoves and gas stoves
– We will be greener people
It is useful to know because even though it will tak
e longer to cook, it will help the environment.