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Boiling Point 36: Solar Energy in the Home - November 1995

Boiling Point

Issue 36 (1995) Solar Energy in the Home

[top] [end]Overview

Solar cooking was the main theme of our April 1991 issue (Boiling Point 24) and has been reported in many other issues. Included in this issue are descriptions of different types of solar cookers, and articles which both support and question their use. This theme has been chosen again in the hope that we shall learn of some new developments and stimulate more realistic research based on user needs rather than inventors' imaginations.

IT and GTZ are frequently asked for their assessment of the suitability of solar cookers for use in developing countries. Regrettably, they are not convinced of the general appropriateness of solar cookers in their present stage of development, and so are not directly involved in their promotion.

The idea of harnessing a free source of energy is very attractive but the simple fact (usually ignored) is that the capital and maintenance costs of solar cookers which are effective, durable and easy to use and make, are far beyond the means of the poor. At present, solar cookers are a luxury in the Third World for those who are already relatively well off.

Other reasons why solar cookers have been found inappropriate and unacceptable to the needs of poor people in developing countries are their high cost, and the fact that they do not operate in bad weather or at times convenient for women to do their family cooking. They may also require the cook to be standing in the hot sun when cooking. Some basic foods such as potatoes, cassava, yarns and beans need to be well boiled before they can be safely put into a solar cooker. This means that two stoves are needed, and the cooking process takes several times longer than with the traditional three-stone fire or a simple mud or clay stove. It's Stove and Household Energy (SHE) prograrnme has concentrated on researching, developing and promoting improved biomass stoves to suit the local customs and conditions, which can save a quarter to a third of the fuel normally used.

[top] [end]Articles in Knowledge Bank

• Parameters for a Solar Cooker Programme Parameters for a Solar Cooker Programme by Richard C Wareham
• The Sunstove Solar Box Cooker The Sunstove Solar Box Cooker by Richard C Wareham
• Sunstoves in the Republic of South Africa Sunstoves in the Republic of South Africa by Dr. T.B. Scheffler
• Gaining Ground in Solar Box Cooking in Kenya Gaining Ground in Solar Box Cooking in Kenya by Stephen Gitonga
• Solar Cookers - A Cause Worth Promoting Solar Cookers - A Cause Worth Promoting by Elisabeth Castiglioni
• Free Energy from the Sun Free Energy from the Sun by James Muriithi
• A Solar Box Cooker with a Reflecting Lining A Solar Box Cooker with a Reflecting Lining by Kedar N. Nag and A.N. Mathur
• The Solar Puddle - A New Water Pasteurization Technique The Solar Puddle - A New Water Pasteurization Technique by Dale Andreatta
• Renewable Energy - A World Bank View Renewable Energy - A World Bank View by Dennis Anderson and Kulsum Ahmed
• ESMAP study points toward village-level management of woodfuel resources in Chad ESMAP study points toward village-level management of woodfuel resources in Chad by Willem Floor
• Burning Charcoal Issues Burning Charcoal Issues by Robert van der Plas
• A Dangerous Trade - Saving Wood by Burning Coal A Dangerous Trade: Saving Wood by Burning Coal by Kirk R Smith
• Haitis Domestic Fuel Project Haiti's Domestic Fuel Project by Peter Young
• Coal briquetting and clays for Zambian stoves Coal briquetting and clays for Zambian stoves by N R Hill
• Improving the three-stone fire Improving the three-stone fire by G Ballard-Tremeer and H H Jawurek
• Comparative tests of solar box cookers Comparative tests of solar box cookers by European Committee for Solar Cooking Research
• Parabolic Solar Reflector and Heat Storage Cooker Parabolic Solar Reflector and Heat Storage Cooker by Dr Gerhard L Jobst
• An Affordable Parabolic Solar Cooker An Affordable Parabolic Solar Cooker by Ari Lampinen and Rajesh Sharma

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Pagename: BoilingPoint36-November1995 @HEDON: GPGA