How to make a Solar Oven

I'm pretty sure that you know what an oven is. It is a wondrous device used to cook delicious foods (but, sadly, it is sometimes used to make foods so disgusting I don't even want to mention them). But what if you want to cook something, and you have absolutely no idea how to operate the many switches and buttons on this wonderful device? There's another way to cook your food, and all you need is a pizza box and some other materials! This post will show you how to make another wondrous device, the solar oven!

You will need:

A very hot sunny day, pizza box, black construction paper, wide aluminum foil, sheet of plastic, glue, tape, scissors, ruler, marker, string, nail, skewer, choice of food to cook - hot dogs, pancakes, pizza; pretty much anything you can fit in there.

1. Tape the foil to the inside bottom of the clean pizza box.

2. Cover the foil with the black paper. Tape it down.

3. Put the box on the sheet of plastic.

4. Draw the outline of the box on the plastic with the marker.

5. Cut the plastic about 1/4 inch (0.5 cm) inside the marks.

6. On the top of the box, draw a line 1 inch (10 cm) from all sides.

7. 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.

8. Cut a piece of foil the same size of the flap. Glue it to the side of the flap that faces into the box. Flatten out any wrinkles.

9. Wipe any glue off with a damp towel before it dries.

10. Tape the plastic to the inside of the box. Make it tight so it looks like glass.

11. Tape the other edges. Make sure it is tight so no air can get in.

12. Cut a piece of string as long as the box. Tape one end to the top of the flap.

13. Push a small nail into the back of the box so you have a place to tie the string.

15. Put the food in your solar oven. Place the oven in a hot spot. The sun needs to shine right into the box. The best time to use your solar oven is between 12 and 2:00 pm. This is when the sun is at its strongest.

*Copied from the book "101 Cool Science Experiments".

The oven is finished. What are you waiting for? Grab the pizza and put it in!

How it works:

When the sunlight hits the flap, it bounces off the foil into the box. The plastic prevents the heat from escaping. Black objects absorb the most heat (tough luck if your hair is black), and since the bottom of the inside of the solar oven is black, it'll really trap the heat. The food could take several hours to cook, so be patient!