I really shouldn't be doing a project right now, but I figure I will break in my new shop by doing one...The question is can you cook directly off a single 24voltdc solar panel....now I know you can off 3 24 volt solar panels hooked in series no problem at all, but can I get this to work off just one single 24volt panel? and without changing it in anyway so that I can still use it on 120 vac
This is what I use for stews, its a large one, I think 49.00 from ct on sale. no electronic controls, just a switch with off,low,high and simmer
So lets open it up and have a peak inside
Well look at that not a bit of insulation at all, I bet this thing wastes half the power it uses...the name plate says it uses 340 watts, that would be on its high setting much less on the other two but it doesn't how much
Give a man a gun, and he can rob a bank. Give a man a bank, and he can rob the world.
I am not technical enough to answer credibly, but I'll guess out loud if no one else will answer... I would think any amount of electricity generated by any source should be capable of being run through a resistor to create heat. The fluctuating output of a solar panel might be better consumed as plain old DC right from the panel, run through a resistive heating element in your cooker, instead of trying to convert to AC power first, and using the cooker unmodded.
It wouldn't be a very efficient use of the Sun's power, though. My inclination, if I was looking to cook with sunlight, would be to bring my food to a boil using a reflector or concentrator, then drop it in a thermal cooker/hay box to finish.
Did you take a stab at this experiment, in the end?
I've also been dismayed at the lack of insulation in new slow cookers. In my research, I only ever came across one insulated crock pot, that has not been made in years. It was manufactured by Rival, I usually see it in orange, the low/high settings were 50/100 watts IIRC, just plain old analog controls. I've kept an eye out for one in the garage sales, I see them on eBay often, but they command a pretty penny. I ultimately ended up with a thermal cooker from Saratoga Jacks, instead, which I think probably uses less energy than a slow cooker, plus can be used with any heat source, not just electricity.
My slow cooker is the same way. One could simply build a box that the unit goes in and have that insulated to conserve heat. It would still need ventilation, but could be an option.
When I saw the title I thought this thread would be chatting about solar ovens. An entirely different thing.
Hmmm, maybe I should rethink the quiet part...
I seem to recall reading an old post elsewhere, claiming that wrapping a pot in insulation was an unwise choice. I, unfortunately, cannot remember the rationale behind it any more, but I think the concern was melting wire insulation (?). I think I'd want to control the heat element with a thermostat, especially with a well-insulated pot.
Yes I did more with it, but testing needed to be done, my projects are just kind of on hold right now. wiring in most things is proper high temp wiring, I haven't come across anything where I was worried about the wiring, and you will learn to recognise the high temp wiring, not so confident in the switches if that gets enclosed in insulation.
Give a man a gun, and he can rob a bank. Give a man a bank, and he can rob the world.
