Adapt a clock today! Cheap trackers boost solar panel and solar cooker performance.

Step 5 Testing testin testing!

I used this clock to do a demonstration once before but this is the first time I set it up to actually run a solar cooker. My test was run from about 5 30 in the evening till about 7 pm. Not the ideal times, to be sure.
Here are some pics from the first test. With the sun heating up some molasses in a mason jar covered in a crinkly plastic bag.
It started off cool but soon got up there!

To reset your clock for the morning, all you have to do is wind on the string twice (That coresponds to 24 hours) and fill the bucket with water. It will start tracking in the morning again at exactly the same time! So you can heat up water for a nice cup of solar tea when you get up!
Note, this does not exactly follow the sun. To do that, either one of the wheels would have to be eliptical (for more accuracy) or for great accuracy, the solar cooker should be mounted on an Equatorial or Polar mount. (2 different names for the same thing!).
I used the lazy susan to recycle it and because I did not have to deal with centre of gravity issues (as I would have to do on equatorial mount) and because this instructable is chiefly about the simple clock based tracker.
Brian White

Comments

[rippa700]

Fantastic. Who needs it to be totally accurate? This is an ideal solution - thanks for a great post...