Haines 2.0 solar cooker now features heat retention capabilities

The Haines 2.0 solar cooker, a top-selling and award-winning solar cooker in the US, is used in several SHE projects. SHE works closely with their maker, Roger Haines, to suggest design improvements, and test these out in the field. A recent design development allows the Haines 2.0 to be used as a heat-retention basket, to allow users in developing countries to keep food solar cooked in midday to stay piping hot (and safe to eat) until dinner time.

The cooker is its own “heat retention basket.” Using a heat retention basket can significantly reduce the use of wood or charcoal for cooking.  It works like this:  beans or other foods are heated to boiling over a fire, and then placed in an insulated “heat retention basket” to finish simmering for many hours without additional fuel.  The Haines 2 solar cooker becomes its own “heat retention basket” when the four “petals” of the reflector are closed upward around the hot cooking pot.   The petals form a square “basket” consisting of three layers of reflective foam insulation on each side.  Before the “basket” is closed, towels or other insulating materials are placed inside around the pot.  The food will continue cooking for many hours.

Using the Haines cooker in this “hybrid” mode keeps it “visible” to the user on cloudy days, which increases the likelihood that it will be used as a solar cooker on sunny days.  On sunny days, solar-cooked food during the day can be kept piping hot for 4 to 6 hours for the evening meal in the Haines 2.0 “cooker-basket.”