Dual purpose, household appliance/heater

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around unconventional methods for heating food using household items, particularly in settings where traditional cooking appliances may not be available. Participants explore various creative and humorous suggestions, as well as some potentially hazardous ideas.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants suggest that electronic devices like CPUs or electric guitar amplifiers can generate enough heat to warm food.
  • Others mention using a microwave as a straightforward solution, while some humorously propose using an iron to make grilled cheese sandwiches.
  • A few participants discuss the idea of using heat exhaust from air conditioners, although practical challenges are noted.
  • There are extreme suggestions involving dangerous methods, such as modifying electrical cords to heat water, with warnings against such practices.
  • One participant recalls a dorm experience where unconventional cooking methods were employed, highlighting the creativity in resource-limited situations.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally share a range of creative and humorous ideas, but there is no consensus on a safe or effective method for heating food without traditional appliances. Some suggestions are met with skepticism or caution regarding safety.

Contextual Notes

Several suggestions involve potentially hazardous practices that could lead to electrical fires or personal injury. The feasibility and safety of these methods remain unresolved.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may interest individuals looking for creative solutions to heating food in unconventional settings, as well as those curious about the thermal properties of household appliances.

Pengwuino
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Does anyone know if anything in your average room (besides a kitchen) emits enough heat to decently warm up a piece of food? I had a feeling a CRT monitor would do but i only have an LCD now and i want to heat up this cherry turnover!

Oh, and I only use CF bulbs in my room...
 
Computer science news on Phys.org
There is a video floating around somewhere of a guy frying an egg on his CPU...
 
Turn the furnace up? Electrict heating? What do you do in the winter?
 
Smurf said:
Turn the furnace up? Electrict heating? What do you do in the winter?

I don't want to heat my room, i want to heat my food :P And we have central A/C so we don't have heating ducts on the floor.

russ_watters said:
There is a video floating around somewhere of a guy frying an egg on his CPU...

Oh definitely. A modern consumper CPU will produce upwards of 100watts of heat in a 1cm^2 area. Intel processors will go to like, 160F before turning itself off
 
A microwave. Not only can you use the radar, but you can also kill birds and cook food and stuff O.O
 
Did anyone read anymore? :D

Does anyone know if anything in your average room (besides a kitchen)
 
Pengwuino said:
Did anyone read anymore? :D

Who DOESN'T have a full microwave radar in their room :rolleyes:

On a serious note, get a new processor, take off heatsink, turn on computer and it turns red instantly... Otherwise, get some blankets, cover yourself, and use your body heat. OR, your window might be slightly hot :confused:
 
You could use the heat exhaust from your air conditioner. funnily enough I just recently wrote a small assignment on the topic for one of my mechanical design classes. I've attached the document if you're interested.
 

Attachments

The airconditioner is about 30 feet up on top of the roof...
 
  • #10
Pengwuino said:
Does anyone know if anything in your average room (besides a kitchen) emits enough heat to decently warm up a piece of food?
Are you lazy or locked in?
 
  • #11
you could try burning some of your household items...
 
  • #12
arman said:
you could try burning some of your household items...
Who stole the "t" from Artman's name?
 
  • #13
When I lived in a dorm, we used to make grilled cheese sammys by pressing them with an iron.
 
  • #14
Disassemble your bed. Wire 3 or 4 of the springs in parallel to a yanked-out lamp cord. Plug it in. Call Fire Department.
 
  • #15
Math Is Hard said:
When I lived in a dorm, we used to make grilled cheese sammys by pressing them with an iron.
Didn't your clothes smell kind of cheesy when you used it as an iron again? I can imagine you walking down the hall with a horde of salivating mice in your wake.
 
  • #16
moose said:
On a serious note, get a new processor, take off heatsink, turn on computer and it turns red instantly...

That is the peltier working to try and save that poor silicon... This would work great but you would need to have the heatsink big enough to cook stuff on...

Other than that there is the electric guitar amp...I think those get pretty warm.
 
  • #17
If you were crazy or your life absolutely depended on it, you could take an A/C cord, cut off the tip, peel off the insulation about 1/2 inch from each wire, separate the ends carefully and insert into a bowl of water. Then carefully plug the other end into the wall outlet. You'll have boiling water in less than a minute. For superior efficiency, you could wrap each bare end on to a 2.5-inch wood nail, then insert the nails into the bowl.

ABSOLUTELY DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!
 
  • #18
EnumaElish said:
If you were crazy or your life absolutely depended on it, you could take an A/C cord, cut off the tip, peel off the insulation about 1/2 inch from each wire, separate the ends carefully and insert into a bowl of water. Then carefully plug the other end into the wall outlet. You'll have boiling water in less than a minute. For superior efficiency, you could wrap each bare end on to a 2.5-inch wood nail, then insert the nails into the bowl.

ABSOLUTELY DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!
Wouldn't you blow a fuse or trip a circuit breaker?
 
  • #19
Manchot said:
Wouldn't you blow a fuse or trip a circuit breaker?
Well he did say "Do not try at home" assumingly you could have a resistor in lab conditions to keep it at a steady voltage/ampere?
 
  • #20
Manchot said:
Wouldn't you blow a fuse or trip a circuit breaker?
I never tried it at home :smile: but theoretically you shouldn't as long as the wires (the + vs. the -) are separated out with enough distance (and sufficent amount of water) between them.

OTOH, YOU COULD DIE TRYING THIS. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
 
  • #21
zoobyshoe said:
Didn't your clothes smell kind of cheesy when you used it as an iron again? I can imagine you walking down the hall with a horde of salivating mice in your wake.

I think that is why MIH wears vynil.
 
  • #22
These are some rather copmlicated ways to quickly heat a cherry turnover :/
 
  • #23
my friend inserted a pencil into the socket and it came out flying!. he didnt speak to anyone for 3 days don't know why...
 

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