Trip to Haiti May 2000 - Photos and Story
Jim Sylivant Apex, NC

On May 3, 2000, a friend and co-worker of mine traveled to Port-au-Prince, Haiti to St. Joseph's Home for Boys. This is a home founded by Michael Geilenfeld that serves as a guest house for visitors to Port-au-Prince and as home to 21 boys aged 10 to 20 years old. I first visited St. Joseph's last fall and learned that their electrical system, including house wiring, a wind turbine, solar panels, an inverter, and a bank of 20 batteries were in need of upgrading and repairs. After planning for the renovation for several months and finding many sources of support for this project, I talked Lee into spending 13 days with me to accomplish the work.

I've written a four page report of our experiences which can be found further down this page, but for those not interested in such detail, I've posted some photos that will give an overview. If you are interested in more information about other Haiti projects that I've been involved with or in future projects I'm planning, please contact me at my e-mail address of k4cpw@qsl.net.

For the pictures to make sense, let me give a short summary of our project. We replaced the bank of 20 batteries that had reached the end of their useful life with new ones and reprogrammed the software of the inverter to make the system work better in conjunction with the local power grid. The wire from the power company's pole to the entrance of the house was much too small for the load which was causing a large voltage drop. The existing entrance panel used older style fuses. We replaced it with one using resettable circuit breakers and cleaned up many corroded connections which were adding to the voltage drop problem. Incandescent light bulbs were replaced with newer, energy efficient screw-in fluorescent bulbs. The final result was a renovated system that automatically provides 120 volts to the house when no electricity is available from the local power grid. We finished the work at St. Joseph's ahead of schedule and were able to plan and install an inverter/battery backup system at a sister house named "Wings of Hope" located up the hill from Port-au-Prince in Fermathe.

Thanks to all of you who had a part in making this trip a success, especially Tom and Bonnie Elam, Linda Thieman, Presbyterian Campus Ministry, and Cary Presbyterian Church. On May 3 Jim Sylivant and Lee Haas left for a 12-day work trip to Haiti. Lee is a longtime friend and fellow electrical engineer from IBM and this was his first visit to Haiti. Our goals were to do repairs on the electrical system at St. Joseph's Home for Boys in Port-au-Prince and to deliver some materials to Hopital Ste. Croix in Leogane and Christianville in Gressier. The electrical work at St. Joseph's went so well that we were able to take on an additional project; the installation of an inverter/battery-backup system at Wings of Hope in Fermathe.  

The beginning of this project was last September when I stayed at St. Joseph's and learned of their need for a computer and reliable access to e-mail. In response to that need, a new computer was sent to them in November, but it did not work properly with the low voltage of the power company Electricite de Haiti ( EDH). When I was in Haiti again in January, I installed a voltage regulator that took care of the problem, but as I explored their wiring and battery back-up system, I found additional problems. The batteries were not being charged properly due to a shorted cable and there were many corroded electrical connections that were causing additional voltage drops and generating heat. It was obvious that renovation of the system was needed. So I planned on doing that in May. To get ready I purchased some of the materials in the US and made plans to get the help of a Haitian Electrician friend whom I have worked with at Hopital Ste. Croix to help with the work and shopping for the rest of the materials in Port-au-Prince. He was to come on the Monday following our arrival the previous Wednesday, but he was so eager to get started he arrived early Thursday morning. This gave us a head start on the project. The project consisted of:

• Installing a new electrical line from EDH to the house. The old wire was much too small and had insulation falling off in some places. Ideally the voltage from the power company should be 120 volts with 105 to 108 volts being the lowest acceptable voltage. Instead, EDH voltage usually runs around 100 volts on good days and often dips down to 80 or 90 volts. This causes light bulbs to become dim and turn very orange and appliances to not work properly.
• Replacing the entrance panel which used old style fuses with a new one with circuit breakers.
  
• Redoing all electrical connections using solder and wire nuts. When I checked the system back in January, I found many connections just twisted together. Some had as many as six wires joined by just twisting and taping. Due to gradual oxidation these connections had become poor conductors and added additional voltage drop to the already low voltage. Some of them were hot to touch which had deteriorated the insulation tape.
  
• A new transfer switch was installed, and finally
  
• Installed a set of heavy-duty, deep-discharge batteries along with new interconnect wires and terminals.

An inverter is an electrical device that uses energy stored in a bank of batteries to generate normal household voltage of 120 VAC. There was already an inverter installed at St. Joseph's, but the batteries were at the end of their useful life and the interconnect cables were corroded. The old interconnect cables were made of #2/0 AWG wire and used homemade terminals. These cables were replaced with larger #4/0 AWG wire using commercially made crimp lugs. By using commercial lugs crimped using a tool made for the purpose, the resulting electrical connection is much better and the connection is air tight which prevents gradual oxidation of the copper wire from causing trouble later on. The original installation of the inverter had been done so that when EDH went off, a switch has to be thrown manually to restore house power. We redesigned the system so that the inverter automatically comes on whenever EDH goes off. The switch over is so fast that you don't even see the lights blink and the computer goes right on working without losing data. After all rewiring was completed, the inverter was reprogrammed to work properly with the type and size of the battery bank. The new battery bank consists of 20 batteries, each six volts, connected to provide 24 volts and a reserve of l4,000 Ampere-hours, enough to run lights for a few days in case EDH is off for that long.

It is very inefficient to use standard incandescent bulbs for lightning. Fluorescent lights are much more efficient, but this would normally require replacing all light fixtures with long tube fluorescent fixtures. A more practical way is to use the new screw-in, compact fluorescent bulbs. These bulbs use only 23 watts of electricity to produce the same amount of light as a 90-watt incandescent bulb. While it is true that the cost of these bulbs is 8 to 10 times the cost of regular bulbs, since their life expectancy is 8-10 times as long, the net cost is about the same. Many of the screw-in fluorescent bulbs on the market do not work satisfactorily at abnormally low voltage such as the 80 to 90 volts that sometimes occurs from EDH. I've done testing of several brands and found that Sylvania makes a Type EL compact flourescent that works equally well at 60 volts as it does at 120 volts. The brightness is almost the same at either voltage. To reduce the load on the battery bank we replaced about 40 incandescent bulbs with these energy efficient bulbs.

At St. Joseph's, the energy for charging the batteries comes from three different sources. Primary energy is taken from EDH when it is available. They also have solar panels and a wind turbine mounted on the roof that can supply energy when there is sun or wind. Solar panels are very expensive so they are normally used just to supplement charging. The wind turbine requires wind over 10 MPH to work, but it was not working due to its age and an accident involving a kite with a long cloth tail. The kite and its tail got tangled in the wind turbine and wrapped around the turbine's shaft. We took it down and cut the propeller free of the entangled kite tail, hoping to restore it to full service, but it still did not operate correctly. When there was sufficient wind, it turned but vibrated violently. Apparently the bearings are worn or the shaft was bent during the encounter with the kite. A future project will be to have it rebuilt with new bearings and re balanced. Work at St. Joseph's was essentially completed by Wednesday following our arrival the previous Wednesday which gave us the luxury of moving on to Wings of Hope to see what could be done for the electrical system there.

Wings is located up the hill from Port-au-Prince and it is generally much cooler there. We looked forward to relief from the heat as we surveyed that project. Our first task was to determine their total electrical load. As we looked around and asked questions, it appeared that their only electrical needs were for lights. Lights were important because of the special needs of many of the children. Having lights at night when they needed cleaning up as well as when they needed to finish up cooking the evening meal when EDH went off early was a much needed change. One of the Haitian ladies responsible for some of this care was particularly happy to hear that she would finally be able to turn on a light instead of working by candles or flashlights.

We counted about 25 lights which determined the size of inverter and size of battery bank that would be needed. Next we had to find a room to house the inverter and batteries that was close to the main electrical breaker panel and in a secure area where it would be safe from theft. Batteries and inverters are very desirable items in Haiti so have to be made especially secure. Our plans came together fairly quickly. We drew out the plans and made a list of materials.

The next day, Boss Nuxon and I struck out to do rounds at all the various places in Port-au-Prince where we could get needed materials. Boss Nuxon knows all the places for bargains and led me on an all day excursion as we stopped by the most unlikely places for electrical equipment. One store had the special heavy-duty, deep cycle batteries for $60.00 (US) compared to $65.00 at the regular places one would normally go to for batteries. This store also sold a variety of other items such as sacks of rice, copy paper, school supplies, and canned goods. All sales were done from a front counter that reminded me of a country store.

When it came time to pay, another adventure started. I had taken American Express Travelers Checks with the thought that they would be the easiest to use. Not in this store. They looked at them and at me like I must be crazy to think they were going to accept those checks in place of $1200.00 cash. They finally took a sample check and send a runner down the street to a bank to see what they thought of them. After a long wait, he came back and said they were OK according to the bank, but it would take 30 days for their account to be credited with payment; not acceptable to them. So I asked to use their phone to call the American Express Office. They advised me to go to the bank that they had connections with and exchange them for cash. So off we went to Sorge Bank. We entered a small driveway and parked in a small interior parking lot. As we walked into the bank, a guard holding a shotgun was at the door. When you see a sign in Port-au-Prince saying not to cross the yellow line until it's your turn, you are careful to follow instructions; they are serious about security. I waited behind the yellow line and finally made it to the teller. The teller checked out my passport, my checks, and me before disappearing for 15 minutes. After all necessary checking had been done, I got my cash.

Back to the parking lot and straight back to the battery store we went. Boss Nuxon had already arranged with a friend with a truck to be there to haul the batteries for us. After we sent him on his way, we decided to go for lunch. Nuxon knew of a small restaurant down the street and upstairs over a store. We had a very nice meal of Pintad (Guinea Hen). The rest of the day was spent running all over Port-au-Prince buying the other miscellaneous items. We assembled all materials back at St. Joseph's ready to take them up to Wings the next day.  

The next day Boss Nuxon set in immediately to tearing out bad wire, light fixtures and fuse boxes and putting in good stuff. About midmorning he came to me and said, "Mr. Jim, come look, there is un problem." In the back, detached kitchen where the cooking over charcoal pits is done, he had started installing a light and discovered not only an electric water pump but a HOT WATER HEATER. To those of you not familiar with the electrical requirements of a hot water heater, suffice it to say that you can run 150 of the compact screw-in flourescent lights on the same energy required for the water heater. Obviously we had not accounted for such an energy hog in our plans, so it was back to the drawing board to revise the schematic diagram. We figured out a way to connect the pump and water heater so they would only work from EDH solving that problem.

As we continued to work, we kept getting into areas of the house we had not seen. Sometime along the way, Lee spotted an ELECTRIC IRON, another energy hog requiring as much energy as 50 lights. Upon closer questioning, Philip said well yes, we do have one, but you know we don't use it that often. Anyway the children cannot go to school without a pressed uniform. As we contemplated what to do, it came out that actually there was another electric iron in their bedroom, but again, not used all that often. We then began to get serious about leaving no stone unturned. We had been introduced earlier to a Nun who had a room at Wings. Usually she was up and gone very early and did not come back until very late, so we had not actually seen inside her locked room. Upon further questioning, it turned out that perhaps she also had an electric iron. By that time, we were getting a little worried about the chance of success of our design. Philip and Alison's daughter Sarah graciously offered to fix us lunch while we recovered and took time to rethink our plans. After a while, out came a delicious lunch consisting of fresh squeezed juiced and TOASTED Cheese sandwiches. Lee looked at me and I looked at him as we both said, "They have an ELECTRIC TOASTER too."

Not to worry though, we modified our plans and added a small green indicator light bulb mounted on the wall of the main living room that came on only when EDH was on. The rule was made that unless that green light was on, no irons or toasters would be allowed. Everybody agreed so we continued our work. It took us until the following Sunday afternoon to finish up. Among other things we added to our design as we went along was a hookup that would allow the new emergency generator, a recent gift from the Port-au-Prince Diplomat's Wives club to be connected into the system in case the batteries went down when there was no EDH. In the end, we were pleased with the installation and as of the last report, it was working fine.

On Friday, we took a day off and went with Michael to Jacmel to visit the new, just opened Trinty House. The directors are recent graduates from St. Joseph's and they already have three boys living there. The present house is rented, but a goal is to eventually build a new house. The purpose of the Jacmel trip was to survey potential building sites. We looked at several and Michael selected one that has a great view overlooking a cliff near the ocean. Plans are underway to buy this land. On the way back to Port-au-Prince from Jacmel, we stopped briefly by Hopital Ste. Croix to deliver some materials. Included as part of this trip was the return of the FM transmitter that I had taken to the US for factory repair following damage to it by lightning last fall, and delivery of a box of music tapes and CD's for the radio station. Also included in expenses for this trip was the cost for packing and air cargo shipping of replacement parts for a dental air compressor and a set of Nitrous Oxide hoses for use at Christianville plus a contribution of $300.00 toward the repair of the transmission for Philip and Alison's car which is so needed for transportation by everyone at Wings.

A financial report showing all expenses and contribution is available if you're interested. Receipts for materials and other expenses is filed at Cary Presbyterian Church. In summary, the total cost of this trip including materials was $7,265.07.

My next trip to Haiti is scheduled for July 20 when I will be spending a week with a group from First Presbyterian Church of Wilmington at L'Acul working on the CODEP agricultural project. The following week will be a project at St. Joseph's to add an electric water pump to take over the chore of hauling water up to cisterns from the ground floor. After that, I'll spend four days at a medical clinic in Mombin Crochu in North Haiti working on the installation of a shortwave antenna system and on their solar electric system.  

Thanks again to everybody who contributed to make this trip possible.

Jim Sylivant (click to send email)