National Night Out!

National Night Out is 

Tuesday, August 2nd @7:00 p.m.

 in the front yard of 620 Lincoln St.

Get to know your neighbors  Come join the fun. Bring a fruit or snack tray, dessert, or soft drink to share

and a lawn chair. In the past council members, officers from RPD, a shinny fire truck, and a helicopter  have appeared to make our gathering more festive.  All Garden Tract residents are welcome to come. See you there!

November 2010

Dear Friends,

It is now less than 20 days before Chris's departure.  His co-worker and friend, Sal Torres, also a civil engineer at the State of California Dept of Transportation, will travel with him and assist with this project.  I missed the opportunity to take photos of them testing solar panels and the Grundfos pump in our backyard, but managed to photograph the boxes last night. 

Did I mention that Chris, with some prodding from his friend, Carol Klingl, who served in Peace Corps with Chris and now lives in Bern, applied for a small grant for work in developing nations offered by FAWCO (the Federation of American Women's Clubs Overseas).  His application was rewarded, thanks to Carol's support, with a stipend for completion of "Phase 2" of his work.  (Thank you, FAWCO!) The supplies purchased via internet and packed carefully into boxes for air travel, include a Grundfos pump and 8 solar panels.

In December 2008, Chris completed Phase 1, which involved deepening an existing hand-dug well, which supplies water for approximately 60 families.  This well was prone to contamination by seasonal runoff (people and animal traffic) and hazardous in terms of someone drawing water potentially falling into the well.  The well was deepened, cased with concrete casing which was perforated at the lower end to allow groundwater entry, backfilled with gravel pack to remove sediment, cement sealed along the top 10 feet, "shocked" with chlorine to sterilize the water in the well, and equipped with a hand-pump. 

If you have read the older posts on this blogsite, you may also have noticed Phase 1 work included the initiatation of two block-making businesses to address watershed management issues as a whole.  These "brick- presses" allow usage of local clays mixed with a small amount of cement, to create interlocking bricks, with a modified "H" shape to minimize, or even eliminate the need fr cement mortar between bricks.  These bricks then are dried in the sun rather than "fired" in an oven (requiring wood harvesting and resulting in deforestation of the watershed, a huge problem across many regions in Africa).

Phase 2 involves deepening a second, much larger well, which supplies approximately 220 families.  This well will also be deepened, cased with concrete pipe perforated at the bottom, backfilled with gravel pack, cement-sealed at the top, and equipped with an electric pump powered by solar energy.  Oh, and did I mention that these wells are selected by first checking their water chemistry to make sure the water is potable?  That's important too!

Yes, I am extremely proud of my husband and was really hoping to be part of his work-party this time, but 3 factors are keeping me home: 1) children's needs, 2) my parents' availability for staying with the children, and 3) our family travel budget.  Chris dreams of taking the whole family next time, but I remind him he won't get very much work done!  We are so excited that Sal is able to join Chris and assist him with Phase 2.  Here is a photo of Sal and his family studying a map of Kenya and their itinerary.  Sal's family includes (from left to right) his daughter Nina, wife Vivian, and son Sal Jr. 

Thank you, friends, family, and community members who care about clean water supply projects in Kenya.  We appreciate your love, support, and prayers!

Sincerely,

Monique

Kenya 2010

Hello, Friends!

It is January 1st, 2010, and what better time to begin thinking about our next trip to Kenya? Chris and I would like to go in the Fall of 2010 to improve a second groundwater well in the Migori area.

Chris deepened, sanitized, and improved the first hand-dug groundwater well in this area in December 2008. I would like to share a few photos from this.

The first photo shows the hand-dug well as it was used before improvement (Phase 1). The problems with these types of wells include but are not limited to someone or something falling into the well and stormwater runoff running sediment and surface contamination such as nearby livestock manure into the well and contaminating it.

The second photo shows Chris measuring the total depth of the well (without falling in!). 

The third photo shows the well and its construction after deepening, installing the concrete pipe with perforated area, gravel pack installation, bailing, and"shocking" with chlorine. The gravel-pack serves as a natural filter removing sediment as groundwater passes into the well. The fourth photo shows the improved and completed well.

We plan to implement this same process to a second hand-dug well shown in the last photo. These wells both supply groundwater to meet the daily water needs of approximately 60 people each. Chris tests the pH and Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) of the groundwater. TDS ranges between 400 and 800 ppm and the pH is approximately 7.4 - 7.8.

Thank you for your interest in our project goals and for your support, whether it be an encouraging phone call, a pat on the back, an invitation for Chris to share his experiences, or monetary assistance. We will make the most of it by sharing our gifts with the Kenyan people.

Sincerely,

Monique Gaido

Oyani to Mara

Continued from yesterday's post..

1. Block-making 101

The block-making process is somewhat tedious b/c of the quality control issues. Choice of soils is somewhat of concern b/c of the clay content and salts but generally all the local soils used to presently make block is suitable for our purpose.

Above a pic. of the locally manufactured block. It's a simple process of pouring wet clay-silty soils into molds. Air-dry and then cover with add'l soil and bake the whole mess for a good four days. Thereafter cool and uncover and build w/ traditional mud and mortar course.

Here's a pic of a traditional home made from the alternative to the block. Simply a stick and mud process. Sometimes covered with mortar/mud comp. to seal from the rain. Often just used as a temp. structure or outbuilding.

This structure being a permanent home for Tito's father.

Here's a pic of Tito's whole family. He has two wives and eight children. His home being constructed by the traditional stick and mud w/ a hefty copy of mortar. The roof a standard corrugated steel roof w/ simple truss design of straight limbs found in the bush. He's modified the home and installed a conc floor. Huge benefit and much easier to clean.

Above a pic of the women's group + men working on the final design sieve table. The soil must be sieved thru a 6-mm final grade and removal of organics is necessary. The group was not exactly willing to accept the process until they saw the finished block and the increase in quality and strength. The preparation process seemed long and tedious to the average group member. Still, in the end, I believe they got the process and the need for quality control. This soil being a silty clay w/ minor sand. The salt content at 24" + was neg. Final mix design saw 14:1 (soil:cement) by volume.

2. Cooking Keineji (local)

Jim liked chapati so much that Mama Rose (Tito's first wife) showed him the recipe and the procedure. Jim picked it up quick and offered a full time job by Mama.

3. Tree swing Oyani

There was only one tree in all of Tito's land worthy of a proper swing. The children had me at the suggestion and I did my best. Since I had all the climbing equip. with me I found the climb straight forward.

This pic doesn't do justice to the tree, or me. I climbed the lower portion w/ crampons. Placing the old sling and clipping in to Jim's worthy belay. The event caused quite the stir and all comers thought Jim and I completely mad.

The end result was priceless. A hundred well protections, 500,000 ISSB blocks couldn't equal the feeling I had to see the children having such fun on the swing. Silly I know. So I like swings. It could be far worse.

All for now. Thanks for reading..

PS. Becca and Noah here's a nice pic Jim took from the Mara. The elephants were dancing in the morning sunshine. Two young boys playing a game of push-pull.

Nairobi to Migori to Oyani

Sorry for the silence.

Finally find a place, e- power and time to post. Much to tell and I won't waste time. Trip to Migori and further to Oyani was very eventful and successful. Here's a short summary of the events since Nairobi arrival:

1. Nairobi adventures:
Sunday was a free day and we attempted to see as much as possible. Jim wanted to see the K. Bixen mus and Giraffe center. Pics below. We pickup vehicle and have a great meal w/ an old friend of PC years (circa 1991-93). God I'm old! Good we had down time as all hell broke loose on Monday morning. Note to self: driving a huge LHD 1970's Land Cursier at night in Nairobi is not recommended.



2. Nairobi equipment purchase:
Managed to find the block maker and hand pump with some small modifications to plan. We get lost in Nairobi's large Industrial Area and spend a nice hour in a "go slow" with the local donkey trailer making better time than our vehicle. Both items fill the vehicle beyond capacity but who's counting. We squeeze all our gear and the other appurtenances into the vehicle and head off to the west dropping into the Rift Valley with much excitement and hope.
3. Go west Mulia ya Uzee
Hectic 12-hr trip to Migori/Oyani w/ a relic of a 70's Land Cursor (See pics Mo posted yesterday). We named the vehicle "Mulia ya uzee" which translates roughly "the old whore". Which for some strange reason seems rather appropriate seeing as the vehicle has been both a blessing and a amazing burden. Top end is all of 70KPH -- not that the roads allow such spends -- and at least four breakdowns so far (holding my breath) we continue to exploit the vehicle's strengths. Roads are completely trashed. Base nonexistent, leave alone tarmac. Ground clearance being a major benefit. We pass thru some amazing tea country.
Small vehicle problem along the way. Carb is quite old and jets clog easily. I install new fuel filter w/ hopes of a brighter tomorrow. Also we're burning a pint a day of oil. Not sure where it's going as there's no leak evident nor smoke from the exhaust pipe. Jim attempts driving on the left for the first time. Doesn't like it but seems to adjust. He'll limit the driving to the bush where an error is less critical. Still he's adjusting well and doesn't appear to be too shocked by the Kenya spin. The food and the use of the toilet being the only exceptions thus far. He likes the attention all the Kenyan children bring.

4. Lodging Oyani.
We're staying on the shamba (farm) with our friend Tito Ogutu and his family. Jim and I put up a small tent on the lower edge of the family home site. It's quiet and cool in the evening. Makes for good sleep. Neither e- power nor running water forces change to general life protocol.
5. Block-making Joy

We meet with the block making team (women's group org.) and quickly setup a plan for the next few days. Jim is quick to assign duties and organise the group towards something I'll call efficiency. The end result being friendships made and block making business started. The group seems very excited with the end product -- less so with the suggested quality control measured.

The block-making machine is a simple, hand-operated press w/ a long fulcrum being your friend. The block is a cement stabilized soil block with a unique shape that allows for interlocking and also the elimination of the mortar course. No baking req'd. Minimize the cement. Stronger block than traditional mud block/brick. We are after about 250-400 psi at 28-days. The finished block are true and sharp and rather neat to look at. The interlocking feature attractive. The mold has chamfered edges so the block looks significantly diff. from anything avail. in the local market place.

Here's Jim with the group at the site where the first blocks will be made. All the equipment necessary to produce the blocks is shown. A sieve table is shown to the right of the photo.

Out of time for this morning. More later should there be power.


Thanks for reading.

Chris

PS. Becca here's picture of a lizard I caught for you. I asked him if he'd like to come to the US but he wanted to stay with his family.

Chris and Jim's pit crew during another break down...














Tito and his first wife and daughters at their family shamba - Oyani, Kenya

So it looks like I may be figuring some of this technology out... Hope you enjoy the photos. Thanks for everyone's support and encouragement.

Monique

photo 1

Unloading the block making supplies in Migori, Kenya


















The first interlocking stabilized soil brick.




















Tito and his son Chris at his shamba (small farm) - Migori, Kenya

The choo (pit toilet and splash bath) at Tito's shamba

Children orphaned by the post-election violence and AIDS epidemic - Migori, Kenya

The well team - Oyani, Kenya