Predisan Engineering Team - Summer 2025
May 29, 2025
Highlights from our time in Honduras:
We woke up and ate a delicious breakfast before beginning on our first project of the trip. We split into five teams, with two installing separate solar panels, one building a shelf to hold the batteries, a fourth installing light in our host's kitchen, and one installing and wiring the new inverter, charge controller, and battery wiring.
The solar groups made high quality plans that fell apart within 3 minutes of reaching the roof -- but resolved issues and worked through challenges to accomplish their tasks. The shelf group asked our translator (Cleo) to help look for scrap wood which could be used to build a battery shelf. An assortment of 2.5" thick scrap wood was found in the chicken coop -- and not very clean. After hosing it off and doing some sanding -- it turned out to be Honduran mahogany. Rex, Cleo and David Bass used it to build an amazingly sturdy -- and impressive battery rack. The solar groups played tug of war against the conduit team. After a fantastic lunch, the solar groups returned to the roof and finished installing the solar panels -- stopping along the way to diagnose a faulty connector. After a long day, the conduit team finally finished installing new lights in the kitchen of our host's home. The shelf group finished their build and moved it into the electronics closet. The solar teams routed their cables into the electronics closet just as the sun was going down -- so the new system here at Cedeco should start fully charging tomorrow. The new inverter and solar charge controller powered up just fine.
Today we got up and headed for the Las Flores school. After the 90-minute drive in a convoy of three 4wd vehicles through the beautiful mountains we arrived at the school and split into teams to accomplish our multiple projects. One team went into the main building, beginning work on the main electrical system, charge controller, and inverter. A second team joined them, tackling wiring and light installation inside the main two classrooms. A third team went to the kitchen and storage area aiming to connect wires between the buildings to give light and power to that area. Finally, the last team ventured to the roof once again to lay down a system of solar panels to power all these new additions. Thank you, Las Floras, for blessing us so much and welcoming us with such open arms!
After an hour in the van gripping our seats while Francisco, Fernando, and RT maneuvered the vehicles through creeks and mountains, we arrived at the school in La Florida. This was a very rugged trip that took more than an hour each way in 4WD vehicles but had some of the most amazing vistas that we have seen so far. This school serves about 45 students. It had two classrooms and a separate kindergarten area. The classrooms were very dark and the kindergarten area was very spartan. David Bass wasted no time in drawing a big crowd of tiny kids. They are drawn to him like kids following Tim Allen in the Santa Claus movies. Our solar panel team, now with a few roofs of experience, installed the panels on the roof quickly while other teams began setting up wiring inside the main classroom, kitchen, teacher’s living quarters, and outdoor areas. While we worked, a few students sat and watched, asked us questions, or showed us paper airplanes they made. During lunch, we guessed the temperature of Juan’s hair in the sun, before Dean Elrod took an infrared thermometer and measured it to be a whopping 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
When we returned to the community of La Florida, we got right back to work finishing what we started yesterday. The first tasks that I know of are here below, but I know as soon as anyone was finished, they looked for more work ASAP. Allyanna and Jackson wired up an outlet and switch for the two classrooms. Mycah and R’Mani put together about 100 junctions in a single box. RT and Alisa wired a switch and conduit to the porch lights and a classroom. Mariz continued to do amazing work installing the inverter, charge controllers, circuit breakers, and battery cables. Juan and Jeremiah finished up lights and switches in the kitchen and kindergarten. Justice, Jack, and Rex worked on the longest cable run of the week which just so happened to be underground. David Bass taught Saturday school, and the kids sounded like they were picking up his accent on words like desk or Alisa’s name.
Although it was a Saturday, many students and community members came to see the work going on at the school. One of the young students had walked for an hour and a half to be there. Our final tasks included checking out the lights and electrical outlets. The team had installed lights in two classrooms, under the porch, in the kitchen, the teacher's room (where he could stay during the week), under a pavilion, above their pilla, and in the kindergarten area. At the end of the day, the community leaders warmed our hearts with their gratitude. One leader said that they never expected to see such an improvement to be made to their school. The team was told that they would be welcomed to come back and visit anytime. On the way back to our base, we were once again amazed by gorgeous mountain vistas and the wonders of God's creation. To round out the day, one car continued to be musical and sang hymns on the drive back and learned a couple songs in Spanish from Johnny, much to the dismay of our driver Francisco.
Not a Trip
Category: Student Life