Stoves

So, this past Wednesday I went off to visit Bonnie (another volunteer) and learn the art of stove construction. Special fuel-efficient stoves that burn about 60-70% less wood and cook things faster then regular stoves, to be precise. Kind of important in a country facing massive deforestation.

A lot of people down here use a wood fire to cook things down here, only it is kinda like a bbq design, just a lot of wood below cooking a pot on top. This new stove insulates the burning wood and forces the flames up through a certain spot so all the heat is focused on the pot. Though, I have to admit it is heavier then their regular stoves.

I’m hoping to construct a few in March. I’ll distribute them to different members of the community: the school and two street vendors. This way the rest of the community can see the stoves in action and the women using them can talk about them. If genuine interest in the stoves is shown, I can do a small oven construction project. Sonia already said she would be my helper.

The actual construction took a while, mostly cause there were so many of us constructing and only one saw. But, overall it was fun. I got to play with molasses, sand, dirt, ash and pumice stones. One girl felt mentioned it felt like she was in a co-op. We all were just sitting around constructing fuel-efficient stoves while listening to music…not a bad job, huh.

I figure I’ll build one for myself and use it as a bbq…is that wrong?