did we not just hear very recently that this nonsense was about resolved, and electricity service would be at least up to fourth world standards? wonder what happened? then again, it is not manana yet.

its a shame DR is still suffering from the same issues as decades ago electricity and water. When is this going to end......?

maybe when the leader of the mess decides to stop running around the world promoting his image , and tend to matters at home. but Dominicans are fixated on bragging rights, and are willing to sacrifice their basic needs in order to say to others " mira mi Presidente. he is the most important man in the hemisphere"

A decade? You must mean...... "as 5 decades or more ago", and counting.

isn't it sad that this is happening in the area of the conde? i mean, if blackouts were taking place in some outskirts of Valverde Mao, we could understand. but this is the epicenter of the city. does anybody realise that this kind of rubbish does not happen in the little down islands of the caribbean, the ones Goulet characterises as " sand bars'?

On top of that, this zone is suppose to be a main Tourist Area etc.

Strange, they can figure out how to Rob a Country, and there Banks, but they cannot figure out how to lay down electrical lines, and provide the Communities with Lighting. There are no priorities, accept for me first!

Hey...maybe they just want to keep the area as original (1400's) as possible, they should sell that idea next time they plaster "Republic of Blue" in the newspapers here.

The DR is not the only place like that, in Venezuela power outages are a common as strikes by the various unions. About 3 weeks ago there was an outage that affected 9 states in thier entirety. The problem is what I had stated in another post some time back. The design it, build it and then forget that you have to maintain it and when it is repaired it is a band-aid type fix that gets worse with each outage.

Everyone is right and I am not defending the shortage this area is facing, but there are still so many people and business's with ilegal connections. If you walk down the conde which I did yesterday, it is a "rats nest" with direct connections bypassing the meters and who knows what other contraptions. People here still brag about how they don't pay for lights, add in the hot weather and all the AC's cranked down so cold you need a parka in order not to freeze to death. Add in the open windows and doors and the complete disregard for saving energy and that sums up the situation. It takes more then a government to keep a country running.

Jander,
You are right about the "free" electricity. Its sad and yet funny in a way but the sentiment you probably hear is "i will not pay for the electrical service because it is so poor", but if no one pays how can the fix the problem. Nothing like beating a dead horse to get it to move.

Sand bars ? dread how could you slander me like that

Hey........It's amazing with all the illegal connections, and the over loads in those areas (old building landmark structures) that a major fire has not happen yet.

It will be a shame if that was to occur one day to all those old buildings and History is lost in the C Zone.

Some people here are very creative, I was looking at house to buy a few years back and one of the owners selling points was to show me his elaborate bypass switches and lines that were not only buried but cemented over. I just shook my head and had to laugh.

Theft of service will land you in jail anywhere else.

John .. 10 hours with no electricity .. no business can handle that .. we gotta get the Cardinal a place in the Conde .. and the electricity will follow him there .. I had the electricity go off on me 4 times since I woke up this morning .. and speaking of illegal connections .. almost all my neighbors have no meters and are illegally connected .. Ede Este comes by to remove the wires .. the next day they pay somebody 200 pesos and the wires go right back up again .. it's a game of cat and mouse .. and we all lose.

At least the Bombero's are close by! Just up the street from the beginning of the Conde

They ran my x-wife out of busines she had a decent salon in Los Rio's and in the beginning everything was great she rarely had to use the generator. Then came the blackouts and those blowers suck up a lot of juice. Needless to say that was the end of that venture.

As soon as Lionel came to office off went the lights. Was much better with Hipólito and than off they went again with LF

i have never heard so many reasons for a condition than the litany i hear whenever i ask why it is that electricity in the DR is like something you expect from a sixth world backwater.

fear not , Goulet. many of them are almost just that!

I'm sorry to read that the electric crisis is affecting the Doninican People so badly yet again.
The Colonial District is always one of my wife's favorite places to visit when we are in the DR.
So many people writing today have a valid point. There are always campaign promises that everyone realizes will never come to be. But this last election and the announcement 2 weeks ago of the blackouts ending was just plain cruel. No president is perfect or will please all of the people. But even here in the US, if President Bush "turned off the lights" ---- he would be out of office in months !! The people DO have rights, to saftey if nothing else. What a damned shame.

dr1 has a different point of view / so maybe it is just certain areas, having problems give it a day or two then revisit.

No problems in my sector..???

electrical service in the DR is what it is because there has never been a culture of accountability in this society. nobody is responsible for anything, and there are no sanctions applied to any derelictions of duty. in the USA, electricity providers end up in small claims courts after blackouts, having to pay for food spoilage and equipment damage. just think about the response you would get if you tried to sue edenorte for a few hundred dollars worth of lobsters which went bad in the freezer because the lights were out for 36 hours!

Jander,
What area do you live in ? I understand if you prefer not to say for security reasons. I just don't understand the logic in having no electric power in the country's capitol district. This should be one of the showplace's of the DR. The Metro is NOT going to sell visitors on what an up-scale country the DR is becoming. What they will see is a president bent on his own ideas no matter what the cost to the people that he supposedly represents. All for the greater glory of himself ??
I still say it's a shame for the people living there.

Dread,

You have it exactly right. No power --- no payment. It's that simple. You usr their power, you pay yor bill. It's a contract as much as any other.

Sorry about the spelling --- I was rushing. I'll be more careful in the future.
I just feel bad for the Dominican People

DanielB, when i am in New York and i have an interruption in service, the provider prorates my bill to reflect the downtime. if my cable service goes out for 5 hours, i receive a reduction in the bill to reflect that eventuality. i have freinds in the DR who had no internet for weeks, because of a system breakdown. do you think Verizon cared? they billed him the customary amount, and, when he protested, they told him it was not their fault, but a malfunction in the equipment!!!! because there is no competing provider, they can do whatever they wish, because tou cannot affect them by threatening to switch to a different carrier!

Thanks Dread,

You are 100% correct. Who cares if the public complains -- if you are the only provider.
Quite a nice setup for "someone"

If you all did some research on Seaboard Corp you would see what a bunch of DIRTBAGS they are....They are the floating pollution islands that sit in the Ozama and generate that black soot that covers everything including our lungs....there is a 60 minutes segment in the making I hope

Written by: dreadlocks, 4 Aug 2008 6:50 PM
From: United States
electrical service in the DR is what it is because there has never been a culture of accountability in this society. nobody is responsible for anything, and there are no sanctions applied to any derelictions of duty.

Talk about the Pot calling the Kettle black. Aren't you one of those who blame everything on the US?

Goulet, where is the rest of the posting? is everything OK? I NOTICE WHERE YOU APPEARED TO STOP IN MID-SENTENCE.

Well… I am now convinced that the electrical situation here in the DR is truly a mess. At least in the outlying areas. I was making jokes about the “Big Story” of all the power plants coming online a couple weeks ago, and I actually had a lot of faith that things were going to improve. I know how hard it is to bring “big projects” online, whether it be in manufacturing or infrastructure. It CAN be a real headache and being a 25 year electrical engineer, I understand the problems. However….something is very wrong here. What? I have no idea. I wish I could infiltrate the DR “electrical power industry” and find out exactly what the real truth is and what the problems are. I will be here to help, if I knew who to connect with. We all need to help instead of figuring out where to lay the blame. Can you say “conspiracy”? Until then, I personally will continue to be “self power reliant”. I do know other folk’s don’t have the resources to do that.
What can “I” do? Sitting here on the

the north coast, with no power, for almost two days now, (Inverter batteries run dry) I can only think it is “incompetence”…but I really don’t know, only speculation.
As far as “hot wiring” goes…. You are all not going to like me for the next statement.(but then again you may not like me already!). I purchased a house on the north coast (La Isabella) and there is /was NO electrical meter…. Ever! I am at the very end of the power “trunk line”. The understanding that I have been told is that there is a “meter shortage” and eventually the power company will come around and put it a meter. Hey…. I’ll call them tomorrow and sign up. Really! I want and should PAY for the power that I consume.
With the power situation the way it is, I can’t imagine what the HV switchgear looks like after cycling the power on and off many times each day. WOW! What can I do to help? Burn tires in the street?
Respectfully,

Dread this subject and those barges make me furious

All that glorious sun and strong winds - and still people have no energy.
Sometimes I think we're all so dumb.....or greedy.

Duane not to worry the Wimpeys has a big generator ...you will be resplendent in air conditioning

Liar - Its not a Wimpeys, I asked a friend and he said no such thing had happened. Although there is now a Hard Rock further down.

Well that hardly measures up to the luxury or the culinary delights of a Wimpey.....your other friend was trying to cushion the blow Duane

Written by: Duane, 5 Aug 2008 5:45 AM
From: United Kingdom
All that glorious sun and strong winds - and still people have no energy.
Sometimes I think we're all so dumb.....or greedy.

Dumb has nothing to do with it. Have you looked into Solar or Wind Power?
Solar has 1 big problem. What to do when it is dark? There is no eficient way to store electricity.

Wind? Ah yes...Wind! Everybody love wind. Only one problem. The DR by and large doesn't have the sustainable wind currents to make Wind Power.
For wind power to work you need and AVERAGE wind speed of 7 MPH. Very, Very few places in the DR have that,

anthonyc, why don't you leave the pontificating about these alternate energy sources to someone who really understands them, Texas Bill?

That is the point.

Everybody screams "Alternative Energy" as a pancea yet they have no clue how they work or if they do work.

yes, anthony, i agree with you there. first of all, one of the main problems which will forever stymie any efforts to rectify the petroleum dysfunction in this country is the fact that people have no concept of sacrifice. nobody thinks about conserving what they have, but only how to get more tomorrow. it is the natural Dominican zeitgeist. give a guy 2000 pesos at 7pm, and he is broke at 7am. he goes to the car wash, buys copious amounts of beers, heads off to a cabana with a lady of easy virtue, and at 8am the next day he is interviewing with a loanshark. similarly, any person with half a mind would have seen this coming. the Eastern Caribbean specks of sand have been taking conservation measures from as early as the mid 1970s.no monster cars with 12 cylindres, guzzling 4 miles to the gallon. but here, we gotta look good.. we have to front off with jeepetas that are as long as a city block. well the crap is going to break the fan!!

Of course you can store electricity, the apartment I used to live in stored solar power, I live in the UK, not the strongest of sun here, but our TVs didn't go off when it went dark! The roof of the block was covered in solar, admittedly it didn't power the block on its own but it helped, it was also harnessing wind power 24 hours a day. Of course with some ingenuity and sacrifice it can be done to a more effective degree. Lighter automobiles can be powered exclusively from solar, but why would people bother risking looking a bit of a hippy in when they can show everyone they can afford a hummer that gases our children running at 8MPG?

They want to display money, they want to show their bling.
"Look what I've got and you haven't" attitude. Why? Because people are dumb - that was my point.
The Worlds full of twats like that, I know a guy who lives in my neighbourhood, drives his BMW 7 Series through busy traffic less than a mile to work. Takes him twice as long as walking. Prick.

duane we know you covet the Beemer not the Beemer owners wife...are you trying to say you are a greenie ? if so you are going back on The List

Goulet, Duane is absolutely right. and as for anthonyc making the absolutely nonsensical remark that you cannot store electricity efficiently, i have three words: DEEP CYCLE BATTERY.

TonyC likes to throw a wet blanket on everything

he is a wet blanket. listens to too much right wing talk radio, that's what that is!

i have three words: DEEP CYCLE BATTERY.

You think those are efficient?

How many batteries would you need to store enough power to power a medium size city? Find the answer then tell me again how deep cycle batteries are the answer.

actually, Anthonyc, alternative energy sources are not currently intended to REPLACE conventional methodologies. they are intended to SUPPLEMENT them. so a guy with a windmill can store electricity for use when the winds are low. Jimmy Carter had solar panels on the roof of the White House in 1979, but the first act of thet genius Ronald Reagan was to toss them away. so much for forward thinking. there is a town in Idaho, i believe, that not only does not use conventional electricity, but it exports surplus to nearby surroundings. they use windmills......

Dred,

There are some ares in Northwest Texas where there are windmills for ever. One of the consessions is that as a landowner they provide you with free electricity for allowing them to put the windmills on your property.

thanks for that insight, texasshoe. some guys are acting like this is some futuristic, other galaxy technology. the only reason why these developments have been slow is because oil interests fought against their furtherance and development. heck, there are windmill arrays in other caribbean islands, and this is not new. the problem with the DR, as i have posted before , is that the government does not want to encourage self help. this is , and always has been, a state in which the government is your daddy. it provides you with your needs, and, in turn, you give loyalty and subservience. that is why presidents are perceived in terms of being either gods or devils. you never hear people criticise "The Government", it is always "Leonel". the government does not want to see individuals resolving their problems. it does not want people buying their own windmill. that will reduce the stranglehold that government has over the very essence of your being!!!

on the subject of governmental styles, look at the USA, a country that people here try so desperately to emulate. you do not see George Bush cutting every ribbon to inaugurate every new project, do you? in the DR, Leonel has worn out many a pair of scissors, cutting ceremonial ribbons here , there , and everywhere. the intended purpose of that silly practice is to remind the populace that he is the maker and creator of all the things you enjoy. subliminally, the people see him as the great benevolent soul who makes their lives function. he gives them roads, schools( well, maybe not schools), fountains, parks, etc. without him, their lives are nasty, poor, brutish and short. so they genuflect at the altar of governance, giving undying allegiance to the master. at the end of four , or eight, years, their patience wears thin, and they seek a new care-giver, someone to take good care of them. why should i solve my own problems, when the PLD promises to do it for me?

Goulet - Got my own Beemer. A beautiful Chamonix White 1971 2002.
Had it years, driven it about 5 times. Don't even keep it at my home, its back at mums locked away.
I enjoy looking at it more than driving it. I live in a City Centre and don't need a car.

As for the guys wife - well shes a double bagger, put a bag on her head, put one on mine too, in case hers comes off. Uglier than sin itself.

or, as the manager of Joe Cocker once remarked of him " he looks like the back of a city bus".

That does it Duane you're going on double secret probation for the LIST

Just a clue or two to the bunch of you.
Adler-
Barber sells a 12-volt compresor system that can be used to run a Home-made Freezer-refrigerator built our of closed-cell pvc sheathing. How do I know this? I built such for my boat and that home-made project provided enough freezer-refrigerator capacity to provide me with a 2-week supply of frozen meats for over 3 years.
The power was provided by 8 6-volt batteries which were kept charged to maximum capacity by 4 3.5 amp 12 volt solar panels anda 20-amp 12 volt wind generator.
I hooked up a 2.5 kilowatt inverter to thesystem andhad enough extra power to run 6 110 volt fleurescent lights and a TV for 4 hours each night.
There is an old adage that goes: "An innovative man uses the tools and equipment available to solve his day to day problems."
All of you just might solve your individual problems if you just put your mind to it and seek the solutions that are staring you in the face.

We are moving to another house next week, At that time I'll begin to search for the "closed cell PVC", the solar panels and a low-speed wind generator. Then when I have those items, I buy the 6-volt batteries ( I think that maybe 24 will do the trick) and the inverter. To be a viable source of "alternative power" it will requirea bit of self-discipline on the part of me and my family, but that is a matter of educating them in electrical austerity.
In the meantime, we'll also use the commercial (??) power offered by EdNorte, again frugally.
Since we live in Santiago, the wind probably won't be enough, but the Sun does shine here a lot.

Comments???

TB

Texas Bill, i am not being facetious about this. have you ever considered setting up a small trade school to impart this technology to others? i know that you could not expect much in the way of funding from government, but some people would pay for your expertise. do you realise the positive effect that a person such as yourself could have in a society such as this, if only you decided to share?

Pay no attention to him TB he just wants you to fix his inversor....that is why he is polishing the apple

inversor? what inversor? i am a real man! only sissy boys need electricity. hell, i love to stub my toes on the furniture when i get up for my early morning whizz. gets the blood pumping, sometimes pumping out.

Dreadlocks;

I just might take you up on that suggestion.
I am NOT an expert in the field of power generation, nor in the area of using the power generated by such applications.
In fact, the field of electricity is like nuclear science to me. I just don't have the knowledge to teach it.
In fact, any "students" I might be able to get would probably be more knowledgable than me.
I am a USER of the technology andcould very probably impart some of my own efforts, but nothing more.
These innovations that I mention are, to say the least, an expensive proposition and not for application by the average Dominican, who barely has the ability to feed his/her family as it is.
I can, however, draw plans and schematics for others to use in building their own systems for their own use, but not for commercial applications.

Texas Bill, how many guys who come to your home to fix the invertor know how electricity works? you think they ever heard of Ohm's law? we are talking practical stuff here. we are not dealing theory here, because so many dudes cannot even read the textbook. no sir, we want practical stuff. teach guys to connect x to y and produce electricity, which can be stored in Z!!

Wheelbarrows man wheelbarrows

The construction of the refrigerator-freezer requires a working knowledge of epoxy mix and application of that to fiberglass and the closed cell PVC into a box structure with a removable lid. Diminsions are unimportant, except that the Adler-Barber compressor system must be of such a size as to accomodate the volume of the structure. Also, these units draw about 7.5 amps at startup and reduce to around 4.5 amps during sustained operation.
I'll do a Google on Adler-Barber and try to determine the cost of the various units available. Be advised, they aren't cheap by any means.
I know of no sources for the closed-cell PVC, of the sizes cited, in the DR. Polyurethane epoxy can be used in place of the other type, but is not waterproof, to my knowledge.

Address any questions to me at billyadams@texasbill.com andI'll try to answer any you have.

TB

go get em, Texas Bill. and Goulet, you can busy yourself designing a wheelbarrow powered by solar panels, since they seem to be your fetish!

Solar wheelbarrows ...who would have thought

Well at least Solar is better then the old norweigean steam type.