Cuba and myths

Thought I'd share some experiences about a recent trip to Cuba, February 2015.

• The Americans can't visit Cuba.  Well, they can, under a research program.  You couldn't move for them in one hotel, and I did whisper FFS as I got pushed out of the way so a perfectly modern Otis lift could be photographed inside.  The state seems to get the last laugh, as the trips cost around 3 times that for Europeans
• the place is full of beggars.  Not really. Seen more in London.
• give toiletries from the hotels to the beggars.  Beggars will be desperate, but not desperate enough to eat soap.  What do you think they will do with soap?  Either give them 50c or ignore them.
• you must take US dollars. Well, if you earn in US dollars then it might make sense.  Otherwise take one of the currencies that the Cuban bank trades in.  They publish a full list and the state fixes the exchange rate.  
• the water isn't potable.  As a general rule, this may be true.  We didn't drink the tap water, but I'm pretty sure the ice cubes (crushed in some cocktails) and lettuce washing in some places wasn't bottled water.
• you tip everywhere.  Yep.  That one is true, particularly the loos.  Get some change in 25c pieces, but they won't chase you down the road if you don't tip.
• don't respond to whistles and 'taxi sir' which seem to occur all the time; they're just trying to make a living
• when looking for the tour bus in the airport car park, don't assume the smartly dressed guy that asks you for your tour company or bus number has anything to do with your tour.  Most likely a porter who will help you with your case and wants a tip.
• No wifi.  True, and little internet access too.  It's available in some hotels, but it's very expensive - £10/day
• ATMs are few and far between, and generally only in the bigger cities.  Make sure you take a card not issued by a US bank, or affiliation.  Some UK debit/credit cards worked, some didn't, according to various people I met.  Don't expect the machine to use English.
• I didn't see a single Visa/MC sign in a shop, so take cash.
• The classic old cars are in the minority, as they are difficult to repair and expensive to fuel.
• if you really can't live without wine, take plenty of money.  A bottle of wine will cost at least £15, probably more, and often is not available per glass.  You drink local beer or coffee; both are excellent.
• no real price mark up in hotels compared with shops on beer, wine, etc, but if you search out small outlets for lunch, you may get a beer for 75p vs £1.50.  Only rich Cubans eat out; average Cuban wage is £25-£35/month.  Those involved in tourism will earn considerably more - say £500/month.
• don't forget to enjoy yourself

Gutters cleaned

This batch of cold weather and rain and washed all the leaves to the lowest spot on the house.  Luckily, it's single storey.

Weather Station

The weather station lasted a week or so, then stopped working at high humidity again.  I could buy a spare transmitter for £15 from a Clas Olson shop.  It's special order, and I don't live anywhere near one to order and then go back to collect it.
So, I have an excuse for another project.  I'd never been entirely happy with the way the data was sent (every 48s)  You can't get a feel for conditions when the data is delayed.

I've made a new head end, re-used the wind/rain sensors, which will be wired into the main house data collector.

Data is sent every 2s.  2s was chosen due to the way the anemometer works.  The OEM (fine offset) have confirmed the 2s period, so it seemed sensible to work to it.  The minimum wind speed as a paltry 1 revolution per 2s (equivalent to 0.34m/s or 1.2kph)
With a few calculations, I can now send more, useful, data to Wunderground (http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=IHAUTEPY4)
I've also added UV index (ML8511 sensor) soil temperature (LM61) and solar radiation, which will be derived from the solar panels.

March 2015
In a fit of over re-cycling, I decided to re-use the original display to display the data that I now get from my weather station.  Not wishing to take it apart, I decided to reverse the receive protocol.  It was quite easy to send 1 set of info, but sending it every 48s, as per the original transmitter, was challenging.  I had to increment the transmission interval in 0.1 second increments.  Now that's the secret to keeping battery consumption down.

Clas Olsen WH1080 weather station

After almost 2 years on 1 set of batteries, the outside unit stopped sending data.  A battery change seemed to solve the problem, but only for a few hours.  It stopped sending again the same day.  After a lot of messing around, it was apparent that the unit was stopping when the relative humidity went above 88% for a few hours.  If the RH reduced, it started again all on its own. The old batteries were down at 1.2V, so it seems that they were the original problem.  Perhaps changing the battery cracked the (patchy) varnish coating that was originally applied?
A new covering of varnish seems to have done the trick.  Well, 1 day in, but RH reached 99% for a few hours last night.

It's worth noting that the transmitter sends a random station ID on power up.  If this code is different to the old one, this can mean that the internal display stays blank for a few hours before realising what's going on.  You can reset the display, after downloading the data, if you don't want the wait.

car coolant change

Bit of a faf on the xsara, but you have to attach a header tank to the err header tank.
Emptying the old coolant is pretty tricky and a lot gets left in. Thoroughly flushed.
Engine holds 11l, but only got about 6 in, so may have ended up diluting it 50/50, so possibly only down to -13 (from -25)
Elf citroen specific organic (OAT)
see file notes for more info

Feu vert

It's probably a record.  2 hours to change 4 tyres (2 of which were already off the car and in the boot) and tracking.  They took 45 minutes to do a 'security check, or if you are of the cynical leaning a 'how much more money can we squeeze out of the client' check.
So now I know there is less anti-freeze and brake fluid in the reservoirs as the sloppy grease monkey left trails over the engine compartment whilst checking concentration of both.  Apparently the coolant is no better than water and should be replaced immediately at a reduced cost of €48.
I'd assumed they had nearly finished at this point, but no, they had only just started.  Pretty glad I refused the coolant change as I hadn't taken dinner or a sleeping bag.

Like all good garages, they used a windy tool to put the wheel nuts on with.  I went to undo the near side, and ended up with a 1m bar to slacken off the nuts; this will be no less than 200Nm of torque, the recommendation being 85Nm.  The off side was better, but still massively over tightened.  I wouldn't have got either side off with the emergency tools that came with the car.

first fire

4 days later than last year, but we've lit the fire for the first time this Autumn.  Still using the logs stacked last year.  About 2.5 slabs used out of 6.  Each slab is very loosely 1 stere, and the wood is very mixed - little oak/beech.

31/1/15 used 1.5 stere.  2 stere towards the back and most of the side by the door left.
May 2015.   About 1.2 slabs left, meaning 2014/15 usage is (6 -2.5) - 1.2 = 2.3 stere.
14/5/15 Started cutting and splitting. About 25 average 20cm diameter logs fill the trailer.  This gives slightly less than 0.5 slab, and takes about 2.5 hours including filling the shed
After 3 trailer loads, >2 slabs, plus the end support wall by the door (0.5 slab) . Plus a good size snake.