Training

  • Training begins with an interface at the village level.
  • The next step is a community meeting to explain the Dos por Tres to beneficiaries.
  • These women will learn how to get a Dos por Tres stove and how to care for it.
  • The técnico finishes building the stove and then gives a talk to each beneficiary on maintenance.
  • The maintenance talk or charla is printed on a plastic flip chart for the stove builder to insure all beneficiaries receive the same talk.
  • A sample of the use and maintenance brochure given to every beneficiary after installation.
  • Practicing on one of the 5 steps with the cinco.
  • Ladies learn they can use the Dos por Tres for all their cooking needs.
  • The cinco was just used for the 5 maintenance steps.
  • The result of good training: a gorgeous stove.

For Proyecto Mirador, training and education are the keys to successful stove installations.

Training begins with a first meeting with village government in person or by phone that is done in response to their solicitation to Proyecto Mirador for stoves in their community.  Next a community meeting is held to inform any interested beneficiaries about the project, the materials they will need for construction, and the importance of maintaining their stoves to get the stoves to work at maximum efficiency and to last at least 5 years.  

After construction, each Stove Builder or Técnico is trained to give a  Training Charla (talk) immediately after the stove is finished to reinforce the maintenance steps and proper use.  The maintenance tool,  El Cinco (because there are 5 maintenance steps) is demonstrated not once but twice with the beneficiary participating in the process.  After the demonstration, each family receives a color printed brochure to remind them of the importance of the maintenance steps, how often to do them, and other ways to help them conserve fuel.  About a month later, beneficiaries are revisted to see that they are taking proper care of the stove during our Monitoring phase.

Step 1

Step 1

The family is told to hang the Cinco next the new stove and use it for 5 maintenance steps.

Step 2

Step 2

The plancha is removed and the Cinco used as a scraper to remove any soot or ash from the bottom of the plancha.

Step 3

Step 3

The Cinco acts as a wiper blade to maintain the proper level of wood ash which is important to the efficient operation of the Dos por Tres.

Step 4

Step 4

Ash built up inside the stove near the exit for smoke is scooped out by the Cinco.

Step 5

Step 5

The plancha is rotated weekly. With two patches on the bottom, the part over the firebox is alternated by turning the plancha. Surrounding edges are sealed with wood ash so smoke can't escape.

Step 6

Step 6

The parilla (grate) at the front of the firebox is removed and the ash in the stove mouth is scooped out by the Cinco. The parilla is also designed with two sides to double its life.

Step 7

Step 7

By tapping the sides of the chimney, the Cinco loosens soot and ash collected there.

Step 8

Step 8

The soot falls into the chamber at the bottom and the Cinco is used to scoop it out.

Step 9

Step 9

The wood to be used must be small pieces, dry, not green, or rotten.

Step 10

Step 10

Each three months it is necessary to go to the roof and use a stick to clean the chimney from the top down.

Step 11

Step 11

Printed information on the training process is left with the family.

This woman in rural Honduras demonstrates the 5 steps needed to maintain her stove with the El Cinco tool.