Burnout of FM Transmitter and Backup

Greetings from Bukavu!

Kathy & I thank you for your prayer and help with the difficult problems facing us these past few months.  
 
Your continued prayer is much appreciated for the reason we describe in our technical report to HCJB Global Technical Center—the burnout of our FM transmitter and our backup FM.  

Also, we are praying and speaking via Radio Kahuzi to the leaders in the front line to seek peace, in hope that they will also find Real Peace in Christ Jesus.  
 
This week we sent three sacs of SW radios to military groups in transition in several directions from Bukau.   Last night and today our broadcasts bring them the official "last chance" messages, inviting all military fighters to receive the several alternatives, and choose one before it is too late for them!

Our Lord knows if we are subject to sabutage via the electrical lines; it has happened before during these wars. But we trust it was only the consequence of SNEL allowing all the trafic to roll over the downed cables in front of MONUC just a block from here--all day Sunday. On Monday they threw the four cables up over the metal arc-light pole so trafic could pass under the lines. Three of the lines carry 3000 Volts each!    Any short circuit to the fourth cable would bring serious problems to the transformer between there and here!
 
We have decided we need to use an inverter and storage system in our studio like we were preparing for our relay FM sites. We have a commitment from HCJB to develop a storage system to use instead of four large batteries. I think they suggest using banks of capacitors or something similar. Though it is a little more expensive than the batteries, it will last ten or twenty years instead of three or four with batteries.    
 
This would function with at least a 48 V charger / Inverter to run and protect our transmitters and studio, as we were planning for the other sites. Possibly in your work there are systems that could be sugested in our smaller scale.   If your contacts have any ideas, we would be intrested.    
 
We will cut and send before we are cut off by SNEL!  Kathy says there is a Big Storm coming, too!
 
As always, Keep Looking UP!  And Keep On Keeping ON!!
 
In His Love,  Richrd & Kathy

Technical Report to HCJB Engineer

Hi Mike & Faith and all,

Greetings from Bukavu!

We appreciate your prayer for the work and concerning the ongoing war-situation in North & South Kivu Provinces, as we continue our good outreach there and into other provinces in short wave.

Monday, 20 Oct 08, we suffered a double loss of our FM 250 and FM 200T, with a hard and sudden hit to the diodes (and possibly the 35 A 400 V Bridge Rectifier) through the neutral SNEL electric input.   
 


In the morning Danny experienced the first. Replacing fuses did not hold for more than a second or two. So it was hard to determine anything.    Though the strong smoke odor assured something was burned inside. The Short Wave was seemingly untouched, and we even got an SMS listener's report with good reception report at about 11:30 AM from the far distant Lubumbashi after going back on with only Short Wave.

In the afternoon I installed the FM 200T and took readings and looked for physical signs inside the FM 250. All I could see was the burned piece in the photo, that was loose inside the transmitter.    

When I went on for my four hour broadcast that evening, I had no indication anything had happened, but suddenly saw four red leds, except the one in the middle for Input. Before I could cut the power, the smoke had begun from the bottom of the transmitter!    

After the smoke cleared, I completed a similar physical survey inside the FM 200T, and compared the two to try to find clues. The second photo shows where the first loose component belongs and one or more burned pieces.   



Later I completed the last hour and half broadcasts in Short Wave; and we continue broadcasts hoping to restore the FM broadcast transmitters. We continue to prepare for repairs here, but will need you to send repair parts kit (GFMSPARES  for the FM200T) and advise us as to best proceedures. Meanwhile, Bercky will come in from Walungu to help me locally.



After many tries to send this, I hope it goes before we have another coupure.
 
Thank you again for helping us to stay above the depression level as the systems here are rather low, with rumors of war.
 
Lord willing, we will receive this week a satellite decoder for our digital relay from VOA via Kinshasa and 1,000 Solar Rechargeable Short Wave Radios from GALCOM. So there is also some encouragement.
 


Keep Looking UP!  And Keep On Keeping ON!!
 

In His service,
 

Richard & Kathy McDonald
BESI / Radi Kahuzi , Bukavu