Weekend away part 2 - Lake Saifal Muluk (again)

We took another trip up to Lake Saifal Muluk, a popular tourist destination. Last time it was entirely covered in snow, we had it all to ourselves, and we had to walk.  Make sure you view the panoramas at full size.  Really.

This time the road was open, so our Land Cruiser joined by other jeeps.

It was only when we reached the summit that we could appreciate just how many!

Lake Saifal Muluk from the jeep trail.  Click for the full glorious bigness.

And from further round the lake.  Click for large version.

These chaps followed us for a while trying to sell us a ride
on a horse.  That didn't seem like a bad idea for the river
crossing part, but first we had to show willing to keep on
walking in order to get the price down.  Worth Rs50 (36p).

While we were crossing it was cloudy and getting a little chilly.  3/4 of the way
round, the sun just started to peek through...

...until it looked like this:  the silhouette of one mountain range superimposed on
the other.  (Click to see full size.)

And then this happened.  The rain spots on the camera lens are an occupational
hazard of rainbow weather.  (Click for the big version - it's certainly worth it!)

Malika Parbat ("Queen of Mountains"), while at 5290m small compared to the
8000m-plus peaks further north, has a reputation as an extremely difficult climb
- and you can see why.

Weekend away part 1 - Naran (again)

This weekend we took another trip up the Kaghan Valley to visit a couple of friends who are spending a few weeks volunteering at a school in Naran.  (We would have happily taken a week, but that would have left the hospital even more short-staffed...)

A view down the lower part of the valley.

And up the way.  I'm still amazed how populous these steep hills are.

Driving close to the edge.

Since we were last here, a little progress has been made with this landslide.
The two temporary bridges have seemingly been pressed into service elsewhere,
leaving the traffic to fight its way along the side where the road used to be.

A new addition since last time is the beekeepers.  Every half a mile or so we
passed a few hundred of these little beehives, usually with a tent or two nearby
for the keepers.  We must have passed tens of thousands of hives on our trip -
do they get packed away to hibernate in the winter?  Or are they packed into
trucks and forcibly migrated to somewhere warmer?

Most of these places also have a little stall where you can buy the produce.
It comes in unmarked recycled containers, from old jars to 2-litre coke bottles.

No problems getting past the glacier this time, as thousands of people have
apparently already discovered.  Naran has been transformed by the tourist
season:  a huge tent village has sprung up on all the available flat land,
catering for tourists using tents bearing the logos of countless different aid
agencies; all those broken down building have been fixed up, painted, and
filled with things that tourists might like to part with their cash for.

We even had the thought that Naran might be the Pakistani equivalent of
somewhere like Ibiza (minus the drinking/clubbing) - bustling until the small
hours with young trendy tourists from the big cities, throbbing music, rowdy
social gatherings, even a big searchlight-type thing sweeping the night sky.

And of course no Pakistani street scene is complete without one of these -
and this is a particularly fine example.  Next part tomorrow...

Lightning

SWH project part 14 - glazing

Or possibly plasticking.

We got this twin-wall polycarbonate shipped up from Karachi.  Bizarrely, it was
only available in sheets 19' x 6'11", so all of the panel sizings were designed
around this.  We had them slice them into 5 equal parts for easier shipping.  And
on the right panel at least, easier mounting too, as we've had one or two minor
alignment issues since we first put the frames up.

This is the satisfying bit, like peeling off a 7-foot plaster.  The lighter blocks are to
keep the glazing off the pipes, should it bend/sag once it's warmed up.  Yes, we
probably should have painted them black too, but that would have wasted another
half-day while we waited for it to dry.

Whether by learning from experience or from fluke, we did a better job of
keeping things perfectly straight when we constructed the left panel's frames,
so all the glazing just dropped neatly into place.  Aah.

All glazing in place, secured down by wooden slats and liberally silicone'd.
And now ready for its first wash by the looks of it.  This is a generally dusty
place anyway, but possibly being near the incinerator doesn't help.

Specially procured polyurethane insulation for the backs of the panels.
The Pakistanis' favourite cheap styrofoam is no good as it has a tendency to
melt at the temperatures we'll be asking of it.

3 down, 7 to go.  We've also insulated all the hot pipe runs with fibreglass wool.

Trying to screw stuff into place while holding it upwards onto a slope of 50° is not
easy.

SWH project part 13 - plumbing

Pipe-laying in the trench.  Since it was dug a few weeks ago
up to 3 feet of vegetation has sprung up along its edges.

Every joint requires you to cut 2 screw threads with this die, which is no mean
feat even when you're not trying to do it in the trench.

Cold line, sensor cable conduit, hot line (which needs some
attention with the tape...)

Coiling the heat exchangers.  Strangely, they coiled beautifully
 in this direction, but when we started trying to bend the ends
 upwards, it was threatening to kink at every opportunity.

So, how complicated can we make this?

Copper coils successfully installed, and due a little de-kinking with the pliers.

Exchangers connected up.  Incidentally, you should never
do what's been done here and connect the copper directly
to the galvanised pipe.  I predict corrosion before too long,
but there's only so many times you can tell your boss "We
should REALLY do it a different way".

Still, at least all the parts likely to suffer from galvanic
corrosion are cheap, on the outside, and easily replaceable.

This was a good bit. We're using that big black tank to provide
 the pressure to run the water to and from the SWH, but when
we came to disconnect it so that we could alter the pipework,
 we discovered that no one had thought to put a stop valve on
 the outlet.  Which means you can't work on the pipes down-
stream without 500 gallons of water coming out.  This is what
we call a DESIGN FLAW.  Solution:  just start unscrewing
the pipes (fast!), working backwards from the nearest union,
then quickly screw on a new valve, all the while being sprayed
by this forceful jet of water.  Refreshing on a hot day, mind
(we're up in the mid-to-high 30s these days).

We have water!

Data logger up and running.  Had a few short circuit problems to sort out when
I discovered a couple of the sensors weren't as waterproof as I might have liked.

I'm still in love with the colours of frazzled copper.

SWH project part 12 - welding*

*or in actual fact, brazing.  But everyone here seemed to call it welding...

This has been a busy week, which may or may not have had anything to do with Mr P's out-of-the-blue announcement the other week that "I think we should have it up and running by the 15th". Perhaps a little over-optimistic given that that's tomorrow, but nice to have some sudden ambition introduced to the proceedings.

So the panels have been fitted into the frames, and their tubes welded together and leak tested. Pipes to connect the system with the laundry have been purchased, along with glass wool sheets to insulate them with. Polyurethane foam sheets for the backs of the panels have been ordered, produced and delivered. My temperature monitoring system is pretty much complete, and semi-installed (more on that another day).

A good week's work.

Fitting the panels required a spot of saw-wielding.

First three in place - some dropped in beautifully; others had to be beaten into
submission with planes, saws, hammers and a little brute force.

Even before paint and glazing are applied the panels are around 50-60°C, and
visibly bending.  This week it has been high 30s outside, and in the sunniest spot
on the compound, in front of what is essentially a 7ft x 40ft mirror, it's HOT.

A couple of chaps came up from Lahore to do our welding.  After they'd been
connected together some of the panels required re-beating-into-submission.

Lugging those oxygen cylinders across the orchard is no joke...

The pretty colours of tortured metal.

Finally all welded together and in place.  Time for a leak test, which in typical
Pakistani style involves about 5 hoses shoved into each others ends, and a guy
holding it on to the tap at the other end.

A leak!  But actually in one of the previous welds from when the panels were
fabricated.  Still, 1 out of 164 ain't bad.

Take that pesky leak!