Taking everything

Hi all!  I know this subject has been covered before, but, I have noticed a lot of relocaters tend to sell off their stuff and try to take as little as possible when moving from the UK. We would be taking just about everything from our house and I wondered if anyone else did this and what the cost might be. It would be a complete removal so a lot of furniture and boxes!. We would then need to store in Spain until we are finished renting.

Then there is the dog and 3 cats to ship It's all money........!

Margaretx

Should be easy enough to get a no-obligation quote from a local company. Check your yellow Pages for companies that do Spain. Probably there's a branch or agent of Allied Pickfords nearby, for example?

As for storage, if you use a Spanish based company instead, they may offer a couple of months free storage at their facility on arrival while you figure out where you need it delivered. Otherwise, there are self storage facilities available (for example: http://www.cityselfstorage.com/ in Barcelona/Malaga areas).

What sort of things are you bringing out with you?  Don't forget washing machines in Spain are cold fill only.  Some people have also had problems when bringing out UK white goods like microwaves and the electrics have blown.

I did a search recently for Lo Crispin and someone there was describing how he helped his parents move out to Spain even with down scaling everything they still bought over too much and they have boxes which haven't been opened.

It could cost you a lot of money to bring it all over and store it until you find a place to call home.  If you don't use it then that money will be wasted.

The main problem with Spanish houses is that the storage is nil.  Where will you put it all.

Have you been on any inspection trips yet, did you notice this and the size of the rooms. 

Our neighbours moved over with a lot of things, they have been here 2 years and they are still sorting out boxes.  The settees they bought over they exchanged with a local 2nd hand store because they were too big (they still had to pay extra amount)

Semijubilada thanks.  When we bought this house 3 years ago most things including furniture were all needing replaced anyway so most stuff here is quite new including bedroom furniture. I would hate to have to buy more stuff as we need all our cash to buy a house. I understand what you are saying about space though, and will see better when we come over end Nov.

You have brought something up that has been on my mind as well....white goods! I was wondering about that? The only kitchen appliance I would bring is my beloved smeg fridge. Are fridges OK?  What about the Plasma TV, computer, and all other small electrical goods we use?  All I know is that when we come on holiday we use the little adaptor to plug things into....do you still have to do that ot can appliances be re-wired?  Don't know much about electrics can you tell!

Would just buy microwave, washing machine and cooker if required when I am there. I believe these items are cheaper to buy in Spain anyway?

Margaretx

Hi Margaret,

You can either choose to use adaptors or sit and change the plugs on everything.

It depends how much time you have on your hands!!!!!

Regards

Georgia

Four years ago I didn't like the selection of electric kettles, toaster.  So I bought these over from UK plus a george foreman grill.  I also brought out a strip connection lead (one with 4 or 5 points on) this way I only had to use an adaptor at one end and was able to plug in quite a few items together.

Kitchens can be quite small so you'll have to see if your smeg would fit into the gap left.  You definately need a large fridge as in the summer everything goes in, even yourself when you get overwarm.

Washing machines can get furred up so I'd buy the cheapest one you can but don't stint on the spin level as it's amazing how wet the sheets come out in the winter.

The prices of these items are coming down and there is definately a better selection available.

You can bring English TV's over but if you want to connect to a English TV package then this will have to be done with a Spanish DVD/video system.

Electrics can be a bit hit and miss, sometimes they will cut off if you have too many things on at the same time.  This can be easily fixed by having the cable upgraded to a higher level, haven't had it done so unsure how much this costs.

If buying a new house you can be put on builders electric in the beginning, this can cause problems as I believe this is only 110 volts.

As you're coming over in November you may get an idea of what winters are like.  You can then sort out the clothes you will need to bring.  I wear layers as when the sun comes out it gets quite warm. You need to take a layer off and put the coat back on.

I have been out in January and I had to buy a hat as the wind chill factor made it -2, February and March I think are the coldest months and when I'm over I wear fleezy tracksuits.

Houses are cold and it's difficult to get warm, liteweight blankets sell well and I put one on the settee draped down to the floor and another on top of my legs.  If you have electric blankets bring them out with you and hot water bottles.

You may find a house with central heating, a friend moved into a smaller house and that had built with a double layer of bricks.  You could tell by the size of the windowsills how thick the walls were.  Apparently this made it cool in the summer and warm in winter.  No need for central heating there.

Happy hunting in November hope you have more of an idea of what life could be like in Spain then.

Thanks semijubilada, some very useful advice there. 

Can you tell me what you mean by needing a Spanish DVD/video system if we want English TV package? sorry I'm a bit thick when it comes to technology!  On the subject of English TV....what does it cost per month to subscribe to this, and who supplies it?

Margaret

When my neighbours had the Microwave system installed it had to be done through a video recorder which had been bought in Spain.  I've always known it as microwave but others call it the mesh system, if you look on the roof tops you will see a small square mesh ariel on all the houses which get this system. 

When your out in November buy a Costa Blanca News on a Friday, there's a pull out tv section in the middle and there are lots of adverts from TV installers.

How much you have to pay depends on where you live, normally it's around 590e to install and 19e a month.

At the moment TelMicro in Torrevieja are running a special offer of 1e installation and 6 months rental in advance in cash, I think it ends on 5th November.

For more information read the TV section further down as others can explain how these systems and others work better than me.

Just to add my tuppence worth to Semi's comments:

The electricity supply can indeed at times seem a bit draconian compared to the UK. Power outages are still a fairly common event, especially during stormy weather. The power cutting off when you connect too many appliances at the same time, however, is more likely to do with the Kw supply contracted to your home. Some older homes may have a rather low supply. You can request to increase it from the electric company (and pay more for the standing charge accordingly). They will come out and change the power limiter in your fuse box - that's the one that's got a lead seal on it - or should have! Newer homes should have adequate supply for the typical range of appliances. 5.5Kw is about the most you're likely to need. I've never heard of builder's supply being 110v - surely their tools wouldn't work if that was the case? Some very old or rural homes may have 110v still, although it's pretty rare nowadays.

It is true that the water here tends to have a high calcium content which is a real washing machine wrecker. Use anti-cal pills in every wash (available from all supermarkets), but don't be too surprised if it's still knackered within a few years. Repairs are usually not economical, so maybe best just to buy a cheapy and change it every so often.

I'm no expert on TV matters; I know UK TV's used to need to be adapted in some way to function correctly over here, but I don't think that's the case any more. Not certain though. Don't know anything about microwave/mesh systems - never heard of it, and never seen it on CDS. If you live in a community, you should be able to connect via the community arial to digital terrestrial TV (Spanish) by buying your own decoder (available from around €40) and some programs can be switched to English language - but not many. Otherwise, you're looking at SKY. Again, if you're in a community with a lot of Brits, there may be a communal system in place, but more likely you'll need your own. This usually means a huge dish (1.3m diameter is best), a decoder, and if you want more than the free basic channels, a SKY card. There are many companies advertising their services, but be wary of any advertising "no UK address or bank account needed". These are basically resellers of SKY services, and you will pay a one off fee or an annual fee, but with no guarantee (from SKY) that you won't get cut off if this company disappears. I've heard that due to increased competition (Virgin) & pressure to stay within the bounds of the law (SKY has no licence to broadcast outside the UK), many of the thousands of cards registered to, for example, oil rigs in the North Sea, are coming under investigation! So IMHO, best to get the card yourself using a friend or relatives address in the UK, and bring it with you.

And if anybody wants to know how to get Channel 5, let me know.

As for clothing - bring it all. Yes, it really does get chilly in the winter! Marble floors are lovely, but boy are they cold when you've got no socks or slippers on in winter. And any clothes you find are surplus to requirement, the animal refuges will be very glad of, if not to sell on their market stalls to raise much needed funds, then as bedding for the many many poor homeless cats and dogs.