ELECTRICAL GOODS

We bought all of our small domestic appliances for Sapin in the UK, mostly from Asda and Argos. They all work in Spain, the DVD player, radio alarm, kettle, toaster. We also took our son's old PS2 and our Sky box. All work on European voltage, they just need the plugs changing at the other end.

I don't think it is the fact the televisions don't work in Spain, it is just the frequency is different which needs tweaking at a repair shop. That said, if you are going to go down the Sky route, it doesn't matter anyway as you won't be receiving terrestrial broadcasts. There was someone on the forum that bought their flat screenTV in the UK and took it over as hand luggage, so it can be done.

Mark

UK TV's do work in Spain, if you are going to have a UK tv system installed when over there it will have to be done through a Spanish dvd/video recorder/player.  You will not be able to connect via the TV.

I've taken over Kettles, George foreman qrills, toaster and hoovers all of which were more expensive to buy in Spain when I bought over 4 years.

Then there wasn't the variety of choice that there is now.

If you already have these items then why not ship them over and replace them when you have to.  Only item that I have heard people having difficulty with have been microwaves.  Why I don't know but someone said that the one they brought over with them blew up after a short while.

Because I have a number of UK items in the kitchen I also brought over a strip extension plug that way I only needed to have one adaptor.

I think door bells are very expensive in Spain so it might be worthwhile buying one of those to bring over, especially ones which plug into the electric.

I also brought over a set of saucepans with handles.

When buying a washing machine in Spain make sure it has a high spin, most cheap ones only have 800 rpm fine in Summer but not so good in Winter.

If you buy electrical goods in Carrefour the instruction booklets come in every language except English.  A lot of people don't recommend them either as they have had a lot of problems and they are not very good at sorting out any problems.

I bought a dishwasher from them and four years later it's still working ok so I suppose it's the luck of the draw.

Our experiance with Carrefour has been brilliant!

We have bought from Carrefour at Los Barrios and La Linea and have found them to be very helpfull and very good at returning things - supposed it helped that we didn't speak any Spanish at the time and they probably just wanted to get rid uf us - LOL

Out of the two, we prefer to shop at the La Linea store.

Had to buy a new TV when out there last (3 weeks ago) and purchased a new 37" Toshiba HD Regza LCD for €799 (about £550) and an additional 2 year carrefour warranty for €62 (about £45), so we are covered for 4 years.

Justin,

I most certainly agree with you about NOT changing your plugs from UK three pin to Spanish two pin on any expensive UK electrical goods - keep that fuse in between the power and the electrical item.

One thing I have done though is change the plugs on the UK Toaster and Coffee Percolator as I needed to plug them into a 4 gang Spanish extension lead along with the Spanish Kettle.

Why is it there are never enough power sockets in any Spanish kitchen!??!?! Maybe the Spanish aren't as lazy as us 'Brits' and are quite happy to keep plugging and unplugging things in and out

Carrefour at the bigger store by the Haberneras Mall on outskirts of Torrevieja has a terrible reputation for getting info & returning electrical goods. They have hardly a member of staff in the store who speaks or who will admit to speaking English &, before I get lynched by those who say (AGAIN) "this is Spain & you should speak Spanish", there's a way of answering rather than them just shrugging shoulders & pouting their mouths. (Reminds me of a french boy student who stayed with us many years ago). Do they get training I wonder ! They must recognise we're speaking English even though they don't understand so why not take us to staff who can understand if they want us to spend a lot of money in their store. If you go into J. Sainsbury's here & ask where the milk is they take you to it even if you say just point the way as my friend who works there says that's what they've been told to do &, if they're seen not to be doing it, they get a  talking to about it.

What was the question ?

Anyway, I agree with technoape about the lack of sockets in Spanish properties, especially in kitchens. It's so unsightly with all our adaptors converting one socket to two or three.

I first came over to the Costa Blanca 5 years ago with a friend who had bought another property when she came out to finalise her off plan purchase, when she arrived 2 weeks earlier she found the foundations hadn't even been laid.

The second property was ready for occupation, in fact the builder wouldn't sell the properties until they were finished, her new neighbours had been there for 6 months and like her had only paid a deposit.  The balance was due at end of August, 6 weeks later.

For a week we shopped for the basics she would need, there were only 3 makes of electric kettles available in Carrefour.

Previously most kitchens would have a gas hob rather than electric and don't forget most Spanish drink coffee or chocolate so kettles are something that they probably wouldn't have used - well that's my theory.

Someone reported recently that a Spanish workman was surprised to see the householder putting a caserole into the oven as his wife had never used hers, all her cooking was done using a hob.

Luckily my house had a new kitchen extension installed by the English previous owner and she had two singles and one double socket put in.

It's true, most Spanish do not use kettles, or even know what they are for. We used to provide electric kettles in our rental apartments for our English guests, but had to remove them when we had Spanish clients, as they were prone to put milk in them - which didn't do them much good at all! Similarly, toasters are not used much. Perhaps this explains the lack of electric points in kitchens. On the other hand, how many of you have sockets above the bathroom doors, or even somewhere near the ceiling on the living room wall, that you have yet to find a use for?!

I still find it amazing how few Spanish homes have ovens, and my Spanish neighbours are always surprised to discover that we use ours all the time. Most of them would rather have a dishwasher in it's place. Most surprising is that even in small villages where the Matriarch cooks twice a day for the (very) extended family, a cauldron on the hob is still the preferred method. On the rare occasions an oven may be needed, you may find her preparing everything at home, then carting the whole lot off down the street and paying the local baker for the use of his oven! I guess the concept of Sunday roast hasn't caught on here.

Isn't the socket or wires above the bathroom door for a bathroom heater?

I was contemplating upgrading our bathroom last year and got a quote from a Spanish builder I'd used before and went he went through what was and wasn't included in the price I was surprised that he had included a heated towel rail.

As to taking things to the Baker I thought that was what the french did on the way to mass on Sundays.  My husband was explaining the meaning of Boulangaire (sp) potatoes to me recently.  Can't remember if they take the joint as well and he's at work now so I can't ask him.

Funnily enough, the lack of ovens was the same in Cyprus as well.  The local baker did a roaring trade on Christmas day cooking the turkeys.

Electric kettles are becoming more popular.  Master Cadena now has quite an extensive range (well, 5 or 6 anyway) but doubt if you'd get the same choice going away from the heavily populated expat areas.  And the lack of sockets is probably due to fact that, if you plug more that 3 or 4 things in, the main fuse trips out.  Probably a Spanish-style safety feature .

And I'm afraid I disagree about the Carrefour in Torrevieja.  I have always had splendid service there.  I once took back a chair (one of those ones you put together yourself) because it was marked and the customer service assistant was a model of helpfulness.  Even arranged to have a new chair delivered to my house that afternoon.   She was even very patient when I couldn't remember the word for receipt (after using receta (recipe) and billete, I finally remembered recibo only to be asked for "el ticket".  The only nasty incidents I have come across are assistants/check out girls being loudly sworn at by expats (one Brit and one German ) for not speaking English/German.  Learn the phrase "Donde esta" and a few key works like leche or huevos to follow and they are just as helpful as the Tesco girls.  I find the WHERE ARE THE BLOODY EGGS YOU STUPID WOMAN approach doesn't get you very far.  Try shopping for a new telly in Currys and speaking only Spanish and see how far you get.

I agree with bobaol.

The vast majority of Spanish shop assitants/check-out operators are only too helpfull, especially if you at least try and speak Spanish.

And after you have 'murderd' thier language, the even teach you the correct word/phrase and pronounciation.

I have learned more Spanish on shopping trips than I have reading books and listening to CD's!

As far as English and Dutch/German customers swearing at the staff, I told one English guy at Carrefour in La Linea the following:

"Swear at that young Spanish check-out girl one more time and I WILL take you outside and teach you some Spanish maners in English!! Now if you don't like the fact that this Spanish Girl can only speak Spanish, and seeing as we are in Spain, I suggedt you **** off back home to England, where some people can't even speak English - like you for example!!!"

He gave me an astonished look as if he didn't expect the person behind him to be British and before he could say a word a guy standing in the queue oposite me said "And I'll help him (meaning me)". I can never understand why any person would go to another country and expect everyone to speak and/or understand their language.

Get a grip, that's why it's called a FOREIGN COUNTRY. If they are going to be such biggots, then stay at home and bog of on holiday to Margate, or Blackpool, etc!!!

That explains things I wonderered why you saw some Spanish coming out of the bakers lunch times with dishes, I did not realise they took things in their to be cooked.      We must be quite lucky then   we have 3 sockets in the kitchen.   I always use our oven especially for casseroles and curries brilliant.         I must admit thought our kettle was quite expensive and it is nothing special.   I might look at taking one out.   Also my Ben Forman sandwich maker and grill.   No we have not got sockets near the ceiling or above the bathroom door.  We have about 3 in the bedrooms.     Semijubilada yes that was good he quoted that in the price. Mind you depends on price.       Pat

I agree with all the aforesaid, but in defence of Morerosado (not that she needs me to defend her!) I do think that in areas of Spain that would basically still be barren countryside if it were not for the influx of foreign tourists (and of course their MONEY) it is fair to say at least that it is somewhat surprising that people working in a service industry can be so ignorant of English, or the fact that many of their customers (who in effect pay their wages) are only on HOLIDAY. If I could speak just a few words of every language of every country I've ever been on holiday to, I'd be a veritable walking Tower of Babel.

A Uruguayan born Dutchman living in Finland told me recently in perfect English that he cannot understand anyone not understanding at least some English, since wherever you are in the world, as long as there are at least 3 people present, one of them will know some English. The argument over which language is the most widely spoken (Spanish, Chinese?) will rage on, but the same cannot be said for any other language. Why then is it so badly taught in Spanish schools?

That said, there's no excuse for bad manners (from either customer or employee) in whatever language. As for Carrefour staff, at the Torremolinos branch I'm pleased to report that the service is perfectly friendly and helpful - but unless you are also wearing roller skates, you can forget trying to follow them to the aisle you asked for!

I was in no way impugning the attitude of Morerosado and I apologise profusely if it was taken so.  I am sure that More, being the epitome of an English lady with all the good manners that go with that, would never dream of behaving like that.  Once again, apologies if it came over like that.

However, the English "ladies" wandering around the supermarkets in their bikinis covered in a diaphanous wrap accompanied by their partners showing builders bum while cursing the fact they can't find the HP sauce are one of my pet hates.  And have you noticed the old Anglo-Saxon language being used as adjectives becoming more and more common?  Of course, it is not just the Brits behaving like this.  The Northern europeans in their matching shell-suits can swap expletives with the best of them. 

Back to thread.  I do have a socket above the door in the loo which is very handy for the wall-mounted space heater.  Quite lucky to have 3 sockets in the (small) kitchen but still have to unplug the kettle when I want to put the toaster on.  (By the way, I was reading that toasters are very bad for toasting bread.  Apparently by cooking both sides at once, the bread retains the moisture and will not become as crispy as if you did it under a grill.  This expels the moisture while cooking one side and then turning it over.  The toaster will retain the moisture unless it is almost burnt --------You have just read the most useless piece of information of the week, brought to you courtesy of Russel Hobbs kitchens........)

Take a kettle over with you.  You are right in saying they are not a staple piece of kitchen equipment in Spanish homes.  I will be taking my George Foreman grill (the big one on the stand) over with me but still debating on whether to get an oven fitted or use one of those big convection/microwave/grill thingies to save space.  However, as we still continued to have the old Sunday roast when stationed in Cyprus and Belize (old habits die hard), we will probably get the oven fitted. 

Of course, we could always exist on Pan Rustica, Jamon Serrano and salad (with the obligatory bottle of red to accompany it) and sod the cookers.  Alternatively, eat out.  You know it makes sense.

Pat - If you are thinking of taking the original George Forman Grill out to Spain I have seen them for sale in Torrevieja.  But if you want a more later model then you'll need to take it with you.

We like the double one which has a grill and a griddle with independant heat controls, haven't seen that one out there.  We bought another one to take over with us as I thought it could also double as a BBQ in the summer.  A brilliant invention!

I couldn't survive without my George Foreman.

Started off with a small version & then upgraded to the larger one with removeable plates.

Definitely the best invention since sliced bread.

Noreen