Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 18

Thread: North Americans ... did you bring any electrical appliances?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Atlanta USA (soon Dunedin)
    Posts
    37

    Default North Americans ... did you bring any electrical appliances?

    We have a number of nice kitchen appliances (i.e. KitchenAid mixer, deep fryer) that I would really hate to leave behind, but I don't know how much hassle/expense will be involved in using adaptors for these.

    Also, we're going to be in the market for a new laptop soon and I understand they are quite a bit cheaper in the States, but then there is the adaptor issue again.

    Any thoughts?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    Papamoa
    Posts
    361

    Default

    Buy the laptop in the States as they are far cheaper...at least I bought my Mac there..no adapter issue with laptops as powersupplies are dual voltage but you will need a plug adapter. As far as appliances go...we bought some transformers but in hindsight I probably would leave that stuff behind... while things are expensive to replace the transformers are big and bulky...for example the one that was big enough for my Cuisinart is huge and REALLY Heavy. I leave it on the counter (bench) as it is nearly impossible to lift and if I had to lift it up everytime I used my cuisinart I would never use it. But it takes up a lot of space and is ugly. Plus I blew a fuse the other day in it and I haven't sorted out what to do about it...one plug still works so no rush.....

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    450

    Default

    We bought a new apple laptop in the states before coming here. It doesn't require a converter and an adaptor plug/end can be bought at the apple store online pretty cheap (we got on here in Welly for 18 bucks).

    We left all our appliances behind. Things with a motor apparently will run slower here and eventually burn up more quickly, so we figured why shorten the life span up a bunch of good appliances when someone else could use them? We donated many things to charity and will use this for tax purposes, and we plan to buy all new stuff here.

    Additionally, we hated to leave the fridge, sep. freezer, and such behind, but we don't feel that it would be safe to run large appliances on a converter, so we opted to donate these as well. We didn't have a kitchenaid mixer but if we had had a new one, I might have brought that and figured I'd get my use out of it while I could!

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    Wellington NZ
    Posts
    239

    Default

    We bought a few adaptors - in retrospect, too many. Figured the small gadgets worked well enough, and we had room in the container - so why not?

    A single low-wattage adaptor is probably sufficient for any kitchen appliance, though you'd probably want at least two cuz in the event of failure.

    Plug adaptors are not sold here, so get those for a buck or two each for anything you can plug into the wall safely w/o a converter. Almost any computer will switch voltage and frequency automatically, though you definitely want to make sure before you plug it in! Same for many computer peripherals, stereo gear, lamps, etc. (Bulbs would need replacement.) It's just a matter of making the physical connection possible. Pictures here, though I haven't used this particular vendor:

    http://www.international-electrical-...-adapters.html

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Wellington, from California
    Posts
    259

    Default

    These are the ones we bought:

    http://www.amazon.com/SIMRAN-AR-500-...1902977&sr=8-3

    IMO this size isn't too heavy to move from a kitchen cabinet to the counter and that's what I use for my small kitchen appliances.

    We brought our cuisinart, blender, mixer (I have an old-but-still-great Kitchenaid), nice coffee maker, cd player and vacuum. Though using the vacuum is kind of silly since to get all the way around the house I have to plug an extension cord into the adaptor. We have one 700 watt adaptor that is the only one strong enough that the vacuum cleaner doesn't blow the fuse and it's definitely too heavy to mover around the house!

    As Barry said we brought too many including one even larger (1000 watt?) but we were able to sell them on trademe.

    Jen

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    West Auckland
    Posts
    1,029

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by barryp View Post
    Plug adaptors are not sold here
    We bought a plug adaptor for our laptop at Dick Smith in Auckland.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    Wellington NZ
    Posts
    239

    Default

    That's cool. Perhaps it depends on where you move *to*.

    I visited 3 different Dick Smith outlets in Wellington this year, and none sold them. One sales clerk volunteered that they used to sell them but no longer do for unspecified 'safety reasons'. Guess too many people put their 120V light bulbs across 240V mains!

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    West Auckland
    Posts
    1,029

    Default

    We bought ours 12 months ago, so perhaps my info is out of date.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
    Location
    Hawkes Bay (from San Diego)
    Posts
    50

    Default

    No problem here getting adapters and transformers as required, Trademe is a good source. I use a large 1KVA transformer for my laser printer but it would have been much cheaper to buy a new printer here.

    If you use a water-pic type of dental cleaner, bring one - you can't buy them here.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Posts
    7

    Default

    Even if you bring them... there's no guarantee that they'll work with the differences... Especially if they contain motors.

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •