White goods and electrical equipment

[Tala Orchard]

It has probably been asked before but here goes is it worth brining UK white goods over ie fridge freezer etc, also drills and associated equipment I can here the shouts of too many adaptors but just thinking as I have a lot of electrical tools probably more than I need. But do I leave them and buy in Spain or should I bring them with me.

Phill

[costakid]

If there newish bring them. Worth nothing 2nd hand so get your use. All will work fine with the cost of an adaptor.

[gerryh]

If they work and the cost of transporting them is less than the cost of buying new then there isn't any reason not to use them.
Changing the plug from a UK one to a "Spanish" one is not a big job.
Personally I would not use an "Spanish" to UK adapter. Most of them are very poorly made and can fall apart in your hand as you plug and unplug them.
Cheers
Gerry

[markwilding]

I think we did a bit of both. As we were installing a new kitchen, there were some new items but the oven and the microwave both had UK plugs
The power tools still need them.
There are some where you just change the cable such as laptops, DVD players Etc

We still buy the adapters from Amazon

https://www.amazon.es/gp/aw/d/*beep* ... UTF8&psc=1

[Tala Orchard]

Thank you for all your guidance we shall take it all in and act accordingly, many thanks again.

Phill

[Trooperman]

Why does there seem to be a reluctance to cut off a "wrong" plug and then wire in a different replacement? Does that fall foul of some domestic electrical rules and regs?

[Nimrod]

We've got spanish large white goods and all English small appliances which plug into the same sockets every time so the adaptors are permanently in.
Never had an adaptor break or not work.

[olive]

I have had three fail. One with an electric drill and one on a kettle ( not suitable for adaptors.) Third one dropped to bits disconnecting a mobile phone charger .

I am systematically changing appliances even after years of living here.

[ebbnflow]

For lower power items that you may normally plug into trailing sockets, bring your UK trailing sockets with you. Pop on a Spanish plug and use your items as you did in the UK.
For my electrical tools I changed to Spanish plugs, most have since died and been replaced with those available here in Spain. The same went for large appliances, just change the plug, the adapters have a limited current capacity and don't take well to multiple plug in/plug out actions.

[El Cid]

What is so difficult about changing a UK plug to a Spanish plug? If you can't do something as simple as that you should stay in the UK.

Sid

[peteroldracer]

[ajtg1952]

Not often I would agree with you Sid, but in this case I do. I find it hard to believe that people resident in Spain use adapters. Probably laziness rather than inability.

[markwilding]

I don't know what century you lot are living in but maybe it's not laziness, more a knowledge that these days new appliances and gadgets come with moulded plugs and any guarantee offered by the manufacturer would be deemed null and void if you cut off the original plug.

[peteroldracer]

If you bring something from the UK it will no doubt have been used, (it making far more sense to buy new here if needed) so will have little or no warranty left. Plus how many people will go through all the process of finding the agent here, taking it, getting it back and so on, all in an unfamiliar language and culture (assuming they have just moved)?
A good pair of side-cutters, chop off the plug, rewire to the correct grade of Spanish plug and Roberto is your tio!

[olive]

Cheeky beggars.

easy to pass judgement from your nice standard 2 bed duplex retirement home. How do you know that the electrical devices belong to our household? How do you know the devices don't lead a dual life in Spain/Britain ? How do you know that the appliances haven't been bought recently via .uk ? Easy to make assumptions (see 2 bed duplex assumption)

In terms of Spanish plugs, my advice is to steer away from the cheap ones. Legrande do a nice one with a finger loop (useful for the older folk with arthritic hands- see duplex retirement home) and the cable exits at right angles so is neat. Comes in black or white.

Going back to the original post. Bring your power tools. Buy a UK switched extension lead with several sockets and then fit a decent Spanish plug to it. Has the added advantage of devices staying connected as UK 3 pins don't separate from their sockets at the first tug like Spanish ones do. Oh and your UK visitors can plug their mobile phone chargers in if they don't want the inconvenience of changing the Spanish plug you fitted back to a UK one when they get home.

[peteroldracer]

Now we all know what your dream home is olive!
If anyone is prepared to devote some of their luggage allowance to bringing a power drill, fridge and lawnmower back and forth they must be puudled! Sod's Law says that whatever you need in Spain will be in the UK and vice-versa!
Any visitor arriving without adapters can have a week off, with their mobile quietly dying!

[El Cid]

Cutting off a plug does not necessarily invalidate the warranty, so long as the fault with the appliance is not a result of an incorrectly wired replacement plug. It's not that easy for manufacturers to void a warranty just because you cut the plug off.

Sid

[markwilding]

A good pair of side-cutters, chop off the plug, rewire to the correct grade of Spanish plug and Roberto is your tio!

Or just buy an adapter.

[costakid]

If you cut off the plug 100% your warranty will be void.

[peteroldracer]

If you cut off the plug 100% your warranty will be void.

It might be interesting to know how many people here in Spain have actually made a claim under warranty. Very few I would suggest! Most things I have owned have either packed up straight away, and simply been replaced by the shop, or more likely died one day after the warranty expired!