Should I bring my ktichenaid mixer and gas barbecue grill?

[buttermaker]

First... See my advice about grills and electronics on this other post:

http://www.singaporeexpats.com/forum/ftopic56182.html

In other words:
Check to see if your condo allows grills.
If yes, DEFINITELY BRING ONE.
Check to see if your Mover allows them to be packed IN ADVANCE.
If not, buy a new one and leave it unassembled in the box for the Movers. Our Movers actually assembled it for us on arrival.
You will need to pay about $100 for a new valve to be installed by propane delivery guy.
FYI - Propane is about $30 SGD for a large canister delivered and installed - old one taken away.

We were tipped off about bringing a grill to Singapore by my wife's boss who had been here 8 years and asked if we could pack a new grill into our shipment. He ordered one online from Sears and had it delivered to our house. Subsequently, I ran to Sears and bought the same model (About $300). I'm sure the Movers wondered what was up with the 2 grills.

Ours has not seen a bit of rust and we've been here 3 years. I also bought a cover which has yet to be used.

About the mixer. If it is not 220v compatible, leave it at home.
You will not want to lug out the transformer to use it and the safety of using one in a kitchen environment (wet) is dubious.
You can find one used here if you don't want to shell out the $800.

Final note... sell/give away all electronics before you leave. You (nor will anyone else) will not want them when you return. Personally, I can't wait to get back to my 20lb. 19' CRT computer monitor when I get home.

[MCNB]

Thanks for the reply about the grill. We'll be buying new here and bringing with us. Maybe 2

Definitely agree with your advice not to store any electronics. But will probably bring the plasma TV and stereo since they are new but, like most electronics, prices drop every month. I assume they'll work with a (large) transformer.

[BodyBlitz]

I have not owned a gas grill however my client threw out hers.

Factors to note that, you might not get as much friends who enjoy a gathering over a grill like you do back home, you may not have as much time as before with the new job or you could fall in love with local cuisine.

unless you're cooking regime requires alot of grilling with a place that allows for it and neighbours who are not fussy then go for it, if not why not just hold it off till you're more certain about your work/social/life balance.

BTW step down transformers are easily available at Sim Lim Tower at Bugis, adjacent to Sim Lim Square - where the computer parts shopping mall is.

[buttermaker]

No offense meant towards BodyBlitz, but if you've never owned a gas grill, then you probably don't really know the attachment one can develop after frequently cooking on one. I think it's really an Australian and American thing... and maybe South American.
Trust me bring a grill... save yourself $1,000.

Regarding the advice on power transformers... another place to pick one up is at the Home Fix hardware store at Marina Square.

When looking for many things to get set up in Singapore, we found the Marina Square Home Fix store to be very helpful. It is the closest thing you'll find in Singapore to an Ace Hardware or Home Depot (without the lumber and garden store). Ikea has lots of things you'll need too.

[BodyBlitz]

No offense taken, i love grilled beef.
If you have a grilling session, please remember me and make me a convert.


If you want chilled aussy grass fed beef theres a place in Jurong which sells them for cheap -

1 kg for $27 ribeye $17 striploin
They have black angus from time to time and wagyu.

http://www.qbfood.com.sg/webtop/index/

[moonberrry]

I just moved from New York recently, and was told to leave my KitchenAid stand mixer behind because reportedly there have been cases of the unit getting blown up when introduced to the local electrical socket. I am aware of how much more expensive it is to buy a new KitchenAid mixer locally (S$899 vs. US$299). I heard it's possible to order a UK version from Williams Sonoma in the US, and then bring that over to Singapore.

Speaking of blown up, I've already busted my US surge protector yesterday while I was hooking up my computer. My set up was like this:

Wall Socket > SG Extension Cord > Int'l Plug Converter > US Surge Protector > Computer.

The surge protector went off in sparks and that was that. Had to be thrown out.

[QRM]

Wall Socket > SG Extension Cord > Int'l Plug Converter > US Surge Protector > Computer.

There is a voltage difference between Singapore and the US, in your list you did not mention a UK-US voltage transformer, an international plug converter just changes the type of plug and socket.

I would have thought a US surge protector is designed for 110volts so plunging in 240v would bound to burn it out.

The fact that you are going around plugging things in incorrectly, may I suggest you invest in some good fire extinguishers and read the small print of your contents fire insurance.

Keep in mind its not just voltage differences there is a phase difference in the the power here, so certain US items ie microwaves will not work even if you have the correct voltage transformers.

[Zeenit]

OMG, you bring the whole kitchen with you. dont forget the kitchen sink.

thailand, malaysia and indonesia all use the same voltage as singapore.

Yes I brought everything with me that was not nailed down in the kitchen. I use it all and so glad I listened to myself.

When we were condo hunting I had to have a built in oven and would not settle for less. I got what I needed.

And also refused to think about buying new is SG. Thats just a waste of money. But I came from the UK where the watt is the same so no transfomers needed.

[boffenl]

A grill would be great IF meat weren't so damned expensive.

[rbwmac]

We struggled with this also. We are moving from the US in a few weeks and have decided to leave our kitchen appliances here in storage. Basically we decided we didn't want the look of the transformers on the counters since they are very large. Someone has already mentioned this, eating out is part of the culture, so we figured we'd replace what is needed (aside from the basics, juicer, coffee maker) after we are settled.

We did purchase a transformer for our sound system. My husband has a turn table that he would really like to bring. Our relocation company also advised us against bringing any motorized appliances, but I know he'll be so sad to leave it. Do you think it would be ok on the transformer?

We are sending a grill. A friend of ours in Singapore just ordered a grill and had it shipped to us to send in our container. She said to definitely get one here in the US. We are moving to a condo and told it wasn't allowed, but every other unit seemed to have one. We figured if we get told No, we'll sell it.

I also wanted to say Thank You to the members on here. This site has been very helpful to us in our preparations. I've had so many questions and they were all answered by a little searching on the site.

[jpatokal]

We did purchase a transformer for our sound system. My husband has a turn table that he would really like to bring. Our relocation company also advised us against bringing any motorized appliances, but I know he'll be so sad to leave it. Do you think it would be ok on the transformer?

Check the manual -- the turntable motor may rely on the frequency, which means that it may not work properly even if you use a transformer.

[Strong Eagle]

We did purchase a transformer for our sound system. My husband has a turn table that he would really like to bring. Our relocation company also advised us against bringing any motorized appliances, but I know he'll be so sad to leave it. Do you think it would be ok on the transformer?

Check the manual -- the turntable motor may rely on the frequency, which means that it may not work properly even if you use a transformer.

You need to check to see if it is an AC synchronous motor (in which case it will probably not run at the right speed (50 Hz here versus 60 Hz in the US), or if it uses a DC motor, in which case you should be able to control the speed.

[jaisn]

We did purchase a transformer for our sound system. My husband has a turn table that he would really like to bring. Our relocation company also advised us against bringing any motorized appliances, but I know he'll be so sad to leave it. Do you think it would be ok on the transformer?

I know this is a pretty old post, but did you have any luck with the turntable? I'm moving to Singapore soon and want to bring my turntables, mixer, etc but am not sure yet if I'll be able to make it all work.

Thanks

Jason

[Brooklynjenn]

We moved from the US in September, and I really hate that I didn't bring a grill. Makes me sick to see them in the stores for $900. Next month my husband is going to bring one back from his trip home. One you would buy for $199 at home is $900 here.

We brought all of our appliances. I got a transformer and run my kitchen aid mixer often with not a single problem. I also use it for my Cuisinart food processor, the blender, the coffee grinder, the hand mixer and the mini food chopper. The only thing that it won't run is the toaster oven, the watts are too high. We sold our tv and bought new, but our DVD player is dual voltage, and so was my curling iron, hair dryer and a lot of our computer electronics. Even my clarisonic Mia runs on dual voltage. We just bought a bunch of adapters for those. I was appalled at how expensive clock radios are. It was cheaper to buy a plug in mini transformer to run them than to replace. What would cost $12 at target easily costs $50 here. We did blow up our old computer, though, despite the transformer, so when in doubt back it up. My advice is bring most things unless the watts are high. Yu could easily spend $2000 on replacements for your small electrics. The transformer was $100. So you blow up a few things. You still save money in the end. I will point out that the transformer I bought in Holland V works like a charm. The one I bought at Carrefour caught fire, and it was not overloaded.

[zzm9980]

Most transformers say on them that they shouldn't be used for continual loads, but only short term use. I ignored this, and it fried a cordless phone I had that pulled almost no power at all (Took a while though... A few months)

What's Holland V? Is that a shop, or just a trendy name for Holland Village I haven't picked up on?