What not to Pack When Moving to Shanghai: Home Appliances

When we contemplate the move to Shanghai, the natural urge is to cram as many of our favourite brands as possible into our suitcases: reader, this not necessary….in some cases at least.

This series of articles will let you know where you can find those staples that you thought you needed to bring (but could have left at home).

Item four on the agenda: home appliances.

There are a few issues here: voltage and plug differences, warranties and repairs, and, finally, sheer superfluousness. The latter may be dealt with first as it is the easiest to explain: most appliances are easy available here in Shanghai and furthermore, your apartment may already have appliances that adequately meet your needs such as a TV, DVD player, fridge, microwave, electric hot plate, rice cooker, kettle, and washing machine.

Of course, there are exceptions but these will always be a matter of taste: if you cook a lot and have a couple of treasured appliances (which will run on 220-240V), it might be better to bring one or two than to search high and low for something of comparable quality that doesn't break the bank; similarly, if you're very picky about your flat irons, bring them because it would be daft to give up quality for the convenience of a slighty less heavy suitcase. Just exercise restraint and think carefully about what you really need day to day to feel comfortable. I couldn't give a hoot about the quality of my television or DVD player but I need to be able to make good coffee at home (My moka is not actually an electrical appliance, I grant you, but I trust you get my drift).

So where in the name of Samsung to buy your blenders, hairdryers, toasters, and TV's? Most major supermarkets such as Carrefour, Tesco, Walmart, and Gome sell home electrical appliances but there are many other places too all across the city and online. Check out these two articles on our site for more information: Bye,Bye, Best Buy: Now where do we buy electronics?; and Shanghai's Modern Electronic City: The Land of Lost Cell Phones.

China's electrical system runs on a voltage of 220-240V, 50Hz. You can find a good list of countries and their electrical systems at the Electrical Outlet website. Another handy list, as well as a colour coded map and pictures of all the different plug types, can be found over at the World Standards site. While most of the world is on the same page purely in terms of voltage, much of the Americas (and countries that had significant US involvement such as Japan and Taiwan) including the US, Canada, and many South American countries use a voltage of around 110 or 120V, 60Hz. If you are moving to China from one of these countries, you really are better off selling your toaster and TV before you come.

In our forums, Wengede summed the situation up very succinctly:

"One issue is the problem of how to plug the appliance in if the plug doesn't fit. This can be solved by adapters cheaply available in supermarkets or electric stores. Adapters that are compatible to a variety of plug systems and not just one-to-one may be called universal adapters. These are plastic parts with some properly shaped metal contacts and the input voltage will come out as is.

The other issue is the difference of voltage/frequency in different places. The appliance voltage and frequency as stated somewhere on a label must fit to the supply. Recent low-power electronic products such as notebook PCs have switched-mode power supplies (different from transformers) that can get along with every supply common, 90 -250 V, 50 - 60 Hz. Check the label. In this case, the above mentioned adapter is sufficient.

Some other appliances have a switch for 110/220V or so, e.g. travel hairdriers. Also usually OK if the switch is set correct and the voltage more or less fits.

Most appliances of bigger power (expressed in watts) are made for just one voltage and your supply should be the same or nearly the same. For these you need a transformer. In your case one that transforms 110V (US supply) to 220V (Thai appliance). The higher the wattage, the bigger and the more expensive it is. So it does not make sense to buy cheap high-power appliance such as a toaster or iron, and a transformer for it, because the transformer will be much more expensive than the appliance. Frequency will be unchanged by the transformer. So your Thai appliance will likely run on the wrong frequency (US 60Hz, Thai I guess 50Hz). This only has an influence on some appliances such as synchronous clocks, motors depending on frequency, things like shavers. For many appliances it isn't a problem and at least won't cause damage." [sic] Posted by Wengede, Dec 16, 2009, original post can be found here.

Even if your appliances run on the correct voltage and have the same plugs, another issue to consider finally is how to have that fancy breadmaker repaired when it breaks. If your appliance is under warranty, it may be costly for you to send it back to the US or Europe to be repaired. Alternatively, you could take it to any electronic repair shop here but you will pay and the quality of the work may not be the same.

Another option in this case is to check the appliance brand's website: there may be an authorised repair centre in Shanghai. For example, Philips have this site, which can help you find a service centre, and LG have this service centre map, but be warned they are a little tricky to navigate without knowledge of Chinese.

Links:

Forum discussion about voltage conversion.

Forum discussion about where to find hairdryers etc.

Forum discussion about what electronics to bring from the US.

Forum discussion about different types of plugs.