fiz

Audie-not sure if you have seen this already but there is a new posting on the other well known forum which relates to submissions re immigration problems over disability...there is apparently a group meeting with a Minister and a deadline of jan 31st for adding cases/info.

Don't know how to pass on an exact link to this thread-perhaps someone else can help?

Fiz

Les Avalook

I have sent you a PM, you will not be able to link to PMO on this site.

charlie5

Looking forward to seeing this.

Charie

DaveandLinda

Yes, it would be interesting to see whether items differ in price from state to state. In Perth, for example, I would imagine it's a pretty captive market.

DavidandGill

Hi Cathy & Tony,
Well, we are here in Torquay, Victoria for the birth of our grandson at the end of the month on what we hope will be the last return trip. Next trip, one way only! While here we are starting to look around at some prices to compare with UK prices before deciding whether to buy some new stuff to bring with us or buy it here. Even if we are charged GST on arrival some stuff could still be much cheaper bought in the UK and shipped out.
Your information will be very useful to us - we know things like our fridge in the UK might not be 'man enough' for the Aussie climate and we really don't know whether or not to buy a new guest bed or bring our existing one which is so old, its almost embarrassing but like everyone, we need to look at saving the pennies as much as possible to pay for the Visas etc.
Glad to hear you have sorted out a rental, things will probably start to feel more normal in you own home.

Do keep in touch, love reading everyone's experiences, although you are right, this thread has gone very quiet.
Happy New Year to you
Gill & David

Les Avalook

I have not seen any threads where people have found their UK fridge or freezer could not cope with Oz temperatures so you may want to check your information.

If you take your bed then consider a new UK mattress as Oz sizes are different to the UK and you may not be able to match an Oz mattress to a UK bed frame if that is the style of bed you have.

Bedding is what most people suggest is worth buying in the UK and taking with you.

Enjoy your warm weather , another frosty start here in the UK.

charlie5

Our freezer had worked perfectly for a year - tempting fate!!!

Charlie

pemajoka

Hi
daughter and sil were told that fridges and freezer were not worth taking as the insulation on Oz stuff was much more efficient (thicker I think) to cope with the higher temperatures. So uk stuff will work but more expensive on the old electric bill

DaveandLinda

Yes, We are also at the stage of looking at everything in the house and weighing up what's worth taking. For us it's a little more complicated as we have our house on the market at the moment and if we sell before we go (although not looking great at the moment) on a visit in June we will need to put some stuff into storage till we are certain of having the visa.

Les Avalook

We don't need one, we just put the food outside.

sonlymewalter

with all due respect thats a load of rubbish mate. We brought all our stuff from UK and used it for years until it conked out as did all my family who are here. If you have stuff worth bringing i'd bring it and save yourself as much money as poss as it's not cheap to live here especially since the GFC. It doesn't help that UK pensions get frozen from the day you leave, so every penny counts.

DavidandGill

Thanks for the advise re fridge/freezer - my current one is only about 3 years old, frost free and I will certainly bring it now I have read all this. Hadn't thought about mattress sizes so thanks, Les, great info once again. Will keep that in mind while we are sussing out the sales. Going to the Mitsubishi showroom today to scope out 4 wheel drives, in anticipation only but probably worth a look.

Best of all, we have been left in charge of our gorgeous granddaughter today while Mum and Dad go to hospital for pre-birth checkups. Our daughter had a really bad time when Scarlett was born with colestasis (liver failure) and pre-eclampsia, followed by post caesarean bleeding so she is considered high risk meaning 2 visits a week to hospital at the mo. Nanny and Grandad are enjoying playing with PlayDoh and Dora the Explorer!! Great stuff !!!!

Gill & David

MikenSueNW3

G'Day

I think fridges used to be a problem when they were less efficient – had to have a fan blowing over the condenser coils at the back; known as "tropicalizing". The difference is that you may want a bigger one – but in that case the old one can be reserved for ice, wine and beers!!

While you are here in Oz, do check out mattress sizes, and don't assume you need to bring from the UK – we didn't find any problem, though a UK "King" size is an Oz "Queen", while an Oz "King" is a UK "Superking"! And UK standard 4ft6in beds are quite rare. Somewhere like David Jones may well give you a conversion chart – but it may well be cheaper to buy elsewhere! Having said all that, Ikea beds are definitely different sizes, and standard pillow cases in Oz tend to be a tad smaller than in the UK.

Mike

marian and ian burgess

Re the debate on what to bring or not to bring! We only brought personal stuff having sold all our furniture. Electrical appliances were left in our flat when we sold as an extra "carrot" to our purchaser. We have not found fridges,washing machines, televisions etc any more expensive than the UK and the 2000GBP we saved by not shipping stuff went a long way to covering all our new stuff. Anyway we didn't know if our existing goods would be suitable for our new home. Ikea provided quite a bit of our new stuff ( We aren't too proud!) ; as for bedding, towels etc you can spend as much or as little as you choose. (As in UK of course). We are still living in the same Unit which we found when we arrived in October 2009; it's even better now as my daughter who lives a 5 minute walk away gave birth to a baby boy last October so I love being a "Hands on" grandmother.
So all you worriers, get yourselves over here as soon as possible! I am sure you will love it as much as we do!
Marian and Ian Burgess

Les Avalook

It is not so much the width as the length is different which can be a problem in some bed frame styles.

http://www.the-pillow.com.au/resources/bed_sizes.php

Ikea beds are a completely different problem as they use continental sizes in the UK but use Oz sizes in Oz. We have the 160cm type mattress from the UK so no match in Oz as we have a bed frame style bed.

Would need a London Underground annoucement 'Mind the Gap' if we dropped an Oz mattress in the frame.