Its a bugger when you read these kind of questions a long time ago and forgot where it was you saw them. somewhere I read that if you plan to send a container to Cebu it's best to use a Filipino company based in UK ?? Would that be the right way ?... a benefit for getting through customs ? (Balikbayan returning ) I don't need the size of a 40 ft or 20 ft container, just something about the size of a transit van (SWB, low roof ) !! Anybody know where the contact is for this guy who I've seen advertised on a forum somewhere ? Some were raving about this company. Jonny
I can only answer from the perspective of someone who manages container ships for a living; I am no expert on the mechanics of the process of getting a container through Customs in the Philippines. You will almost certainly do better to go for a full container load ("FCL") on a door to door basis rather than ship an LCL ("less than container load") of the volume of a Transit van. Make up the volume with other stuff if you like. As a rough guide, Pickfords, who know a bit about international moving, say that the contents of a typical three bedroom house will fill a 20ft container.
Thanks for letting me know that ( about yourself ) might come in handy. There was an in-depth posting a long time ago about a guy or a company who traded in UK and was very good at handling all the fuss at the Cebu port, including the customs etc. It was all done properly as many folk had used them , but I just cant remember where I saw it. I'm sure if it is marked down as being my wife's personnal household stuff then there are fewer charges when it reaches Cebu port as being a returning Balikbayan. I'm still scrolling through my old forum lists !
I am contemplating a possible move to Subic Bay myself. I am no expert on the cargo side of things - I just run ships.
Hi Jonny, A friend of ours moved over to Angeles City just before Christmas. He used a 20ft container. Eventually turned out to be significantly bigger than he really needed. Anyway I know he paid around £4000 for it. He did ALL the packing himself, said he'd never do that again. Just to share the price really. None of us unpaid packers & loaders are sure if paying £4,000+ to ship everything is actually the best solution. There are a number of 'movers' who will pack your larger stuff for you at their warehouse and crate it all up for shared container shipment. A lot of folks will use a combination of Balikbayan boxes (wooden ones) and /or a Lift Van Crate(s) for an LCL (Less Than Container Load) shipment Just be sure to choose a totally reputable company and bear in mind that they're going to hold a lot of your money and all your worldly goods. Quite a weak position to be in if hidden charges and fees start to get created. Better to think very carefully about what you want/need to take with you. Usually those folks who are willing to pay for a container will naturally cram just about everything they own into every nook and cranny to optimise that space already paid for. Just be sure you enough space for it all when it arrives. Certainly with containers you can get Duty-Free Shipment of Personal Effects Into The Philippines. Those folks who choose the Balikbayan Box route make very careful selections on what they really need and what makes sense to buy over in Philippines. Balikbayan boxes have some benefits such as no weight limits, no customs duty and ease of handling etc There are quite a few Balikbayan shippers, as you know but most are just small set-ups with the associated risks. One outfit, often mentioned, that may be the one you are thinking of is Pooten Forwarding International Ltd Or maybe not I will also need to consider these very same questions at some point quite soon. Currently I'm leaning towards a Balikbayan route. Many of the reputable shippers will take your own 'home-made' wooden boxes or they will make them up for you, if their standard BB's don't quite meet the sizes you prefer. Talking with them can reveal genuine pearls of wisdom Be careful about shipping certain electrical/electronic controlled equipement that may well have problems to function correctly. Even the humble microwave may not be suitable for shipping. I'll be following this thread with interest
This question has been asked a thousand times, but can't find the answer. Will British Television work over there, and do they need some sort of modification ? Will other devise's work, IE media players, PC monitors ? They are still very expensive over there, so packing them in a wooden crate carefully, they might get there in one piece !
Yes and No. Solely in terms of voltage there's usually no major problem for many items. Plenty of people have sent electrical items to Phils without issues. But, in terms of domestic appliances there is some caution needed that you should be aware of. UK electricty supply is 240V@50Hz (technically specified at 230 V +10% /- 6%). Philippine electricity supply is 220V@60Hz (sorry no idea on the technical spec ) Problems might crop up due to these differences in frequency. Newish TV's are more likely to automatically adapt, if it doesn't, the different frequency is likely to impact the refresh rate and picture quality. (check the technical specs) Also, many newish TV's have built in capability to switch from PAL (UK) to NTSC (Philippines), but not all. Look at your operations manual and/or look at the set-up menus on the TV. If no luck check with the manufacturer and discover how the 'switch' works if it's not included in the set-up menu. Double check the instructions and technical specification. If the TV isn't able to accept a range of inputs or switch from PAL to NTSC it won't be any good to receive transmissions, however it may still be used with digital boxes that manage the inputs and outputs. Maybe someone here has practical on the ground experience of setting them up with satellite boxes. Still OK for playing DVD's or as computer monitors or karaoke. If you have a plasma screen TV you need extra care as they don't travel too well unless you can be sure of keeping them upright. The glass screens are real heavy and the bigger ones are prone to cracking under their own weight without careful packing and support.
I've just been over ,..went to visit a Scots buddy who moved there back end of last year,...he took over his telly and DVD and he says they work perfectly.
Yep, most of the newer ones are no problem at all The TV's I've got in the house right now all accept 50Hz and 60Hz and all but one have auto detection of PAL or NTSC. One requires manual selection from the set-up menus
Laptops work, frequency makes no difference as the power adapters sort it all out automatically, PC's work as I have taken parts from UK over and built machines over there several times, you are however correct Peter a lot of stuff hates the frequency difference, I took an alarm clock over and it was hopeless, simply could not keep time, saying that it was also very cheap Landline phones won't work as I am pretty sure the local protocols are different. Old CRT tele's probably won't work, most recent Plasma or LED displays should work, digiboxes almost certainly won't work, Philippine broadcast standards for digital are the same as Japan and use the ISDB-T standard instead of our DVB-T. Quote from Wiki http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_television_in_the_Philippines Modern LED Computer monitors will probably work but I'm not 100% sure, I may well have answer the next time I go out as I am thinking of taking one of my old ones over in my luggage 50-50 chance it will arrive in one piece never mind anything else I suspect that DVD players will travel reasonably well, only problem will be regional encoding, they will play our UK DVD's but won't play Philippine ones unless the UK player is explicitly multi-region to start with, most of the Phils DVD players I have come across will happily play my UK disks, but these days for me that is more a job for the computer, it then becomes an issue of hooking up the computer to your TV screen. Most electronics over there are about the same price as here, although computers are more expensive than here.
Thinking back now, we sent an old PC monitor and that worked. So new one's should work The Telly in mind is a Panisonic 42 inch plasma, about 3 years old. I'm getting all excited now, going to re-start building our house next year. Not moving till 2015 though. Hope the peso not strong and the £ very strong
