To bring or not to bring: Washing Machines!

Now, at the risk of conforming to stereotype and having a right old moan, appliances in Australia, compared to the UK, are either Not Good or criminally expensive. I’m not sure what the reason is for this but it took me by surprise when I was in the process of shacking up with Diver Dave. I bemoaned my fabulous no nonsense dyson that my Stepmum had volunteered to ‘look after’ and my beautiful sleek Hotpoint washer dryer with blue digital display-à-la-volkswagen-dash that I’d had to flog in a hurry on ebay for only £100 before I came away!! Yes - you read it right folks - unless your ebay user name is treadtrader you missed out on a billy bargain there. For the equivalent money on the Australian ebay I had to settle for a very inferior plain old washing machine with absolutely no digital display whatsoever and some of the little symbols rubbed off. Apparently we paid a premium for this unknown make because it’s a front loader.

Front loaders are new in Australia and seem to be viewed with a great deal of suspicion. The average aussie home will usually have a laundry secreted somewhere, sometimes quite cleverly (although not when it’s in the bathroom), which consists of a washing machine -often the sort of top loader that you may not have seen since the 1970s - a wall mounted tumble dryer and a funny looking basin unit that your washing machine pipes have to be attached to. I have yet to see a front loader in Australia installed under a counter with hidden plumbing like in the UK and so laundry apparatus seems to take up lots of space unnecessarily. But as far as aussies are concerned, the only saving grace of front loaders is the fact that they are highly water efficient and you get a rebate from the government (in Queensland at least).

So my Top Tip re washing machines is that if you were considering emigrating with a great big container of belongings, remember to pack your washing machine. You won’t find another one like it for the same price.