Since we stayed at our in-laws place for a week, we had some time to get feedback on the brand, type that works best for India etc. Also, kids school starting earlier than our work made it easier - imagine shopping for appliance in 5 shops with kids along with you!
Luckily, like in US, most of these stores are located next to each other and that makes it bit easier for comparision shopping.
Holidays are the best time to buy but with short time to setup, you may not have the luxury of waiting. Also, it is unlikley that they have the same brand/type on sale.
One good area to go for shopping in the Marathhalli area - there are shops like @Home, HomeTown, Pai electronics, Girias, Adishwar electronics etc in one place (at the intersection of Outer Ring Road and Old Airport road).
Fridge: After few comparisions, we bought a LG, 30 liter one from Girias. Along with the Washing Machine, it cost us 31K, which I think wasn't bad.
Cooking range(Gas stove): This is an essential item but there is a good alternative in India - surprising that we don't see this much in US - the induction cooktop. Very handy and not that expensive as well. However, depends on AEH supply and if power is off and apartment is running on generator, this won't work.
Washing machine: We settled on a 7.5KG (yes, sizes of washing machines are measured in KGs in India), which gives 80% drying. Stores will try to sell 100% drying machines but they cost the double. Definitely, not worth the Rs. you are spending. There is a good amount of sunlight in India (but, don't assume this - your apartment may not be getting full sun light depending on how it is placed). Might be worth buying a dryer in this case, which would cost you less than the additional price you pay for the 100% drying with the washer.
Drinking water/Water filter: Most of the apartments have water supplier for drinking water. Some of the apartments towards JP Nagar, BTM layout, HSR layout have Kaveri water supply and have the connection to a tap in the kitchen. Kaveri water can be taken thru' basic filtering and used for drinking purpose - this water has good TDS level (which should be in the range of 30-50). More the TDS, higher the minerals (read salty water) and can't be used for drinking purpose. Most of the bore well water in Bangalore have levels in the range of 300-700 and you need a RO (Reverse osmosis) filter to make it drinkable. These filters cost a bundle and waste 2/3rds of water. There is another variation to this that if you move from a place where you get borebwell water to a place with Kaveri water, your water filter is not useful (since it does too much filtering and water is like distilled water, with no minerals, which is not good either).
Hence, if you are not planning to stay in the same place for longer time, you can buy the drinking water and settle on a good filter once you are settled on a place. Risk here is that - the water source is from outside and you can't be 100% sure about the water quality or you can't be 100% sure about the water quality consistency.
Water bottles cost at the range of Rs. 40-50 and for a family of 4, you would need 1 to 1.5 water can per week - not too bad considering the cost of a RO filter, which can cost anywhere in the range of Rs. 8,000 to 12,000. With bottled water, you are looking at Rs. 2,500 per year. Mind that the RO filtered ones need filter change every 6 months to a year and that also costs in the range of Rs. 350-400.
Cooking range(Gas stove): This is an essential item but there is a good alternative in India - surprising that we don't see this much in US - the induction cooktop. Very handy and not that expensive as well. However, depends on AEH supply and if power is off and apartment is running on generator, this won't work.
Washing machine: We settled on a 7.5KG (yes, sizes of washing machines are measured in KGs in India), which gives 80% drying. Stores will try to sell 100% drying machines but they cost the double. Definitely, not worth the Rs. you are spending. There is a good amount of sunlight in India (but, don't assume this - your apartment may not be getting full sun light depending on how it is placed). Might be worth buying a dryer in this case, which would cost you less than the additional price you pay for the 100% drying with the washer.
Drinking water/Water filter: Most of the apartments have water supplier for drinking water. Some of the apartments towards JP Nagar, BTM layout, HSR layout have Kaveri water supply and have the connection to a tap in the kitchen. Kaveri water can be taken thru' basic filtering and used for drinking purpose - this water has good TDS level (which should be in the range of 30-50). More the TDS, higher the minerals (read salty water) and can't be used for drinking purpose. Most of the bore well water in Bangalore have levels in the range of 300-700 and you need a RO (Reverse osmosis) filter to make it drinkable. These filters cost a bundle and waste 2/3rds of water. There is another variation to this that if you move from a place where you get borebwell water to a place with Kaveri water, your water filter is not useful (since it does too much filtering and water is like distilled water, with no minerals, which is not good either).
Hence, if you are not planning to stay in the same place for longer time, you can buy the drinking water and settle on a good filter once you are settled on a place. Risk here is that - the water source is from outside and you can't be 100% sure about the water quality or you can't be 100% sure about the water quality consistency.
Water bottles cost at the range of Rs. 40-50 and for a family of 4, you would need 1 to 1.5 water can per week - not too bad considering the cost of a RO filter, which can cost anywhere in the range of Rs. 8,000 to 12,000. With bottled water, you are looking at Rs. 2,500 per year. Mind that the RO filtered ones need filter change every 6 months to a year and that also costs in the range of Rs. 350-400.
Appreciate your feedback and comments, please leave a comment if you found this post useful (or not!) ...
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