Moving to the UK? Household Goods to Bring & What to Leave Behind

Moving to the UK will open up a door of exciting, new opportunities for you. But before you excitedly start to pack the entire contents of your 2,000sq ft home, think again! Unless you plan on residing in a mansion when you move to the UK, you will need to drastically scale back on the household items that you ship to the UK. British homes are typically much smaller and more expensive than American homes and most homes will not be able to accommodate large, bulky furniture. With that in mind, what should you bring with you and what should stay behind?

British Voltage

The voltage that is used in the UK is 220v. If you are working for the US government in either a civilian or a military capacity, you may be offered government housing that has dual 110v and 220v outlets in the home. But this is not the norm. Microwaves, electric clocks, VCR's, TV's and other electrical goods will either have to be left behind or else, a transformer will have to be purchased, that will convert 110v electrical goods into 220v. It is important to be aware that if you do bring along clocks and microwaves and you use a transformer to convert the voltage, they will lose time.

Bulky Furniture

Large bulky furniture will be difficult to ship to the UK unless you have a guaranteed home set up before arrival. But even if you do have a home already set up and you know how big it is, it is unlikely to be an open floor plan, especially if the home is rather old. Forget open floor plans. Instead, expect doors separating rooms, and awkward shaped rooms that will not be easy to get bulky furniture in and out of. Place very large, bulky items in storage or consider selling them before you move to the UK, or else you might find that your new home is too small to accommodate your furniture.

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