Major Appliances

[Niranut]

I'm interested to hear of any recommendations for where to buy major appliances in the greater Central region.

Specifically, I'm looking for a gas oven (with stovetop), fan/hood (to install above the stove), gas clothes dryer, and a garbage disposal.

I've visited a few shops here in Lopburi and have found everything but the garbage disposal, but would like to know if there are other shops I should check out before making a final decision.

I believe the nearest Homepro is in Ayuttaya and will probably make a trip to go check out their selection, but as I recall most of their products tend to be more high end. I'm really looking for something somewhere in the middle-- not the cheapest thing out there, but not the most expensive either-- something that will last and get the job done, but without all the extras.

Thanks.

[cleverD]

Bought my appliances in Tesco Lotus in Ayutthaya before home Pro and Big C opened.But I think between the 3 outlets I'm sure you will find what you are looking for.Washing machine has just gone down after 4 years heavy use,3500 baht to repair!!

[dotcom]

Home Pro.

[Khonwan]

...

Specifically, I'm looking for a gas oven (with stovetop), ...

Sanyo 3-ring gas-cooker with oven for Bt6,000 available at Makro.

[amsterdammer]

My currently limited experience of the Central region so far has shown that Phitsanulok appears to have a reasonable choice of stores when shopping for household goods and applianances.

They have:-

• Big C, Pichaisongkram Road

• Home Pro, Mittrapap (Phitsanulok-Lomsak) Road

• Index Living Mall, Mittrapap (Phitsanulok-Lomsak) Road

• Makro, Boromtrailokanat Road

• Tesco Lotus, Mittrapap (Phitsanulok-Lomsak) Road

• Topland Plaza, Akatossarot Road

Home Pro is likely to have each of the items you need, but I found that Index has some more stylish lines.

Not sure if any of these will offer a chance to use your bartering skills on price, or if any could offer better deals on warranty upgrades etc. The availability of home delivery / installations may also be a factor.

I too will be needing to make such purchases in the coming months and so I too am eager to hear fellow members experiences (i.e. could a trip to Bangkok offer the best price / choice combination)

[Niranut]

Thanks for the feedback so far. Will check back every so often to see if there are some more ideas. Looks like some good options there in Phisanulok-- a little too far for me here in Lopburi, but hopefully helpful for other Central people.

Looks like I'm probably going to end up going with Ayuttaya HomePro for the garbage disposal and possibly other items (if I can squeeze them into the budget). And will stick with the local shops in Lopburi for whatever I don't get at HomePro.

We do have a Big C, Lotus, and also a Power Buy here in Lopburi, but they don't carry any of the specific items I'm looking for (except for a couple over-priced ovens at PowerBuy, but nothing that is suitable for me).

I got my fridge and washing machine at Power Buy more than 2 years ago and have been happy with service and follow-up (as opposed to the lack of service I had previously experienced at the MBK Power Buy branch in BKK).

Not sure how I feel about buying major appliances at Big C/Lotus. Have heard mixed stories about good and not-so-good service if you have a problem, which I presume would vary from branch to branch as well. But doesn't matter since they don't have what I'm looking for anyway.

Thanks again.

[Niranut]

It's been a while, but just wanted to update this thread with what I found out regarding options for purchasing major appliances in Lopburi. In the end, we did not get a clothes dryer (could not find a gas one, Power Buy carries several electric models) or garbage disposal (not available in Lopburi, as far as I know). So just went with the built-in stovetop (they call these hobs, a new term for me) & oven. I found several shops locally and did not need to bother with the trip to Home Pro (nearest branch is in Ayuttaya). Here are the shops:

ESBO (located in Saraburi, if you're coming from Lopburi, it's on Hwy 1/Pahonyotin Rd just past the intersection where you would turn to take the BKK Bypass. Just go straight through the Bypass intersection and Esbo is on the right about 400 m past the intersection)

* the store is similar to Home Pro with usual construction & home improvement materials, but without as extensive a selection of products. Ended up buying my crystal (enameled glass) hob there-- it was a 3-burner one for 6,000 baht, marked down from 7,000. Exact same hob available at Power Buy for 16,000 baht.

* also got my hood here (90cm model with light for 6,000 baht, again, Power Buy had similar model for 12,000 baht)

* they have 3 different gas ovens available, but price was 18,000-20,000+ baht-- much more than we were looking for, but nice if that's what you needed; these need to be ordered special and take about 7-15 days.

* discount varies from 3-10% for members (membership is free) and discount is only for in-stock, regularly priced items.

Wood & Ceramic (located in downtown Lopburi, again on Pahonyotin Rd., across from Ford, and just east of the Krung Thai Bank, shop name is in Thai & they've got the big "Kohler" sign which you can't miss)

* again, carry the usual contruction & home improvement materials; are known for being a bit expensive on some things; carry a range of what I would call "luxury" items (i.e. very elaborate shower/bath/whirlpool setups)

* many hobs available, ranging from 2,000-6,000+, but didn't like the designs as they had flowers and birds and such on them.

* lots of ovens available, but only one gas option. Electric ovens ranged from 18,000-45,000+ baht. Only gas option was 44,000 baht (again much more than I need); these need to be special ordered as well.

* 3% discount on everything (membership costs 80 baht)

Suralerk Shop (by the Phra Narai Palace, across from Seng Heng shop)

* this is where we finally found basic ovens (both gas & electric), priced from 5,000+

* we ended up with a 8,000 baht model which works great for what we need it for (occasional baking)

Power Buy (ground floor of Big C)

* They have a good selection of all major appliances, but most are not on display. Just need to ask a sales associate for a book and they'll let you have one to take home. Prices are as marked and quite high for some items (their hob & hood was more than double what I paid at ESBO for the same thing, but they had several dishwashers available for around 20,000 baht which is less that what I have seen elsewhere)

* They also had several electric clothes dryers, but I really want gas, so no luck.

* All items in the book need to be special ordered from BKK and arrive within 3 business days.

* One note on the difference between service/warranty help at Big C/Lotus & Power Buy is that Power Buy will handle all repair/warranty issues for you (even for the smallest items), whereas Big C/Lotus only help with larger items. I bought an alarm clock at Big C and was told that if I had any problems within 7 days, I could bring it back, but after that I was on my own to contact the manufacturer about the warranty. Saw the same clock at Power Buy later and was told that if I had any problems ever, to just bring it in-- still under warranty and they would give me a new one, out of warranty and they would contact a certified repairman for me. After the clock purchase, also had a power strip still under warranty blow a fuse a burn a bit-- took it back to Power Buy and got a new one, no problem-- told to keep the receipt for the rest of the warranty period. Washing machine (out of warranty) was having a little trouble and Power Buy contacted one repairman for me and also gave me information for two others. First guy worked out fine, and Power Buy people followed up with me before, during, and after repair to make sure everything went fine.

Big C & Lotus

* Don't carry ovens, clothes dryers, or built-in hobs (both have the counter top burners available, but was looking for a little more than that).

[amsterdammer]

Niranut, thanks for reporting back with your findings.

Too commonly threads are started with a question raised, and a number of answers provided, but the true outcome is not explained.

You have provided some really useful info on availability and prices for appliances around your area.

I too will be seeking similar appliances and furnishings in the middle of next year. It is a dilemma as to whether to spend time in Bangkok where the choice is greater and arranging delivery / transport myself, or to source items locally within the central region with choice likely to be limited, but delivery and installations easier with the price trade-off unknown.

I imagine I'll start a similar thread nearer the time.

Again thanks.....

[Niranut]

No problem. Hope it will be helpful for others at some point. For us, just didn't have the budget or time to be going to BKK/Ayuttaya to track things down. But in the end, and after several chats with neighbors and shopkeepers, were able to track down most of what we were looking for locally, and learned a lot in the process!

[DEREK-C]

No problem. Hope it will be helpful for others at some point. For us, just didn't have the budget or time to be going to BKK/Ayuttaya to track things down. But in the end, and after several chats with neighbors and shopkeepers, were able to track down most of what we were looking for locally, and learned a lot in the process!

Hi, very informative. I also found that after searching around the best help came from local shopkeepers. For items one didn't specialise in he introduced me to another Thai and between them supplied everything I wanted, delivered it and gave good discounts.