The complete guide to purchasing electrical products

Passover is considered the holiday of renewal and many people buy new electrical products on it, but the war and the economic difficulties combined with price increases made the task particularly challenging. How will we purchase the best and most economical products at the most affordable prices? What should be checked before buying a new device? What is important to ask when buying?

How to check its suitability for the size of the house and needs? What are the product features and accompanying accessories that should not be missed? And why is it so important to check the validity of the product, the warranty, the design, the instructions for use and the conditions of transport? Everything you need to know to buy the product that suits you best. Understand your needs: Your needs are also very important when you come to purchase an electrical device.

A large family has different needs than a young couple or a person living alone. Therefore, check the capacity of the device: when it comes to a refrigerator, check the size of its volume and whether it is enough for you. In addition, ask yourself whether it is worth buying a refrigerator with a dedicated opening for soft drinks, which is used for additional and efficient storage of bottles, but is a considerable energy guzzler. B

The washing machine, check the amount of weight that goes into the machine. When buying a dishwasher, check whether you need a large device that can hold many dishes, or whether you can be satisfied with a device with a smaller volume.

Tip: When it comes to a dryer, pay attention when it comes to unusual conditions - when it is not possible to remove the ventilation pipe of the dryer from the window, it is recommended to look for a dryer that includes a condenser. Choose the device that best suits the needs of the household: it is important to examine and come to a decision, which device is the most suitable for the needs of the members of the household. For example, do you need a refrigerator with a kiosk, or is the emphasis on a device with a freezer compartment that turns into a refrigerator, and of which brand. In this context, it is important to try to find the cost-benefit ratio of the product. In other words, how much does it cost to bring the name of an expensive brand into the house, compared to a cheap brand produced by the same manufacturing company.

Tip: Before you go to the store, measure the place where you plan to place the device, and make sure you purchase a device of the appropriate size. Sometimes even a deviation of a few centimeters can make a negative change in the visibility or use of the product. Check the product features: Many consumers are not aware that the product features can indicate its quality and durability.

For example, an important feature of a product is its energy rating. The rating actually defines its ability to work while correctly utilizing energy, thus leading to electricity savings. It is recommended to purchase a device whose energy rating is A, which signifies a greener and more economical device. The letter G symbolizes a device that consumes a large amount of electricity. Tip: Ask for an explanation of how to use it - sometimes the initial activation can be cumbersome and take a long time. That is why it is important already at the time of purchase to demand a detailed explanation of how to operate the device. 

Compare prices: on the Internet there are various websites for price comparisons of electrical products. Therefore, before you arrive at the store, it is recommended to make a short list of the models you wish to purchase. Write down the brand name, the type of model and the price, and that way you can arrive at the store ready with a budget that you know you can pay and not exceed.

The price comparison can give an excellent indication of the acceptable price range for the same model and brand. If you are gifted with bargaining power, try it. Often this can yield an additional discount, especially if you bought several products from the same store. Tip: When a particularly cheap price appears on the website, and you intend to purchase the product through that store, call first to verify that the device is indeed available and at the price shown on the website.Sometimes these stores provide false information so that you arrive at the store, and finally discover that the product is not in stock. The most sophisticated or the most unnecessary? Advanced features and new refinements should justify the high price, but this is not always the case. Ask yourself do you need all these upgrades? Sometimes the innovations also depend on additional and unnecessary equipment.

Try to avoid getting carried away by the sellers' confusing descriptions.

Tip: Most of you will not take advantage of the innovations that exist in the device at all, and will be content with excellent intermediate models of the same companies, at lower prices. Make sure what the warranty certificate includes: a warranty certificate insures the device for a certain period and it varies from brand to brand.When you purchase a new electrical appliance, make sure that it comes with a warranty of at least one year, and check what exactly the warranty covers. In some cases, you will be offered an additional payment for insurance that covers more. Ask for a clear clarification about the fine print, and decide accordingly whether it's worth it to you to add a fee.

Make sure that you purchase the product from a recognized and authorized dealer for that brand, to ensure that if there is indeed a malfunction in the device, you can repair it within the terms of the warranty. Tip: It is recommended to verify in advance the phone number and the method of contacting the company, for the purpose of exercising the warranty and ordering a technician if necessary. Choose the product design: In the past, electrical products focused mainly on performance capabilities. Today, product design and style is almost as important as its quality. Color, size and style are elements that create harmony in the home. Tip: Purchase products in a shade that matches the rest of the household items.

Coordinate the transport before the payment date: sometimes, the way the product is transported can ruin the shopping experience. In most cases, the coordination and transport of the product is done through an external company. That is why it is important to close this issue with the seller before the payment date.

Ask the seller for all the details about the transport, the method of payment, and whether an additional payment is necessary if the house has stairs. In addition, ask the seller to coordinate the delivery date with the external company, before paying for the product, which can save a lot of heartache and unnecessary nerves. Tip: Remember that besides transporting the product, you are legally entitled to the removal of the old product for free.

Check where the electrical appliance comes from: it is very important to check who the "father" of the appliance is - that is, the official importer in Israel, who is the "mother" of the appliance - that is, the service provider in Israel, and what is the country of its manufacture. Also, check what the device's extended warranty includes (read all the fine print carefully), and make sure that the product is still manufactured, and that the factory that manufactures it still exists. Tip: It is important to be aware that there may be new products circulating in the market from bankrupt manufacturers, which are sold by the various stores. Therefore, it is necessary to verify in advance whether the warranty provider is a registered and official supplier of the product.

Do not buy from unknown companies: in electrical appliances such as air conditioners, for example, one of the main considerations in buying a device from one or another company should be whether it is a well-known and well-known company that has been in the market for a long time. To make sure that in the event of a malfunction, there will be spare parts for the air conditioner for many years.

Tip: Before buying the air conditioner, it is important that a qualified installer determines what size air conditioner power (horsepower) is suitable for the area that it is supposed to cool or heat. The writer is the service manager of Marom - the service company for electrical products.