Utilities

Canal in Venice

 

Electricity (ENEL):

The electrical service in Italy is 220 volt, 50 cycle, vice 110 volt and 60 cycle stateside. Any electrical item you bring from the States that is not capable of switching to 220 volt, 50 cycle, will require a transformer or converter to work. Transformers are larger devices than converters and are used to convert large loads, such as refrigerators, coffee pots, computers, televisions and stereos. Converters are used to transform voltage for small loads, such as electric razors or lamps. The government will provide you with two transformers when you move into your house if you are living on the economy. You will probably need more than two, transformers may be purchased at the NEX Country Store or on the secondary market.

Electrical outlets are also different in Italy. Most have round holes, vice our rectangular shaped slots. If you have an item that will convert from 110 volt to 220 volt, adapter plugs are available. Also, all lamps (except halogen or the touch type) may have their cords converted to the round plug, change the bulb to a European style, and they will work without transformers.

When you negotiate the contract on your house, the Housing Office will set up an appointment for the electric company (ENEL) to connect your electricity. ENEL sends bills every two months, and they tend to estimate the amount of your bill by what average American families use. Due to the use of transformers Americans tend to use a good amount of electricity. When you are not using a transformer it is wise to turn it off, as they continue to burn electricity even when the item plugged into them is turned off. It is a fact that if a transformer is plugged into a wall, and not turned off, it will run up you electric bill. We have replaced most of our appliances with 220 volt, except for some smaller kitchen appliances. Glen has installed a large transformer, with a switch, into the counter, so anytime I need 110 volt, it's right at my fingertips. I also had a horrible habit of forgetting to turn this transformer off, so he put in a night light, every time the transformer is on, the night light is too. Is he a smart guy or what? :-)

The Housing Office and many others here will tell you that the electric service is very expensive. Personally, I couldn't disagree more. We came from Virginia Beach, where in the height of summer and the dead of winter our electric bill was about $350.00 per month (ouch). Here we pay an average of about 200 Euro every two months.  We are a family of only two, the more family members the higher your bill will be. Also, our hot water is gas fired. Above I wrote that our bills are estimated, this is one reason (other than the transformers) that bills can be high. There is a system here where you can call in your meter reading on a bimonthly basis, just before the bill is generated, and you will pay for exactly what you use. You are not able to call in the meter reading until you receive your second bill, as you will need your account number, and the date that the next bill will be generated. ENEL is even nice enough to provide you with what they expect your meter to read at the next billing cycle, so you are able to determine if you are using more or less electricity than they project.   I highly recommend calling in your meter reading every other month, if your estimated bill is lower than the amount you are actually using, the "catch-up" bill can be HUGE.

As in the U.S. you will have to pay an initial installation charge that will be added to your first estimated bill. Normally I find that if new people follow my advice about the transformers the second bill will end up as a credit and there will be no amount due if the meter reading is called in prior to the next billing date found on your bill. The Housing Office will be happy to help you read your first electric bill, will provide you with the telephone number to call in your meter reading, and explain how to do it. If you are unable to get this information, e-mail me and I'll let you know how to do it.

Telephone (Telecom):

When you negotiate the contract on your house, the Housing Office will set up an appointment for the telephone company (Telcom) to connect your telephone service. Telcom also sends bills every two months. There will be an installation & hookup fee as well as a deposit, that will be returned when you disconnect. The deposit will show up on your first bill. When we arrived the installation fee was $150.00. Our average bill runs us about $30.00 per month, if I don't spend too much time on the Internet. Phone service is much different here than in the U.S. Every called is considered what we call long distance, or in other words, you pay for every call you make. You will be billed in units called scatti (plural). A scatto (singular) varies in cost depending on the time of day and where you are calling. If you are calling within your local dialing area the call will be very inexpensive, but you will pay for each call. It is important at all times, to keep track of how long you are on the phone, especially when using the Internet. Again, the time length of each scatto is based on time of day, and distance between you and the person you have called. 

 

When living in Government Quarters, you are provided with phone lines that are part of the base network maintained by NCTAMS.  After you are assigned housing you will need to go to the Billing office at the Support Site or to the office at Capodichino to have them activate your phone service. 

 

You will find that just about everyone has a cell phone in Italy, it is the simplest and often the most inexpensive way of keeping in touch.  Cell phone payment plans are very different in Europe.  You will usually pre-pay for the time you use on the phone.  Some of the things you will want to ask about and consider when choosing a provider is whether or not they offer reduced costs between cell phones with the same provider, text messaging features (SMS), and roaming charges.

 

Long Distance Telephone:

Restrictions on the use of Telecom Italia long distance service to the United States makes it imperative that you have either a "calling card" from a Stateside carrier, or a "Call Back Service."  Calling cards are readily available at the NEX.   A call back service is a company that handles your long distance and bills you directly on a separate account, using a credit card or checking account debit card. At the present time the call-back services offer a lower per minute rate than Stateside telephone credit cards. Stateside services "typical" rate is $1.04 per minute. At this time there are several call-back services available, Global Telecomm, Militel, Rapid Link, and World-Com. I know that as of this writing Rapid Link and Militel are charging 11.9 cents per minute between Naples and the U.S. We have used both Rapid Link and Militel and have found both to work very well. The only reason we switched companies was difficulty in reaching and getting satisfaction from customer service. One drawback to using a call-back service is that you can only call from your home. With a call-back service you will be given an individual telephone number that will belong to you alone, with some you call this number, let the phone ring twice, and hang up. In approximately 10 to 30 seconds the system will call you back, you will be asked to enter your "destination number."  With other services you dial a special number prior to the US number and are directly connected.