Ramstein

[USAF Diver]

Thanks for all of the info. Anyway the TV is mainly for my wife. I watch very little TV except for NFL football (the only sport I follow) and some SCIFI channel. Is it true that the base will issue me a couple transformers that convert 220 Volts to 110 V? That would be great if I could use my existing electronics over there.

 

[Marek K]

Is it true that the base will issue me a couple transformers that convert 220 Volts to 110 V? That would be great if I could use my existing electronics over there.

I hate transformers.

Have I mentioned I hate transformers? They're dangerous -- and the bigger they are, the more dangerous. Heat-wise.

I have no idea whether you'll get issued any, but you'll be able to buy them at the PX/BX. Small ones are pretty cheap, but the bigger ones that can handle more watts get expensive fast.

What kind of electronics are you thinking about? Because besides voltage, you have to worry about like TV standards.

Microwaves suck up so much wattage, that it's pretty much a bad idea to hope to use them on a transformer. Probably plan on buying a 230v one there -- they don't come multi-voltage, either.

Most other kitchen appliances are cheap enough that you can just buy them there too -- you don't want a snake's nest of transformers in your kitchen. Ditto alarm-clock radio and such.

After all our years in Europe, almost everything we've got here is 230v or multi-voltage. And multi-system, if applicable. Just about the only thing we have a transformer for is my wife's old Kenmore sewing machine -- used only occasionally.

Used to be, in the days of analog clocks, U.S. ones wouldn't work right even on a transformer because of the 50-Hz current. But I don't think that's a problem with digitals.

--Marek

 

[Tom Smedley]

I just sent a note to Jennifer asking if the Mantas branch in Kaiserslautern is still in operation. The MWR folks there can put you in touch with a local dive club.

In theory you can be issued furniture and transformers but it is always a gamble if there is any available to go around. Transformers are not expensive though and there are always some for sale from folks leaving. You should start acquiring appliances such as hair dryers, battery chargers, and stuff like that which are rated for multivoltage 50/60 hz. Lots of stereo equipment has a dual voltage setting. It is best to buy a microwave there because the wattage and timer and klystron frequency is off on 50 hz current.

I don't know about availability of government housing since the draw down but there are several housing areas in K'Town. The first thing that you will want to do is take the orientation and test for your USAEUR Drivers License. Even before your car gets there you can rent on a long term basis and have a way to get around.

Ramstein itself is like a city. What is your specialty and where will you be working??

 

[USAF Diver]

The only things I would be putting on a transformer are my TV and DVD player, my computer and possibly my stereo equipment. That is all stuff I would rather not purchase a second time. The other things I'm planning on buying there like microwave and clocks and stuff like that.

My specialty is 9S100. I'll be working at AFTAC Detachment 319 in Vogelweigh (I bet I spelled that wrong)

 

[Tom Smedley]

Vogelweh is a nice community that is actually a good piece from Ramstein Proper but is much closer to the city of Kaiserslautern. The TV doesn't draw much current and the DVD player probably will be OK too. The FM radio in your car will tune to the Armed Forces Station but US radios tune in increments of 500 kHz and the European stations broadcast on 250 Khz increments. On some radios there is a way to switch. You'll have to Google that one. The German television standard is PAL rather than NTSC for television. I bought a small TV to watch local programs like Tutti Frutti - you'll like that one.

You are in a unique area where you can get up on a Saturday morning and drive to France or Luxembourg for lunch. Amsterdam is only five hours by car and Paris 4 hours by train. I never dared driving to Paris.

Go forth with your new adventure and keep us posted.

 

[Marek K]

The only things I would be putting on a transformer are my TV and DVD player, my computer and possibly my stereo equipment.

Computer and monitor should be OK... almost all CPUs marketed in the U.S. in the last decade or so have a switchable power supply. Check the back, and see. Just make damn sure you have the switch set to 220 before you plug it in the first time over there. Want to know how I know? (Actually it was a German computer shop that installed a power supply that I'd ordered from the States, without checking the switch... *poof*... they obviously bought me a new power supply, processor, and motherboard... slapping themselves on the forehead the whole time...)

You may want to buy a European power cord there, though... I hate plug adapters too (wobbly connections); plus they don't normally allow for grounding.

Get a good European surge protector!!! U.S. ones won't work.

And your monitor should be autovoltage... check for 115~230v on the back, or something similar.

Tom Smedley's right about getting your USAREUR driver's license first thing. It'll allow you to rent a car if you need to, while you're waiting for your own (are you shipping?).

Though I seem to remember that rule had change, as of the late 1990's... I was there as a DoD civilian then, and seem to remember that I could rent a car (German plates) right away even before I had a USAREUR license.

Though you won't be able to pick up your car, which needs USAREUR plates on it right away, without a USAREUR license.

--Marek

 

[colt]

I heard they have some great dive sites in Hohenfels, and Graf! Just kidding, I was stationed in Vicenza Italy for 2+ years and they used to do their OW cert in lake Garda. Guys in my unit that dove there said it was pretty nice.

 

[Tom Smedley]

Actually there is a wonderful lake near Darmstadt and two in the Karlsruhe area. We did most of our training in Linkenheimer See. The Med is a short drive by comparison. I have heard that the Rhine River has some great drift dives above Basel and I always wanted to do the lakes on top of the San Gottardo Pass. Then of course there's the Starnburger See where you might find Ludwig's ghost. I found a bottle of some sort of truth serum (imagination) when I dove there. The Red Sea area is much like a flight to the Caribbean from Atlanta. Adventures of all sorts await.

 

[garfieldshome]

DSL is no problem and no, you don't get issued transformers there. and your tv probably won't work because of PAL/NTSC issues. we just moved back to the states in january.