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How easy is it to get fast broadband and good tv reception

Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2019 9:55pm
12 replies304 views4 members subscribed
DeDe

Posts: 2

Location: Cocentaina

Joined: 21 Feb 2019

Hello, we are looking to move to the Cocentaina area.  How easy is it to get broadband and good tv reception and how long will it take please? 

Also I am looking at country houses that seem to have been used mainly in the summer months.  Is it possible to get theses houses property insulated and heated to allow for your round occupation? 

Many thanks 

DeDe

Stephanie86

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 12:08pm

Stephanie86

Legendary helpful member

Posts: 2748

2065 helpful points

Location: Lliber

Joined: 4 May 2017

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 12:08pm

If it’s out in the country, usually your only option will be a satellite dish for TV and a smaller dish for broadband. We have both, with no problems and we are a long way out in the campo. You can then have FreeSat or if you are happy enough to pay for it, Sky. Both are technically illegal, but as everyone does it and has done since tie immemorial..............?!!

Insulating old country house retrospectively may be problematic; many of them are single skin walls, houses here, e specially older ones, are not built to deal with the cold. Yes, you can have heating installed. Many campo residents have those enormous gas tanks put in the garden and gas heating installed. As a contrast, our house has no gas and runs completely on electricity for everything, including ground floor hydronic underfloor heating. Surprisingly, it is not ruinously expensive, given that the price of utilities here is not cheap. But you would probably need to have the installed supply upgraded and certified to obtain a higher kw supply - most campo houses run on 3.75 kw, we have 5.75 which appears to be adequate to run everything. However, the heating for the hot water and for the heating, is effectively, 2 x separate external ‘heat exchangers’, which are extremely efficient, we have constant on-demand hot water. The cooling fan for the unit which runs the heating does make a noise when running, but hardly noticeable indoors; yes, in the winter, the bill goes up, but we’re not buying gas or lugging those horrible gas containers around and we don’t have to have lorries delivering.

Also, if looking at campo houses, check whether it’s mains water, or whether you have to have it delivered by tanker into a deposito. Also whether the septic tank complies with current regulations or whether its an old type pozo negro, which I understand have now been deemed unacceptable.

DeDe

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 12:47pm

DeDe

Original Poster

Posts: 2

Location: Cocentaina

Joined: 21 Feb 2019

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 12:47pm

Thank you so much, so much to think about! 

I know myself and I know I need to have a good standard of warmth and hot water etc in the winter to be happy. 

I my come back to you for more details in the future if that is okay? 

Best wishes Dionne 

Stephanie86

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 1:06pm

Stephanie86

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Posts: 2748

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Location: Lliber

Joined: 4 May 2017

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 1:06pm

Yes of corse, pm me if you like

Kr

Ste

The Sat and PC Guy

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 6:14pm

The Sat and PC Guy

Helpful member

Posts: 336

236 helpful points

Location: Javea / Xàbia

Joined: 14 Feb 2016

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 6:14pm

ADSL, or broadband, is internet via telephone lines. So how good or fast this is depends on many facts such as the quality of thetelephone cable, the distance from the house to the exchange, how many "slots" are available...so for this it really does dpeneds where in Concentaina you are.

Otherwise you have some other options for internet, from "wireless internet" from a local mast and local provider (there are at least two in the area but their names escape me!) (speeds andservice will vary, hence why it is cheaper than...), or 4g from a provider like Movistar (good, fast, but can be expensive compare to wireless, and assumes you are in a 4g area)

For UK TV, as long as you have the right sized dish (min 125x135cm), then all uk tv channels will be available in all but the heaviest of rains. You have the option of Freesat (just the free channels, bbc itv c4 five and 100 others), or Sky (Free and pay channels). 

If you want more information about UKTV via satellite, then please do not hesitate to contact me, 15+ years here, with many clients in the concentaina / alcoy area (was there twice this week!)

"You can then have FreeSat or if you are happy enough to pay for it, Sky. Both are technically illegal, " - nothing illegal, technically or otherwise about it...there are no laws against receiving TV signals from the UK or any other countries via satellite here in Spain (or any other EU country!)  If Spain did have laws to prevent watching signals from other countries, this would be against EU law anyway!!!

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Stephanie86

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 6:31pm

Stephanie86

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Location: Lliber

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Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 6:31pm

I apologise if I have unwittingly stated incorrect facts; I had always been given to understand that accessing signals from UK whilst officially non U.K. resident was not technically legal - hence why access to many channels online has been terminated?

The Sat and PC Guy

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 6:57pm

The Sat and PC Guy

Helpful member

Posts: 336

236 helpful points

Location: Javea / Xàbia

Joined: 14 Feb 2016

Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2019 6:57pm

Stephanie86 wrote on Fri Feb 22, 2019 6:31pm:

I apologise if I have unwittingly stated incorrect facts; I had always been given to understand that accessing signals from UK whilst officially non U.K. resident was not technically legal - hence why access to many channels online has been terminated?

Via satellite not illegal - as i mentioned. (although the use of a Sky UK card outside the UK is against the T&Cs of the contract, it is not illegal to use a card outside the uk in a domestic residence. use in a non uk commercial place is very different!)

Via internet not illegal, but the UK broadcasters geoblock using IP addresses to prevent "non UK" from access the service - due to rights contracts. Much easier for broadcasters to block internet signals, via IP blocking, then trying to stop satellite signals at a countries border.

There is a big difference in the broadcasters blocking content vs being "illegal" to receive by "jose publico"

Stephanie86

Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2019 9:58am

Stephanie86

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Posts: 2748

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Location: Lliber

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Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2019 9:58am

Thank you for the comprehensive explanation. Kr Step

Vanessa1

Posted: Tue Feb 26, 2019 3:18pm

Posts: 42

4 helpful points

Location: Cocentaina

Joined: 10 Sep 2018

Posted: Tue Feb 26, 2019 3:18pm

We have bought a finca at estation nord la font de la barona area 

There is a satalitedishon the house we can get Spanish tile but as we are not here full time are trying to find out our options for British tv Any advise please and cost of getting it 😄

The Sat and PC Guy

Posted: Tue Feb 26, 2019 4:20pm

The Sat and PC Guy

Helpful member

Posts: 336

236 helpful points

Location: Javea / Xàbia

Joined: 14 Feb 2016

Posted: Tue Feb 26, 2019 4:20pm

Vanessa1 wrote on Tue Feb 26, 2019 3:18pm:

We have bought a finca at estation nord la font de la barona area 

There is a satalitedishon the house we can get Spanish tile but as we are not here full time are trying to find out our options for British tv Any advise please and cost of getting it 😄

Hi,

If you want UK TV via satellite, then in the concentaina area you will need a dish of at least 110x120cm, with a 125x135cm dish being the recommended size. Anything less and you will not get decent stable signals.

A Freesat box will get all the subscription free UK TV channels. A Sky box, with a viewing card, will get all the free, and whichever sky pay channels you subscribe to.

Presumably you are getting spanish tv via a tv aerial? If so, then there are about 40 ish channels, some of which you can change the audio from dubbed spanish to english. Or if you are getting your spanish TV via a satellite dish, and movistar, then a) the dish is too small for uk tv, b) the dish is not aligned to the uk tv satellites, and c) your movistar box may not work with UK TV (although again you can change from the dubbed spanish to original english audio on many channels)

If you want more information, drop me a PM, or via the website www.satandpcguy.com

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