Gas, water, electricity and phone
We connect you to all networks:
Gas, water, electricity and telephone - even in Sicily today, a house is connected to many networks. For northern Americans and Europeans, however, some of the technology is unfamiliar and the bureaucracy is Kafkaesque anyway.
Would you like to have as little to do with the organization of these things as possible? We understand that only too well. But a little background information makes perfect sense - so that you know what you are paying us for.
Gas
There are two gas supply options in Sicily - a connection to the municipal grid or liquid gas.
Liquid gas is usually available in the form of small steel cylinders (called "bombola"). If you only cook with gas, such a cylinder will last for months and makes you independent of the mains.
If you prefer communal care, we will be happy to help you with the organization.
Water
Apart from the big cities, there is no pressure on the municipal water network. This is why almost every house and apartment has a cistern on the roof or, more rarely, in the cellar.
There is water in the communal pipe about twice a week. The pump in your cistern "notices" this and fills it up.
Connecting to the municipal grid involves more or less bureaucracy. Of course, we are happy to take care of this for you.
Sewage
If you have a house in a city, it is of course connected to the municipal sewage network.
In Sicily, however, there is often no such network in the countryside. A septic tank (called "Imhoff tank") helps here. Sounds complicated and dirty, but it's simple and clean.
Whether it's a municipal connection or an Imhoff tank, we are at your side and will be happy to take care of the organization.
Electricity
Connecting to the electricity grid is quite simple in Sicily. The Italian energy company ENEL dominates here. It works very professionally and has been using digital meters since the end of the 1990s.
Important: The standard connection only offers an output of 3KW. You should at least "upgrade" it to 6KW.
We will gladly take care of the organization of the connection.
Photovoltaics
The war in Ukraine has also triggered a photovoltaic boom in Italy. And yet this technology would have made sense in sunny Sicily for many years. Unfortunately, it took a war to get the ball rolling.
Fortunately, there are now also recognized companies in Sicily that have specialized in the installation of solar systems.
We will be happy to put you in touch and of course help with the organization.
Cell phone
Italians are known for their affinity for cell phones. So it's no wonder that Italian Telecom is proud to announce 4G coverage of over 99% of the population by 2023.
Nevertheless, there are occasional "radio shadows" in Sicily caused by mountains or large rocks. So before you decide on a house, you should take a quick look at your cell phone.
By the way: You will need an Italian cell phone number to open an Italian bank account. We will be happy to arrange this for you.
Telephone (landline)
The cell phone network in Sicily is very well developed (at least 4G), but for a fast Internet connection you need a landline.
The Covid epidemic is also driving the expansion of fiber optics in Sicily. There are now package offers with a fiber optic connection and two SIM cards (4G, unlimited data volume) for around EUR 50 per month.
We will be happy to help you organize your connection.
Satellite
Would you like to watch English-language television in Sicily independently of the Internet?
No problem - the two satellites Astra (19.2°) and Hotbird (13°) cover Sicily. However, your dish should be significantly larger than 60cm.
But don't worry - the electricians in our network of tradesmen know what to do. We will be happy to help you with communication.
Mail from Sicily
No, you don't need carrier pigeons to get news from Sicily.
Today there are Newsletters and Facebook.
Both sources of information are completely free of charge and you can of course "switch them off" at any time.