Hill Rise House - Electrical Equipment

Do you have a generator?

We have a 16KvA diesel back-up generator installed in the gatehouse. It will supply both Main House and Guest Cottage in the event of a power failure.
It is semi-automatic which means that it it manually controlled.
In the event of a mains power failure, the generator can be switched on or off by using a single command switch in the Main House kitchen.
Emergency lights will help you find your way to the generator control switch in hours of darkness.
In the interests of minimising noise and air pollution, we decided against a fully automatic system in the hope that the generator will only be operating when essential for lighting, water or refrigeration. Most mains failures are short enough to maintain hot water tanks and fridges at reasonable temperatures without the use of the generator. Should mains power failures become persistent or lengthy, our staff may switch the water supply from pumped to mains pressure.

Are there telephone and fax?

We have a fixed line telephone in the Main House and a "pay-as-you-go" cell phone for the use of our guests. We no longer have a fixed line in the Guest Cottage, now that we have the cell phone. Our guests are requested to leave at least EC$30 credit on the cell phone to give the next guests some credit to start.
Be careful! International calls are very expensive! Get the overseas party to call you back whenever possible.
If you use the fixed line phone, we ask you pay for international call charges if they exceed US$10 in total. You will not be charged for local cell or fixed line calls.
Chargeable calls (inclusive of Government Tax) will be billed to guests within about 2 months of their departure. In nearly 20 years we have never had a visitor fail to settle a phone bill, so please do not let us down!
Fax is on the telephone line in the Main House. We ask our guests to leave the fax machine in "phone only" mode, unless they are expecting to receive a fax.
For sending faxes, please see the information above in respect of call charges.
If you expect to receive faxes, please keep an eye on amount of paper in the machine.

Is there a television?

We subscribe to a basic Cable TV package: International news, documentaries and Caribbean services.
No premium channels.
We do not have DVD equipment.

Is there a radio and CD player?

Yes, we have a portable Radio/CD player. You can plug our HiFi systen into it. This type of equipment (particularly the CD part) is prone to failure in our climate, so working order cannot be guaranteed.
If music is important, bring your own personal music player for use with the HiFi.
There is a small selection of CD's; it is best to bring your own favourites.

What do you have in the kitchens?

In each of the two kitchens:
Gas hob, oven and grill
Electric kettle
Toaster
Fridge with freezer compartment.
Additionally in the Main House kitchen:
An extra fridge/freezer is available in the adjacent housekeeping room.
Dishwasher
Ice maker
Microwave oven
Filter coffee machine
Juicer.

Do you have airconditioning or fans?

With cooling Caribbean breezes on our hill side, air conditioning is not necessary.
For still days and nights we have ceiling fans.

What about laundry equipment?

We have a laundry in the Gate House which is normally only used by our Housekeeper, Donna, who will launder anything that does not require special care. There is no formal charge although we hope you will give her a good tip if there is a lot of personal laundry.