Bad luck vs the status quo

[trevorhiller]

Since setting up my tank I seem to have a terrible streak of bad luck. This is mostly me ranting, but I'm curious about your experiences.

1st coral order - seller took over a month to ship, all arrived DOA, seller gave me a partial refund.
2nd coral order - seller took 3 weeks to ship replacement DOA items, finally got some of the DOA corals replaced but the refund wasn't enough to replace them all.
1st invert order - Missing hermit crabs
1st fish order - Tomini tang died after 11 days for some unknown reason, Yellow watchman goby was DOA. Reputable QT seller replaces them.
2nd invert order - Missing a conch
2nd fish order - Tomini tang came in lying on its side, tried methylene blue bath and it died during acclimation process. Yellow watchman goby survived but now he keeps going down my overflow so I have to isolate him to an acclimation box until he gets bigger
3rd coral order - I placed a big (for me) $350 coral order... It shipped out by Top Shelf Aquatics quicker than expected, YAY! I finally thought my bad luck streak was over... Nope, Fedex delays... It was supposed to arrive today and has been sitting in Indiana for 24 hours... Of course top shelf aquatics has a DOA policy, but it says they don't cover Fedex weather or mechanical delays or shipping fees.

I could seriously scream right now, it seems like every step of the way with live stock something goes wrong. I look at these tanks with tons of fish, inverts and corals and it baffles me why every time I place an online order, something goes wrong with it.

I'm so frustrated after losing my second Tomini tang (it was supposed to be my centerpiece fish) and I placed this coral order as a graduation gift to myself and it's probably going to show up dead whenever it finally arrives...

Is it seriously this challenging to receive livestock all the time or do I have bad luck? Maybe I need to adjust my expectations and this is just how it is. Thanks for listening to my rant...

 

[Jay Hemdal]

I know this won't be a solution for you, but I stopped using overnight delivery services for delicate livestock, especially if shipping west to east. It is just too slow. If I do use it, I ship via priority so I get the shipment the first thing in the morning. I use air cargo, direct flights whenever I can. I can bring a shipment in from Narita Japan to DTW in about half the time than FedEx can get me a shipment from LA.

It's all about the box time. Over 30 hours box time is typical for FedEx shipments. Combine that with rough handling and poor temperature control, and it ends up being very stressful.

Jay

 

[exnisstech]

My experience has been the opposite. I have purchased many corals and fish online over the past several years. I had one DOA long tentacle anemone which I received a full refund for. Guess I'm lucky.

 

[Waters]

Do you have any LFS near you than can bring in requested fish? I would go that route......shipping anything right now is a total gamble IME.

 

[Jimmyneptune]

I agree. Buy local first. Is your reef new? You joined r2r 10 months ago. What kind of corals do you want? buy something like a green star polyp first.

 

[BaliReefBox]

I bought once and paid for xpress shipping seller ensured all would be ok and he had doen it before... everything was doa...i only buy local now

 

[Tuan’s Reef]

Sorry for the series of unfortunate occurrences. All equipment and livestock for my tank has been ordered online and arrived on time and alive. It does matter where you ordered it from. I only order from vendors I have experience with and takes pride in the animals they sell.

I live in North Dakota and there is only 1 LFS here . They don't have anything I want or would dare to bring home so online is my only option.

 

[LeftyReefer]

I think you have just been unlucky, sadly.

I've ordered a bunch of fish and a few coral orders online and for the most part, they have all gone smoothly. I only lost one coral order that sat at the FEDEX world hub for an extra couple days during a winter weekend storm.... it showed up several days late and completely dead. Vendor replaced the entire order about a month later without issue, They just asked that I wait a bit for some warmer weather before reshipping my order. They even threw in a freebie for the trouble, so I actually came out ahead in the end.

I've had ZERO fish show up DOA, but have had several that died while in QT, but I don't blame that on the vendor normally. I QT all my fish because I expect them to have some type of issue.

 

[trevorhiller]

Do you have any LFS near you than can bring in requested fish? I would go that route......shipping anything right now is a total gamble IME.

There is one about an hour away, unfortunately he mostly has soft/LPS corals. Very limited fish selection. I do have a petco, but they are also super limited and all the fish show signs of disease. Although I’m trying my hand at treating a flame hawk fish from there myself right now.

I agree. Buy local first. Is your reef new? You joined r2r 10 months ago. What kind of corals do you want? buy something like a green star polyp first.

I’ve got some softies and LPS currently from nearby hobbyist, but I’m looking for some beginner SPS. He doesn’t really do SPS so short of driving 3 hours, online is my only option.

Sorry for the series of unfortunate occurrences. All equipment and livestock for my tank has been ordered online and arrived on time and alive. It does matter where you ordered it from. I only order from vendors I have experience with and takes pride in the animals they sell.

I live in North Dakota and there is only 1 LFS here . They don't have anything I want or would dare to bring home so online is my only option.

I’m kind of in the same boat. I’ve only ordered from large/well known vendors after the nightmare order the first time I ordered corals, but my experience has been the same across the board.

 

[Waters]

There is one about an hour away, unfortunately he mostly has soft/LPS corals. Very limited fish selection. I do have a petco, but they are also super limited and all the fish show signs of disease. Although I’m trying my hand at treating a flame hawk fish from there myself right now.

I’ve got some softies and LPS currently from nearby hobbyist, but I’m looking for some beginner SPS. He doesn’t really do SPS so short of driving 3 hours, online is my only option.

I’m kind of in the same boat. I’ve only ordered from large/well known vendors after the nightmare order the first time I ordered corals, but my experience has been the same across the board.

It really isn't about what the LFS has in stock, but what they are willing to order for you at your request. Any good LFS will special order you whatever you want if they can get it. They they are responsible for bringing it in, acclimating it, and hopefully getting it to you in good shape.

 

[trevorhiller]

So my package from TSA arrived… I’m hoping this broke the bad luck streak. Despite the delay, everything looks ok and very little signs of stress. The colors look good and the polyps are out even after doing a Bayer dip. I’m pretty impressed!

They were VERY well packaged and I think that made all the difference.

 

[Tuan’s Reef]

Awesome. Maybe this is the break you've been looking for. I used to go to Top Shelf Aquatics weekly when i lived in Florida. They were my favorite vendor in Florida. Good dudes there.

 

[Pntbll687]

Since setting up my tank I seem to have a terrible streak of bad luck. This is mostly me ranting, but I'm curious about your experiences.

1st coral order - seller took over a month to ship, all arrived DOA, seller gave me a partial refund.
2nd coral order - seller took 3 weeks to ship replacement DOA items, finally got some of the DOA corals replaced but the refund wasn't enough to replace them all.
1st invert order - Missing hermit crabs
1st fish order - Tomini tang died after 11 days for some unknown reason, Yellow watchman goby was DOA. Reputable QT seller replaces them.
2nd invert order - Missing a conch
2nd fish order - Tomini tang came in lying on its side, tried methylene blue bath and it died during acclimation process. Yellow watchman goby survived but now he keeps going down my overflow so I have to isolate him to an acclimation box until he gets bigger
3rd coral order - I placed a big (for me) $350 coral order... It shipped out by Top Shelf Aquatics quicker than expected, YAY! I finally thought my bad luck streak was over... Nope, Fedex delays... It was supposed to arrive today and has been sitting in Indiana for 24 hours... Of course top shelf aquatics has a DOA policy, but it says they don't cover Fedex weather or mechanical delays or shipping fees.

I could seriously scream right now, it seems like every step of the way with live stock something goes wrong. I look at these tanks with tons of fish, inverts and corals and it baffles me why every time I place an online order, something goes wrong with it.

I'm so frustrated after losing my second Tomini tang (it was supposed to be my centerpiece fish) and I placed this coral order as a graduation gift to myself and it's probably going to show up dead whenever it finally arrives...

Is it seriously this challenging to receive livestock all the time or do I have bad luck? Maybe I need to adjust my expectations and this is just how it is. Thanks for listening to my rant...

Online can be tough.

If sellers aren't shipping out every Monday, stay away. WAY too many people getting scammed from people.

Are you in Williamsport PA?

 

[trevorhiller]

Online can be tough.

If sellers aren't shipping out every Monday, stay away. WAY too many people getting scammed from people.

Are you in Williamsport PA?

Yes I am

 

[Uncle99]

So my package from TSA arrived… I’m hoping this broke the bad luck streak. Despite the delay, everything looks ok and very little signs of stress. The colors look good and the polyps are out even after doing a Bayer dip. I’m pretty impressed!

They were VERY well packaged and I think that made all the difference.

Good seller, stick with that.

 

[trevorhiller]

Online can be tough.

If sellers aren't shipping out every Monday, stay away. WAY too many people getting scammed from people.

Are you in Williamsport PA?

That was my first experience. I bought from another seller online also located in PA. He’s got a YouTube channel and an online store.
He ended up going missing/wasn’t answering emails, then finally replied when I threatened to contact PayPal. Magically he answered me within 30 mins. It was cold at the time and he asked if I wanted him to ship regardless of weather. I said no, I just want some communication as to what’s going on with my month old order. He shipped the next day anyway and everything but a candy cane coral came in DOA. It ended up being a nightmare and basically told me they weren’t dead, then only replaced part of the order. Shotty packaging, shipping and communication.

After that I said I’m only dealing with LFSs or big name brands for a while.

 

[Pntbll687]

Yes I am

Go check out Covey's Coral Cove in Bloomsburg.

LOTS to choose from.

 

[Pntbll687]

That was my first experience. I bought from another seller online also located in PA. He’s got a YouTube channel and an online store.
He ended up going missing/wasn’t answering emails, then finally replied when I threatened to contact PayPal. Magically he answered me within 30 mins. It was cold at the time and he asked if I wanted him to ship regardless of weather. I said no, I just want some communication as to what’s going on with my month old order. He shipped the next day anyway and everything but a candy cane coral came in DOA. It ended up being a nightmare and basically told me they weren’t dead, then only replaced part of the order. Shotty packaging, shipping and communication.

After that I said I’m only dealing with LFSs or big name brands for a while.

That sucks. I rarely order online for these reasons

I'm out rt80 in White Haven. I come your way for work every couple of weeks. Here's some quick pics of what I got. PM me if you need anything

 

[kevgib67]

Sorry for your luck, I feel for you. I’ve ordered quite a bit from Tidal Gardens, in north east Ohio. They never disappoint. Phenomenal packaging and customer service. I know you won’t be disappointed. Good luck and I hope you have turned the corner.

 

[trevorhiller]

Sorry for your luck, I feel for you. I’ve ordered quite a bit from Tidal Gardens, in north east Ohio. They never disappoint. Phenomenal packaging and customer service. I know you won’t be disappointed. Good luck and I hope you have turned the corner.

Thank you friend, me too!

I think I am going to try them in the future too. Especially since they are so close to PA. I'm curious if the shipping would be more streamlined since the states are adjacent or if it would still go through a central hub-not sure how that process works. Every time I think I figure out the shipping system something weird like this happens.