Neptune Apex & the worst customer service/experience of all time..

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andrewkg

andrewkg

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I have been pretty happy with my various apex products (up to 18 modules now .... is there a therapy group I wonder). My experiences with their customer service have been acceptable. Odd that they would require a deposit .... usually it’s just a CC hold that never progresses to an actual charge if the defective unit is replaced. Seem to recall that’s what happened with my WAV.

Getting started with apex can be a hair pulllng experience. Good news is there are a lot of experts both here on R2R and elsewhere.
Great resources here, always helpful. Unit was defective out of the box - required deposit not hold. Wake up call if anything. I’m whole now and the unit mostly works (outside salinity still buggy). Just a surprising experience so figured I would share. Hopefully others in the future have a better experience than I did
 

DarthSimon

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The Deposit is there to protect them. The fact that they haven't issued the refund doesn't make sense. Have you gotten someone on the phone and asked where the refund is???
 

gentlefish

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As for myself, their approach to customer service is not acceptable. They are aware we can not run our reefs without their equipment and take advantage of us. I complained of a noisy EB fan out of the box. Opened a ticket, answered all of their questions... no feedback whatshowever. Got totally ignored. Want some advise?
Keep a deposit, send me a loaner unit, repair my unit, exchange back. I would not mind if they kept my credit card till resolved , but their approach is ridiculous.
 

zalick

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I've had nothing but great customer service experiences as well. Sorry you had such issues.

I've been using Apex for around 7 years and spoken with them on the phone multiple times. Its a very small tech team and they were really nice and truly want to help you.
Honestly, the Salinity probes are a common issue with the Apex. Ask almost any owner of one and they will tell you they don't even remotely trust it and use it more as a guideline than anything else. Unfortunately salinity probes are usually difficult ones given there nature and how they read salinity.
Same here. Mine is currently reading 45 I think. I just use it to see any trend up or down. I use a handheld Hanna to verify every once in awhile.
I think the deposit thing is more to get you a functional unit quicker vs. You shipping to them, them recieving it and testing it to confirm it's defective, then shipping one back out to you. Judging by there slow refund you would probably be out of a new head unit for a couple months going the other direction.
Agreed. This is exactly what they told me the one time I had an issue. They are shipping out a product to the customer, on the customer's word, so they are now out two units. They do this so you can get the new unit ASAP and have minimal downtime. The one time I had an issue with the main control module they gave me the option of the deposit/refund or I could simply send my unit back and when received they would then ship the new unit. I chose the deposit.
 

gentlefish

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I've had nothing but great customer service experiences as well. Sorry you had such issues.

I've been using Apex for around 7 years and spoken with them on the phone multiple times. Its a very small tech team and they were really nice and truly want to help you.

Same here. Mine is currently reading 45 I think. I just use it to see any trend up or down. I use a handheld Hanna to verify every once in awhile.

Agreed. This is exactly what they told me the one time I had an issue. They are shipping out a product to the customer, on the customer's word, so they are now out two units. They do this so you can get the new unit ASAP and have minimal downtime. The one time I had an issue with the main control module they gave me the option of the deposit/refund or I could simply send my unit back and when received they would then ship the new unit. I chose the deposit.
That would be the right way. Courious they did not offer this to me...
 
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They are aware we can not run our reefs without their equipment and take advantage of us.

Are you able to separate your dislike from facts? A controller, regardless of brand, is not a necessary item to run a reef. I cannot speak for a proper ratio of those who have or have not but there are many people who do not run them (a controller) for many reasons. One being the complicate things and some people like to keep it simple.

To the OP regarding the deposit. I'm not sure I understand your complaint other than refunding it or the possible question around a hold vs. a charge. All well and good but as already pointed there is a reason. Unfortunately people being people companies of all types have been taken advantage of by people not sending back the unit. Agree or disagree but it is to our advantage that they do this so they don't return the loss to our price in the end. I've had both holds and deposits placed when I've had to return high ticket or cost items be it $450 bucks or $8,000.

From reading through the thread sounds like it worked out in the end. Hope you find some enjoyment in the product. It is good. If you do choose to flee then there are other brands already mentioned with an appropriate fan base that may be worth your looking at.
 

Ryan Turner

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my apex salinity has never been correct. Customer support said "dont rely on it, it wont ever stay accurate" I have calibrated it atleast 10 times, wtih the probes in different chambers of my refugium since I was told my heater was the issue. I also bought a trident with it. I had a power outage that sent my apex into a loop mode. I had to send in a 6mo old perfect unit to get fixed. I paid the deposit and got back a unit with sharpie on it that was way more used than the brand new one I sent in. I got my replacement and luckily my deposit back. Since it was a power outage that caused it, the trident didnt get shut down correctly. So after getting my new apex, I now have to send in my trident that wont prime the sample line since it didnt get shutdown correctly since the apex was unresponsive. Im selling both of them as soon as I can get both in working order enough to sell. There has to be a solution that works correctly.
 

zalick

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my apex salinity has never been correct. Customer support said "dont rely on it, it wont ever stay accurate" I have calibrated it atleast 10 times, wtih the probes in different chambers of my refugium since I was told my heater was the issue. I also bought a trident with it. I had a power outage that sent my apex into a loop mode. I had to send in a 6mo old perfect unit to get fixed. I paid the deposit and got back a unit with sharpie on it that was way more used than the brand new one I sent in. I got my replacement and luckily my deposit back. Since it was a power outage that caused it, the trident didnt get shut down correctly. So after getting my new apex, I now have to send in my trident that wont prime the sample line since it didnt get shutdown correctly since the apex was unresponsive. Im selling both of them as soon as I can get both in working order enough to sell. There has to be a solution that works correctly.

The best and easiest solution I ever had, and with the most success, was an industrial grade temp controller for the heaters (Ranco I think) and a mechanical timer for my MH/T5 lights. Never needed to monitor or graph anything else.

Seems like these controllers are a solution looking for a problem! And I do love my controllers and graphs and gadgets....
 

Ryan Turner

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I agree. I have a nice temp controller and a kessil controller for my 360's The only reason I was using the apex was so I could leave town and turn stuff off if things got wild. Really though all my stuff has its own controllers.
 

Ryan Avery

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I’ve had only great experiences with Neptune customer service. Also, my apex has worked flawlessly since the day I plugged it in, not to mention it has saved my reef from my own mistakes.
 

SuncrestReef

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my apex salinity has never been correct. Customer support said "dont rely on it, it wont ever stay accurate" I have calibrated it atleast 10 times, wtih the probes in different chambers of my refugium since I was told my heater was the issue.
Have you tried the method I explained in reply #7 above in this thread for your salinity probe?
 

Ryan Turner

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I have done it very similar to your way. Making sure all the bubbles are out and I even let the calibration solution match the temp of the water the probe is in. I have calibrated it with Neptune on the phone and them logged into my apex to make sure. then when its off a week later I contacted them again and that's when I got the "don't expect it to be correct". I do have a white hanna meter that is always accurate to test against though so I can see how far off the apex is. My apex reads about 1.5 high on salinity. even with the offset set to 2.1 or 2.2. Its a nice system, I just dont like how the sensors are implemented and values checked. They use a really nice salinity sensor, I just dont think they coded it in a way to use that resolution. I would be curious to hook that sensor up to a PI and see what protocol its using and what the raw data shows from the sensor. Even if the Apex doesnt work up to standard, it does allow you to check basic parameters and shut stuff down if needed. That in its self is worth alot to someone that is away from the house often. I see it as a remote access tool vs something that is going to improve my tank and help it succeed.
 

ca1ore

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As for myself, their approach to customer service is not acceptable. They are aware we can not run our reefs without their equipment and take advantage of us.

At the risk of appearing ‘mean’ .... if folks believe that one cannot run a reef tank without Neptune Systems then perhaps they deserve to be taken advantage of. I’m nothing particularly special as a refer, yet managed to muddle my way through 25 years of reefing without the sublime requirement for apex, vortech or <the piece of equipment you cannot have a reef tank without>? I think over reliance on tech has left too many novice reefers without the skills to deal with the tank problems that will invariably arise. Perhaps that is why the median time in this hobby is so short.
 
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gentlefish

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At the risk of appearing ‘mean’ .... if folks believe that one cannot run a reef tank without Neptune Systems then perhaps they deserve to be taken advantage of. I’m nothing particularly special as a refer, yet managed to muddle my way through 25 years of reefing without the sublime requirement for apex, vortech or <the piece of equipment you cannot have a reef tank without>? I think over reliance on tech has left too many novice reefers without the skills to deal with the tank problems that will invariably arise. Perhaps that is why the median time in this hobby is so short.
Have been a good fish keeper for 40 years. I try to provide the best care for my fish and do have 2 Apex and 2 Tridents. Functioning, they provide more stable parameters. So yes I like to product, and I would be worse of with going back into manual dosing. But no, their customer service let me down hard.
 
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andrewkg

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Are you able to separate your dislike from facts? A controller, regardless of brand, is not a necessary item to run a reef. I cannot speak for a proper ratio of those who have or have not but there are many people who do not run them (a controller) for many reasons. One being the complicate things and some people like to keep it simple.

To the OP regarding the deposit. I'm not sure I understand your complaint other than refunding it or the possible question around a hold vs. a charge. All well and good but as already pointed there is a reason. Unfortunately people being people companies of all types have been taken advantage of by people not sending back the unit. Agree or disagree but it is to our advantage that they do this so they don't return the loss to our price in the end. I've had both holds and deposits placed when I've had to return high ticket or cost items be it $450 bucks or $8,000.

From reading through the thread sounds like it worked out in the end. Hope you find some enjoyment in the product. It is good. If you do choose to flee then there are other brands already mentioned with an appropriate fan base that may be worth your looking at.
My complaint was poor customer service and a frustrating process dealing w/ them. They sold me a defective unit out of the box, and it was at my expense of several hours (5+) wasted to receive a working unit. They then withheld my deposit for an unreasonable amount of time after they received my unit back, until I once again had to waste more of my time chasing and now received my deposit back.. just not a great way to treat customers left a bad taste. It’s not a matter of money its a matter of principle. Just bad business
 

Arif

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I'm having trouble with customer service, the worst experience so far. I have invested thousands of dollars into neptune products and some are crapping out, a few within the year warranty and some out. It took me approximately a week to get in contact, someone finally called me back told me they weren't tech support and someone will call me within 30 minutes. No one called and I received an email from the same guy who told me he wasn't tech. I did everything in the tutorials and still no use. I purchased an additional energy bar which fixed 1 problem but nothing else. Customer service is very delayed with returning emails, they are very representative with docs. Anyone else go through this? Is there anyway I can get them on the phone?
 

areefer01

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I'm having trouble with customer service, the worst experience so far. I have invested thousands of dollars into neptune products and some are crapping out, a few within the year warranty and some out. It took me approximately a week to get in contact, someone finally called me back told me they weren't tech support and someone will call me within 30 minutes. No one called and I received an email from the same guy who told me he wasn't tech. I did everything in the tutorials and still no use. I purchased an additional energy bar which fixed 1 problem but nothing else. Customer service is very delayed with returning emails, they are very representative with docs. Anyone else go through this? Is there anyway I can get them on the phone?

Nope. I contacted support prior to Thanksgiving regarding an older ATO sensor that may have went bad. Submitted the ticket in the morning. Mid afternoon, same day, I received a email asking for a photo of the back sensor. I replied back with a better photo, received an email back saying it was old (2 years to be exact) and they made some changes. Offered me a replacement at a discount and I had a new one within a couple days.
 

Arif

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Nope. I contacted support prior to Thanksgiving regarding an older ATO sensor that may have went bad. Submitted the ticket in the morning. Mid afternoon, same day, I received a email asking for a photo of the back sensor. I replied back with a better photo, received an email back saying it was old (2 years to be exact) and they made some changes. Offered me a replacement at a discount and I had a new one within a couple days.
I wish, you're definitely lucky. My trident crapped out I tried everything, it was less than a year when i originally contacted on the 18th. Also I have 2 Wavs that burnt out my 1link ports on 2 energy bars according to neptune. I went and purchased another energy bar, but the trident and wavs don't work.
 

Itsander

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Well this is me another angry costumer with this company , they have a telephone number for nothing , they just don't answer, just bought a new trident and doesn't work I've been trying to contact them by the number they have on their page and NADAAAAA, very, very disappointed , heading to a new company that can read same or close to those parameters let me know guys if you know of anything.
 

areefer01

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Well this is me another angry costumer with this company , they have a telephone number for nothing , they just don't answer, just bought a new trident and doesn't work I've been trying to contact them by the number they have on their page and NADAAAAA, very, very disappointed , heading to a new company that can read same or close to those parameters let me know guys if you know of anything.

What do you have against creating a case via the portal?
 

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