Should you buy from sellers on REEF2REEF

[Reef By Steele]

Wow so many selling threads for anything and everything you could want or need for your aquarium, all bundled up in one forum! That is really great, but should we buy from here, can we trust them, or should I only buy from the big name stores.

Being a sponsor ourselves, you can take what I have to say or leave it. I am going to just give my thoughts and experiences as a fellow reefer. I joined Reef2Reef in May of 2022 under my personal account @HankstankXXL750 after using the forum for information as it seems to come up regardless of what reefing question I asked google. So I joined and then became a supporting member to help ensure the forum stays alive, then became a partner member on the last drive and again this year. This forum IMHO is awesome.

I have purchased corals from several members on the site, and I have received what I requested and they have been packaged and in good shape every time. Now that may not always be the case, but one thing I like is that R2R requires sellers to use buyer protected payment options like PayPal and Venmo (yep had to ask my kids how to get signed up). This allows you to shop with confidence as you are able to dispute if you receive a bad deal.

Then there are the sponsors. Why should we shop from them. Personally I have discovered new companies that I didn’t know and have bought from them since they support the site. I now try to do my business with sites and stores that are sponsors of Reef2Reef as I really appreciate having R2R and its vast multitude of answers to my many questions.

I have been both of the above, and we are currently a sponsor, which we are proud and pleased to be. I started out selling a very small amount of copepods and phytoplankton, and with time it was suggested that I should try being a sponsor. If you have followed us at all, you will know that I had a surgery and my wife @Ocean_Queenie stepped in to help keep our business going during my recovery, and now has also become a community member. We are so grateful to all of our customers who have helped us to launch this new venture. I have always been amazed on this forum, maybe it’s just that we are all reefers with a common love but I really see people helping others and very little of the bickering and drama that we see everywhere else on the internet. So many have reached out to see how I was doing which just makes us feel like family instead of a vendor.

As we come into this busy shopping season I would encourage everyone who loves this forum as much as we do, to reach out and support the many and various sponsors. I believe this will ensure that Reef2Reef will remain the (IMO) best saltwater/reefing forum, and continue as a community to answer questions and support each other.

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[banger32]

I think so. I have made purchases off this site a few times from vendors and fellow reefers and never ran into a issue. This is always my first go to when looking for items or just to learn something new that others have gone through already. I love this site and all the honest and helpful people/sellers on here.

 

[KrisReef]

I have bought from you and other Reef2Reef sponsors and also from private people on here and have not had anything to complain about and lots to be happy for. Thanks for the food, my fish and corals enjoyed it.

So I guess that's a "Yes" from me. I agree that keeping our spending inside of this community, when we can, is the best thing for the benefit of all in the long run.

On the other hand, I have dyslexia and I am losing my hearing which means that I see things funny and hear a lot of stuff that is totaly wrong some times. All that latter to say, give your spouce; Ocean_weenie (sic) a big hug and tell her thanks for confusing my eyes and making me do a double take on her screen name. I hope she won't be angry with me for admitting my mistake.

RiskKeef, I'll try to unsee it.

 

[Nano_Man]

Yep good for people over the pond . Plenty of people selling equipment. Just make sure of safe payment methods like anything you buy day to day . But r2r is a great forum for everyone to enjoy

 

[Gumbies R Us]

I think it is great people can buy from others on here. I just always say make sure the person you buy from is legit and take precautions to making sure you don't get scammed.

 

[Ocean_Queenie]

I have bought from you and other Reef2Reef sponsors and also from private people on here and have not had anything to complain about and lots to be happy for. Thanks for the food, my fish and corals enjoyed it.

So I guess that's a "Yes" from me. I agree that keeping our spending inside of this community, when we can, is the best thing for the benefit of all in the long run.

On the other hand, I have dyslexia and I am losing my hearing which means that I see things funny and hear a lot of stuff that is totaly wrong some times. All that latter to say, give your spouce; Ocean_weenie (sic) a big hug and tell her thanks for confusing my eyes and making me do a double take on her screen name. I hope she won't be angry with me for admitting my mistake.

RiskKeef, I'll try to unsee it.

That’s funny lol actually Queenie is my favorite fish

 

[Reef By Steele]

I have bought from you and other Reef2Reef sponsors and also from private people on here and have not had anything to complain about and lots to be happy for. Thanks for the food, my fish and corals enjoyed it.

So I guess that's a "Yes" from me. I agree that keeping our spending inside of this community, when we can, is the best thing for the benefit of all in the long run.

On the other hand, I have dyslexia and I am losing my hearing which means that I see things funny and hear a lot of stuff that is totaly wrong some times. All that latter to say, give your spouce; Ocean_weenie (sic) a big hug and tell her thanks for confusing my eyes and making me do a double take on her screen name. I hope she won't be angry with me for admitting my mistake.

RiskKeef, I'll try to unsee it.

Actually I’m the big weenie. It will date me, but I walk around singing “Oooooh I wish I was an Oscar Meyer WIENER!!”

 

[Reef By Steele]

Yep good for people over the pond . Plenty of people selling equipment. Just make sure of safe payment methods like anything you buy day to day . But r2r is a great forum for everyone to enjoy

That is one thing a totally love about R2R. I was talking with a member from Berlin yesterday. I have golfed all my life, yet haven’t had conversations with golfers from around the world unless they were playing with me. But here I have spoken with people from Bangkok, Berlin, Australia, UK and so many other places. Maybe the rest of the world need to get into reefing so everyone can get along. Thanks for replying.

 

[Nano_Man]

One big family at r2r

 

[Ocean_Queenie]

Actually I’m the big weenie. It will date me, but I walk around singing “Oooooh I wish I was an Oscar Meyer WIENER!!”

True story lol

 

[PapaFishRocks]

Bought a whole plethora of Apex stuff and Hannah checkers from numerous sellers here. Never had a problem.

 

[DarkReefer]

I'd consider it but the buy & sell section here is basically redundant for someone like me who doesn't live in the US.
For Aussies I think we have better chances using FB Marketplace or Gumtree (local online classifieds).

 

[Reef By Steele]

I'd consider it but the buy & sell section here is basically redundant for someone like me who doesn't live in the US.
For Aussies I think we have better chances using FB Marketplace or Gumtree (local online classifieds).

That’s too bad. Maybe some fellow Aussies will see this and set up shop. I always love seeing posts and hearing from people all over the world on R2R.