USPS Problem

aaronlp · Feb 12, 2013

I just shipped out a box with 5 corals in them sps...a few minutes ago tonight i revieved a call from the usps saying the box was leaking water...what should i do i double bagged everything put foam peanuts in the box and foam walls....should i take this up with the post office to get my money for shipping back or what pleae help?!?

spspirate · Feb 12, 2013

From were you shipped? Can you some how go and pick it up and reship it tomorrow?

cultivatedcoral · Feb 12, 2013

Get the box back ASAP to save the corals. Hopefully there is still water in the bags in the morning. If they survived give them a week or so to de-stress. Then ship again but don't use USPS and Triple bag them and then put them all in another large bag to avoid leaks.

aaronlp · Feb 12, 2013

Syracuse ny i dont think i can go pick it up...it sin transit or on its way to be delived to nh...would i be able to get my money back from the usps. I dont want the guy to be mad beacuse ofthe stuff dieing from the bag popping due to the usps not handleing the box properly

cultivatedcoral · Feb 12, 2013

Doubt you will get your money back. It is your fault that it is leaking, technically speaking. Chalk it up to a learning experience. Welcome to the wonderful and expensive world of coral shipping.

aaronlp · Feb 12, 2013

ugh well i will never ship with them again...even if it is my fault who knows how they handled the box

cultivatedcoral · Feb 12, 2013

True. USPS stinks but double bagging does not cut it. As a matter of fact they are all fairly bad at handling.

aaronlp said:
ugh well i will never ship with them again...even if it is my fault who knows how they handled the box

rng_pw · Feb 12, 2013

I always double bagged with 4 mil bags. I would also use a rubber band to attach the frag to a piece of Styrofoam so that it would float upside down. That helped with making sure the frag didn't puncture the bag or get damaged. I then lined the box with a plastic bag before adfing the frags. Usps will not pay for the loss of coral. I had once been told by someone at the post office that they don't allow the shipping of live animals. I always used feed ex.

MattinIdaho · Feb 12, 2013

I can almost guarantee that Fed Ex does not handle their packages any more gingerly than USPS does. You may choose to use them for a number of different reasons but them being more careful than any other currier wouldn't be one of the reasons. And yes as a matter of fact I do work for the United States Postal Service. :wink:

cparka23 · Feb 13, 2013

aaronlp said:
ugh well i will never ship with them again...even if it is my fault who knows how they handled the box

No disrespect intended, but you may have missed the point. None of the delivery services will handle every package with kid gloves. It's just the nature of the business. Nobody knows how your package will be handled. That's why it is incumbent upon you to pack like you want the box to survive being dropped multiple times. That should be understood before shipping any kind of package with any carrier.

IME, double bagging will typically leak at least a little. How did you seal the bags, if you don't mind my asking?

Reef Pets · Feb 13, 2013

USPS does not have their own overnight service. Meaning they contract out through FedEx or UPS to transport their packages that are overnight, that's the reason you have never seen a USPS plane. So it's probably not USPS that caused the damage if there is any damage.
Anyhow, all carriers handle the packages the same, horribly. So, you have to pack the coral for to survive the worst treatment.
For future shipment, pack the coral in 8-10 mil of bags. If you are using 2 mil bags then use 4 or 5 bags.

Kbra · Feb 13, 2013

I wouldn't be mad at usps. Sounds like user error on packing. Sorry for your loss.

Dtech07 · Feb 13, 2013

cparka23 said:
No disrespect intended, but you may have missed the point. None of the delivery services will handle every package with kid gloves. It's just the nature of the business. Nobody knows how your package will be handled. That's why it is incumbent upon you to pack like you want the box to survive being dropped multiple times. That should be understood before shipping any kind of package with any carrier.

IME, double bagging will typically leak at least a little. How did you seal the bags, if you don't mind my asking?

+1
For future shipping's take a square piece of styrofoam (thin), cut to be snug in the plastic bag your shipping it in, push the sps into the center and place upside down in the plastic bag then take all (number that your shipping to someone) and place them all in a larger bag with each smaller bag upside down then place in styrofoam box then cardboard box and don't skimp on the water in the smaller bags. then add heat source. That's worked well for me even with recovering from FedEx and UPS with no leaks. We all have tons of extra Styrofoam around IMHO