How do I know my order will arrive alive?

Simple, we guarantee that all livestock arrives alive and we cover any livestock that is shipped to arrive within one day. For example, you can use Ground Shipping if you are within the 1-day area from the map below or Overnight in other areas. Anything with Free Shipping and/or any items shipped at our discretion is also covered under our guarantee.
If you experience any DOA (Dead on Arrival) in your order, simply take photos of the items still in the bag and continue with the acclimation process, once completed email us through the Contact Us on our website. We will credit your account or reship the DOA items. The cost of shipping is not included.
Anything else not explicitly stated in the FAQs will be handled on a case by case basis, please contact us with photos using the DOA option and we will get back with you.

I just received my order, and something did not make it, what do I do?

Sorry to hear something did not make it. It doesn’t happen often, but unfortunately it does happen when shipping live animals. 
If you encounter this simply take photos of the item still in the bag and send them to us via the Contact Us page within 3 hours of receiving your order. We must have the email with clear photos 
sent in .jpg or .png format for the item to be covered. Any claim submitted without photos will not be processed. Calling us on the phone or contacting through Social Media will not initiate a DOA claim. 

My livestock is alive, but does not look good, what should I do?

Livestock that appears dead often recovers once properly acclimated. The depressed pH levels in the water the animal was shipped in may create the appearance of death. It is important to note marine life from any online fish store will be subjected to some form of stress when packed, shipped and acclimated into a new aquarium. Please take photos, and then acclimate the livestock as you normally would to your quarantine system. Take photos and send us an email letting us know, we will then check up in a couple of days.

What about Live Rock and die off?

The best way to ship Live Rock is completely submerged, through the Airlines, you will have very little die off when shipping this way. However you must ask for this becasue it does add some to the price. We ship our rock packages wrapped in wet newspaper in an insulated box. This allows us to offer a lower cost alternative that will ship to your door, however you will have some die off, mostly the very fragile things, such as sponges and tunicates, but should preserve the corals, clams and other more hardy life. 

UPS says my order has been delivered and I do not have it?

Please contact UPS for all shipping questions. We have no control over packages once they are delivered to UPS, however we still cover everything that was in the package but in most cases UPS is able to locate the package quickly.

Shipping - Frequently Asked Questions

How should I have my order shipped?

All Live items should be shipped with no more then 2 days in transit. Many fish, corals and anemones need to be shipped with only one day in transit. That does not mean you have to choose overnight shipping, we have supplied you with the map that shows transit times from our location. Please use the map and determine the best shipping method for your order. For extra protection you may consider shipping your aquatic life order to your local UPS store or location. This will keep your aquatic life order protected from potential inclement weather and extreme temperatures in a secure, enclosed area when you ship directly to your local shipping location nearest you for pickup.

UPS Ground

 

Can I ship 2nd Day, it is much cheaper?

Yes, in some cases 2nd day will work fine, normally this is for orders with plants and most invertebrates during mild weather. If you have questions, please contact us and if we let you know it is appropriate, that order will be covered under alive arrival guarantee.

Why is Ground Shipping Available is it is not a good way to ship my order?

Ground shipping is a great low-cost option for dry rock, dry goods and anyone within the 1 day/ 2 day (for most inverts and some fish) area on the map above. Ground shipping is not good if you live in California and order anything live. We ship orders nationwide, so the options are there, we expect you to know what will work best for you and your situation.

Why am I being asked to upgrade my shipping?

If you order and select a option that we do not feel will be a good way to have your live stock delivered, we will contact you and let you know. If you feel you do not want to upgrade your shipping, we will ship it the way you selected, however you are then taking responsibility for all items in that shipment. We do not make anything on the shipping, this is not a ploy to extract more money as some people have suggested, this is simply to supply you with live healthy animals.

I Ordered with Overnight shipping and have not received my order yet?

The shipping method has nothing to do with when the order leaves our facility. It is purely how long the animals will be packaged in bags. You want this time to be as short as possible. Please keep in mind we are only 2 people that do everything from diving, packing, contacting customers, website maintenance. Some items are also easier to get at certain times of the year, the weather also plays a major role in the speed of which we are able to fill orders.

Why is shipping so expensive?

Shipping fees are paid to the shipper, these are not fees that we have any control over. If you feel like you are being over charged you are more than welcome to supply your own shipping method or pick up from our location.

When will my order ship?

We try to ship the next business day after you order, sometimes not everything for your order may be in stock. If this is the case we will contact you and give you a date that we expect to be able to ship your order. We normally contact each customer and verify that they will be available on the expected day of delivery. You can also leave notes in your order if you want to receive it on a specific day.

Monday is the best delivery day for me, can you ship it for then?

Sorry, unless you are ordering dry goods or using Airlines shipping. Otherwise your box will be sitting somewhere over the weekend and that is not good for live animals as UPS/FedEx/Post Office does not work on Sunday. We would have to ship on Monday for Tuesday or Wednesday delivery.

Can I get my order delivered on Saturday?

No, Saturday Delivery has proven to be unreliable and comes at an extra cost. We do not ship for Saturday Delivery.

Live Rock - Frequently Asked Questions

I want to make a Caribbean tank, can I get rocks with native corals on it?

Yes and no. We are allowed to take hard corals that are attached to our rock, however the fisheries has a list of corals that we are not allowed to take, and that list seems to grow each year. Directly from The National Marine Fishery “Seven coral species are listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. If you find a piece of live rock material with a threatened coral species attached, you MUST leave that piece of rock on the bottom. Do not touch or collect the coral.” Those seven species are Staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis), Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata), Star corals (Orbicella franksi) (Orbicella annularis) (Orbicella faveolata), Pillar coral (Dendrogyra cylindrus), Rough cactus coral (Mycetophyllia ferox).

 

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