FedEx lost package of 35 sps corals being shipped to me

neverwouldof · 06/25/2013, 08:53 PM

It was overnighted monday to arrive by 10:30am today but never showed. They found it in Tennessee and said it will be here tomorrow morning so it will have been full 48 hours in bags. What do you think will be condition tomorrow ?

Just wondering if anyone has had any similar experience with a good out come

Keith

ct_vol · 06/25/2013, 08:56 PM

A lot will depend upon temperature consistency... I've had SPS do fine at 48 hours and then I've had them ship like crap in less than 12... SPS don't like excessive heat.

bobkill · 06/25/2013, 09:02 PM

Hug!!!! That's terrible -

galleon · 06/25/2013, 09:28 PM

Is it POSSIBLE that some, or even most, are perfectly fine? Yes. Without more details on how they were packed and what conditions they spent their expected layover in, we would just be speculating on how likely that possibility is.

galleon · 06/25/2013, 09:29 PM

Also, wild/mariculture or aquacultured?

M88A2 · 06/25/2013, 09:40 PM

i had a package that was supposed to be at my door by 10:30 and the guy decided to not deliver it to me cause there were more packages down some other street. lost 3 mini colonies...i hate the mail service no matter what it is. GL with your corals, hope they do better than mine did.

dvanacker · 06/25/2013, 09:43 PM

IMO not much luck with 48hrs.

neverwouldof · 06/25/2013, 10:40 PM

Not sure, bought them off here from another reefer who seems to know his stuff. But it's summer and god only know where the box was sitting. I'll find out in the morning... Worse thing is taking time away from work. The money I could have made from today and tomorrow could have bought me 100 frags locally. This will be my last purchase from a non local source, too much inconvenience !!

Quote:

Originally Posted by galleon

Is it POSSIBLE that some, or even most, are perfectly fine? Yes. Without more details on how they were packed and what conditions they spent their expected layover in, we would just be speculating on how likely that possibility is.

galleon · 06/25/2013, 10:44 PM

Unless the seller has access to pure O2 for bagging, I would not even get a sliver of hope up.

PL-Reef · 06/25/2013, 11:03 PM

That's blows man!! Sorry. After a full 48 hours I'd guess not much good will come of it. Was the package insured?

tmantaylor18 · 06/25/2013, 11:16 PM

should have had him ship in 35 separate boxes.

jk, hope the stuff makes it

Ian · 06/25/2013, 11:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by galleon

Unless the seller has access to pure O2 for bagging, I would not even get a sliver of hope up.

Corals take up very little oxygen, it wouldn't be a problem in this case. Temp is pretty much the only thing to worry about in this.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PL-Reef

That's blows man!! Sorry. After a full 48 hours I'd guess not much good will come of it. Was the package insured?

You can't insure live goods with any of the shipping companies.

To the OP, hopefully you bought from someone that offers a live arrival guarantee. If so, it should be the seller that's worried. You should be in the clear...

dvanacker · 06/26/2013, 05:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ian

Corals take up very little oxygen, it wouldn't be a problem in this case. Temp is pretty much the only thing to worry about in this.

You can't insure live goods with any of the shipping companies.

To the OP, hopefully you bought from someone that offers a live arrival guarantee. If so, it should be the seller that's worried. You should be in the clear...

I disagree. Maybe its not oxygen but when I get a frag shipped 24hrs and the temperature is fine even than the water has a slight rancid smell. After 48hrs under most peoples shipping practices and even with good temps this box is DOA, IMO.

I hope the OP can get some money back and maybe a few survivors though...

LoJack · 06/26/2013, 07:10 AM

I would give it hope depending on this company's shipping practices.

I just received an order that was over 50 hours door to door. Packed with pure oxygen and heat/cool packs depending on weather.

Purple tang, Copperband Butterfly, Potters Angel, 2 Scooter Blennies and 4 SPS Frags. I had zero casualties on this order. Again ... this has more to do with the quality of the shippers practices. I have hope for you ... best of luck.

kaserpick · 06/26/2013, 07:30 AM

I've had a box lost in transit as well. It wasn't pretty, but you never know.

I've started having corals dropped off at a FedEx location. They arrive sooner in the morning since I'm eliminating the delivery person (that delivers to my door). This way it's far less likely to get my address wrong. I think that's a good tip for those buying online.

I know that wouldn't have helped you, Neverwouldof, but it's good to know for the future. In the past, I've had it take another 9 hours to deliver, simply because someone copied my address incorrectly. That happened a few times, then I started having them dropped off at FedEx.

neverwouldof · 06/26/2013, 07:30 AM

Well..... I just got them about 15 min ago. Smelled like low tide before i even opened the box and there wasn't any leaks. They were all in tiny baggies with about a shot glass of water. No styrofoam box, just put in a small cardboard box with a couple dozen peanuts. So even if I would have received them yesterday they would have been in bad shape. 75% of them you couldn't even see in the bags because the water was so brown and cloudy. All had tissue floating in bags! Good stuff

SeedlessOne · 06/26/2013, 07:35 AM

Who did you order these from?

Sorry to hear about your luck. Hopefully you can get them replaced!!! But judging on packing seems like an amateur sent them out.

neverwouldof · 06/26/2013, 07:37 AM

neverwouldof · 06/26/2013, 07:38 AM

Ya, I prefer to get money back. I don't think the outcome of next time would be much better.

Quote:

Originally Posted by SeedlessOne

Who did you order these from?

Sorry to hear about your luck. Hopefully you can get them replaced!!! But judging on packing seems like an amateur sent them out.

LoJack · 06/26/2013, 07:47 AM

Yup, those are some incredibly poorly packed pieces.

When I get my frags that make it 50 hours ... the plug is mounted in a small square of styrofoam, and the coral floats upside down. This prevents the tissue from touching the side of the bag or the bottom.

They are also packed in fish sized bags for the most part, with a decent amount of water and a good amount of oxygen.

I'm sorry for your loss ... 35 SPS frags couldn't have been a cheap order either.

sahin · 06/26/2013, 08:03 AM

Sorry dude. A large foam box and decent water volume and some may have survived. Too bad. Hope the seller sorts something out for you.

FF337 · 06/26/2013, 08:08 AM

Bad news. Any survive?

galleon · 06/26/2013, 08:29 AM

OK, addressing the decent amount of water and corals using little O2 points:

Using an Acropora respiration rate of 0.2 gO2 m^-2 hr^-1 (derived from A. palmata), and an O2 solubility of 6.6 mg/L at 25C and 35 psu salinity in water, if we place a 5 cm x 5 cm piece of coral in 1 L of oxygen saturated seawater, after only 13 hours, less than 2% of the original mass of O2 in the water will remain! That's 100 millionths of a gram of O2. In an entire liter! Proper gas headspace and sufficient oxygenation of that headspace is a MAJOR factor!

That said, these pictures make me ill. Those corals are incredibly poorly packed and probably looked about the same yesterday.

shred5 · 06/26/2013, 08:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ct_vol

A lot will depend upon temperature consistency... I've had SPS do fine at 48 hours and then I've had them ship like crap in less than 12... SPS don't like excessive heat.

I agree 100 percent.

saltymix · 06/26/2013, 08:39 AM

I've never ordered coral online and now im really scared to try it. I feel your pain, i ordered a new AI Hydra (from a well known company) that was supposed to arrive yesterday. When I opened the box everything else I ordered was there and no light. It said it was on the packing slip but someone jacked it or they never packed it. Now I have a $400 battle on my hands, they better send a new one! I hope you get your money back.

06/25/2013, 08:53 PM	#1
neverwouldof Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Jacksonville Florida Posts: 202	FedEx lost package of 35 sps corals being shipped to me It was overnighted monday to arrive by 10:30am today but never showed. They found it in Tennessee and said it will be here tomorrow morning so it will have been full 48 hours in bags. What do you think will be condition tomorrow ? Just wondering if anyone has had any similar experience with a good out come Keith __________________ Keith in Jacksonville Florida (Realtor to the Hillbillies!) Current Tank Info: Elos 160 Aquarium - ATI Powermodule 60" 10 bulb - GHL Profilux Controller -Elos NS2000 Skimmer - Vortech MP40's - Avast Media Reactor

06/25/2013, 08:56 PM	#2
ct_vol Reefing On My Mind Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Kempton, IL Posts: 8,083	A lot will depend upon temperature consistency... I've had SPS do fine at 48 hours and then I've had them ship like crap in less than 12... SPS don't like excessive heat. __________________ Randy Volunteers, Blackhawks, Titans, Cubs!!!! Current Tank Info: 185g waiting to be built, 120g SPS/Anemone Reef, 120g SCA in the works, 58g mixed reef w/ 6x39w T5, 125g grow out w/ Reef Breeders

06/25/2013, 09:02 PM	#3
bobkill reefer Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Norman Posts: 834	Hug!!!! That's terrible - __________________ The darkside

06/25/2013, 09:43 PM	#7
dvanacker DID I SOUNDS SMRT?? Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Ontario, CAN Posts: 3,690	IMO not much luck with 48hrs. __________________ --DARRYL-- Current Tank Info: 200g SPS dominant Mixed Reef

06/25/2013, 11:03 PM	#10
PL-Reef Awesome Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Chaplin,Ct Posts: 4,345	That's blows man!! Sorry. After a full 48 hours I'd guess not much good will come of it. Was the package insured? __________________ Jas tested, mother disapproved. Current Tank Info: 2 gallon goldfish bowl with a happy 7" Naso tang and 2 small Beluga whales. Just added a baby dolphin, large Trigger, a herd of Sea Horses and just fragged my first Manatee. All fish safely hand caught using organic cyanide.

06/25/2013, 09:28 PM	#4
galleon Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 1,003	Is it POSSIBLE that some, or even most, are perfectly fine? Yes. Without more details on how they were packed and what conditions they spent their expected layover in, we would just be speculating on how likely that possibility is.

06/25/2013, 09:29 PM	#5
galleon Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 1,003	Also, wild/mariculture or aquacultured?

06/25/2013, 09:40 PM	#6
M88A2 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Chesapeake, VA Posts: 682	i had a package that was supposed to be at my door by 10:30 and the guy decided to not deliver it to me cause there were more packages down some other street. lost 3 mini colonies...i hate the mail service no matter what it is. GL with your corals, hope they do better than mine did.

06/25/2013, 10:44 PM	#9
galleon Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 1,003	Unless the seller has access to pure O2 for bagging, I would not even get a sliver of hope up.

06/25/2013, 11:16 PM	#11
tmantaylor18 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Sunnyvale, CA Posts: 4,143	should have had him ship in 35 separate boxes. jk, hope the stuff makes it

06/26/2013, 07:10 AM	#14
LoJack Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Thompson, Manitoba, Canada Posts: 595	I would give it hope depending on this company's shipping practices. I just received an order that was over 50 hours door to door. Packed with pure oxygen and heat/cool packs depending on weather. Purple tang, Copperband Butterfly, Potters Angel, 2 Scooter Blennies and 4 SPS Frags. I had zero casualties on this order. Again ... this has more to do with the quality of the shippers practices. I have hope for you ... best of luck.

06/26/2013, 07:30 AM	#15
kaserpick Keeping it Simple Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Greenville, NC Posts: 2,637	I've had a box lost in transit as well. It wasn't pretty, but you never know. I've started having corals dropped off at a FedEx location. They arrive sooner in the morning since I'm eliminating the delivery person (that delivers to my door). This way it's far less likely to get my address wrong. I think that's a good tip for those buying online. I know that wouldn't have helped you, Neverwouldof, but it's good to know for the future. In the past, I've had it take another 9 hours to deliver, simply because someone copied my address incorrectly. That happened a few times, then I started having them dropped off at FedEx. __________________ Kasey Current Tank Info: None

06/26/2013, 07:35 AM	#17
SeedlessOne Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Pooler, GA Posts: 887	Who did you order these from? Sorry to hear about your luck. Hopefully you can get them replaced!!! But judging on packing seems like an amateur sent them out.

06/26/2013, 07:37 AM	#18
neverwouldof Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Jacksonville Florida Posts: 202	__________________ Keith in Jacksonville Florida (Realtor to the Hillbillies!) Current Tank Info: Elos 160 Aquarium - ATI Powermodule 60" 10 bulb - GHL Profilux Controller -Elos NS2000 Skimmer - Vortech MP40's - Avast Media Reactor

06/26/2013, 07:47 AM	#20
LoJack Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Thompson, Manitoba, Canada Posts: 595	Yup, those are some incredibly poorly packed pieces. When I get my frags that make it 50 hours ... the plug is mounted in a small square of styrofoam, and the coral floats upside down. This prevents the tissue from touching the side of the bag or the bottom. They are also packed in fish sized bags for the most part, with a decent amount of water and a good amount of oxygen. I'm sorry for your loss ... 35 SPS frags couldn't have been a cheap order either.

06/26/2013, 08:03 AM	#21
sahin Ultimate Reefer Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: London, UK Posts: 8,540	Sorry dude. A large foam box and decent water volume and some may have survived. Too bad. Hope the seller sorts something out for you.

06/26/2013, 08:08 AM	#22
FF337 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Posts: 249	Bad news. Any survive?

06/26/2013, 08:29 AM	#23
galleon Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 1,003	OK, addressing the decent amount of water and corals using little O2 points: Using an Acropora respiration rate of 0.2 gO2 m^-2 hr^-1 (derived from A. palmata), and an O2 solubility of 6.6 mg/L at 25C and 35 psu salinity in water, if we place a 5 cm x 5 cm piece of coral in 1 L of oxygen saturated seawater, after only 13 hours, less than 2% of the original mass of O2 in the water will remain! That's 100 millionths of a gram of O2. In an entire liter! Proper gas headspace and sufficient oxygenation of that headspace is a MAJOR factor! That said, these pictures make me ill. Those corals are incredibly poorly packed and probably looked about the same yesterday.

06/26/2013, 08:39 AM	#25
saltymix Registered Member Join Date: May 2012 Location: Northern California Posts: 67	I've never ordered coral online and now im really scared to try it. I feel your pain, i ordered a new AI Hydra (from a well known company) that was supposed to arrive yesterday. When I opened the box everything else I ordered was there and no light. It said it was on the packing slip but someone jacked it or they never packed it. Now I have a $400 battle on my hands, they better send a new one! I hope you get your money back.