Drew Mendez WTR Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Limpets were all doa. And I am missing my only Chiton snails were fine and pods id what to look for. My barnacles cluster is amazing. Thanks kim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
(Bio)³ Posted May 4, 2012 Author Share Posted May 4, 2012 I'm pleasantly surprised, because I figured they'd be cryptic and stay in the rocks as "behind-the-scenes CUC". I think Bio3 has nailed it. All my stuff that was just with paper towels and no water reeked and was dead. Is that everyone's experience? I might do a little test, I might place another order in a week or two and ask that it get placed in 2 bags, one with towel one with water. See which arrives alive or dead. Perhaps it could shed light onto the shipping situation and end up with better results next GB. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Monnat Jr Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Forgot to add the pics of the fuzzy chitons. Only two had grips and seemed alive, so I added those two to DT on a rock (rest put in bin with fresh DT water in case they revive). After a few hours one didn't move (can see it still "bowed" in picture), so I put it back in the bin with the others. The one left still has a helluva grip on that shell, so I'm hoping it pulls through and starts moving. The other four stink, but I have no idea what healthy chitons smell like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Monnat Jr Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 John of Reef Cleaners just emailed me asking about my order. I answered with this (taken heavily from my posts above): John,Yes, there were some issues. I thought it might be me or the others I collected for, because two extra car trips in 90 F Texas heat were involved, but others that got theirs immediately (in South Austin) also had DOA. Anecdotally, it seems like a high correlation to livestock with no water and damp paper towel being DOA. Here's a summary of my order. 5 Fuzzy Chiton - maybe 1 survivor, pretty sure 3 dead in bag (DOA); I partially blame myself here as I added an extra step to rinse them off with DT water in a separate bin (maybe the 15-20 minutes was enough to develop a temperature difference?) 5 Limpets - never saw them 1 Pods - these were good; no complaints with this line item 5 Porcelain Crabs - 2 DOA, but 4 survived => 1 DOA was extraneous (and may have been accidentally added to the bag already dead); no complaints with this line item I'm happy with the porcelain crabs. They're already working hard. I'm pleasantly surprised, because I figured they'd be cryptic and stay in the rocks as "behind-the-scenes CUC". http://i209.photobuc...g_03MAY2012.jpg http://i209.photobuc...e_03MAY2012.jpg Only two of the five fuzzy chitons had grips and seemed alive, so I added those two to DT on a rock (rest put in bin with fresh DT water in case they revive). After a few hours one didn't move (can see it still "bowed" in picture), so I put it back in the bin with the others. The one left still has a helluva grip on that shell, so I'm hoping it pulls through and starts moving. The four others stink (and did when I opened bag), but I have no idea what healthy chitons smell like. http://i209.photobuc...s_03MAY2012.jpg To be honest, I'm not particularly upset. It's sensitive livestock that had to make multiple trips with multiple delays and darn hot here today. I wish a few more chitons survived (and the one starts moving), and I don't know about the limpets. I'm pretty sure the big bag was intact. BTW, I'm glad you use clear bags for the big ones, because otherwise I think the police would have questioned me after standing around in a parking lot, handing out bags and shaking hands. If anyone asked me, I was going to say, "I'm waiting for more reefers." Regards, George Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Maloney Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Sorry to hear about all the losses. For one reason or another ARC group buys tend to fare poorly, loss rates are usually less than 1% for us, I realize not all will be claimed, but for ARC group buys losses are usually several times higher. I think the local Fedex hub may have a problem with large boxes, and they are getting tumbled in a machine, instead of manually processed. I can see if some porcelain crabs, chitons, limpets, shrimp, sea hares etc..an other delicate items are lost if they don't make it in the tank by noon because someone got caught up in traffic or something, but the ceriths should have made it even with a delay. It is a shame, and I feel horrible about it. Please email all claims to me when you can, i will promptly issue a refund. For larger losses we can send replacements that are Priority Mail safe directly to you. Unfortunately we cannot overnight direct shipments because of the expense involved to cover all group buy members. Just for our information purposes only, can you please leave in the claim what time the animals were added to the tank, (approx), if there was any physical damage to the bags, and what acclimation procedure you used? No matter any "restrictions or rules" on our website we will honor the claim and issue the refund, the information will be solely used for improving our services, and is voluntary you can just claim a regular refund if you prefer. Also, and just for information purposes only, if you had losses among snails, were any percentage alive, and if so, how long have they been in the tank? (Reason I ask is some take 72 hours to come about). If you are unsure of whether a snail is dead or just slow just send us a picture, I can tell usually right away. Sorry again about the trouble, please send an email if you had any problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nwehrman Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Ok -- so far -- I do have some doa's (the hermits are enjoying their snacks!) What I ordered: 5 Limpets* USD3.75 3 Fuzzy Chiton* USD7.77 1 Pods+. USD9.99 5 Nerite Snails (Small - Medium) USD2.25 1 Serpent Starfish USD6.00 And so far Two limpets dead, two fuzzy chitons DOA (crabs like them!) and one Nerite so far not moving; remaining chiton has a grip on the live rock but has not moved. The starfish climbed off and has found a happy place. Nicole Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaarrrggg Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Thanks John! Really appreciate that. I'm still holding out hope for my snails. The actinics have come on now and some of the dwarfs have started to move. Still no signs of life from the Floridas, but they all seem tight in their shells so I'm hoping maybe they might have just closed up tight to prevent the smelly bag water getting into them. I'll leave them until tommorow before calling it quits on them. Unfortunately I can't give them any longer as I just introduced 2 rather expensive nems this week and I don't want to risk a spike. I'll update tommorow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nwehrman Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Thanks John! Nicole Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+o0zarkawater Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 I was late getting out of work, and had a birthing class tonight, so my bag got to sit in my car for an extra 3 hours before even getting it into AC Everything made it just fine as far as I can tell.... except my sargassum, that stuff wasn't moving a bit. But in all seriousness, all my nerites (virgin and med), nassarius, and zigzags seemed fine. All hermits were moving around just fine. Not sure about the dwarf ceriths yet, but I ordered 20 and received well over 100 as usual, so I'm sure I'll come out ahead on those. I typically put the stuff in a breeder net overnight, just so I can keep track of whats good and what is bad. I take out the hermits once I'm sure they are alive though, just so they arent picking on the snails. http://www.amazon.co...h/dp/B0002AQH2I I'll normally put a small rock in the centre of the net to kind of weigh it down, and the snails crawl out from the middle. This makes it easier to see what's going on so I can toss them into general population. None of my bags smelled more than they usually do, but I just assume that is what Florida smells like. Opening my RC orders are my only interaction with the place. Thanks everyone for putting this together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mFrame Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Thanks John, you've always been a stand-up sponsor. I had some losses as well: 20 Blue Leg Hermit Crab - about 1/3 were alive. The rest were out of their shells, non-moving 40 Dwarf Cerith - you sent quite a few more than 40 (more like 300), but this bag seemed completely dead 2 Emerald/Ruby Mithrax Crab - 1 dead, the other lethargic. Hoping he pulls through 10 Florida Cerith - seemed dead 10 Nassarius Vibex - almost all of these guys were alive and active 5 Nerite Snails (Large) - alive and active 10 Nerite Snails (Small - Medium) - alive and active 10 Zig Zag Periwinkles - didn't see these in my order at all 1 Penny Macro Algae - bright and green, definitely worth the penny! 1 Barnacle Clusters (Small) 1 Porcelain Crabs My whole bag smelled, but I think that was from the Barnacle Cluster which looks AWESOME! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+KimP Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Hey Mike, I might've had your bag of zig zags! Oops. I was wondering why I had 2 bags of them. I'll fish them out and get them to you. They're very cool little snails! John, my order was just fine. Barnacle was in perfect shape,almost everything I ordered started crawling away as soon as I put them in the tank. For the dwarf cerith, mine smelled terrible too (really terrible) but Victoly suggested rinsing them in saltwater, which I did a few times. Great advice because a whole bunch of them (most) seem to be up and moving at this point. The macros look great as well. I'm loving the zig zags and dwarf planaxis. Mine were in the water by 3:30 or 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Monnat Jr Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 As I said in the last email, mine didn't get in until around 3 PM. And I'm not really asking for a refund. If someone finds the limpets, please let me know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drew Mendez WTR Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 My barnacle cluster was amazing......everything was fine....but I really didnt order but pods and barnacles...my chiton was not in my bag... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crendon2003 Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Sorry for any losses I lost some snails and dwarfs as well. Please email John on what was lost and if or missing so he can figure out what he will do for u. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Mitch Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Just to chime in... i was able to get hm and temp acclimate @ 3p, then dumped then in my DT as i had other commitments and could not observe... it's now 3a so here's a quick commentary for the items i ordered: 50 Dwarf Cerith - bag was definitely stinky, a lot more shells than the 50, i dumped them in the corner of my tank, many have wandered off, but many more are still right where i dumped them 25 Empty Hermit Shells - much larger than i expected 10 Blue Leg Hermit Crab* - more than what i ordered, dumped them in one spot, all of them have gone about doing their thing 5 Red Mangroves - anyone have tips on how to prune these so they don't grow tall and skinny? 1 Fuzzy Chiton* - has wandered from the shell it was attached to 1 Pods+ - did not "see" anything live just detritus, just dumped the contents in the DT next to the rocks 1 Penny Macro Algae - always a great deal! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sifuentes31 Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 My order was fine. Lost some Cerith but that is ok. Everything i ordered was fine. Nice to have met you George....thanks for getting our orders yesterday!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Maloney Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 THanks for the info, please send the claims via email so I can keep track of who is who and all that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClarkiiCircus Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Did anybody end up with my Halimeda? I feel like they wouldn't just forget to put it in the order...hoping someone else got it. LMK. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Monnat Jr Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Sorry this process has issues. I'm very pleasantly surprised and loving my porcelain rock crabs! My wife was enjoying watching them furiously filter feeding last night, too. Under the actinics-only last night they were running around doing a better job than the red-legged hermits that they replaced. I wouldn't hesitate ordering more from John and Reef Cleaners in the future, and I'll probably do so on my own if there's not another group buy. John has shown the best customer service and attention to customer needs that I've ever seen for online orders, so I'm happy to do more business with him and happy he's an ARC sponsor. My chiton hasn't moved, yet, but it still has a grip on the shell. I'm hoping it starts moving by this afternoon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nwehrman Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Wonderful customer service John. Not at all unhappy ... Would order again! Nice stock and good prices! Nicole Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mFrame Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 40 Dwarf Cerith - you sent quite a few more than 40 (more like 300), but this bag seemed completely dead 10 Florida Cerith - seemed dead Looks like I spoke too soon on the Ceriths. I'd say that almost half of the dwarfs pulled through and had moved this morning. I'm glad I tried adding them to the tank despite appearances. None of the large ones seem to have made it though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaarrrggg Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 All Floridas were definitely still "ex-snails" this morning. Pulled the tubs of them out and quite a few of the snail bodies have separated from their shells... plus they smelt like one of my Boston Terriers farts! Luckily the tank seems ok today. I changed the carbon last night and added a 1/2 dose Dr Tims Waste Away to deal with the fallout. The water is a bit cloudy from the bacterial bloom, but all the corals & nems seem happy (whew!) Still kicking myself for spreading the dwarfs everywhere... Going to have to do a major round up today and try to figure out who's alive and who's dead. Lesson learned on adding them in a tub next time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Monnat Jr Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 ... plus they smelt like one of my Boston Terriers farts! Whew, I know what that's like! A punch in the nose that can make your eyes water. My remaining chiton still hasn't moved. He's still firmly attached to that shell, and I can't get him off with moderate force (didn't try too hard). Can it still be alive and just not moving or dead and stuck? I really want it to be alive, but I don't want it to foul my DT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aaarrrggg Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 I don't really know much about chitons but I'd have thought if its hanging on then it's probably alive. Thx for the bumblebees btw! They're having a grand ol' time with all the dead snails! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George Monnat Jr Posted May 4, 2012 Share Posted May 4, 2012 Thx for the bumblebees btw! They're having a grand ol' time with all the dead snails! You're welcome. That was a timely addition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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