Buyer Beware
 

I would like to bring to the attention of fellow canreefers the following information:

Firstly, I am not pointing fingers but I am dissapointed with the way that this sale turned out. Whether or not you agree with me is your own business but please take away from this post a lesson on trading online. It's very easy to be taken advantage of, even if the seller has decent credentials.

The only reason I am posting this is because I have attempted to contact the seller threee times in the last week and a half and my calls and PMs are not being returned. I feel like i'm being ignored on purpose.

So here is the story:

I recently purchased a tunze wavebox:

http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/sho...=tunze+wavebox

The seller promised me the following:

When I received the wavebox (very prompty, I should add, which was a positive thing about this sale), It was obvious to me right away that this unit was in poor condition. The wires from the tunze powerhead pump were exposed because the sheathing on them was cracked. The sheathing appeared to me to have been virtually baked under some high wattage lights for a long time to have done this kind of damage. In addition to the damaged wires I also had to repair the wavebox casing because half of the magnet holder knobs were broken and laying in the bottom of the shipping box. Easy fix with superglue.

I replied to the seller to inform them of the damage and they denied knowing about the condition of the wiring. His excuse is hard to believe but I guess technically possible. He gave me instructions on how to fix it as well, which was nice of him.

So I had the cord repaired by a journeyman electrician from my shop. He did it and I watched him do it properly. He used heat shrink to cover each and every wire so they wouldn't ground out of eachother and then he heat shrinked the sheathing back on not once, but twice, for extra water proofing.

Before and after the wire repair the pump did not work. The controller went into alarm when I tried to turn it on.

The tunze wavebox housing was also in poor condition. The casing was damaged and scratched.
http://i203.photobucket.com/albums/a...9/IMG_4190.jpg

Here are some more pictures of the condition of this unit as purchased:

http://i203.photobucket.com/albums/a...9/IMG_4191.jpg

I suspect this may be the reason that the unit does not work:
http://i203.photobucket.com/albums/a...9/IMG_4192.jpg

As you can see in this photo the CT transformer(?) has a fair bit of risidual dust surrounding it. This is after I stupidly cleaned it up a bit before taking a photo. It looked like the transformer was fried as there was smoke residue surrounding it before my inner martha stewart kicked in and cleaned it.

Here is was the pump propeller looks like. This picture isn't the greatest but you can see that the propeller is not in "great condition". It looks like the plastic propeller was chewed up by something. Perhaps sand?

http://i203.photobucket.com/albums/a...9/IMG_4196.jpg

So in conclusion this unit was not in "great condition" as promised. I may have high standards but I would rate this unit as "poor" condition as it doesn't even work. I tried to contact this seller numerous times to no avail. I asked him to please do the right thing and either repair the unit for me or refund me my money.

I wasn't born rich. Like almost everyone on this forum I have to work for the money I spend on my tank. This was a waste of $250.00 plus shipping and I want other out them to learn from my mistake and please be careful. It's unfortunate that I live in a remote location and could not have viewed the unit beforehand. I wouldn't have purchased it had I known.

To end on a positive note I want to thank all the great sellers and buyers I have had the pleasure of meeting off of canreef. I've had a handful of positive buys off of here and this one bad one won't stop me, but it will make me a lot more cautious about he classified section. Please please please whenever possible go to see the item in person. And also thanks to everyone who has sold me fantastic stuff. I'm more than happy with all the other things I've gotten from canreef.

Could this not have been taken to PM's? I am sure the buyer is likely a reasonable guy and would have compensated you to some degree of satisfaction had you not sold him out for everyone to see.

I also think it is up to the buyer to request pictures if they are not picking things up in person. I am sure it worked fine for the seller prior to the sale of it so it doesn't sound to me like he was doing anything shady or fishy.

I am sorry you didn't get what you were expecting but that does happen on occassion and I really do think it is the buyers responsibility to take extra precautions when buying things sight unseen.

true but for $250 you expect to get your moneys worth.

Looks like it's in POOR condition to me, I would have been disappointed even if it was given to me, would have had to waste 10 seconds of my life throwing it in the garbage.

Sight unseen is always going to be a risk. And I think you forgot to blot out the sellers name a couple of places. This is what pm is all about I think. You win some you lose some and the seller seemed genuinely willing to help with your concerns. The shipping procedures on a standard parcel can sometimes be quite rough and careless so it may have been working before it was shipped.
Sorry to hear about the wasted $ though.

:lol:

I guess different people have different ideas of "great condition"

If you would scroll up and re read my post you will see that it mentions that I tried numerous times to contact the seller.

This is why I wish Canreef had seller feedback. Thanks for posting.

Again, this post is not to bash the seller. It's to warn everyone to be more careful. I learnt my lesson on this one. I'll know for next time.

And again, I tried numerous times to contact this seller after his recommended repair failed. It was nice of him to suggest a method of repair however I personally don't feel as if I should have had to repair the unit to begin. It was promised to me in great condition after all, but I tried to be nice and went along with it and gave him a few free chances.

I'm not bashing him. I'm sure he's genuinely nice guy. Everyone makes mistakes. However I don't feel that this unit should have been considered "great condiiton" and I'm upset that my calls and PMs have gone unanswered. My only intention with this post was to warn people to be careful and see before they buy. Obviously I shouldn't have been so trusting.

I don't have any hard feelings towards the seller whatsoever and if he decides to be nice and refund or repair the unit for me (as I suggested in some of my unanswered PMs), I will be more than willing to come on here and praise him for being a stand-up guy. I sincerely hope he does give me the chance to do it too.

I don't know about another company, but if anything has been sent through Canada Post, make sure that you pay a bit of extra money for the insurance on your item. I used to work there for a few years as a mail sorter and my husband is also still working there, so both of us know very well how they handle items. We have seen many parcels a day thrown in the air (by us) into the big bin and how they landed with a big loud broken sound from whatever was in there.

**** that. how can you say hes probaly a genuine guy when he displays this kind of act. yes its one side of the story but the pictures are clear, and yes it could of been avoided but wow that guys a douchebag. its to bad to hear about that reefgirl, hopefully he stands up to his mistake and helps you out, and thanks for the reminder!

Thank for your warning.
But, look at his location. Is there any town in Canada called fiji? Why does he have to hide his whereabout?
Pyke is not a serious person from the very first day on this site.

I have been a member on many forums and they all had a buyer feedback. I wish canreef would implement something

Just realized that I forgot to post this one pic. Looks like the propeller had a sandstorm go through it at one point (speculating)?

http://i203.photobucket.com/albums/a...9/IMG_4197.jpg

'

I would LOVE seller feedback. I have many postive things to say about other canreef sales.

I'd also love to have the ability to edit my first post after 15 minutes. Those spelling errors of mine are driving me crazy now :lol:

This is a very unfortunate lesson to learn, and a shame that integrity seems lost these days. I want to praise you reefgirl, I think you went about this post very respectfully and tastefully. Good for you for being the bigger person. All the while, reminding us of the sad fact that trust, integrity and honesty seems to evade some people, and that we need to be cautious.

+1:thumb:

+1 does not look serious and has little posts to judge the character.
BTW the impeller will look like that from snail being trapped there and wave box turning "ON" after snail is entered. I had exactly the same thing happened to my wave box, but the impeller will not suffer that much providing if the pump work obviously.
Sorry to hear about your loss of $$$ and frustration, this exactly why i prefer not to ship (everyone has different idea about "good condition") and not get things from out of town.

Thanks guys.

On the plus side the wave box did come with a 6095 controller which seems to be in fine working condition. I'm going to try to sell it or trade it and recoup some of my losses.

If anyone wants the other parts to attempt a repair they are welcome to have them. I've already wasted three hours trying to repair this thing and I don't expect to get a response back from the seller at this point anymore.

Did the seller send you any pictures before you purchased it? Or did you just buy it blind?

And this why you don't buy used equipment.

It is saltwater. Saltwater. Is the a less hospitable place on earth for plastic, metal and electronics?

I am always surprised on how much people fork out for used stuff on this board.

You never know what the person did with the equipment before buying it. You never know how much time is left before it blows.

Spending hundred on things like this or Mp40s that might have 3 minutes of life left is....not the best use of money.

Buyer beware, but what do you want him to do if he responds? give you a refund? It is the buyer's responsibility to get all the information before purchasing. If you requested pics of all the parts of the box this would have been avoided. Seriously,dust? before I sell my laptop or TV, I have to open it up and vacuum it? Just buy new and if you can't afford new, just do without it.



You have to be kidding. It appears he has sold livestock and LR recently. He is outside Calgary, he is hardly "hiding|. Check his recent posts. What is a "serious person" on a message board?

I find this thread slanderous and it should be removed.

And BTW, this is clearly finger pointing. If it wasn't, you would have just recited your story and left out the link to his add. This clearly an attempt to run him off the board. This is not a buy/sell ad, please remove.

:pop2:

Wow, this sounds like it's the buyer's fault for buying junk stuff. You should put your self into the buyer's shoes and feel his pain. A seller needs to sell you stuff like this so that you can feel the buyer's frustration and money lost.

Not all the reefers are as rich as you to buy new equipments... and not all the reefers are as an a**h*le as you to tell admin to remover this thread. I am sure tons of people saw this thread and no one says a word like you.

I am sure you are a friend of the seller or maybe you are the seller whom uses a second account to be a jerk :lol:

I had a problem with a seller a couple years back on 6speedonline, where I a purchased a spare CD player for my Porsche, and I did not receive the item, it was paid on Paypal, I consulted with the Adminstrator, before posting posting any names on the Forum. The adminstrator locked all future sales until it was resolved.

C&P: as you will be able to see all of XXX's for sale threads have been locked and he has been told he can no longer sell on 6 speed until he settles with you...keep me posted on your situation..thanks, admin

Got a message from Paypal, that they recovered part of the money, not the full amount, yet
The actual amount owing is $165.00
Status
We were able to recover $158.26 USD from the seller and processed a refund to you.
What happens next
We're working with the seller to recover the rest of your refund. We'll let you know when the seller is able to full refund your payment.

that is almost great news...would have rathered you had received all your money back...let me know when you get the rest...I guess shutting down his little selling frenzy did the trick...admin

I did recover the full amount of the refund.

hey it really sucks that you got a faulty unit, i have had a similar experience being sold an item which wasn't as advertised but here is something you need to remember always ask for a picture with a time-stamp if you can, specially if the item is being shipped to you. its a good rule of thumb to keep in mind for next time

Agree!

How about "The Forum of Shame"

Buyer beware cuz there are some Dirty, Rotten, Lying, Thieving people preying on these boards.

:lol:

Totally agreed. When I recently sold my light, I fully disclosed its condition. Blatant liars should be fully exposed. It's sad in our society when the buyer gets bashed for not being more cautious. Maybe people should just be more honest and show a little more integrity.

Yes, that would be the right and honest thing to do. Or he can repair the unit to at least a working condition. I gave him both options in two seperate private PMs. Both went unanswered and so I decided to do the right thing and warn others who may be purchasing things from a *perhaps dishonest* seller.

It's not dust, it's smoke residue from a blown transformer. The electronics are faulty. Again, not in the "great condition" that I was promised. This unit was sold in non-functioning condition although it was promised to be flawless. I buy 95% of my possesions gently used when I can and I save $1000's on the sticker prices because of it. I am a smart shopper. If you can afford to pay sticker price on everything you own that's great, but I have a family and a savings account to think about.

Now I can understand that you may be rich and can afford to be on WOW all day at LVL 158 and all that but your words on here are hurtful to me. For the seventh time now I am going to explain that this post is here to warn others to be careful. I know I've been hosed. You don't need to rub salt in the wounds. Have you ever been led to believe something only to find out it wasn't the truth? Have you ever been taken advantage of? If not I'd be mighty surprised.

There is nothing wrong with buying used equipment. If someone is willing to sell and someone is willing to buy then that is their choice. I understand buying used equipment is a risk and perhaps the hardware or livestock that we buy previously enjoyed may not be long lived but I have had great experiences in all other 9 transactions I have had on canreef and I am no noobie to the classified section. All other canreef members have advertised their items without dishonesty. All of them sold me items that were in the condition that they promised them to be in. This is only one bad experience but it should serve as a warning to others. Not a platform for debate.

Buyer Beware of anybody defending the seller in this case as well.

+1


Remember you can rate users rep. I think this is something people forget.

I am going to rate now. :razz:

Reefgirl, don't put any value on what people defending dishonest people say as they are from the same mold. You are the better person for trusting others and should not change your nature. Most are great people to deal with on this forum and you should not be made to feel bad by others saying this is your fault for not assuming everyone is lying to you. Hopefully the seller will step up and do the right thing.

I think the title says it all, BUYER beware. You think you're the first to be disappointed with an internet sale? "Great Condition" is a matter of opinion, you should have obtained more information and pictures to justify your expectations prior to the sale. If it was in working condition and the owner didn't notice any of these issues (which is very likely the case) then his description may have been valid in his eyes.

I've had a fair share of disappointed purchases as well, recently over paid (IMO) for some items that were way smaller than expected but this my own fault and no different from your experience, I should have obtained more info and pictures but rather I quickly jumped on the chance of getting a "deal" as did you and therefore there are risks involved. People that take perfect care of there equipment do so to withhold the value, they won't likely then sell it for less than half retail.

We don't need a feedback system, this isn't ebay. The mods and director aren't here to protect you from bad purchases, that's not what the site is about. Take responsibly for your own actions, life is fall of risk and consequence.

PS use PayPal for internet purchases, you can file a claim with then and 99% of the time the claim is rectified to a fair solution.

"BUYER beware" is a COP OUT, "SELLER bedecent" is the way it should be.

Where do you do that?

I have to say I always worry when I sell something used that this is the day it stops working, and I'm going to look like a jackass. However I'm pretty sure this seller realized this unit was on it's last legs, or didn't work at all. As well unless this seller dos'nt check the bored much, he is more than welcome to chime in and defend himself. And good on you for this post. You have made a good point, by all means post his username so other people know how he does business.