big al's online

[Fishyfanatic]

Free shipping when paying through your bank account? What do you mean?

 

[Zagz]

I've ordered from Big Al's once with great success, they waive the shipping fees with $35.00 purchase. The second time I placed an order they were out of stock on the one item and they called and I cancelled the rest of the order with no problem.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Is it becuase you are in canada?

 

[Zagz]

I guess so, you mean they don't do that for Americans?

 

[penpitt]

They don't. So when I order I usually place a large (over $100) order so I get more for the buck. I've ordered 3 canister filters, 3 pc lights, plant supplements, and other odds and ends stuff from them the last couple of years. Its amazing how much money I spend on this hobby. But at least the prices are lower then the lps/lfs and the shipping is cheaper then paying sales tax.

 

[Zagz]

Strange, this is the link to the free shipping site for Canadians.

http://www.bigalsonline.ca/content.xml?cid=shipping

 

[Fishyfanatic]

US Site. I've ordered several hundred dollars worth of stuff at once and didn't get a break on the shipping. It helps though when you order a bunch of stuff at once. The most that they charge is $12, so that isn't bad.

 

[Zagz]

It's odd though, I wonder why they do that.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Maybe to give a price break? Aren't they based in Canada?

 

[greenmaji]

They origanaly started out as a Canadian based mail order company from what I understand.. there shipping costs are likely smaller/distribution chain is likely larger, in Canada..HTH

 

[pondmom]

Not every retailer/vendor ships the day it was ordered!!
Some are 24hours/others are 48.

I deal with this everyday in my line of work

 

[jrp1588]

Well either way, I got my light now. It works great. I am happy.

 

[aqh88]

I've put in more orders to bigals than I can count. Both small 2-3 items and large orders of a couple $100 with no problems. Shipping has always been at least average if not quite fast and there's never been a mistake. The shipping prices though are a bit higher than some other sites even though their products are a bit lower. Sometimes I order from drsfostersmith because after I add in the shipping it actually comes out cheaper even though their products usually have a higher price tag.

 

[BrianNY]

I've found them to be quite good. You must remember that they can only ship what they have in stock. Sometimes they know merchandise will be arriving to them within a week and they hold the entire order to consilidate shipping costs. If they are out of stock and not expecting to receive in a timely manner, they will call to inform you. It's hard to expect better service then that. JMO

 

[Pufferpunk]

I have never had any issues w/Big Als. I'm not usually too concerned w/shipping time, unless it's live. They have replaced a heater that was over a year old. Once the order is placed into their computers, they can't add to them.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

They can change orders. Ive had to have it done a few times. They have to cancel the current order and make a new one. But they never appeared aggrivated about it.

 

[Zagz]

They can change orders. Ive had to have it done a few times. They have to cancel the current order and make a new one. But they never appeared aggrivated about it.

I've cancelled an order and had no problems, until it is on the shipping trucks you can change or cancel.

 

[TankGirl]

I have never had a problem with them. Normally I get my package within 3-4 days of my order, which is about the fastest I get anything with standard shipping online.

I have had to return an item and I just called them and it was absolutely no problem, and they refunded my money promptly.

 

[crazycat]

my 2 cents...

i just placed an order on bigals today at about 9:30 am (double points!). i just received an email (4:30 pm) that my order has shipped. usually i get the shipping email by the next day at the latest. i find that they have the best prices around on most things, and they've always been fast shippers for me.

 

[caribou]

I've really had good luck ordering from Big Al's and they've always handled my returns very well also (just follow their coustomer service instructions). In many cases they've shipped faster that Foster&Smith which is a lot closer to me.