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Pacific Coast Imports Warranty coverage - any experiences?


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Hey guys i bought a GenX 2400 pump in December from Premium Aquatics. About 10 days ago it quite working, nearly killing all my livestock. Luckily i found the tank sitting still with a temp of 67.7 and everything looking.....a little stressed but ok. I quickly replaced the GenX with a Mag9 I have laying around and got everything working again. Luckily no losses.

 

I cleaned the pump, soaked it in vinegar.....no go. It just won't start back up. I've cleaned it twice since I bought it so the pump has not been running for more than 30 or so days between cleanings.

 

So I emailed Premium Aquatics about a replacement, they told me to contact Pacific Imports. It took me 2 emails and 5 days to get a reply. This is the reply:

 

Miles,

The Impeller isn't covered under warranty due to manufacturer defects if ran dry, or mis installed.

If the wet end and impeller is cleaned regularly they won't build up too much calcium or algae to cause excess ware and tare.

However I do have a used impeller and could send it to you for the cost of freight only?

 

.

Tim Zettlemoyer

Pacific Coast Imports Inc,

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So i emailed him back:

 

> This pump is still under warranty and it does not

> work. I would like a replacement, not a used impeller.

>

>

> Miles

 

This was his reply:

 

Miles,

Please send the pump back to our return dept.

RMA # 1050

send it to our physical address via UPS or Fed Ex.

We will inspect it for warranty coverage and asses it's damage.

 

PS. The warranty on the pump covers all parts from manufacturer

defects.

 

Tim Zettlemoyer

Pacific Coast Imports Inc,

PO Box 378

8225 Vera Lane NE

Woodburn, OR. 97071

503-982-6700

503-982-0760 (fax)

Tim@pacificcoastimports.com

www.pacificcoastimports.com

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That is part of doing business on-line. You should not have to deal with PCI yourself that is the job of premium aquatics. If they want to carry a procuct they need to warranty it also. If you bought that pump from me or any of the other LFS around you would already have a new pump. On-line may be cheaper, but you get zero custmer service when you have a problem.

 

My two cents,

 

Travis

Upscales

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Only Aqua Serene sells GenX here in Eugene and at almost double the prices at most LFS. I live 2+ hours from you so i'd be in almost the same boat. I'd have to take an entire day off work to get a new pump, so shipping is just as easy for me.

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That can be expected from PCI. Crappy products and even worse service. That is why we no longer deal with them. I have had the exact same experience with their products. I had one of their pumps running on my invert system and it quit just like you described they sent me a new impeller when I threatened to pull their products and then I put it in and the stupid thing still wouldn't run so I just chucked it and went with a more reliable pump from a company that stands behind their products.

 

I personally have not dealt with them for a long time but in a little over a month I bought overflow boxes from them three times and got charged three different amounts. They just pull numbers out of their head.

 

Well don't get me started but needless to say you won't catch any of their products in my store any more. They sell cheap stuff and you get cheap stuff.

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Good to know, thanks Sean. I had thought that the GenX pumps got decent reviews. Oh well live and learn. Which pumps are you selling now, say around 500-700gph?

 

Thanks Travis, i have contacted premium aquatics and advised that they need to replace the pump and deal with PCI. We will see what the outcome is.

 

I have heard from ppl here in the club that PCI always made good on their repair/warranty coverages. I think it was for their chillers. Is this not the case anymore, or is it just on their chillers and higher priced items?

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The reviews you have heard are probably for their external pumps which are not bad. I have never used many of their products because I work with an aquarium maintainence company down here that was trying a lot of their products when they came out and every time I would go up to Portland I would be bringing boxes of their Heaters and Lighting back to them.

 

The reason Premium probably didn't want to help you was because they knew what the answer would be from PCI.

 

I personally recommend Rio pumps. I know you hear some bad things about the Rios also but you have to take into account how many of their pumps are on the market. The other reason is that I sell over 50 rio seios every month and I have only had 2 problems in the last 6 months with them and it was instantly taken care of.

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Yah i'm a little iffy on the Rios. I had one of my Seios crap out after about 6 months but they did repair for me for just the cost of shipping one way. My other Rio is on my skimmer, its a needlewheel and it works good, i have to take it apart to get it to restart each time so thats a pain.

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We have GX2400's in the store that have been running on wave timers with very little service for several years. These pumps have served us well. Tim, the fellow at PCI you talked with, was following the protocol set forth in the warranty information that came with your pump.(I'm sure you read the terms of the warranty while you were sending in the warranty info card.) Had you followed through on his instructions, he could have inspected the pump and repaired/replaced any broken/defective parts, returning the refurbished unit to you per the terms of the warranty. Expecting the manufacturer/distributer of a product to replace anything sight-unseen is just not reasonable and contrary to the stipulations in the warranty. Sean has some negative things to say about PCI products but if you look at my store, Upscales, Waves, and many other shops in the local area, you will find PCI products sold and used in shop. My store is run by PCI pumps and I have never had a pump related death because of it. I also agree with Travis; buying local gets you local support; buying off the internet gets you a number. R2R2

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Let's see you have to fill out and mail in a warranty card to get them to allow you to mail them a pump and then have them determine whether or not they decide that your pump is covered under warranty. Sounds like a great deal to me.

 

If I have a problem with a piece of equipment that I buy from other suppliers they just take care of the problem. I tell them it is broken and they replace it. It is called standing behind their product. Sure there are going to be some people out there that abuse the system but you don't get a good reputation by accusing the person that is using the pump of doing something to break it.

 

I know that you and the PCI people are tight and I don't expect that you would agree with me but I have not had a positive experience with them. Half the time I recieved items from them they had parts missing. I tried several of their products but they have not held up. The last thing I bought from them was a couple of overflow boxes and they weren't even wide enough to fit over the trim of an all glass 75 gallon tank.

 

They manufactured salt that when you picked the bags up by the handle the bag came apart.

 

I have heard good things about their chillers and external pumps. I have not used either but all of the products that I have tried I have had poor experiences with.

 

Their pricing has been very inconsistent. I will be honest the last straw for me was when I was quoted a price of $189 of an RPS 3000 when I was in their facility and then when I call up to order one they quote me $330 and then try to make up some poor excuse about the difference in pricing.

 

I buy from people that stand behind their products and treat me like I deserve to be treated. I refuse to deal with people that don't. I spend over $3000 every week with suppliers and I pick and choose who gets it based on who is willing to give me the pricing that I need and the service I deserve. As a matter of fact that is why a lot of people buy stuff online. Price is a great driving factor in peoples decisions to buy stuff and they will go where they will get it. Unfortunately that often times means sacrificing service but that is not always the case.

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We have GX2400's in the store that have been running on wave timers with very little service for several years. These pumps have served us well. Tim' date=' the fellow at PCI you talked with, was following the protocol set forth in the warranty information that came with your pump.(I'm sure you read the terms of the warranty while you were sending in the warranty info card.) Had you followed through on his instructions, he could have inspected the pump and repaired/replaced any broken/defective parts, returning the refurbished unit to you per the terms of the warranty. Expecting the manufacturer/distributer of a product to replace anything sight-unseen is just not reasonable and contrary to the stipulations in the warranty. Sean has some negative things to say about PCI products but if you look at my store, Upscales, Waves, and many other shops in the local area, you will find PCI products sold and used in shop. My store is run by PCI pumps and I have never had a pump related death because of it. I also agree with Travis; buying local gets you local support; buying off the internet gets you a number. R2R2[/quote']

 

I understand your point. Being that the pump is only 90 days old, i feel you are a bit off base here. As I stated, I had a Seio that was 6 months old stop working previously (in my 2 years of SW and 12 years of FW these are the only 2 i've had stop working), i emailed TAAM and they asked me to ship it to them no questions asked. 10 days later the pump was in my mail box fixed. Now that is service. Never once did they try to weasel out of it by sending me a used impeller or other used item on my dime. That is service. And wouldn't you know it, I bought it off ebay.

 

Had I followed thru on his instructions? You mean to pay him to send me a used impeller? That is not satisfactory. Never once did I ask them to replace it sight unseen. Not sure where that came from. I asked what they could do for me, and they said they would send me a used impeller. I would not expect them to replace it sight unseen, i'm not an moron Ryan. They did not offer to fix it until i persued the matter further advising a used impeller would not suffice in this situation. And yes, I will be sending the pump back to them for repair (or so they can put in a used impeller).

 

Sean is also correct regarding a lot of these items being price driven. If you consider the cost of me taking a day off work, driving 100 miles to your shop and back as the closest PCI seller, buying the pump at your price which is most likely more than I got it at Premium Aquatics, using it for 90 days then driving again 100 miles to leave it with you, then another 100 miles to come get it again(assuming you ship it to them for repair), I would be in this stupid pump well over $200, and of that all that goes to supporting your LFS is the 10%-20% markup for your profits(or whatever your markup may be) on the original purchase of the $35 pump! And what if i didn't have a pump to put in its place in the meantime?? Yep, another $50. Come on, lets be realistic here. I understand you are standing behind your product, but put yourself in my shoes just once.

 

The bottom line is I have a defective pump, and PCI is not backing their warranty. There is no other way to slice it.

 

Miles

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There does seem to be some confusion. Initially, it seems Tim tried to send you a replacement impeller(thinking your impeller was the problem). As the impeller is not covered if worn or broken, he must have thought he was solving your problem by sending a free replacement at the cost of shipping only. Once you told him you didn't want the used impeller but rather a replacement, he fell back on the terms of the warranty. I did not imply you were a moron Miles, but there are some out there, and that is why the warranty is the way it is.R2R2

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I never had any problems with the PCI crew. They always took care of me.

 

Randy I was in the same boat about 18 months ago I bought a used Cl-650 chiller from a closed down LFS in Oregon City this guy who owned it was just switching to do peoples Tank Maintenance. Being I live almost 200 miles away He guaranteed me it was good and just used for chilling a lobster tank .. The chiller was in great looking shape on the outside so i bought it with a Gen-X pump as well ( Used)

Well got home and set it up on a 75 gallon Tank with 2 ea 250 Halides and this chiller was Junk could not handle the load the a/c unit would bind up from Hi head pressure ( A/C refrigeration specialist) told me again more cost to have local guy check out my Freon charge and find out what was wrong.

Called PCI many times for parts and a Manual got good service But In the long run the CL-650 is sitting on a Junk Pile in my Garage. End result of PCI chiller products Junk. Very happy to have switched over to Current Prime chillers with no problems.

Still have that Gen-X pumping water ;)

Good luck ...Jeff

 

 

 

When i had a shop I never had any problems with the PCI crew. They always took care of me. i think there products are good in the price range they fill.
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Hopefully in the end everything will work out with your pump, and you will get a working one back. I know you are far away, but one way if you can plan ahead to solve the issue in the future would be to hit up one of our sponsoring sites that offer membership discounts. While it is near impossible for physical stores to compete with e-tailers, many lfs do reward members for their financial support by offering discounts. Sean, Ryan, Travis, and Joel will all help you out if you flash your membership card. I realize that shipping is easier when you are remote (I used to live in the boonies myself) but hopefully that added incentive will benefit everyone... a little for the local shop on their sale, and savings to you... not to mention help with any unforseeable warranty problems.

 

 

Keep us up to date on how this goes, I know that PCI sees a lot of business via our local shops because they are historically very helpful with warranty work as well as being very generous with donations, and I am certain that they would like to maintain that friendship.

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Guest Ahbrit

My chiller had a hiccup last week and wouldn't turn on.

I called them up and they sent me the new part to fix it.

They also stated that going forward they will not perform any warrantee repairs on my Chiller. Aparently it needs to be in my house for it to be under warrantee. Hmmm 100db and all that heat in my house, YEAH RIGHT!!!!!!!!

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yeah they are not environmentally sealed for outside use, so it would void the warranty i suppose. you should find out what they define "inside" as being, if you build a wall around it and put a rook on it it would technically be inside.all i can figure is that the problem with the chiller is somehow related to environmental exposure, dust blowing in, or freezing, or something like that. i don't think humidity would be a factor as they operate around humid aquariums...if you query and hear anything back let us know, i was shopping for chillers, if they do not warranty against chillers housed outside i will have to look at another manufacturer.

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Guest Ahbrit

They told me either the Garage or the Inside of my House only

The problem cleared up after a couple of days. I think i had excess moisture in the control panel

You know where my garage is Ryan, that wouldnt work

 

If i'd known this from the start i would NOT have bought pci. i would have shopped around. The only reason i went with this Company was for the local warantee.

 

Bob (Upscales) told me if i have another problem though that i need to contact him personally, and he'll threaten them (Upscales apparently are the #1 distributer in the US ~ Quote from Bob)

 

Warning to anyone thinking about housing a chiller in your house.......A 1HP is sooo loud that you have to raise your voice to speak over it.

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