Tampa Bay Saltwater

MPCReefer · Dec 3, 2020

Not sure where to post this so will give this forum a shot.....has anyone received a delivery from TBS recently? I know Richard has struggled to find suitable days to get out on the water with weather, etc. so I am sure they are extremely busy with the favorable conditions we have had lately. I have tried to contact them by phone and email several times this week just to check on status of my order, but have not heard back. Really looking forward to receiving the rock, have my tank ready to go...but no communication has me concerned. I am willing to wait patiently but just looking for some idea of if I am looking at days, weeks, several weeks?? Anyway, would love to hear from anyone who has received the rock recently and get your impressions. Thanks!

Octocat · Dec 3, 2020

I got my rock in mid-October about a month after I ordered. Luckily, I didn't experience any communication problems and had a good experience.

sde1500 · Dec 3, 2020

@liverock He's relatively active on here. I personally haven't ordered from him, but can't remember ever seeing a bad review. Toughest part of today's world of next day Prime shipping and giant businesses running everything is skewed expectations. Have to reset those when considering one man shops.

MPCReefer · Dec 3, 2020

sde1500 said:
@liverock He's relatively active on here. I personally haven't ordered from him, but can't remember ever seeing a bad review. Toughest part of today's world of next day Prime shipping and giant businesses running everything is skewed expectations. Have to reset those when considering one man shops.

Understand completely what you are saying. Am very willing to be patient and Richard has been great to deal with so far. I am only asking for a simple quick return email is all just to set my expectations on timing. Not trying to be unreasonable. Thanks for the feedback!

92Miata · Dec 4, 2020

They just posted that the shop is shut down due to Covid. I'd guess somebody in the shop got sick - so I'd expect minimum 2 weeks, probably longer.

MPCReefer · Dec 4, 2020

92Miata said:
They just posted that the shop is shut down due to Covid. I'd guess somebody in the shop got sick - so I'd expect minimum 2 weeks, probably longer.

Miata where did you see that?

Subsea · Dec 4, 2020

MPCReefer said:
Miata where did you see that?

Look in sponsor forum, TBS.

92Miata · Dec 4, 2020

MPCReefer said:
Miata where did you see that?

Can't find the thread at the moment - it was getting derailed by the conspiracy theory nuts - so may be being moderated.

Anyways - this thread has someone who got an email this AM from TBS that their order was being cancelled and they were no longer accepting orders or shipping orders (although, TBS website still seems to be working - so who knows)>

Live Rock Source

I am looking for a good live rock source. Unfortunately I received an email from TBS this morning saying they are no longer accepting or shipping orders due to Covid. KP Aquatics also has posted on their website that they are out of live rock due to the continuous windy weather. Does anyone know...

www.reef2reef.com

MPCReefer · Dec 4, 2020

Subsea said:
Look in sponsor forum, TBS.

No sponsor forum noted for TBS.

Cell · Dec 4, 2020

The thread got deleted because it went off the rails immediately with COVID19 comments. I've been waiting to see if a replacement thread gets posted but have yet to see one.

Billldg · Dec 4, 2020

Currently they are not shipping due to some circumstances, lets just hope them good fortunes and that they are able to start shipping again in the not to distant future.

Subsea · Dec 4, 2020

MPCReefer said:
No sponsor forum noted for TBS.

I have known Richard for > 20 years. I suspect he has more problems than you have.

This is a bad time of year to dive for live rock. If time is critical, try Gulf Live Rock.

Gulf Live Rock.com

gulfliverock.com

MPCReefer · Dec 4, 2020

Subsea said:
I have known Richard for > 20 years. I suspect he has more problems than you have.

This is a bad time of year to dive for live rock. If time is critical, try Gulf Live Rock.

Gulf Live Rock.com

gulfliverock.com

Agree. As I have stated he has been great to work with, and I wish him the very best. Will look at GLR. Thanks.

sherb · Dec 5, 2020

MPCReefer said:
Not sure where to post this so will give this forum a shot.....has anyone received a delivery from TBS recently? I know Richard has struggled to find suitable days to get out on the water with weather, etc. so I am sure they are extremely busy with the favorable conditions we have had lately. I have tried to contact them by phone and email several times this week just to check on status of my order, but have not heard back. Really looking forward to receiving the rock, have my tank ready to go...but no communication has me concerned. I am willing to wait patiently but just looking for some idea of if I am looking at days, weeks, several weeks?? Anyway, would love to hear from anyone who has received the rock recently and get your impressions. Thanks!

As others mentioned, TBS posted a note on R2R yesterday morning; the thread went sideways and the mods deleted it. (I wish they'd cleaned it up and locked it, but what can you do.) However, TBS also posted the same message on reefcentral.com (and maybe other sites they sponsor). You can read it yourself here: http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2711732

I emailed TBS yesterday morning to check the status of my order and got the same message, presumably from an automated system. I hope Richard and crew are okay. I can wait.

Hailepo · Dec 8, 2020

I’ve been waiting about 7 weeks now for my rock and emailed them today and got the auto-responses. I emailed the main address trying to understand if it was a temporary or permanent thing. Looks permanent based upon his response. I was all set to go with his ”package” and now I’ve got to figure out a new path. Also hope they are ok....

From TBS:
Mike

Covid has killed us....it is over.....

Sea ya

PR_nano · Dec 8, 2020

Oh man, sorry to hear that. I reached out to Richard back in September as I was trying to source some LR and LS. Since I'm in Orlando I asked if I could do local pickup. He said to place the order, add a note for local pickup and Deb would take care of it. Should had place that order back then...

Wish him and the team the best and hope is temporary.

sherb · Dec 8, 2020

Hailepo said:
I’ve been waiting about 7 weeks now for my rock and emailed them today and got the auto-responses. I emailed the main address trying to understand if it was a temporary or permanent thing. Looks permanent based upon his response. I was all set to go with his ”package” and now I’ve got to figure out a new path. Also hope they are ok....

From TBS:
Mike

Covid has killed us....it is over.....

Sea ya

Oh no! This is terrible news. Thanks for sharing, @Hailepo.

MPCReefer · Dec 8, 2020

Yes, terrible news. Hate to hear this!

CMMorgan · Dec 10, 2020

I just emailed Debbie directly. The response was the same canned answer but it then added that her email was no longer being monitored. The response overall is very cryptic. As we all are, I will keep them in my prayers and hope that no one has perished due to the virus. They have worked so hard, it would be heartbreaking to see them lose their life and livelihood.

Guttersnipe · Dec 11, 2020

I received my order from them back in August. The “package” I got is amazing. I would not start another tank without getting rocks from them.
I really hope Richard and Deb are ok.