Refund & Return Policy

Live animals cannot be returned

For the safety of our livestock and the health of your aquarium, live animals cannot be returned for any reason. Once a fish, coral, or invertebrate leaves our facility and enters your care, reintroducing it to our systems would risk cross-contamination and disease spread.

If a live animal arrives in poor condition or deceased, our DOA policy and Live Arrival Guarantee apply instead. We do not accept live animal returns for buyer's remorse, tank incompatibility, or water parameter issues.

When refunds or credits apply

• DOA livestock — Full store credit or replacement under our DOA policy.
• Incorrect item shipped — If we send the wrong species or size, we will replace it at no cost and cover return shipping of the incorrect item if applicable.
• Defective equipment — If a pump, light, or piece of equipment arrives broken or non-functional, we will replace or refund it within 30 days of delivery.
• Cancelled pre-orders — Full refund if the order has not yet shipped. If already packed or in transit, standard shipping and DOA policies apply.
• Weather holds you cancel — Full refund if we held your shipment for weather and you choose to cancel rather than wait.

Non-livestock return rules

Equipment, dry goods, supplements, and non-living products may be returned under these conditions:

• Item must be unused, in original packaging, and in resalable condition.
• Return request must be submitted within 14 days of delivery.
• Customer pays return shipping unless the item was defective or incorrectly sent.
• Refunds are issued to the original payment method within 5–7 business days after we receive the return.
• Opened supplements, food, or chemicals cannot be returned for safety reasons.

Plants

Plants are not covered under the live arrival guarantee, but we want you to succeed:

• If a plant arrives severely damaged, rotted, or clearly diseased, contact us within 24 hours with photos for a partial or full store credit at our discretion.
• Minor melting, leaf loss, or color change after planting is normal transition behavior and is not covered.
• Plants cannot be returned. Credits are the only remedy for qualifying issues.

Store credit terms

Store credits issued for DOAs, plant issues, or returns are valid for 12 months from the issue date. Credits:

• Can be used on any item in our store, including livestock and dry goods.
• Cannot be exchanged for cash or transferred to another account.
• Are applied automatically at checkout when you are logged into the same account.
• Expire after 12 months with no extensions.