PKYS for Victron

[TedOnWalkabout]

I placed this post in the other forum.  It might be censored because of the owner's affiliation with Amazon, but I figure I can post it here.

"The title was truncated, I meant to say "Victron products cheaper than Amazon with human knowledgeable, American English spoken customer service".

I know that Bob Wells has links to Amazon, but this is a problem with a specific brand that has caused me a fair amount of consternation and I hope to share it to prevent one of you from going through a frustrating hassle. And to share a good new supplier.

Well, I ordered two Victron charge controllers (100/30 and 100/20) and a Victron BMV 700 battery mmonitor from Amazon.  They arrived, in two boxes. The battery monitor box was open, with pieces scattered in the Amazon box.  It appeared that someone had opened it up and then shoved everything back in there wily-nilly.  There were empty niches in the package, but I didn't bother trying to ascertain if anything was missing as it was immediately obvious that it was going back.  The bigger charge controller box seal had been broken, the cardboard tabs torn and the charge controller had been taken out and replaced, albeit with a little more care than the battery monitor. The little charge controller's package had been cut open. The package looked like it had been kicked around the floor of someone's car for a couple of weeks.

I buy A LOT of stuff from Amazon without issues.   I don't know if this is just a problem with the supplier, but the issue of all three packages of the same brand being opened/messed with seems to be more than just a coincidence.  So back to Amazon they go. I wrote reviews on Amazon and all three reviews were censored.

Not willing to chance buying replacement Victron units from Amazon, I went online to search for new units.  The firm PKYS kept popping up with prices substantially cheaper.  So I placed my order online (free shipping for orders over ? (I didn't check, since it was free for this order). Then this morning, I realized that I needed a shunt cover, and rather than pay $3.95 for shipping because of the small order, I called them. I spoke to Mike and he fixed it.  Then a little later, I realized that I had ordered the wrong model charge controller and I called Mike again. He very patiently fixed it-again.  He mentioned their blog and that the owner (Peter Kennedy) was very helpful if customers needed assistance on what their system required.  At this point, I decided that this company deserved kudos and recognition for their service. So, I asked about their return policy and he said there that it easy and that people make mistakes in what their system needs frequently. He stated that you can request a return request online or just call them and that refunds are usually made within a week.

After my call, I looked further at their site and blog and favorable reviews and decided that I should share this with you.  
Ted"

[rvpopeye]

Good find !

[Putts]

Cool. Just had a look at some of the Blue Sea stuff I've been buying lately and prices at PKYS were consistently less expensive than Amazon.

Good tip, Ted. Thanks!

http://www.pkys.com/

[TedOnWalkabout]

Surprise, surprise, this post was removed at CRVL! Competition isn't acceptable, I guess. No message, no nothing, just gone. Last time I'll post there!
Ted

[TedOnWalkabout]

Whoops, I jumped to conclusions. The post was moved to recommendations. My bad.
Ted

[TrainChaser]

I ordered some natural sea salt through Amazon, and got an empty box that had been taped up after removing the contents. The person that I contacted said they hand-deliver their goods directly to the local P.O. A USPS sticker on it said something like 'Received in damaged condition', with all three boxes checked off, so it seems the postal service has some trash employees. Imagine that.

[Blacktank]

while the big distributors can buy in bulk thus saving you money in most cases you can buy company direct thus bypassing the middleman that might be spending the profits on something you disagree with

[Anna]

I placed this post in the other forum.  It might be censored because of the owner's affiliation with Amazon, but I figure I can post it here.

"The title was truncated, I meant to say "Victron products cheaper than Amazon with human knowledgeable, American English spoken customer service".

I know that Bob Wells has links to Amazon, but this is a problem with a specific brand that has caused me a fair amount of consternation and I hope to share it to prevent one of you from going through a frustrating hassle. And to share a good new supplier.

Well, I ordered two Victron charge controllers (100/30 and 100/20) and a Victron BMV 700 battery mmonitor from Amazon.  They arrived, in two boxes. The battery monitor box was open, with pieces scattered in the Amazon box.  It appeared that someone had opened it up and then shoved everything back in there wily-nilly.  There were empty niches in the package, but I didn't bother trying to ascertain if anything was missing as it was immediately obvious that it was going back.  The bigger charge controller box seal had been broken, the cardboard tabs torn and the charge controller had been taken out and replaced, albeit with a little more care than the battery monitor. The little charge controller's package had been cut open. The package looked like it had been kicked around the floor of someone's car for a couple of weeks.

I buy A LOT of stuff from Amazon without issues.   I don't know if this is just a problem with the supplier, but the issue of all three packages of the same brand being opened/messed with seems to be more than just a coincidence.  So back to Amazon they go. I wrote reviews on Amazon and all three reviews were censored.

Not willing to chance buying replacement Victron units from Amazon, I went online to search for new units.  The firm PKYS kept popping up with prices substantially cheaper.  So I placed my order online (free shipping for orders over ? (I didn't check, since it was free for this order). Then this morning, I realized that I needed a shunt cover, and rather than pay $3.95 for shipping because of the small order, I called them. I spoke to Mike and he fixed it.  Then a little later, I realized that I had ordered the wrong model charge controller and I called Mike again. He very patiently fixed it-again.  He mentioned their blog and that the owner (Peter Kennedy) was very helpful if customers needed assistance on what their system required.  At this point, I decided that this company deserved kudos and recognition for their service. So, I asked about their return policy and he said there that it easy and that people make mistakes in what their system needs frequently. He stated that you can request a return request online or just call them and that refunds are usually made within a week.

After my call, I looked further at their site and blog and favorable reviews and decided that I should share this with you.  
Ted"

Have you checked with the postal service to see that it wasn't a postal employee who had opened the packages? Sometimes the postal employees have light fingers.

[TedOnWalkabout]

I have had hundreds of packages, large and small, delivered to that address over the years and at least 100 packages in the last year, dozens recently while setting up the systems for Hubby's van and my trailer. Even with the big solar panels and lots of valuable items, including some very expensuve medications, I never have had a problem like this-except for these three Victron units. I would put money on the problem being the supplier vs the Post Office.

And besides, these packages were in sealed, not having been opened Amazon boxes. I don't think the postal employees would have the time or incentive to open up and then reseal Amaxon boxes like new.
Ted

[TrainChaser]

^^^ That's true. Mine was obvious.