Got scammed on R2R new marketplace.

[VacavilleFC]

ordered a profilux 4 and mitras lx 7206 on r2r new marketplace. seller communicated very well. package arrived today and WOW.

ok so profilux 4 itself is working just fine SO FAR.

the 7206 worked for about 5 minutes before it spat some sparks out the top and a big cloud of the magic smoke.

looks like maybe a loose ground somewhere deeper inside.

next comes the salinity meter, which was packaged in its original box with foam Insert

and then the icing on the cake. the 1 piece i really wanted the PAB, which its socket looks like it went through a fire already. not even going to plug it in

thankfully half my CU has buyer protection on debit purchases and the mitras was paid for through paypal... we'll see how this goes

 

[richiev]

ordered a profilux 4 and mitras lx 7206 on r2r new marketplace. seller communicated very well. package arrived today and WOW.

ok so profilux 4 itself is working just fine SO FAR.

the 7206 worked for about 5 minutes before it spat some sparks out the top and a big cloud of the magic smoke.

View attachment 81389View attachment 81390

looks like maybe a loose ground somewhere deeper inside.

next comes the salinity meter, which was packaged in its original box with foam Insert

View attachment 81391

and then the icing on the cake. the 1 piece i really wanted the PAB, which its socket looks like it went through a fire already. not even going to plug it in
View attachment 81392View attachment 81393

thankfully half my CU has buyer protection on debit purchases and the mitras was paid for through paypal... we'll see how this goes

That's a downer. Looks like a bunch of saltwater encroachment over time leading to ... badness. That plug if everything else is alright should be repairable. Cut the cord, solder or wago or wire nut it with some rubber electrical tape for coverage. I've had what I think is similar, but nowhere near as extreme, corrosion from salt exposure on a plug in an outlet.

Maybe the mitras is repairable or the mitras company would let you have them repair?

 

[VacavilleFC]

That's a downer. Looks like a bunch of saltwater encroachment over time leading to ... badness. That plug if everything else is alright should be repairable. Cut the cord, solder or wago or wire nut it with some rubber electrical tape for coverage. I've had what I think is similar, but nowhere near as extreme, corrosion from salt exposure on a plug in an outlet.

Maybe the mitras is repairable or the mitras company would let you have them repair?

thats not just corrosion, it's burnt, it arced out at some point and for quite a while. I could never trust it.

maybe the mitras could be repaired but that would probably cost more than I paid for it and at this point im just pissed at the whole tranaction.

 

[PjFish]

Sorry thats totally unacceptable!! Is R2R going to take any action? Share the screen name so others don’t get scammed. Have they contributed on any threads or discussion groups or only specifically on the marketplace?

 

[VacavilleFC]

Sorry thats totally unacceptable!! Is R2R going to take any action? Share the screen name so others don’t get scammed. Have they contributed on any threads or discussion groups or only specifically on the marketplace?

im communicating with their team now

they are a long time user of r2r. so its not like a hit and run scammer. another user found their build thread and the light was purchased about 6 years ago.

everything except the PAB, even the probes came used but in their original packaging

im asking for a full refund on the light and 50% on the profilux because of the probe and pab being broken. profilux seems to be working fine so far and has no corrosion

and while probes are a consumable if they'd just been honest I wouldn't have cared

new pab is $260 and salinity probe is like $190

 

[Turkeysammich]

You didn’t get scammed unless it was stated as new. You might have paid too much. 99% of used reef equipment is pretty beat up. Unfortunately, it’s just the nature of the beast. While we expect new condition. What we really get is Meh.
There’s always something wrong with used equipment. Hopefully it was cheap enough to where you can afford new probes ( which are consumables ).
As for the light. If you can figure out what you need. I have some parts in my garage.

 

[Kensington Reefer]

That’s a terrible experience!
It is one reason why I confine my purchases of used equipment…local!

 

[VacavilleFC]

You didn’t get scammed unless it was stated as new. You might have paid too much. 99% of used reef equipment is pretty beat up. Unfortunately, it’s just the nature of the beast. While we expect new condition. What we really get is Meh.
There’s always something wrong with used equipment. Hopefully it was cheap enough to where you can afford new probes ( which are consumables ).
As for the light. If you can figure out what you need. I have some parts in my garage.

didnt expect new, expected working and not a fire hazard.

seller maybe didnt know the light was on its last 5 minutes but they did know that the pab had previously arced out at some point and melted the socket. im not even going to plug it in to test if it works.

probes are a consumable, but there's a difference between being worn out and it being cracked in 2.

 

[Turkeysammich]

Yeah it definitely sucks. Was it bad packaging on the sellers part ? But it doesn’t really matter cuz it’s broke.
As for the light. I would do what Mike said. Change the cord or chop it off and put a new connector on it. Home Depot sells them.
Don’t get your hopes up for R2R to help. They can only make suggestions. If you paid with CC or PayPal. Dispute it thru them. You’ll get more help.

 

[Bruce Spiegelman]

You didn’t get scammed unless it was stated as new. You might have paid too much. 99% of used reef equipment is pretty beat up. Unfortunately, it’s just the nature of the beast. While we expect new condition. What we really get is Meh.
There’s always something wrong with used equipment. Hopefully it was cheap enough to where you can afford new probes ( which are consumables ).
As for the light. If you can figure out what you need. I have some parts in my garage.

I have to completely disagree with this. Used equipment can certainly be beat up, and buyers should do their due diligence, but this isn't a case of "beat" up. This is a case of undisclosed major equipment trauma (electrical issues, clearly) and that goes far beyond "equipment usage."

If you're buying a used car and it's known by the seller, but not disclosed that there's a tranny issue, then it's a scam. Same thing here. An electrical malfunction is a catastrophic equipment issue.

 

[VacavilleFC]

Yeah it definitely sucks. Was it bad packaging on the sellers part ? But it doesn’t really matter cuz it’s broke.
As for the light. I would do what Mike said. Change the cord or chop it off and put a new connector on it. Home Depot sells them.
Don’t get your hopes up for R2R to help. They can only make suggestions. If you paid with CC or PayPal. Dispute it thru them. You’ll get more help.

no packaging was excellent, everything except pab in their original boxes. nothing was damaged in shipment.

no way in hell am I going to trust that smart powerbar to work properly even with the socket replaced. it has its own pcb brain and each socket is on a relay that could have been damaged. it's trash unless you are intentionally trying to burn down your house. that socket was arcing and on fire at some point.

 

[VacavilleFC]

took the mitras apart cause im bored.

looks like it had been shorting out for a while. because previously damaged copper is oxidized green

no way seller didnt know a about this.

 

[SupraSaltyReefer]

Damn sorry to hear. If seller won't work out a resolution I would just claim a charge back on your credit card and PayPal.

I've learned to only buy and sell used equipment locally so seller and buyer can test the equipment in person so there is no issues afterwards.

Hope all gets resolved!

 

[VacavilleFC]

Damn sorry to hear. If seller won't work out a resolution I would just claim a charge back on your credit card and PayPal.

I've learned to only buy and sell used equipment locally so seller and buyer can test the equipment in person so there is no issues afterwards.

Hope all gets resolved!

thankfully r2r new marketplace actually has a dispute system and the mods are involved, and the light was done through PayPal so already opened a dispute their.

and now they are trying to introduce doubt that those pics are of the unit they sent me.

 

[Turkeysammich]

Yeah. It’s smoked. He knew. Dispute thru CC. Hopefully it will come out in your favor with the cc company.

 

[VacavilleFC]

now hes trying to claim those arent the items he sent.

 

[Kensington Reefer]

FFFK r2r
this is the only place I would buy anything used
keep the club local

 

[richiev]

Did you do friends and family on PayPal or Goods & Services? My understanding is with PP:

• Friends & family: zero protection. Save on fees, but you can never get any money back, ever
• Goods & Services, shipping address: make sure when selling always to ship to the exact address of the transaction, and ensure when buying it goes to the exact address you did in the transaction. No afterwards corrections. If you ship it to a different address, they can say they didn't get it and you are always out the money. If you buy and have it shipped to a different address, I'm not 100% sure what can happen, but dangerous territory.
• Goods & Services and shipped to transaction address and not in the condition: if they ship a box of rocks you probably get your money back. If they ship something that's not in the condition you expect, it's going to be a battle. If you win you end up having to ship it back at your own cost and then get refunded.

Hard to imagine it arrived like that and the seller was acting in good faith. The light burning out I can see being unknown; I've had lights that had some saltwater evap encroachment and they worked fine for a long time until they suddenly didn't. When I opened them up I could see the corrosion. Particularly though that kinda seems like the light got dunked, or maybe if they tore the tank down months ago they had saltwater leak into wherever they stored it.

A saltwater leak into the storage could cause the light, but it'd be hard to believe someone wouldn't know that happened since you'd have to clean the residue off. Similarly that cord would be hard to believe it wasn't noticed when packing, even if it wasn't something they were aware of earlier.

Best wishes on getting something back, that's a downer given I'm sure it was exciting to get and it's a lot of cash.