READ BELOW BEFORE ORDERING.
THESE FISH ARE SUITABLE FOR TROPICAL HEATED AQUARIUMS ONLY. THIS REQUIRES AN INTANK HEATER.
THESE FISH WILL NOT LIVE IN UNHEATED WATER (we will offer goldfish soon).
Similarly, Saltwater fish are for tropical saltwater only. Do not order Nemo unless you have a cycled marine tank. He will not go in with your goldfish. Saltwater mix is required to make up seawater, not table salt.
Apologies for the previous, but it avoids a lot of questions and helps weed out inappropriates before anything can happen.
We ship fish nationwide. Due to the cost of crossing the divide, North Island shipping is a little more expensive. All fish are shipped to OFI standards, filled with oxygen, sedative, environment stabilisers and heat packs (season dependent to avoid overheating).
Before you order, check your shipping address here: http://www.posthaste.co.nz/address_checker.html
We reserve the right to adjust the shipping value if your order falls outside the bounds of our shipping allowances. Obviously 6 discus and 200 neons will fit in one box, so shipping will need to be adjusted. We will pack for economy where possible. Variability in shipping means that big quantities will be more affordable than small diverse purchases. However, one box can hold up to 8 bags. Expect your shipping value to go down. Place your order and await for us to review your shipping, before you make payment.
If your address comes up as rural, you will need to have your package delivered somewhere close to you that is suitable for mon-fri delivery on the address checker. We do not require signatures for deliveries and recommend you provide extra instructions in the space provided to allow delivery regardless of the situation at your end.
You should ensure your shipping address is serviced by post haste on their daily deliveries. If you are on the edge of rural, consider having your package delivered to a more metropolitan address and uplifting it once delivered, to ensure timely receipt of your fish.
We send Tuesdays only, therefore arrival days are Wednesdays. You will receive an email confirming your purchase and an email confirming that your shipment has left once it has been packed. A tracking number will be attached, so you can check your package progress. We recommend that if you have not received your package by 1pm the following day, you contact your local post haste courier representative to ensure that delivery is imminent. Please call us if you cannot locate your shipment for any reason after we have emailed your shipment tracking number and you have checked with post haste.
We do not accept responsibility for misdelivered fish, incorrect addressing or rural fudging and other courier issues, causing loss; however this is very rare.
We may offer GPS tracking of shipments later in the year if demand is suitably high.
DoA applications must be in by email by 6pm on delivery day, and suitable evidence provided. We reserve the right to replace or refund as necessary. Shipping is not refundable.
We request that you have performed at least a 25% water change within the last 3 days before receiving your new fish, preferably accompanied with regular tank maintenance and general tank cleanliness. High levels of organics in your water are just as stressfull to the fish as differing pH and general pollutant levels. Our fresh water is pH7.4 and 40ppm hardness. Our saltwater is 1.022 red sea mix . Brackish species will be at 1.015-1.018 unless otherwise specified. You should ensure that all your parameters are correct prior to ordering.
DO NOT BUY sucking catfish, corydoras or smooth skinned fish (loaches, mormyrids , knife fish etc) within the first 6 weeks of starting a tropical aquarium. Use hardy species only for the start up period, no expensive specialist fish. Regular 25% water changes every 3-4 days for the first 4-6 weeks are the requirement. Once elapsed, consider the system cycled and add more fish. Again, we are not responsible for the conditions the fish is going into, so ensure your tank is in ideal condition to receive its new inhabitants.
With respect to livestock choices, there are generally accepted traits to certain species but exceptions to the rule also apply. We accept no responsibility for the compatibility of your fish choices to your current tank inhabitants ; It is possible that young triggers other than Odonis niger can be reef safe after conversion to non wild foods and some butterflies may prefer bloodworms to chewing on coral after acclimatisation to aquaria, but we do not provide any guarantees. Likewise, some people like to keep africans and americans together. DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH BEFORE PURCHASING.
Upon receipt of your fish, open the bag and admit approximately an aliquot of 1/2 of the bag’s volume of water from your tank into the bag. Allow the bag to sit for the next 15 minutes to allow the fish to adjust to the change in conditions. Then add another 1/2 of the bags original volume to the bag and allow the fish to adjust further to the change in conditions. Wait another 15 minutes and then release the fish to your tank…either net the fish out and discard the bag of mixed waters or pour the fish and water into your tank. Pouring is less stressful. Floating the bag for 20minutes without opening the bag and admitting your water does nothing but equalise water temperatures.
Feed other fish at the opposite end of the tank, before releasing the fish to distract them from the new arrivals and allow the new arrivals to find shelter whilst the other tank mates are eating. Remember that your filtration system will need to replicate more bacteria to cater for your new arrival’s bioload, so feeding cautiously and performing a water change within a week after receipt of new fish is a good idea to minimise any surge in ammonia or nitrite due to your new fish.
Don’t order fish straight away after overhauling your canister filter/sump etc either, allow it at least 7 days to catch up to where it was before increasing its bioload.
If you run a high bioload (especially large africans or monster fish), ensure your filter media is top quality high surface area media and/or you have an extra canister running in tandem. Tank crashes occur when one or two extra introduced cichlids goes past the maximum ammonia consumption of your filter and then it only takes 24-72 hours to totally wipe out your tank due to ammonia buildup. This applies for all filters/systems regardless of size.
Too much food is by far the largest killer of aquarium fish, consider that most fish need around 3-4 pieces of flake about the size of their eye to sustain their life, excess food simply pollutes your tank with more nitrogen and phosphorous and the fish grow big, fast. Careful directed feeding will ensure all inhabitants receive enough food and observing while feeding will show up damage etc to fish.