Shipping Policy for Live Fish, Invertebrates, and Plants

Welcome to Tropicflow! We’re dedicated to ensuring the safe and timely delivery of your aquatic life. Here’s a straightforward guide to our shipping practices.

Understanding Your Delivery

Expected Delivery
We ship orders weekly from Monday to Wednesday, excluding federally observed holidays and the period from December 15th to January 15th. While we do our best to process and ship orders promptly, we are currently short-staffed, which may cause some delays. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your understanding.

Order Confirmation
After placing your order, a confirmation email summarizing your purchase will be sent to the email address you provided. Please ensure your email address is accurate. In some cases, we may need to verify payment by phone or email, which could impact the shipping timeline.

Tracking Your Order
Tracking information will be provided as soon as your order is shipped. Please note that some carriers—especially USPS—may not update tracking details until the package is out for delivery, even though it is already moving through their network. Rest assured, once you receive the tracking email, your package has been fully handed off and is in transit.

Choosing the Right Shipping Option

The health and well-being of your aquatic life are our top priorities when selecting a shipping provider. At times, we may choose a different shipper than originally requested to ensure a faster and more reliable delivery.

Shipping Options and Schedule

Standard Shipping

• We primarily ship using USPS Priority Mail.

• If USPS does not deliver to your address and you are unable to pick up packages from the post office due to work schedule, transit, or disability, please add “send via UPS” in the order notes.

• Recommended for destinations where the temperature is between 50°F and 90°F.

• Orders outside of this range will be held until conditions improve, and you will receive a notification email about the delay.

• For PO Box addresses, weather-related delay is usually minimal since packages remain safely at the post office.

Express Shipping / Weather Protection

• We use USPS Priority Mail or UPS Second Day Air, depending on destination weather and other factors.

• This is not guaranteed overnight shipping.

• Exceptions may apply for:

  • High-value orders

  • Extreme destination weather

  • Large item quantities that reduce available insulation

• Recommended when temperatures are below 50°F or between 90–120°F, as this service provides larger boxes and thicker insulation to minimize DOA risk.

• Express / Weather Protection shipments are prioritized over Standard Shipping, with minimal weather-related delays.

• Possible reasons for delay:

  • Orders containing newly released Coded U-Pick fish (released one week in advance)

  • Stock quality not meeting our standards, requiring a short wait for better availability

Overnight Shipping (UPS Next Day Air)

• Available upon request for regular orders.

• Required for sensitive or large fish such as goldfish and flowerhorns.

Shipping Schedule

• Monday & Tuesday: Regular shipments

• Wednesday: UPS Next Day Air and special circumstance orders

• This schedule helps prevent weekend delays and ensures the health and safety of aquatic life.

• Orders may be delayed or held in response to extreme local weather conditions such as heatwaves, cold spells, storms, or earthquakes—always prioritizing the safety of the animals.

We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in ensuring the best possible start for your new aquatic life. If you have any questions or need further details about our shipping policy, please feel free to contact us.

Thank you for choosing Tropicflow!
— The Tropicflow Team