Chi Company

[SwampassJ]

lol

Think we're on the same page. Poster registers, posts one item and doesn't re log back in.

 

[Julohan]

Think we're on the same page. Poster registers, posts one item and doesn't re log back in.

Hah, was thinking the same thing.

 

[jpalarchio]

Since I've exhausted my other methods of contact, I figured I'd drop a note here before contacting my credit card company.

Placed an order with CHI Company on 01/25 (#8658) and was charged immediately on my card. Received a USPS shipping notification the next day however the tracking number never shows being received by USPS, only that it was allocated.

* Sent a message via the "Contact Us" on their website, no response.
* Called the phone number and got the message that "they're in the warehouse" and left a voicemail, no response.
* Sent a PM on this forum on 02/18 (vendor has since logged in), no response.

Is this a common problem with this vendor?

It's not a large order but it would be nice if they just responded to one of my messages so I know what's up. I'm getting tired of wasting time trying to track them down. Credit card chargeback and BBB complaint are a couple days away.

Hello? Anyone at CHI? Help?

 

[TheCHICompany]

Sorry for contact delay. Will check order status Wednesday morning and report via direct email. If sent via USPS tracking may not show until delivery.
The Chi Company

 

[jpalarchio]

Good to know I can get a response here in 30 minutes. Given the tracking number is almost a month old, I'd guess it hasn't shipped but I'll await your email tomorrow.

 

[Cosper123]

Horrible experience thus far for me. Received an email telling me that my order was being shipped on Feb 10th...still not here. Tried to email them twice with no response, going on day five with no response actually. Tried to call Matt's number and no answer...and the mailbox is full.

Not sure what is going on but hopefully someone decides to do their job soon. Ordered a ball lock to sanke conversion for my brother-in-law's b-day figured a month in advance would be plenty of time to get it...getting nervous.

 

[Cosper123]

Horrible experience thus far for me. Received an email telling me that my order was being shipped on Feb 10th...still not here. Tried to email them twice with no response, going on day five with no response actually. Tried to call Matt's number and no answer...and the mailbox is full.

Not sure what is going on but some sort of response would be nice. Ordered a pin lock to sanke conversion for my brother-in-law's b-day figured a month in advance would be plenty of time to get it...getting nervous.

Chris, Order number 8776

PLEASE let me know what is going on so I have enough time to order from someone else if you're backed up or something.

 

[Covert]

I've always gotten good service from them and they have things that you can't find other places. Their prices on some things are pretty good too. But when you need to contact them they aren't the most touchy-feely and have a hard time getting back to you.

 

[SwampassJ]

Horrible experience thus far for me. Received an email telling me that my order was being shipped on Feb 10th...still not here. Tried to email them twice with no response, going on day five with no response actually. Tried to call Matt's number and no answer...and the mailbox is full.

Not sure what is going on but hopefully someone decides to do their job soon. Ordered a ball lock to sanke conversion for my brother-in-law's b-day figured a month in advance would be plenty of time to get it...getting nervous.

Post a new thread in the review section. That usually gets a response.

 

[jpalarchio]

Sorry for contact delay. Will check order status Wednesday morning and report via direct email. If sent via USPS tracking may not show until delivery.
The Chi Company

No response from vendor as stated above. I guess I'll go through the hassle of requesting a chargeback from my credit card company and filing a BBB complaint (complaint #65020077).

I've had better response ordering stuff from China...

 

[Cosper123]

I've always gotten good service from them and they have things that you can't find other places. Their prices on some things are pretty good too. But when you need to contact them they aren't the most touchy-feely and have a hard time getting back to you.

Touchy-feely?

Not requesting a date. Some customer service would be nice. The product that supposedly shipped nearly two weeks ago would be even better.

TY SwampassJ for suggestion, I will try that.

 

[Cosper123]

Please refer to this thread where your customers are requesting help:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f173/chi-company-284570/index7.html


Been nearly two weeks since I received a confirmation email that my item had shipped. The USPS still does not list as delivered, in fact it doesn't even confirm that the item was shipped yet...Tried to email you twice and call you once. No answer at any point, and your mailbox is full. Please address this, I need that part for my brother-in-law's b-day which is quickly approaching.

A response of some sort sure would be nice.

 

[TheCHICompany]

UPDATE:
Order #: 8679:
Last name starts w/ A
UPS #: 1Z38W1401269982176 Delivered
#1Z38W1401270669182 Out the door today, upgraded to 3 day select
#1Z38W1401271793947 Shipped from CO warehouse. MFL tailpieces STILL not received from the MFG so shipping separately from CO Warehouse, 3-day select.
-------------------
Order # 8714
Last Name starts w/ S
Out the door today: UPS # 1Z38W1401271619911 upgraded to 3-day select.

# 1Z38W1401270330528 Shipped from CO warehouse. MFL tailpieces STILL not received from the MFG so shipping separately from CO Warehouse, 3-day select.
-----------------------

Order #: 8776
Last name starts w/ C
Order Received: 02/07/2012
Order Processed: 02/10/2012
Shipped via USPS #: 9405503699300407280646
Possible lost shipment.
Will resend order and initiate USPS Trace.
--------------
Order #: 8658
Last name starts w/ P
must assume lost shipment
Order Received: 01/25/2012
Order Processed: 01/26/2012
Shipped via USPS #: 9405503699300388908584
Resending via UPS #1Z38W1400270898757

 

[sudsmcgee]

Seriously? Posting last names and tracking numbers on here? I will NEVER buy from you. Wow.

 

[TheCHICompany]

Notice about shipping:
When cusomers choose flat rate shipping, we usually ship via USPS Priority Mail due to its' cost efectiveness as compared to UPS.

A WORD ABOUT USPS PACKAGE NUMBERS:
The USPS number is a "Delivery Confirmation Number". It will show the deliverey date and time of a shipment.
It will NOT -automatically- be a point to point location tracking number like the UPS system.
If a package is individually scanned at pickup or if part of a "USPS Scan Sheet", then the package will be trackable.
Not all CHI Company associate locations use a scan sheet nor do some USPS Carriers scan each package at pickup.
The result is that no update may be shown on the USPS Tracking website until final delivery, whereby the tracking page will show "Delivered".

IF YOU WANT POINT TO POINT TRACKING, PLEASE CHOOSE UPS.

----------
A Note about current manufacturing in the U.S. and abroad.

This poor economy has hit -EVERY- industry hard!
We have noticed over the last 2 years that manufacturers and distributors now hold less on-hand inventory than before: The cost of holding large inventories is too great.

-MANY- manufacturers are now "batch manufacturing", whereby when the number of orders for part XYZ reach a specified level, they then manufacture them. Should a customer place an order for a part and they are just at the beginning of the time period where the mfg. is collecting orders for the next batch, that customer may be waiting awhile to recieve their order. In the meantime, their customer is waiting.....

This is happening to us, and many other businesses, more frequently.
I can not tell you how maddening it is and how expensive it is.

For example, we were/still are backordered for the 1/4" MFL Tailpieces. We used to order 50 at a time, then 100.... now, due to mfg delays, we have to order three times that amount...just to last us through the unpredictable periods of unavailability!

We do our best to limit the damage done by backorders and "batch mfging".
We apologize for any delay that may occur.
Matt
The CHI Company

 

[TheCHICompany]

Seriously? Posting last names and tracking numbers on here? I will NEVER buy from you. Wow.

Hey suds,
Thier names are already shown as their screen names, But to keep you happy, we will now edit.

 

[jpalarchio]

Matt-

I appreciate you resending my order via UPS. I had already requested a chargeback from my credit card company since I had basically no communication from you over a month period. Feel free to let them know you've shipped and assuming I get the items, I have no problem paying for them.

I understand that things get lost and maybe some mail carrier is out there building the kegerator of all kegerators (no offense to mail carriers!) but I think all any customer wants is reasonable communication.

My order was small (~$30) so it's not even the money that was of concern to me as much as whether I should order these items from elsewhere, the uncertainty of my order status and all the time I wasted trying to find out what was going on. When I've already paid you and you ignore multiple attempts of contact, it's going to piss off the consumer and probably not put them on the repeat customer list.

Take some time to read the response from Brewers Hardware (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f14/brewers-hardware-286781/index3.html#post3716077) to a similar situation; I think you'll gain more customers handling the these types of situations like that than getting in a pissing match with people on the forums.

Thanks

Joe

 

[TheCHICompany]

I apologize for the delay. We have been waiting on backordered parts.
as per a different post;
Order #: 8776
Last name starts w/ C
Order Received: 02/07/2012
Order Processed: 02/10/2012
Shipped via USPS #: 9405503699300407280646
Possible lost shipment.
Will resend order and initiate USPS Trace.


will continue conv. when back in shop via direct email.
matt

 

[Cosper123]

I don't blame you if it got lost during shipment, that is out of your control. But what you do have control over is your communication. And after having ignored two of my emails and not be available by phone (and with mailbox full so not able to leave message) I was really hoping you would follow through and in fact email me when you were back in shop as promised. I patiently waited the weekend, although I am near panic mode with my brother-in-law's b-day gift quickly reaching late status....and still, come to the end of the Monday workday...no word.

Again, don't blame you if it was lost in transit. But the USPS would indicate if it was delivered, and it doesn't. If it had at least made it to my doorstop I wouldn't even make an issue of it. But it didn't, and you had no problem taking my payment...yet over two weeks after it was "shipped" and can't get consistent communication from you on when it will be here.

And this is why this hurts me so - I brewed up a batch of beer for my Brother-in-Laws b-day party that is going to occur in a week. His keezer is set up for Sanke and the only kegs I have are pinlock so that's what it's in. He wanted to serve this beer at his party, so the conversion piece is my additional gift to him. But it's quickly looking like it's not going to happen, although my order was initially placed on the 7th. That is extremely frustrating. Moreso when I can't get ahold of you via email or phone, and insult to injury when I finally corner you here only to be told you will get ahold of me via email when back in shop...but don't.

 

[Yuri_Rage]

Please resolve this via e-mail or private message.

 

[Cosper123]

Well my order finally arrived, a few days shy of a month after it was initially ordered. The little poppet thingy in the one of the pinlock posts is loose and falls out, nothing holding it or the spring in place. After the three emails and a PM that went unanswered, and a phone that is never answered and continues to have a full mailbox...I'm not even going to bother trying to send it back for a replacement.

Again, don't blame you Matt if the shipment was lost. If it had at least made it to my door I wouldn't have even bothered you. But when you enter into an agreement with someone, and accept their money...they deserve some form of communication when things go wrong. If this is too much for you, then in the future you may just want to refund people's money before you ignore them.

I do appreciate you sending it again. But for the sake of customer retention you may want to start responding to customers in other areas other than these forums. People shouldn't have to track you down here and shame you publicly to get attention concerning the item they paid good money for.

Have a good one and hope things settle down for you soon.

 

[lpdjshaw]

I recently purchased a "refurbished" 10 gal corney keg from the Chi Company that advertises on this forum - big mistake! In the past I've purchased from Brew Hardware, Brewers Warehouse, Bargain Fittings, Keg Connection and Keg Cowboy - all with awesome results. Thanks guys! Chi Company however has been a different story - their description of these "reconditioned" kegs were misleading, shipping was woefully slow and their customer service has been non-existant as well. Buyer beware!!!!

 

[lagavulin]

Crappy.

How were the kegs described? What did you receive? What was the customer service response?

 

[Nugent]

How much of a chance did you give Chi to deal with your complaint?

Did you get an indication from other posters on HBT that this is a consistent issue from this company before posting your complaint?

Some of the quality companies that advertise on this forum chime in and publicly acknowledge that they'll rectify the problem, but giving them a chance to do something before posting an individual complaint is good form.

I'm not implying that you didn't do all of this before posting, though.

Hoping that you get what you expected from them in the end.

 

[cashbrewing]

I personally have purchased about 35 5 gallon cornies and 4 sanke kegs for fermenters from CHI Company. Out of all those purchases one of the sanke kegs had a hole punched through it by the upper skirt. A call to I believe Matt of CHI Company and he happily sent me a replacement and told me to keep the one with the hole which I was able to weld and still use now. They were easy to work with and I would happily purchase from them again and again and again. With that being said, we all need to realize that in this economy a lot of companies have had to cut back on costs and the amount of employes they have on payroll leaving the owner of the company to try and manage everything on their own in order to keep they're doors open. This leaves things such as customer service, shipping etc... to take longer than what we would like. A little patience is needed on all our parts, so before we decide to thrash a company on the Internet, try to give the company the benefit of the doubt. Just because we all have the ability to thrash anybody we want on the Internet now days doesn't mean we should. Wow sorry for the long rant.

 

[lpdjshaw]

Before I get into details let me add that I forgot to mention that I have also purchased from Morebeer, Northern Brewer, Brewmasters Warehouse, Nor Cal Brewing Solutions, Williams Brewing and Bowiefan. Again, all with great results - thanks to you guys as well!

The description for the "reconditioned" 10 gal corney says that there may be a "small ding (not a dent)" in the body. The keg I got had a DENT - not a smal ding. The dent was significant enough that it ruptured the seam and had to be rewelded. The reweld was atrocious!
They do state that the factory does not warantee for pressence of excessive internal weld slag and therfore they will not accept retuns or exchanges. I did read that and figured it shouldn't be much of a problem as they stated on thier site that this had only been reported less than 4 times in the 3 years they had been selling them. The website now states it's happened less than 10 times in 3 years so this is obviously becoming more of a problem - at least 6 times in the last week!? The amount of slag on the inside was also unbelievable! An absolute amature job and not what you would expect from a professional welder at a factory.
I sent two emails a few days apart and got zero response. Shipping took about two weeks - I don't have the exact dates in front of me.
So bottom line, I did take a risk on a "reconditioned" item but they were less than up front in describing the condition and occurance of this problem. Just want to help those out there considering spending $200 know what they may be getting into.
Oh, and cashbrewing, glad it's worked out for you but I'm not "just thrashing somebody on the Internet because I can".

Forgot to mention also that I just recently found out that the lid will not seal without pressure.

 

[Golddiggie]

There's at least one thread in the vendor complaint section about chi... I've ordered from them and have my experiences posted. Without going into it here (which isn't appropriate) lets just say I'm not at all surprised with the OP's experiences. I've since made it my policy to NOT order from them, no matter what. Luckily, I've found everything I want (that chi has listed) from other sources. Some of them are even able to meet/beat chi's prices.

 

[lpdjshaw]

Oops, looks like I should have posted here originally. I usually get stuck at the DIY and Equipment/Sanitation forums - never got this far down on the board.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/beware-chi-company-315647/

 

[StMarcos]

I asked via email about buying a sanke keg (working order) from them about 6 months ago. Never heard anything back. It does seem they do carry an interesting assortment of bits though. Certainly doesn't seem like a good place to get ingredients. Website pull down tabs don't work well.

 

[helibrewer]

StMarcos have you tried the guy on eBay from Santa Rosa that advertises corny kegs every week? I think I need to give him a call.