Read this before you buy from Kegkits.com

[danmickla]

Placed order 13 Jan; spoke to (presumably Tom) on Friday the 23rd, asking
about status; the claim was that regulators were "on their way" and "it should ship Monday, Tuesday at the latest". It's Tuesday, and no email, and phone calls go to voicemail.

I appreciate how hard it is to run a business from your garage, but, yeah, as folks say, seriously...

I don't see how it's hard to send status saying "this is backordered, due in
on <date>" rather than complete radio silence. Even if you type with two fingers.

 

[chumprock]

I am blessed to have a great store and even greater service locally.

http://www.rochesterstorefixture.com/08bevcatalog.html

I went to another place when I used to brew ten years ago, and then found out that owner sold and moved to this one.

Ask for Steve.

 

[EdWort]

Save a few bucks and wait a few weeks or months. Is the savings worth the wait?

 

[-Dan-]

For some reason I thought to give Tom another shot. Don't know why ... but did it. Ordered some parts I kinda needed weeks ago. After some time I didn't hear from anyone about the status so I decided to email - no response. Emailed again - no response again. Then after another couple of days I filed a claim with PayPal. Same day he replied that the faucet (part of the order) is on back order and should arrive later in the week. Well, I waited until Friday, responded to the claim about the status and he said stuff just arrived. He shipped everything a day later and I had it next day. He upgraded it for free Second experience with him was much better than the first one; HOWEVER, if I had the need for parts and knew I really need it at the end of the week or even the week after, I would not order. Simply because communcation does not exist! If they actually get that in order and hurry up with the shipments a little bit it might become a decent alternative to other stores

 

[danmickla]

FWIW: In response to an urgent email message referencing this thread, Tom says:

Dan,

No excuses - we are a very small company and are buried. I'd love to
hire a 4th person but every time I looked at the cost, hiring someone
else would put us in the red. I've explained this several times. We will
ship your order as soon as possible. Or if you'd rather, you can order
from someone else and pay more for the same stuff.

Please copy this to the forum. I would respond myself if I had time but
I don't.


Thanks, Tom
kegkits.com
256-656-1924

 

[danmickla]

I can deal with the waiting, I just can't deal with the "will be within three days" *plus* the "no response". IMO, if you don't have time to answer "where's my stuff", you shouldn't have accepted the order to begin with (and I simply don't believe you "don't have time". "Don't like to deal with email" is more like it.)

 

[McKBrew]

FWIW: In response to an urgent email message referencing this thread, Tom says:

Dan,

No excuses - we are a very small company and are buried. I'd love to
hire a 4th person but every time I looked at the cost, hiring someone
else would put us in the red. I've explained this several times. We will
ship your order as soon as possible. Or if you'd rather, you can order
from someone else and pay more for the same stuff.

Please copy this to the forum. I would respond myself if I had time but
I don't.


Thanks, Tom
kegkits.com
256-656-1924

No offense, but if he really gave a rat's ass, he'd take the time to make things right and post here. The negative response he is getting here is doing nothing for his business and the fact that more than one person here frequents other boards, it's not going to be contained to HBT for long.

 

[Moonshae]

Save a few bucks and wait a few weeks or months. Is the savings worth the wait?

Nope. My first experience with him was this way, and I'll never order from him again. I'd rather pay a couple bucks extra and have things in a reasonable amount of time...mostly saved on free/discounted shipping from the big places, if the order is large enough, so there's really no incentive. I mean, at least don't claim that most orders ship in 3 days when the evidence is clearly to the contrary.

I'd wager that if he improved his business practices, he could afford the 4th person...the numbers don't work at his current rate, but pretty soon, bad press is going to make the 3rd person too expensive...etc.

I guess if he's happy just making a couple bucks on the side, there will always be a few to whom time is less of an issue than dollars. This does speak volumes about how much he actually cares about his customers, though. He's offering cheap prices, period. Service and speed come with a price not factored into these.

 

[mmb]

Pity to see service continues to be an on going issue with KegKits and Tom. My order ended up missing a few O-rings but I was so happy to have finally received the order that I ignored it.

Looking through my invoice, I saved maybe $25 on a $250 dollar order over NB, Midwest, or AHS but the almost month long wait ate all of those savings plus some.

Hiring someone part time to pack boxes isn't going to put a viable business into the red. Yet another miss direction instead of customer service. My business was his to win or loose and he's obviously done nothing to win it.

 

[-Dan-]

Hiring someone part time to pack boxes isn't going to put a viable business into the red. Yet another miss direction instead of customer service.

I agree with all of you that saving sometimes does not outweight the time factor! That's why I usually don't order there either.

However, I think this is a pretty generic statement. While hiring a part-time person might not be as expensive as full-time, it always depends on the situation. If there is a reason he cannot hire another person then he knows why. I think it is wrong to say that he is missleading his customers ...
Don't take it personal

 

[Dogslovebeer]

I've had the same experience with Tom, but I only waited 3 weeks and no dip tube Orings in my order, but I got them from AHB. I just didn't want to deal with him any more but now I find myself in a tight spot I need some more Pin Lock kegs and Tom seems to be the only guy with them, do I dare try again or does anybody no where I could find some pin lock kegs?

 

[rjhockey]

If not, go to Adventures in Homebrewing in Dearborn. He helped me get set up for a keg.

Probably my favorite LHBS out of all the ones close to me. I ordered quite a large setup from them, they forgot to send a few parts which I discovered as I was heating my strike water Called them up and took the hour drive there. When I got there they filled the complete order and knocked 20% off the new keggle and a couple of other things I bought while I was there.. PLUS gave a few ounces of hops. I have had nothing but good experiences with them and will continue to purchase all my equipment there. Unfortuantly for them Titgemiers is right around the corner from my office so I can get ingredients I need the same day I brew.

 

[Irie5447]

Ok wondering if anyone has had a problem ordering stuff from kegkits? I purchased a 2 keg system with 2 kegs a regulator and a 5lb CO2 tank. They were a great price so I went ahead and ordered. Three weeks go by with no shipping confirmation as promised or nothing coming in mail. I call and get the same voicemail message. I leave a message and no returned call. Finally I try on a Saturday and phone is answered and I was told kegs will be in next week. Another three weeks go by and I finally get everything I ordered. I find out the regulator is defective and try to call again and left message that regulator is broken and to please call me back so I can exchange for a new one. I also wrote an email with no response! After not hearing back from them in over a week I chocked it up as a loss and bought a brand new regulator from midwest that came in 2 days and works great.

I wanted to share my experience with everyone so no one gets stuck dealing with the same bad customer service I was, and that if you get a defective product most likely you will be stuck with it.

 

[rhomer]

Yep ordered from them a big bottle of star san, Basically the same experience, but I did get the right thing. BTW, if you don't mind the wait or lack of communication they have a great price on star san.

I have a feeling that they drop ship everything like buy.com.

 

[Edcculus]

3 weeks for confirmation? Wow that sucks. I'm not sure how the keg places work. I just ordered a similar setup from Keg Connection. It took them longer than most online retailers to confirm my order and ship, but nothing worth complaining about.

 

[zanemoseley]

I'd be callling my CC company to get a refund for the regulator, just eating the loss because they suck is BS.

 

[Evan]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f19/online-ordering-rant-100024/

i ordered January 13th, and this past thursday April 9th i got my single keg. and to top it off it doesnt have a pressure relief valve in the lid, so i dont have an easy way of purging the CO2. i think the only reason i got my keg was because i ended up contacting my credit card company to get the charge removed.

i understand Tom (owner) is busy, but it took what like 4 months for me to get my full order, 2 months in he told me he was going to refund my money and never did. and to top it off, he is just this busy busy busy guy if you talk to him, but i get my AHA emails everyday and he is always responding to people, he even started his own forum on his webpage. i really dont like the guy or the company. i went with them because i always use AHS or Northerbrewer and figured it wouldnt hurt to expand and see who else is out there, and i thought some of his prices were pretty good. so now i use AHS or NB, and also a new place opened up here in Louisville, and the owner is great and its a mile from where i work.

 

[FlyGuy]

Unfortunately, this sort of thing sounds all too common with KegKits.com -- there have been multiple threads to make similar complaints.

I believe Tom is developing a reputation for being notoriously bad at responding to customers. To me it seems odd because he is one of the most frequent posters to the daily AHA Tech Talk email discussion list. Clearly he receives email and responds to it frequently when he wants to.

 

[MNBugeater]

Evan (not Evan!) posted a link to one of the many threads (above) on here about that vendor. It is a tough gray area on a forum as to how to communicate "proceed with caution" warnings to members & virtual friends. If you and I were work colleagues, friends outside of the virtual world, or two homebrewers sitting at a pub sharing a pint we would certainly caution each other as to the risk with a vendor or a bad experience.

But in a forum setting there is too much risk in calling someone out that it is over the top, emotion filled, and not always justified and the damage done to the vendor cant always be repaired.

In this case, I am confident there is enough history with this vendor that I am comfortable saying to all members and lurkers, "Proceed with Caution and use at your own risk" if you decide to do business with kegkits. It isn't slanderous or defaming to point out and share actual experiences.

 

[Evan]

Unfortunately, this sort of thing sounds all too common with KegKits.com -- there have been multiple threads to make similar complaints.

I believe Tom is developing a reputation for being notoriously bad at responding to customers. To me it seems odd because he is one of the most frequent posters to the daily AHA Tech Talk email discussion list. Clearly he receives email and responds to it frequently when he wants to.

yeah, i mean, i would have been more willing to work even a month or more after my order if he would have just been more upfront and said "hey your keg is back ordered ____ weeks". the day before i ordered i had a question, he answered me within hours...so it just comes down to him answering the ones he wants and just taking your money. AHS or NB don't charge my credit card until the order is ready to ship, i was charged the next day and it took 4 months for my full order.

wow, i got myself all worked up just thinking about it again, haha.

 

[Irie5447]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f19/online-ordering-rant-100024/

i ordered January 13th, and this past thursday April 9th i got my single keg. and to top it off it doesnt have a pressure relief valve in the lid, so i dont have an easy way of purging the CO2. i think the only reason i got my keg was because i ended up contacting my credit card company to get the charge removed.

i understand Tom (owner) is busy, but it took what like 4 months for me to get my full order, 2 months in he told me he was going to refund my money and never did. and to top it off, he is just this busy busy busy guy if you talk to him, but i get my AHA emails everyday and he is always responding to people, he even started his own forum on his webpage. i really dont like the guy or the company. i went with them because i always use AHS or Northerbrewer and figured it wouldnt hurt to expand and see who else is out there, and i thought some of his prices were pretty good. so now i use AHS or NB, and also a new place opened up here in Louisville, and the owner is great and its a mile from where i work.

Yeah after finally getting my two kegs, both of them didn't have pressure relief valves also. I probably would't have ordered them knowing that, but my major issue is that I'm stuck with a broken regulator that I cant return and not returning my calls and emails is more than just bad customer service.

 

[FlyGuy]

Yeah after finally getting my two kegs, both of them didn't have pressure relief valves also. I probably would't have ordered them knowing that, but my major issue is that I'm stuck with a broken regulator that I cant return and not returning my calls and emails is more than just bad customer service.

Personally, I would give him one more chance to respond -- give him a deadline of a few days before which you are going to dispute the charge with your credit card company. It sounds like you got a defective kegging system all around, and I believe that was what you paid for. A problematic regulator is one thing, but with multiple problems like this, there is no way that kegging system is going to work as is. I would be seeking a full refund or get the charge reversed by your CC company.

 

[HBRunner]

What he does is get enough orders to so he can have the minimum quantity needed for him to order.....It may take 1 week or 4....Tom seems to be a pretty good guy, but he runs Kegkits part-time....

i would not recommend ordering from him unless you live in Huntsville and can pick your order up in person....

Sad, as he has decent prices, and most of the time a wide variety of products...

 

[HillbillyDeluxe]

But in a forum setting there is too much risk in calling someone out that it is over the top, emotion filled, and not always justified and the damage done to the vendor cant always be repaired.


Isnt that what joining a forumis about? Getting the scoop on vendors(good and bad) ingredients ideas etc... Besides, customer service in america sucks anymore! I travel alot and get to sample other countries customer service, ours sucks!!!! We are rood, inconsiderate and in some cases just turds. So i say when one screws ya on a deal get on here and give him a bashing, hell even ruin his business, most of them dont deserve customers because of the crap we have to do to spend our hard earned dollar with!!!

Just my humble opinings

 

[Evan]

What he does is get enough orders to so he can have the minimum quantity needed for him to order.....It may take 1 week or 4....Tom seems to be a pretty good guy, but he runs Kegkits part-time....

i would not recommend ordering from him unless you live in Huntsville and can pick your order up in person....

Sad, as he has decent prices, and most of the time a wide variety of products...

if thats the case about getting enough orders so he has a minimum, he should say on the website that keg orders could take ___ weeks. i'd been fine knowing that and wouldnt have been upset if my order took 2-5 weeks if i'd know that. rather it took 4 months! plus i emailed him a question before my order and it was answered within 24 hours, after the order...well you just had to catch him on the phone. i'm sure its hard to run a business part time when you have a full time job, but if he has time to answer AHA questions and send out emails with news/updates he should have time to answer why after a month i haven't seen my order yet i'm looking at my credit card bill and having to pay it. at first i thought the order might have been yanked off the front porch by some punk kids. He told me it shipped yet could never give me a UPS tracking number, and it turned out it never shipped. personal that right there told me what kind of person he was.

 

[MNBugeater]

But in a forum setting there is too much risk in calling someone out that it is over the top, emotion filled, and not always justified and the damage done to the vendor cant always be repaired.


Isnt that what joining a forumis about? Getting the scoop on vendors(good and bad) ingredients ideas etc... Besides, customer service in america sucks anymore! I travel alot and get to sample other countries customer service, ours sucks!!!! We are rood, inconsiderate and in some cases just turds. So i say when one screws ya on a deal get on here and give him a bashing, hell even ruin his business, most of them dont deserve customers because of the crap we have to do to spend our hard earned dollar with!!!

Just my humble opinings

I respectfully disagree with this. I dont think this is a place to unduly "ruin his business". That was my point. There is a big difference between offering constructive advice on vendors to fellow members and actively trying to ruin a guys business.

I think you will find all the vendors that support this site helpful and accommodating to the members on HBT. If we resort to baseless emotion and vengeful retribution we wont have such great vendors we can turn to on this forum.

 

[Edcculus]

I respectfully disagree with this. I dont think this is a place to unduly "ruin his business". That was my point. There is a big difference between offering constructive advice on vendors to fellow members and actively trying to ruin a guys business.

I think you will find all the vendors that support this site helpful and accommodating to the members on HBT. If we resort to baseless emotion and vengeful retribution we wont have such great vendors we can turn to on this forum.

+1. In a case where a vendor is notorious for bad customer service, its worth warning people. Some people are too quick to jump the gun. Take the slow shipping incident during AHS's storewide 10% off sale. Forrest's sales went through the roof. He (admittedly) didn't anticipate the influx of orders. In that case people should have just inquired to the vendor about the slow shipping instead of the many "AHS WTF SLOW SHIPPING *&@***&*" threads.

 

[Hammy71]

What he does is get enough orders to so he can have the minimum quantity needed for him to order.....It may take 1 week or 4....Tom seems to be a pretty good guy, but he runs Kegkits part-time....

i would not recommend ordering from him unless you live in Huntsville and can pick your order up in person....

Sad, as he has decent prices, and most of the time a wide variety of products...

Kegkits is not only slow with kegs..... I will not buy anything from this place again either. Prices are great....but you know the saying....you get what you pay for. Customer service is not included in the price, nor the bare minimum in speed. Took several calls and a month to get one regulator actually shipped to me. Always..."going out tomorrow..."......not til a nasty message (stopped answering my calls) did the item finally show up. As far as bringing this up on a forum.... I usually don't bad mouth companies...(having owned one and worked for several other small businesses) but this place just annoyed me and if my experience can help someone else....I'm all for it.

 

[HBRunner]

Unfortunately, this seems to be his regular way of handling business. There have been several threads about his customer service and the way he handles transactions.

Great customer service until you pay him, the he won't answer emails or the phone messages.

I for one will not use him unless I go by the store personally.

 

[andysim]

Where can you get a keg kit fast?