By law, we must collect applicable sales tax for orders shipping to states where we have a retail or warehouse location. In states in which we do not have a physical presence, we may be required to charge applicable state and local sales tax on orders shipped if required to do so under state and/or local tax laws.

The actual taxes charged to your credit card will be calculated based on the applicable state and local sales taxes when your order is shipped. These terms are subject to change, as the taxation of online transactions is continually evolving. Aquarium Co-Op strives to comply with state and local tax laws as they exist currently, and it continues to monitor and update its taxation policies as those laws change.

For more information, see our full policy on internet taxes.

At this time, we currently only ship to the United States (including Alaska and Hawaii but not including Puerto Rico). We also have a retail partner April's Aquarium that sells some of our premium products online to Canadian customers. In the future, we hope to find expedited shipping options that will allow us to expand the number of countries we ship to. For more information, see the International Delivery section on our Shipping page.

Our goal is to provide a fair way to satisfy our customers and not lose money while doing it. We make every effort to fully disclose how our products work and what is to be expected. A damaged product during shipping is an automatic replacement from us. When it comes to a difference of opinion such as: "My fish doesn’t like this food." That we don’t refund for. However, if you decide the light you bought is a bit too green for your liking, provided it is in the original box, within 90 days and purchased from us, we will refund it at your cost of shipping. 

If you would like to return a product, start the process by emailing us at shipping@aquariumcoop.com. This allows us to see if there is something we can do before returning the product, such as troubleshooting the issue or mentioning a feature you didn’t know about. We don’t require an RMA number but do ask you to contact us to initiate the return. Please do not call the retail store as they operate separately from the warehouse and will not be able to help you with your return.

Products bought from https://www.aquariumcoop.com can be returned within 90 days of original purchase date provided they are unused, undamaged and in the original product packaging. If a product does not meet these requirements we reserve the right to deny the return if we feel that it is warranted.

Who pays for shipping? In the event that Aquarium Co-Op is requesting that an item be returned for product analysis, a shipping label will be provided. If you are returning an item for another reason, it is your responsibility to get the item back to us safely. If it is a high-priced item, we recommend getting a tracking number.

Items being shipped back need to be sent to this address:

Aquarium Co-Op
Shipping Team
800 Enterprise Dr
Lexington, KY 40510

Items that go on sale after you purchase them: We will honor a sale price up to 7 days from the day you purchased your item, this is the day in which the order was placed.  

Exchanges: We typically credit your account back the amount of the item and let you purchase the correct item you’d like. This follows the same rules as return.

Aquarium Co-Op is a registered Limited Liability Corporation located in Edmonds, Washington USA.

Contact the shipping team at Shipping@aquariumcoop.com

Hands down, we have the fastest handling time and process orders for shipment quickly.

We overstaff so that your orders go out as fast as possible. If you order during business hours, we often ship it the same day. Live plants will arrive with a 2- to 5 business day transit time when there are no delays from weather or holidays. Dry goods such as fish food, medication, filtration products, etc. will ship with an appropriate service which has a typical 1- to 7- business day transit time, depending on delivery location. 

Live Arrival Guarantee

We guarantee our live products will arrive alive. We ask that you do your part and minimize the amount of time our packages sit out in the elements. It can also be a good idea to avoid ordering live items during extreme temperatures. This would be when night time temps are below 35°F and over 90°F during the day. Now these temperatures are not for sure death; it's just what makes it easiest for all of us during shipping.

When temperatures are cold we will use heat packs. Shipping live goods is difficult as our warehouse could be 70°F and your home could be snowing, and all the stops in between. We do our best and will make it right for you and may request to try again at a different time.  During heat waves, it's best to avoid ordering live goods as ice packs and insulated bags may not be enough to mitigate it.

Special Delivery Instructions

Our system isn't set up to take special delivery instructions such as "hold for pick up", "leave at back door" etc. We have many people working in the chain to pack your orders and get them out to you as fast as possible and the special instructions don't carry down the line unfortunately.

If you just purchased some new fish, we recommend using a trio of quarantine medications – Fritz Maracyn, Aquarium Solutions Ich-X, and Fritz ParaCleanse – to treat any bacterial, fungal or parasitic diseases they may have. This is the same three broad-spectrum medicines that we use on all fish that enter the Aquarium Co-Op retail store. These medicines can all be used at the same time and are completely safe for all freshwater fish, shrimp, snails, and other invertebrates. Follow these dosing instructions:

1. If you are treating new fish, make sure the quarantine tank is far away from your normal display tank, and do not let the tanks share any nets, siphons, buckets, or other equipment. Since droplets of water can travel on your hands to another aquarium, make sure to thoroughly wash your hands and arms with soap and hot water between tanks.
2. If you are treating the entire display aquarium, do a thorough cleaning of the tank to make sure the fish’s environment is optimal and free of any stress factors before starting treatment. Wipe the aquarium walls so that you can easily observe the fish’s condition, clean out the waste in your filter, and use a siphon to vacuum the substrate and change the water.
3. Remove any chemical filtration (such as activated carbon or Purigen), and turn off any UV sterilizers you may be using. Consider adding extra surface agitation (such as with a simple air stone and air pump), since some medications can change the water’s viscosity and hamper with the fish’s breathing ability.
4. Do not dose according to the box instructions. Instead, add 1 packet of Maracyn, 1 packet of ParaCleanse, and 1 U.S. teaspoon of Ich-X for every 10 gallons of aquarium water. (Ich-X does not stain aquarium decorations in our experience, but be careful not to spill it because it can stain your skin or clothing.) 
5. Let the fish soak in the medication, and do not feed them or change any water for 1 week. (If you feel you must feed your fish, wait until Day 4 or 5, and then only feed them very lightly.) You should keep the aquarium filter and heater on during this time. Also, aquarium lighting will not deactivate the medication.
6. After 1 week has passed, change out 30% of the water in the aquarium. Resume feeding the fish, keep the water quality high, and watch for any change in symptoms.

If you have very weak fish, it may be easier on their bodies to space out the treatment. Bacterial infections are the most common, so use Maracyn first for a week (at the dosage recommended in Step 4). Ich and external parasites are the second most common, so next treat the fish with Ich-X for a week. Internal worms and gill flukes are slower-acting pathogens, so dose ParaCleanse in the third week.

If you can clearly identify the illness that your fish has, only use the specific medication for that disease and following the dosing instructions on the package. Maracyn treats bacterial infections, Ich-X treats fungal infections and some external parasites, and ParaCleanse treats internal and some external parasites.

You will be able to find all the reviews of a certain product on each product page.

By clicking or tapping on the stars which are located under the product title within the product page, the website will automatically take you down to the reviews section of that product.

Once there, you will be able to view all the reviews left by other customers who have purchased that one certain product as well as images they have uploaded.

To write a review of a product that you have purchased from us is very easy to do. 

Firstly please go to the product page of the product you would like to review. You will see some stars underneath the title of the product, click or tap these stars and there the website will take you to the reviews section.

Once there, clicking or tapping a button which says 'Write a review', will open out a new form where you will be able to enter in your details, your star rating and your review.

At Aquarium Co-Op we will then receive these reviews and within a few days, this will be on the product page for everyone to see.

Having products available when you want to order them is our number one priority. We work tirelessly with our vendors to keep all the products we offer in-stock. Unfortunately, disruptions in the supply chain occur and impact our ability to keep certain items in-stock. When an item is out-of-stock, customers naturally want to know when it will be available for purchase again and reach out Aquarium Co-Op Customer Service. Providing estimated restock dates are not possible for Aquarium Co-Op as many times the vendors themselves are unaware of when items will become available again, or we are given vague guesses. This is further exaggerated with live aquarium plants with growth rates susceptible to many natural conditions.

Our advice is to follow us on social media, as we’ll usually announce items become available again, or periodically check in on our website. We don’t want to set an expected date of arrival and miss it. The last thing we want to do is cause an interruption in your plans.

It is normal for plants to "melt" when they change environment. There are a few causes for this, one would be different water parameters. It is likely your water is different from ours and the plant will want to restructure and get it's roots in place to start taking in nutrients. This lag time can cause the plant to consume itself to keep itself alive during the transition. (For more details, read our article on crypt melt.)

Another cause would be a plant converting from emersed (grown out of water) to submerged (growing under water). This happen because the plant farms grow the plants above water in very humid environments. When we get them we start growing them under water. Depending on how long the plant has been in our care will be how much the plant has converted. The plants will always end up finishing this conversion in your home aquarium and would be considered normal. 

A lack of sufficient nutrients can also cause plant leaves to start withering away. Make sure you're fertilizing your plants. We recommend using Easy Root Tabs as well as Easy Green Liquid Fertilizer. Without fertilizers, plants will oftentimes die back. For more information, read our article on plant nutrient deficiencies.

Lastly, there is a problem called Anubias rot. This is when the rhizome of an Anubias becomes mushy. This can happen when an Anubias is planted too deeply in substrate and it causes it to rot. This can sometimes be fixed by planting it properly on wood or rock. Then there is another case where the plant may have become damaged and the rot sets in and will consume the entire plant. This can happen at the farm, in our care, during transit, during planting etc. With no specific cause or who is to blame, we offer a refund or a reship of Anubias where this happens when it's been planted correctly and pictures have been provided.

One of our most asked questions is "Which LED aquarium light should I get?" See this comprehensive guide to get our recommendations for each tank size.

Learn More

Browse through our many free resources to help you learn more about freshwater fish, aquarium equipment, or live plants. We have released hundreds of videos and articles and continue to put out new content every week.

• Read our blog for in-depth articles
• Watch our YouTube videos
• Search our FAQs for commonly asked questions

Ask Questions

If you've looked through our educational content and still can't find the information you need, join our Facebook group or our online forum to get answers and advice from Aquarium Co-Op staff and like-minded enthusiasts in the hobby. There, you can post pictures and video links of your fish tank, as well as search for other posts that may already address your problem.

We also hold weekly live streams where you can ask questions in the chat and get them answered by Cory and fellow fish keepers. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and click the notification bell to get notified about our next scheduled live stream.

Inquire About Orders

If you have a question about your online order, shipping, or product return, please fill out our contact form or send an email to shipping@aquariumcoop.com.

Need Advice?

Join our Facebook group or the online forum to get advice and answers to your questions from our staff and like-minded enthusiasts.

Come Visit Us!

Retail store hours are Monday to Friday from 11AM - 7PM and Saturday to Sunday from 10AM - 7PM

Retail Store Info: 9661 Firdale Ave, Edmonds WA 98020

Need Further Help?

If you are having issues with your shipping, please use the inquiry form or send us an email to shipping@aquariumcoop.com

We often get asked, "How do I chat with Cory on the live streams, and when do the live streams happen live?"

We live stream every week when Cory is in town. You can click here to see all the videos and upcoming live streams.

To chat with Cory and everyone else, open the video while it is live on a device that supports chat. Not all devices do, but all computers and laptops will, most phones etc. There will be a chat box that you can open up. From there, you can type 1 message every 60 seconds. With thousands of people watching, please remember that it's hard for Cory to see the messages as it's kind of a lottery system. However, other chatters will usually respond to questions as well.

We don't disclose our vendors. This helps us remain competitive. Also for individual stores, proximity to vendors, water parameters etc all play a part in which wholesalers will make sense for you to be purchasing from. Our best advice is to attend shows, and always be seeking other suppliers and constantly track your pricing so that you may improve it over time. No one starts with great pricing, without proving to the supplier the volume they can move. With time more vendors will approach you.

At Aquarium Co-Op, we started with a small fish store in Edmonds, Washington, grew an online sales business through our social media platforms, and now offer wholesale aquarium products to local fish stores all around the United States. This wholesale sector of our business is called the Aquarium Co-Op Retail Partner Program (RPP).

What kind of products does Aquarium Co-Op sell wholesale?

We offer Aquarium Co-Op-branded fishkeeping and planted tank products that were personally developed and extensively tested by our team, as well as dry goods from other major companies such as Fritz Aquatics and Xtreme Aquatic Foods.  We also have several wholesale-exclusive products to help your store be more successful. We stand by all of our products and offer a no-hassle warranty and customer service to help you better serve your customers. (Note: we do not wholesale live animals or plants.)

D-N-D Pet Shop

GroFin Aquatics

The Waterfront

Do you promote your Retail Partners in any way?

Yes, to help you be as successful as possible when selling our products, we provide continual online marketing of all our Retail Partners on various platforms, such as:

• Listing of your store on our Retail Partner Store Finder page
• Social media promotion of your store's participation in RPP on the Aquarium Co-Op Facebook page
• Promotional items such as in-store signage and point of sale (POS) material

What other benefits come from the Retail Partner Program?

We know how hard it is to be a local fish store in today's market, so we provide several unique perks as part of our wholesale program, such as:

• Ability to offer exclusive products that other retailers do not have access to, such as the highly reviewed Easy Green plant fertilizer
• Same wholesale pricing structure among all Retail Partner stores so that you don't have to worry about Amazon.com or other competitors undercutting your prices. Only Aquarium Co-Op sells online in the United States and April's Aquarium sells online in Canada. 
• Super fast shipping so that you don't have to hold as much inventory on hand at time
• Support from Aquarium Co-Op customer service and our hassle-free warranty policy
• Access to educational videos that we have created only for RPP stores to help you become more profitable and improve your offerings
• Continual product marketing from Aquarium Co-Op

Free business educational videos for fish store managers

How do I qualify to become a Retail Partner?

To join our wholesale program, fill out this online application and an RPP representative will reach out to you. We are looking for healthy fish stores that have a physical retail location and sell freshwater aquarium livestock and products to the public. Also, we do not allow permit online reselling of any kind in this program. To see what other stores are saying about our wholesale program, read the RPP customer testimonials.

Unfortunately we don't sell fish online, but we have partnered with other vendors that offer discounts through their affiliate programs. See the full list here.