Shipping Info
We ship all of our packages out of our warehouse located in Brownsburg, Indiana.
All of our packages are shipped via UPS Second Day Air or UPS Next Day Air if animals are included in the order. USPS is an option for plants and dry goods only.
Important Shipping Service Update
Due to frequent delays in USPS shipments during very high summer temperatures, we are now shipping live plants through UPS only. If the shipment does not contain Next Day Air-only items, UPS 2nd Day Air will be a comparably-priced option at checkout. We are still using USPS shipment as an option for orders of dry goods only. We apologize for any experience this may cause, but we have made this decision to ensure the safe shipment of all plants. We will reevaluate this decision if and when USPS is no longer experiencing frequent delays.
UPS Second Day Air is a premium service that has two day delivery to nearly every address in the United States.
UPS Next Day Air is an overnight service to all continental addresses. We have been able to negotiate excellent rates with UPS, and our longtime customers will notice a 25%-60% savings when compared to our previous overnight shipping service. UPS Next Day Air is also guaranteed by 5pm the day after we ship. Since we pack overnight orders near the end of the day, this means your new fauna is only in transit for about 18 hours.
Please note: UPS Second Day Air and UPS Next Day Air is a description of the shipping time and service. Please refer below for up to date handling times. Using UPS Second Day Air and Next Day Air does not guarantee the package will be shipped on the second or next day from which the order was placed.
Shipping Rates
Shipping rates will vary based on shipping service chosen, how far the package has to travel from our location in Indiana, and how big the package is. We currently offer three shipping price rate tiers for small, medium, and XL size packages. All rates are calculated automatically at checkout.
Extreme Heat Shipping Advisory
Summer time is here and the temperatures are very hot in some areas of the country. If the daytime temperatures are too high in your location or here in Indianapolis, IN where we are located we will suspend shipping as needed for the safety of our animals and your investment. (we reserve the right to hold an order in extreme weather if we deem it is unsuitable to ship for the safety of the animals) You may always contact our Customer Service team via email at info@aquaticarts.com with any questions or concerns.
Delays in shipping may occur when temperatures in shipping destinations or here in Indianapolis, Indiana where we are located reach 90 degrees or more, overnight lows are 30 degrees or below, or when postal holidays occur for both UPS and USPS shipments. The temperature cut offs for UPS Next Day Air are above 110 degrees or overnight temperatures are below 20 degrees. We will send you an email when we print your shipping label, and that will be the day we ship your order out. This email will include your tracking number as well. Your package should take 2 days to arrive after that if you chose UPS 2nd Day Air or if you chose UPS Next Day Air your order would arrive the next day after shipment. If your order contains only plants or dry goods then your order may ship with USPS if that is the shipping option you chose at checkout.
UPS Next Day Air: Monday through Thursday
Tracking Numbers are sent to the customer via email once an order is being prepared for shipment.
(Current handling time is 1-7 business days)
- Pricing is by size of package needed to fill order and distance it must travel. It will be calculated at checkout.
PO Boxes: We do not ship Live Animals to PO Boxes. If you enter a PO Box address during checkout, you will receive a message that says: "There are no shipping methods available for your cart or destination".
Handling Time
Our current handling time is 1-7 business days, although they can occasionally be longer. If you order with UPS Next Day Air (which is STRONGLY recommended during the winter as well as summer), your package will almost certainly ship within 1-7 business days. The only exception would be if temperatures are too extreme to safely ship the animals out. The handling time for a UPS Second Day Air order is variable based on outside temperatures, postal holidays, and the size of the order. During the summer and winter, UPS Second Day Air orders as well as USPS orders may have significant delays (up to 60 days in severe cases) before we can ship them to you due to extreme temperatures. (we reserve the right to hold an order in extreme weather if we deem it is unsuitable to ship for the safety of the animals)
* Update * For the safety of our animals, we now ship live fish, freshwater crabs, cherax crayfish, and sulawesi snails exclusively via UPS Next Day Air. If your order contains any of these items, your cart will automatically adjust so that you will only see UPS Next Day Air as a shipping option during checkout.
We are also offering a lower-rate USPS shipping option for Dry Goods at the moment. This option will only be available if there are no live animals in your cart during checkout.
All Exotic Stones and driftwood are shipped separately.
Orders are shipped in our choice of boxes in order to custom fit each order so shipping rates can very pending on what exactly is ordered. UPS rates are based on size of package needed to ship an order, distance the package must travel, total weight of the package and which UPS shipping service is being used. We will also include heat packs or cooling packs with orders when temperatures warrant a heat pack or cooling pack to be included at no cost to you.
In the event of any problems with your shipment, please > CONTACT US < and we will be happy to help. All orders come with our 100% Live Arrival Guarantee at no charge. You can read more about our 100% Live Arrival Guarantee on our Live Arrival Guarantee page.