Recently moved to Alaska... Where do I get my stuff???

[sm31]

Hi! Long time forum member but a (hopefully) simple problem I have not encountered until now. Hence locating it in this sub-forum.

If there are any members here who live in the Anchorage area, do you have a particular website you prefer? My "go to" site for factory refurbished receivers, etc. no longer ships to Alaska and I'm not sure where to turn! Thank you!!

 

[TLS Guy]

I suspect they dealers don't want the hassle of Alaska delivery. I believe UPS and FedEX have minimum weight requirements. I believe since July it is 20 lb.

There are no roads or rail links to the lower 48. So the carriers are actually using expedited air when you order ground. The rate works out at just under $3 per pound.

So I can see why a vendor would not want the hassle. What I would do is set up a UPS account and have UPS pick it up from the vendor and you pay UPS. You have to pay before pickup. The have the vendor just bill you the cost of the item and not deal with the freight charge. I don't see why they would not do that.

You I think would have to agree to pay all shipping related to returns, even a warranty return.

Ordering stuff from the lower 48 in Anchorage looks like an expensive hassle to me.

I would try and limit your purchases to Anchorage dealers. I see they have 8, which I think is more than you would have in the lower 48. That is because they will be ordering in bulk and ship product to anchorage via sea from Seattle, which gets the unit shipping cost down a lot.

I think you had better imagine it is 1970 or earlier in your location as far as purchases are concerned.

 

[lovinthehd]

I would try and limit your purchases to Anchorage dealers. I see they have 8, which I think is more than you would have in the lower 48. That is because they will be ordering in bulk and ship product to anchorage via sea from Seattle, which gets the unit shipping cost down a lot.
.

I wonder if they bother with ocean freight, do you have some specific information about such? It tends to be very expensive for domestic freight between US ports due to an old shipping law requiring US flag vessels (same one Puerto Rico suffers from). Air might not be so bad, could be like our ocean exports to the far east, the carriers needing to reposition equipment for the largely far east to US trade (a major export from the US was paper scrap as well as other materials when I was in the business, freight was almost free just to get the containers repositioned to asian ports so they could be filled with the much busier asia to US trade, altho I believe we are beyond the peak of this sort of thing, will have to ask my old friend who still is in the seafreight container biz).

 

[Soundcrack]

Bummer, one of the only downsides to living so Rural I guess.

 

[lovinthehd]

Bummer, one of the only downsides to living so Rural I guess.

Rural within the contiguous 48 is one thing, being in Hawaii or Alaska (or Puerto Rico) is a bit different I live in a rural area but still get fairly normal shipping services....

 

[Soundcrack]

Rural within the contiguous 48 is one thing, being in Hawaii or Alaska (or Puerto Rico) is a bit different I live in a rural area but still get fairly normal shipping services....

That's what I tell my wife when she wants to move to Alaska after watching her Bush shows, lol. We lived near Yosemite Park, so I know what your saying.

 

[-Jim-]

Hi SM31,

I've gone to Anchorage Alaska at least 5 or 6 times (always in winter - I've seen the Iditarod at 4 of those times). Never once did I find an Audio store, even to browse in. (Not that I looked too hard, but you'd expect something on the main drag.)

Anyway, the only way I could get there from Vancouver in winter (there are direct flights in summer / cruise season) was Alaska Air from Seattle. Now I know there is a decent Fry's Electronics store in metro-Seattle (800 Garden Ave. N., Renton) and they had a fairly decent Audio selection, and you can order things online easily (I have!). They offer ordering online and getting in store pickup. Of course if you ever need to come back to the lower 48 to visit, you could pick up stuff there.

Check them out here: Fry's Electronics They say "An additional shipping charge will be added at checkout for orders shipping to Alaska and Hawaii." I have no idea how much but it wouldn't hurt to ask.

PS - Sign up for "Promo Codes" as they have some amazing deals from time to time.

 

[Darenwh]

Since there is a minimum weight limit you can explain to your wife that in order to get the new speaker wire you are going to have to add a new receiver and speakers to the order along with a 4K projector and screen and that should just about get you to the weight you need to get the speaker wire to the new place...

 

[Montucky]

When I lived in the beautiful mountains of Montana, my wife and I always chalked up the extra expenses of living so remotely to "Scenery Tax." Just part of the reality of living out there. Everything costs a premium. All I gotta say is shop local as much as you possibly can, even if it costs more. Plus it's great to support your local vendors.

 

[sm31]

Thank you so much for the replies!!! Definitely some excellent advice here (as well as sympathy... which also counts!).

Shipping issues just don't seem to follow much logic here. There are some box size limitations on Amazon but they tend to be a good bit larger than a receiver box. Li-Po batteries are a no go... which is a huge PITA. We do have a few big-box stores but the are pretty outrageous.

At this point I am considering having items shipped to family members, then just pay them to ship up here. It'll cost quite a bit more but still save me $$$ in the long run I believe.

I hoped I was just missing something or that there was a particular site I could work with. Sure smells like "opportunity" for someone who can work out a solution!

Thanks again everyone!!

P.S.: The "scenery tax " may be high but wow... I'll never get used to this place.

 

[lovinthehd]

Lipo probably restrictions by airfreight as cause (lots of regs but they are kinda dangerous....don't have your family misdeclare them either).

So you like the scenery, tho?

 

[MrBoat]

Look to the DIY audio kit vendors such as diysoundgroup.com etc. These folks have experience shipping to off the beaten path places and perhaps getting your items disassembled and building (like speaker cabinets) what can't be shipped efficiently, or reliably, on site instead.

If I lived in a remote area that revolved around snow, I would have to have projects to fend off cabin fever. A whole audio system might cover one season of it if I was lucky. The other consideration being, that when living on skimpier parts of the grid, there is nothing much more valuable than self sufficiency, which is part of the reason one would want to live in such places in the first place, I would think.

 

[Johnny2Bad]

The same places you always bought gear from, you just pay more for shipping. I don't find that many vendors refuse to ship to AK, but the "free shipping" option usually has an exception for AK and HI. I find there are more US-based vendors that ship to AK than ones that ship to me (Canada) and I don't find the selection of online vendors that restrictive.

But ... you will have to adopt the same shopping techniques I use. Your number one factor now when choosing a vendor or pricing items will now be shipping cost (versus price or delivery times as most US 48-state residents will use). So before you even search for an item, drill down to the bottom of the page and read shipping policies and terms and conditions. Be prepared to place items in your cart before you can determine shipping cost, and be willing to leave carts if the final price is not to your liking.

Also consider reliability, as you will be paying for shipping at least one way if something breaks and there are no local repair facilities (only likely for nationally advertised consumer goods). While you are at it, do some research and find out where and for what brands your repair facilities exist. That may affect the brands you shop in the future.