So a couple days ago I stopped by the local rec warehouse to pick up some sodium test strips, they had them, I bought them, no problem.
I got home and opened the pack and as soon as I turned the bottle over to read the directions, what do I see?
a big old 8/08. I noticed and thought, "aw man, these expire next month!" And then I realized...no, they expired LAST YEAR.
Today was the first chance I had to return them, so I did.
First of all, when I went up to the front desk with the pack and my reciept, the lady started inspecting them, opened the pack, inspected the strips, compared them to the bottle... I am really not sure if she thought I was trying to return used strips, or it was an elaborate set up to cheat them out of $6.60 or what. Finally she said she would have to wait and talk to the manager. I told her that was fine, I needed to get some more and I would be right back.
So I walk to the back of the store and look at the display. Every single pack of the Sodium Chloride test strips was expired.
The person who I had originally talked to was no longer up front, she was now cruising around the store, so I just stood there at the display and waited. When she came over, I told her that ALL of the test strips were expired (for that test) and she began pulling them all off the rack to check them and motioned for another guy to come over.
(hold on, this is where the story gets good)
She told him, "This lady needs these test strips and all of these are expired."
Without missing a step, the guy looks at me and says, "Ok, I can let you have these for $3 per pack!"
I just sort of stared at him.
I guess he thought I was a hard sell, so he sweetened the deal.
"You can buy as many packs as you want for that price."
At this point I was a bit slack jawed.
Finally I stammered out that I had already BOUGHT them and was returning them BECAUSE they are expired.
Mr. Baquacil-for-brains then brightly asks, "Well did they work?"
Dude has been sniffing way too much chlorine.
I gently explained that I wasn't about to waste my time trusting results from reagents that expired a year ago, the test results would simply not be reliable.
The lady who I had originally talked to half-heartedly tried to sell me a different set of strips, pointing out that "they don't say sodium, but I think they do the same thing..." I just looked at her.
We completed the refund and I left.
Never, Ever, to return.
went a little further down the road to Leslies, got the test strips, chatted with the guy about my kids, he didn't blink an eye when I told him I do my own testing and offered me a bottle in case I ever wanted them to test it.
