Canadians can't win with availability

[uxbridgechris]

Just like every other hobby I've had over the years. Components are in short supply up here in the great white north!!! I have a list of stuff I need to order for my pool build and can I find a Canadian dealer online???? Even the USA dealers don't ship to Canada. Or not at least the ones that have what I need. Thank God I live 2 hours from the border and the UPS store there knows me well. Feel bad for people not so close.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Re: Canadians can't win with availability

Blame the government up there. I worked for an international tech company that had several Canadian sites. You would not believe the insane regulatory hoops you have to jump through simply to ship an item from the US to Canada from within your own company!!! We would have to fill out paperwork that stated the items we were shipping there for finishing work could not be sourced from a native Canadian company so as to prove we weren’t trying to “steal” work away from Canadian firms. These were research items that were from internal development projects from within the company going from one fab location to another. They would never see the light of day in terms of selling them as a product. And yet, even though they did nothing to harm native Canadian jobs, we had to still run around and get affidavits signed and approved before any item could cross the boarder. Insane!

Feel sorry for you guys up there as I know it’s a royal pain to get the simplest things.

 

[uxbridgechris]

It's both governments. ITAR on your side has made things very difficult. Basically, everything could be used as a part in a weapon. Nuts and bolts for example.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

It's both governments. ITAR on your side has made things very difficult. Basically, everything could be used as a part in a weapon. Nuts and bolts for example.

Yep, we hated ITAR restrictions as well and spent (wasted) millions in infrastructure and man-power making sure we were ITAR compliant at all times (I had to have annual ITAR training as part of my job) so as to not jeopardize government contract work. But I put that kind of stuff in a separate bucket than trade barriers.

I think at the end of the day nothing is more frustrating to the folks here that run TFP than not being able to help folks outside the US simply because the policies and restrictions fly in the face of rational scientific understanding. It is insane to me that folks in other countries can’t get borax because it’s been deemed “harmful” Borax has been around since the dawn of recorded history as a mineral used to clean clothing and purify water. And yet, contrary to any rational basis, it’s banned from use in most countries.

Anyway, not really a topic that generates consensus. I do feel for your situation, I’d be royally frustrated trying to manage a pool up there...

 

[uxbridgechris]

Not really frustrated. Just making conversation more or less. We are used to it up here. Amazon has made it so much easier to acquire products quickly and for a fair price although they don't do much in the way of weird pool products.

If I was an American based retailer, I wouldn't ship my stuff to Canada either. 6 or 7% more business that takes up 30% of their time. Hardly worth it.

 

[tstex]

So what is it you need pool wise ? I'm sure there are plenty of people in the same boat as you are in your area, and since you are so close to NY, you should set up border runs w your township...btw, how often do folks on Canada in your area get to use a pool? What temperatures do you feel are, in your area, temp's that indicate "it's time to start swimming? Do you guys use heaters a lot up there, Ay?

 

[Swampwoman]

Chris, just so you know, SCP is a pool equipment distributor with branches in both countries and is owned by Latham, I believe.

Anything you want, eg. Liner, pool wall kit, etc. could be acquired "via" a customer contractor of SCPs.

I once wanted a liner only available in Canada -- and was able to have SCP import it, ship it to my sub here, for pretty much the same price as local.

So, just mentioning it so you can check it out. Your One-Stop Shop | SCP

In my case, just called my closest branch and asked who they worked with.

 

[uxbridgechris]

So what is it you need pool wise ? I'm sure there are plenty of people in the same boat as you are in your area, and since you are so close to NY, you should set up border runs w your township...btw, how often do folks on Canada in your area get to use a pool? What temperatures do you feel are, in your area, temp's that indicate "it's time to start swimming? Do you guys use heaters a lot up there, Ay?

I'm just planning my pool so there is all kinds of weird stuff I need to order. the only thing I've ordered so far is the fiberglass shell. we have a 4 to 5 month pool season. I chose a smaller pool so that I could afford to heat longer.

We a Canadians eh! Not pirates!. lol

 

[uxbridgechris]

Chris, just so you know, SCP is a pool equipment distributor with branches in both countries and is owned by Latham, I believe.

Anything you want, eg. Liner, pool wall kit, etc. could be acquired "via" a customer contractor of SCPs.

I once wanted a liner only available in Canada -- and was able to have SCP import it, ship it to my sub here, for pretty much the same price as local.

So, just mentioning it so you can check it out. Your One-Stop Shop | SCP

In my case, just called my closest branch and asked who they worked with.

Thank you.