Buying a Dog Air Compressor on AliExpress: Secrets and Pitfalls

Aliexpress is one of the most popular platforms for Russians to buy inexpensive Chinese goods. Let's figure out whether buying a dog dryer compressor on Aliexpress is a good idea.

Let's start with the advantages of purchasing.

Pros:

Price

Prices on Aliexpress are almost always 10-20% lower than prices on the Russian e-commerce market. One could argue at length that this difference is primarily due to Russian taxes and customs duties for importers, but for the average consumer, this is a weak reason not to buy the product at a lower price.

Large selection

Aliexpress offers a much wider selection of most products than Russia. This is due both to the fact that China is the world's manufacturing hub, and therefore all products are sourced there, and also to the fact that the Russian market is underdeveloped in many categories.

Well, that's all about the pros. Let's move on to discussing the cons and pitfalls.

Cons:

The goods may not be shipped

You saw a dog air compressor on AliExpress for significantly less than Russian prices. Russian suppliers might also be surprised to see these prices, as they're comparable to their purchasing levels. The price advantage for Russian buyers is obvious. So what's the advantage for Chinese sellers?

It's very simple: some of the goods won't be shipped. When dealing on Aliexpress, you have time to file a dispute, and if you don't have time to do so, the transaction is considered complete. In this case, the "seller" gets the money, and you lose it. Now it becomes clear where the Chinese seller's profit comes from.

In such “sales” the following tricks are used:

Please close the dispute

They'll beg you to close the dispute and tearfully apologize for their mistake. They'll promise to send the compressor right away. Or even two. And as soon as you close the dispute, communication will cease. Immediately. Because you won't be able to open a dispute a second time, and the item is considered delivered.

Posted someone else's track

You're waiting for your package, tracking it using the tracking number. But it's not your package, and the tracking number is someone else's. They're trying to stall for as long as possible so you don't have time to dispute the transaction. The item is almost here, but you don't open a dispute because "the item was shipped to you." And... the deal is closed, and you're left without the item and without your money.

Why does this happen? Because if the seller is conscientious, they will extend the warranty period to accommodate the increased delivery time. If they don't, the buyer can open a dispute and get a refund, assuming the item is delivered.

Accordingly, a cunning seller will not do this, because his goal is to delay the process as much as possible so that you do not open a dispute.

Of course, you might say, many will file a lawsuit and get their money back. But many won't. And we smoothly move on to the second point.

Long delivery time

The average delivery time for these types of products to Russia is 1.5-2 months. For most dog owners and groomers, this exceeds a reasonable waiting time.

Returning to the previous point, you can expect these 1.5-2 months, after which you'll realize the item hasn't been shipped. Open a dispute and get your money back. And waste another 1.5-2 months waiting.

No guarantee

From all of the above, it's clear to any reasonable person that all warranties expire once the transaction on Aliexpress is confirmed. Even if the advertising text claims otherwise, we repeat: there is NO WARRANTY after the transaction is confirmed. If the compressor breaks down within one month, no one will repair or replace it.

What to do then?

Lack of service repairs and the ability to purchase spare parts

You can't buy spare parts for most compressors in Russia. Because they vary from one dog dryer compressor to another, the unit becomes junk after a breakdown.

The socket is not suitable for Russian networks.

They might send you a compressor with a plug for a different outlet type, such as Type B (US) or Type G (UK). So what, you might say, I'll buy an adapter! At this point, you need to remember that the compressor's power is approximately 3 kW, and this design won't last long in Russian conditions. The compressor will burn out.

The wrong color arrived

Well, that's a minor detail compared to everything else mentioned above. They simply sent you "almost the same compressor." It happens.

The product was broken during transportation

If the item is damaged during shipping (hello, legendary Russian Post, they'll be shipping your order across Russia), you can get a refund, but only if you open a dispute.

Everything is written in Chinese

Of course, a groomer's image may be compromised when a client sees a compressor written in Chinese characters. But in the budget segment, this isn't a big deal.

To sum it up

Does all this mean you shouldn't buy expensive equipment like a hair dryer compressor on AliExpress? It's hard to say for sure. If you know all the pitfalls associated with such a purchase, you can save a lot of money while investing some time.

What should those who, after weighing all the risks and complications, are not ready to buy a compressor on Aliexpress do? We decided to help by putting together a selection of budget-friendly compressors sold in Russia that are officially sold and offer warranties and post-warranty service.

Rating of budget-friendly compressors for drying dogs

1st place - Tenberg Wind Home

A well-known brand that has released an economy-class compressor model. It's one of the most popular models in this category due to its lightweight, compact size, and excellent performance.

Rating: 9.8

Main advantages:

• smooth speed control;
• low noise;
• compact;
• easy.

Cons:

• Plastic case

2nd place – Chun Zhou CS-2400

A fairly old and well-known brand, this compressor is reliable. Due to its metal housing, it's quite heavy, but not as powerful as similar models.

Rating: 9.5

Main advantages:

• smooth speed control;
• metal body;
• two heating levels.

Cons:

• heavy (up to 7 kg with packaging);
• air flow speeds up to 48 m/s

3rd place – Dimi LT-1090 Compressor

The Dimi LT-1090 compressor comes in a variety of colors, giving you plenty to choose from. It's quite powerful, but has adjustable settings.

Rating: 9.4

Main advantages:

• different compressor colors;
• metal case.

Cons:

• two speeds, step adjustment;
• high heating temperature (up to 60 °C).

4th place - Lan Tun LT-1090A-6

The Lan Tun brand is familiar to almost every groomer as an economy-class tool. The LT-1090A-6 model features two heating levels and smooth speed control. The second level heats the air to a critical 75°C.

Rating: 9.3

Main advantages:

• smooth speed control;
• two heating levels.

Cons:

• high heating temperature (up to 75 °C);
• plastic case.

5th place - Lan Tun LT-1090

The LT-1090 is very popular among mobile groomers due to its lightweight and compact compressor. Unfortunately, it only has two airflow speeds and low power.

Rating: 8.7

Main advantages:

• easy.

Cons:

• low-power (maximum speed up to 50 m/s);
• two speeds, step adjustment;
• plastic case.

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