Most fault reports take three or four emails to resolve, and almost all of that is us asking for something you could have sent at the start. Here is the list, so your problem gets solved in one reply.
Send us these five things
1. Your order number. It looks like SB-INV-1234. It is in your order confirmation email and your shipping confirmation email. If you cannot find it, the email address you ordered with is enough for us to look you up.
2. The name of the block. The Labeled Parts Overlay in your case names every block, so "the Siren Sound IC Block" or "a 1x2 red Wire Block" saves us a round trip. If you are not sure what it is called, describe the colour and the size in studs.
3. One photo of the whole build. Not a close-up of the single block. We need to see the stacking order and the polarity, and a good share of the time the answer is sitting right there in that one photo. Take it in daylight or under a lamp, from directly above, with the whole build in the frame.
4. A short video if the fault comes and goes. Ten or twenty seconds is plenty. Video is much more useful than a photo for anything intermittent, anything that makes a sound, and anything that moves. If a motor starts and stops, film it doing that. If a speaker crackles, let us hear it.
5. What you already tried. Even a single line. "Pins broken in, tested straight off the battery, still nothing" tells us where to start and stops us sending you back through steps you have already done.
If something is missing from the box
Send a photo of the open case with the foam tray and the Labeled Parts Overlay visible, so we can see which slot is empty, plus a photo of the parts bag itself. Tell us which build you were following when you noticed.
One thing that is not a fault: the corner of the parts bag is cut open at the factory on purpose, so air can escape and the case closes properly. An opened bag does not mean the kit has been tampered with.
When you do not need to send anything
Some faults are already documented on our side and we take your word for it. Just tell us what happened and we will get a part out to you:
- A transistor block that overheated or smelled burnt.
- A Battery Block that has split at the seam or swollen. Stop using it and do not charge it.
- Anything on the first production run notes at /pages/info.
Where to send it
Use the contact form. It asks for the order number and takes photo attachments directly, and it routes your message by subject so it lands with the right person. Pick "Damaged or Missing Item" for a broken or missing part, and "Product Question" for something that will not work.
You can also email info@sparkblocks.ca if you would rather. Attach the photo to the first message either way.
What happens next
We will either walk you through a fix or send you a replacement part. If a part arrived faulty, is missing from the box, or has failed under normal use, the replacement is free and you do not ship anything back to us. We aim to reply within 2 business days, and replacement parts go out on our weekly parts shipment.
If the part was lost or broken in an accident, write in anyway. We will do our best to supply a replacement at a charge. See I lost or broke a part. Can I get a replacement?.
Before you write in
Most dead blocks turn out to be a connection rather than a fault, and the fix takes under a minute. My LED, motor or block isn't working is worth two minutes of your time first. If it works, you keep building today instead of waiting on the post.
