International Purchase & Shipping Information

International Support General Info:

Alpenglow Yarn is a one-person company with a dedication to making useful tools for indie yarn dyers.  We support international customers to the best of our abilities, but please note that due to shipping cost and time, our support options may be more limited than those within the USA.  We also do not have any distributors or international importers, so you the customer will be the importer of our products to your country and will be responsible for any and all duties and fees.  More information on shipping is below.  We do not have multi-lingual support, but are happy to use Google translate to do our best to help you and answer questions.


SkeinTwisters and SkeinMinders are textile manufacturing tools, meant for use in a manufacturing environment, they are not consumer devices.  We ship the SkeinTwister under HTS code 8445.30.0000 and the SkeinMinder under 8445.40.0000 which are specific to their types of textile equipment.


​International Shipping Fee Breakdown & Policies:

* Shipping Fee: This is the shipping charge added to your order which you paid during checkout.  It is what the carrier charges us, plus about $6 for insurance.  We do not mark this fee up.  Note that insurance may not cover packages that are stolen after delivery, and signature requirements are generally not available for international shipments.  Be sure you ship your device to a secure location.


* Customs/Import Fee: This is payable by you upon delivery and is not included in your order charges.   This a fee that is charged by your country for importing a product from another country, and as such, it changes from country to country and time to time due to legislation.  We cannot estimate it for you, though we can say that in some countries it can be 20-25% of the value of your order.  You can look it up with your country's import bureau.  We are legally required to declare the full value of our shipments on customs fees, do not ask us to mark your order as a gift or sample.


* Brokerage Fee: This is payable by you upon delivery and is not included in your order charges.  This is a fee that third party carriers like UPS, FedEx, and DHL charge for taking your package through customs/import.  UPS and FedEx brokerage fees are very high, around $100.  DHL is much more reasonable, around $20.  This is why we only ship high dollar orders like SkeinMinders and SkeinTwisters internationally via DHL.


Note that if an item is refused at delivery time and returned to us, there will be additional return fees charged by the carrier, which can also include the customs/import fees even though it was not delivered.  Your refund will happen after we receive the item back, test it for normal operation, and also receive shipping carrier return charge bills.  It may take some time, and will be less all of those fees and less original payment processor fees which are no longer refunded to us by any payment provider.


​International Repair Policy:

Our devices do not require much maintenance, and we will do our best to work with you via email or video chat to troubleshoot problems. If a part is defective, we prefer to ship you a replacement part with instructions for installation. If you need to return the unit to us, you are responsible for all shipping charges.


International Return Policy:

You may return equipment in its original condition within 30 days of receipt for a refund of the device's purchase price, NOT including shipping.  You are responsible for return shipping cost.  Payment processing fees are also not refundable as they are no longer being refunded to us by any processor.


International Power/Electricity/Mains Details:

SkeinTwister:

The mains power conversion is handled outside of the SkeinTwister, by an external power supply.  We provide a power cord that is compatible with the plug style you selected during checkout. If you're unsure as to which plug style to select, look at this website.  We use a power supply rated for 100VAC - 240VAC 50/60 Hz (most power systems throughout the world).  It's CE certified and has undergone testing by NRTLs.  


SkeinMinder:

The mains power conversion is handled internally to the SkeinMinder.  The SkeinMinder uses a USA-style Type B socket for the output power to your winder, and if your winder has a different style plug, you may need a plug adapter or adapter cable.  These are the proper ways of using a SkeinMinder with a winder in a 220-240VAC mains voltage country:


Note that the power coming into the SkeinMinder is the same as the power going out to your winder - there is no 220/110VAC conversion internal to the SkeinMinder.  Do not plug a winder rated for only 110VAC into a SkeinMinder that is on a 220VAC outlet - you will damage your winder.  We are not responsible for any damage to devices used with the SkeinMinder, or damage to a SkeinMinder that has been improperly used.


Every effort has been made to design the SkeinMinder to specifications needed to handle up to 240VAC power lines.  Major internal components handling mains power have UL and CE approval, but the unit as a whole does NOT.  Purchase and use this device at your own risk.