Bubble King Protein Skimmer

Discussion in '3reef Radar' started by Matt Rogers, Dec 23, 2006.

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  1. Matt Rogers

    Matt Rogers Kingfish

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    Looking for a protein skimmer in Christmas colors this holiday? Look no further, here is the Bubble King skimmer from Captive Oceans. The 'king of all skimmers?' You tell me. I'll say this much, the smallest one is 11" in diameter. 8)
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    <a rel="nofollow" target="new" href="http://www.captiveoceans.com/BubbleKing.htm">More info and pics on the Bubble King protein skimmer</a>
     
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  3. JustPhish

    JustPhish Peppermint Shrimp

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    Just did some plumbing for a customer and he has one. I had to plumb it into his system. Unfortunately it's too large for the space available so it needs some serious customization so it won't be in operation for some time.

    But in the meantime, here's some pics.
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  4. Matt Rogers

    Matt Rogers Kingfish

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    Wow. Nice timing and nice plumbing job there JustPhish.
    What were your impressions?
    What kind of pump runs on this? GPH?
    Thanks for the pics!
     
  5. JustPhish

    JustPhish Peppermint Shrimp

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    LOL, here's the rest of the plumbing.

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    As far as the skimmer goes, it's plumbed in but not online because of the modifications that need to be made. I plumbed a bypass drain into his system so the tank could still run with the skimmer offline.

    It was insanely expensive. I don't think I would ever bring myself to spend so much on a skimmer. The pump is supposed to be exellent. Draw incredibly little power but perform very well.

    It's meant to be gravity fed from the drains of the tank into a one inch intake. I don't know how I like that idea. I've always used pumps to feed my skimmers. But we'll see how it works.

    He needs to have a lot of custom work done before it's ready to run. Unfortunately the builder is in the process of moving his shop. Not to mention it's over seas. Personally, I think it will be a month if not a couple months or more before he sees the parts he needs to make it run. I am not very clear if they are charging him for the mods or if they are just charging shipping.

    I'm excited to see the skimmer in action. But at the same time I really think that another cheaper skimmer could have been used and would be just as effective.

    The tank is a 180 gallon.
     
  6. JustPhish

    JustPhish Peppermint Shrimp

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    Oh yeah the pump is something like Red Dragon or something. I don't recall off the top of my head but I think the name can be read off the pictures when enlarged.
     
  7. Matt Rogers

    Matt Rogers Kingfish

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    OH YEAH. Nice pipes. :)

    Thanks for the info on the skimmer! That is interesting. I look forward any more once you have it running too. Where is it made?

    You know what's wild? I had that setup back in the early 1990s. And I become a big fan of the gravity feed once I put a float switch on the sump. Then it was steady. I had feeds built into the overflow that fed the skimmers. They were two 24x6 air stone models. I wish I kept those skimmers and that overflow. Anyway the key to that setup working to me was the float switch for what it's worth. Weird to see a skimmer promote that way again now. But direct water for the skimmer makes sense still I guess.
     
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  9. bouraganes

    bouraganes Peppermint Shrimp

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    Nice looking skimmer Matt and a really nice looking install JustPhish!
     
  10. Matt Rogers

    Matt Rogers Kingfish

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    Yeah it is a nice looking skimmer when it's so damn big. I like that. :)

    Hey you know I left out a point in my last post that came to me now.. the gravity fed skimmer was also nice because it didn't need a water pump to feed it. That was nice. I don't like having to clean pumps. Back then it was just an air pump that you needed and gravity did the rest. It was too cool. They kicked out the gunk too. I miss those things! ;D

    So how was it supposed to work with the Bubble King skimmer? It looks like there is a pump on it?
     
  11. Bruce

    Bruce Giant Squid

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    Man...thats one big skimmer...Love the name though 8)
     
  12. Birchell

    Birchell Gigas Clam

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    lol, I have read about the "Bubble King", and they sound sweet, if you can fork over the money. What is a skimmer like that rated for, a 500 - 1000 gallon tank??