@slief - hey bud I have a question. what is the major difference between the Royal exlusiv Bubble King line. Its very confusing and is there a performance difference as well. For example:
-Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Deluxe 200 External Protein Skimmer $2141.98
-Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Deluxe 200 Skimmer + RD3 Speedy VS14
$1,803.99
-Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Supermarin 200 Protein Skimmer
$1,539.00
-Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Mini 200 Gen 3 VS12 Protein Skimmer
$1,207.48
-Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Double Cone 200 + RD3 Speedy
$1,144.99
- Royal Exclusiv Mini Bubble King 200 VS13 With RD3 Mini Speedy Extra Slim
$1,199.00
- Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Double Cone 200 Protein Skimmer
$1,068.39
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You must be looking on one of our re-sellers websites who doesn't remove older versions of the skimmers. I think it's done as a conspiracy to confuse unknowing perspective customers. :thumbsup:
-Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Deluxe 200 External Protein Skimmer
$2141.98
This is the previous model Deluxe 200 which has been replaced with the one below.
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Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Deluxe 200 Skimmer + RD3 Speedy VS14
$1,803.99
The Deluxe is the flagship model that is designed to have a wider tuning range and is a terrific skimmer for both dry skimming and wet skimming.
The Deluxes are made very a very heavy acrylic and have a hand welded upper body. These are VERY heavy skimmers. Because of it's wider tuning range, it also has a wider range than the comparably sized SM and will handle lower loads better than the SM when you get to the lower end of the tank size range.
-Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Supermarin 200 Protein Skimmer
$1,539.00
Supermarin is also considered a flagship model. It is designed with wetter skimming in mind. It's the most popular model in the US. Like the Deluxe, it's made of a very heavy acrylic that is much thicker than the Double Cones. These are VERY heavy skimmers. The upper body where the cylinder meets the taper is also hand welded on the SM.
-Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Mini 200 Gen 3 VS12 Protein Skimmer
$1,207.48
Old model with the old Red Dragon One Pump. That model has been replaced by the updated model with the RD3 pump.
-Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Double Cone 200 + RD3 Speedy
$1,144.99
The Double Cones have a formed body (upside down wine glass) instead of hand welded like the SM and Deluxe models. They use a lighter acrylic matierial than the SM and Deluxe. They will dry skim and wet skim and tend to be very popular due to the performance and lower cost than the SM and Deluxe line.
- Royal Exclusiv Mini Bubble King 200 VS13 With RD3 Mini Speedy Extra Slim
$1,199.00
The Mini's are designed as a no compromise space saving skimmers for sumps with Minimal space. They have the skimmer pumps inside the skimmer body to reduce their foot print. They are made from very heavy material and weight a lot for their size. There are two variations within the Mini's and the Extra Slim in particular relocates the outlet side of the skimmer to further reduce the footprint to accommodate narrower skimmer compartments.
- Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Double Cone 200 Protein Skimmer
$1,068.39
Old model that has been replaced with the Royal Exclusiv Bubble King Double Cone 200 + RD3 Speedy
One thing I want to note regardless of the model you might decide on. Be cognizant of the recommended tanks sizes. You do not want to oversize these skimmers. They are very conservatively rated and perform best when you match them to your load. I always suggest basing Bubble King skimmer sizing decisions on the display volume and not the system volume because the displays are where the load is generated and our sumps and refugiums help reduce load. Skimmer sizing is based on theoretical loads. At least that is the way Royal Exclusiv does it. At the lower end of the tank size range, it's assumed that you will have a heavy load. When I say heavy load, we are talking about 1/2" of fish per display tank gallon. Skimmers need sufficient dissolved organic compounds (proteins) to create foam. In the absence of DOC', you get bubbles that burst at the surface instead of foam. This is because the DOC's stick the bubbles and allow the bubbles to bond together into chains that become foam. As the skimmer sizes increase, the need for more DOC's increases. In the absence of enough DOC's, you will end up with a skimmer than is less consistent.
I hope that helps reduce the confusion and shed some light on the line! :beer: