BK 200 Deluxe Drain

oldimpala · 01/20/2016, 01:17 PM

Hi all!

I own a BK-200 Deluxe Internal; I'm looking to put an external drain fitting in the cup. Many of the other BKs have them; wondering is RE either makes a kit, or a cup with a drain fitting in it. The "free" space between the edge of the cup and the body threads just isn't huge with this skimmer, unlike others I've owned.

I'm thinking I want to go self-cleaning-head and external gunk collector; obviously without the drain, it reduces the desire, long term.

Let me know, and if it's a DIY job, I'd love to see pics!

Thanks-
-Andy

slief · 01/20/2016, 03:32 PM

I assume this is an older Deluxe version? Is it internal or External? Post a picture of it so I can take a look at what you have as it may help determine if the new collection cups would work. The Deluxe models have had some changes over the years and one of those changes was a smaller neck diameter. The newer Deluxes also include the collection cup drain. While we do have new collection cups available direct from Germany, I suspect they may not work with your version of the Deluxe.

What I would probably do is drill and tap the bottom of the collection cup and install a threaded fitting in there so you can install a barbed fitting for the drain. if you do go that route, I would suggest adding a valve of some sort so you drain it by opening a valve. That way, if the skimmer goes nuts, you wont drain your tank assuming you have an internal skimmer.

I use an external container for my skimmate collection but I use a valve as mentioned above. Having the valve is also useful for tuning the skimmer because the collection cup provides a good place to see the quality of the skimmate and the volume. External containers can get dirty fast and make it particularly hard to judge the skimmate quality unless the container is acrylic and completely see through. My container isn't completely transparent so I much prefer using the collection to collect and then drain to the container as needed.

This is my collection cup drain setup. My cup came from the factory with a drain but you can see the waste container and the inline valves I use to allow the cup to drain on an as needed basis.

oldimpala · 01/20/2016, 04:36 PM

Slief-

I'm betting you'd classify this as older, too.. It's '08-'09. Problem is, I've yet to find a skimmer that does it better, and it requires nothing but periodic cleaning/vinegar baths.

So...

Here's a shot of the skimmer from the side (sorry it's wedged in my temp sump for now...)

And, as best I can, the "lip" of the cup on the bottom.

Any recommendations on a tap-line, or replacement cup with a tap line? I'll even buy the BK tap itself, if it's available separately, and has threads that should be readily available (I own tons of taps.) I'm not normally scared to drill into things; but this (especially now that it's not made, per you) might make me a little uneasy.

Also, I'm between a swabbie and one of your washdown heads. Will it fit my ancient BK?

Feel free to PM me, if you'd like to discuss further!

Thanks!

-Andy

slief · 01/20/2016, 07:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldimpala

Slief-

I'm betting you'd classify this as older, too.. It's '08-'09. Problem is, I've yet to find a skimmer that does it better, and it requires nothing but periodic cleaning/vinegar baths.

So...

Here's a shot of the skimmer from the side (sorry it's wedged in my temp sump for now...)

And, as best I can, the "lip" of the cup on the bottom.

Any recommendations on a tap-line, or replacement cup with a tap line? I'll even buy the BK tap itself, if it's available separately, and has threads that should be readily available (I own tons of taps.) I'm not normally scared to drill into things; but this (especially now that it's not made, per you) might make me a little uneasy.

Also, I'm between a swabbie and one of your washdown heads. Will it fit my ancient BK?

Feel free to PM me, if you'd like to discuss further!

Thanks!

-Andy

Yea, that is the older design. Still a great skimmer as you can attest to. There isn't much lip on the bottom of that thing which will make it difficult if not impossible to add a drain to the bottom of the cup. I'm not sure there is enough space there to do so and it may be that the only place to add it is to the front of the cup in the acrylic which I'd be reluctant to suggest as a DIY. That would be something I would suggest you have an acrylic fabricator do instead. The bottom of the cup is PVC which would be much easier provided there is enough space which as I said, there doesn't appear to be. I will have Klaus take a look at this and see what he suggests. It's possible that the newer cups would work but I have a gut feeling they won't. Stay tuned. Hopefully I will have an update for you in the morning.

oldimpala · 01/20/2016, 07:39 PM

Thanks for the quick reply...

Even if Klaus recommends (and/or can fabricate) a new cup, I'd happily purchase. If his shop is CNC, I'd assume he still has the program to make this skimmer/cup.
I just don't want to damage the working cup I have (for obvious reasons.) If I drill down from the inside, there's a lot of PVC, it's just going to come out at an angle....

Either way, let me know what he says. Hopefully, it's something positive!

slief · 01/20/2016, 08:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldimpala

Thanks for the quick reply...

Even if Klaus recommends (and/or can fabricate) a new cup, I'd happily purchase. If his shop is CNC, I'd assume he still has the program to make this skimmer/cup.
I just don't want to damage the working cup I have (for obvious reasons.) If I drill down from the inside, there's a lot of PVC, it's just going to come out at an angle....

Either way, let me know what he says. Hopefully, it's something positive!

Sounds good. Will have an update for you tomorrow.

slief · 01/23/2016, 04:03 PM

I checked with the factory and don't have good news for you. That skimmer is very old. From what I gather, it's was produced prior to 2008. From what I gathered, that was more than likely build around 2006. The neck diameter and threaded connection between the neck and the body have changed drasticallt and all the tooling used to produce that generation skimmer has long since been upgraded with new equipment and machines. As such, they don't have an option for a newer off the shelf collection cup with the drain built in that would fit your version. The only way they could make a custom one for that skimmer would be to have the skimmer body there as it would need to be custom fabricated.

If you really want a drain, my best advice would be to take the collection cup to an acrylic fabricator and have them drill and tap the front of the collection near the bottom so you can insert threaded John Guest style push lock valve into the face of the collection cup. A 3/8 diameter or even half inch would work fine. An experienced acrylic shop should have no issues drilling and tapping the collection cup for you. They could even add a small piece of acrylic to the front of the cup to strengthen it if needed. All they would need to do is heat the piece of acrylic to bend it to the curve of the collection cup and use some acrylic glue like weld on to bond it to the front. That would add more meat for the threaded JG fitting.

oldimpala · 01/24/2016, 11:09 AM

Sleif; my receipt from Premium Aquatics is September '08, so that gels (just found it.)

Let's talk via PM about my options. It may be time to sell the BK, and buy a new BK.

Just not sure the hole-in-the-side-of-the-cup is what I want to do. Bought the skimmer partially for it's elegance in removing poop. To desecrate it in that way just doesn't seem right.

Thanks for your digging....

01/20/2016, 01:17 PM	#1
oldimpala Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Buffalo, NY Posts: 571	BK 200 Deluxe Drain Hi all! I own a BK-200 Deluxe Internal; I'm looking to put an external drain fitting in the cup. Many of the other BKs have them; wondering is RE either makes a kit, or a cup with a drain fitting in it. The "free" space between the edge of the cup and the body threads just isn't huge with this skimmer, unlike others I've owned. I'm thinking I want to go self-cleaning-head and external gunk collector; obviously without the drain, it reduces the desire, long term. Let me know, and if it's a DIY job, I'd love to see pics! Thanks- -Andy

01/20/2016, 03:32 PM	#2
slief RC Sponsor Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 14,173	I assume this is an older Deluxe version? Is it internal or External? Post a picture of it so I can take a look at what you have as it may help determine if the new collection cups would work. The Deluxe models have had some changes over the years and one of those changes was a smaller neck diameter. The newer Deluxes also include the collection cup drain. While we do have new collection cups available direct from Germany, I suspect they may not work with your version of the Deluxe. What I would probably do is drill and tap the bottom of the collection cup and install a threaded fitting in there so you can install a barbed fitting for the drain. if you do go that route, I would suggest adding a valve of some sort so you drain it by opening a valve. That way, if the skimmer goes nuts, you wont drain your tank assuming you have an internal skimmer. I use an external container for my skimmate collection but I use a valve as mentioned above. Having the valve is also useful for tuning the skimmer because the collection cup provides a good place to see the quality of the skimmate and the volume. External containers can get dirty fast and make it particularly hard to judge the skimmate quality unless the container is acrylic and completely see through. My container isn't completely transparent so I much prefer using the collection to collect and then drain to the container as needed. This is my collection cup drain setup. My cup came from the factory with a drain but you can see the waste container and the inline valves I use to allow the cup to drain on an as needed basis. __________________ Director Customer Support Royal Exclusiv USA For All Royal Exclusiv & Bubble King questions please refer to our Sponsor forum: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/fo...play.php?f=745 Current Tank Info: 480G display mixed reef, 90G sump, 90G refugium, 60G display refugium. Check out my build thread: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1783476

01/23/2016, 04:03 PM	#7
slief RC Sponsor Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 14,173	I checked with the factory and don't have good news for you. That skimmer is very old. From what I gather, it's was produced prior to 2008. From what I gathered, that was more than likely build around 2006. The neck diameter and threaded connection between the neck and the body have changed drasticallt and all the tooling used to produce that generation skimmer has long since been upgraded with new equipment and machines. As such, they don't have an option for a newer off the shelf collection cup with the drain built in that would fit your version. The only way they could make a custom one for that skimmer would be to have the skimmer body there as it would need to be custom fabricated. If you really want a drain, my best advice would be to take the collection cup to an acrylic fabricator and have them drill and tap the front of the collection near the bottom so you can insert threaded John Guest style push lock valve into the face of the collection cup. A 3/8 diameter or even half inch would work fine. An experienced acrylic shop should have no issues drilling and tapping the collection cup for you. They could even add a small piece of acrylic to the front of the cup to strengthen it if needed. All they would need to do is heat the piece of acrylic to bend it to the curve of the collection cup and use some acrylic glue like weld on to bond it to the front. That would add more meat for the threaded JG fitting. __________________ Director Customer Support Royal Exclusiv USA For All Royal Exclusiv & Bubble King questions please refer to our Sponsor forum: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/fo...play.php?f=745 Current Tank Info: 480G display mixed reef, 90G sump, 90G refugium, 60G display refugium. Check out my build thread: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1783476

01/20/2016, 04:36 PM	#3
oldimpala Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Buffalo, NY Posts: 571	Slief- I'm betting you'd classify this as older, too.. It's '08-'09. Problem is, I've yet to find a skimmer that does it better, and it requires nothing but periodic cleaning/vinegar baths. So... Here's a shot of the skimmer from the side (sorry it's wedged in my temp sump for now...) And, as best I can, the "lip" of the cup on the bottom. Any recommendations on a tap-line, or replacement cup with a tap line? I'll even buy the BK tap itself, if it's available separately, and has threads that should be readily available (I own tons of taps.) I'm not normally scared to drill into things; but this (especially now that it's not made, per you) might make me a little uneasy. Also, I'm between a swabbie and one of your washdown heads. Will it fit my ancient BK? Feel free to PM me, if you'd like to discuss further! Thanks! -Andy

01/20/2016, 07:39 PM	#5
oldimpala Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Buffalo, NY Posts: 571	Thanks for the quick reply... Even if Klaus recommends (and/or can fabricate) a new cup, I'd happily purchase. If his shop is CNC, I'd assume he still has the program to make this skimmer/cup. I just don't want to damage the working cup I have (for obvious reasons.) If I drill down from the inside, there's a lot of PVC, it's just going to come out at an angle.... Either way, let me know what he says. Hopefully, it's something positive!

01/24/2016, 11:09 AM	#8
oldimpala Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Buffalo, NY Posts: 571	Sleif; my receipt from Premium Aquatics is September '08, so that gels (just found it.) Let's talk via PM about my options. It may be time to sell the BK, and buy a new BK. Just not sure the hole-in-the-side-of-the-cup is what I want to do. Bought the skimmer partially for it's elegance in removing poop. To desecrate it in that way just doesn't seem right. Thanks for your digging....