120 gallon external overflow

jasont · 04/16/2013, 01:16 PM

Hey folks,
New here, This is my first post actually.
I am working on a 120 right now that will be a reef at some point. This was a project that started off as a 90 that I picked up off craigs list. I decided to tear it down because I really didn't know how old it was and the bottom was drilled wrong anyway. I got to looking at it once it was apart and decided because of some scratches I wanted new viewing panels so I essentially flipped it on its side went 24x24x48 got 3 new panels at a local glass shop for about 180 and here I am.

My question is with the overflow. I am going to do an external bean animal sort of an overflow system with a smooth weir. So I am going to cut a pass through in the back. The tank is all 3/8 glass. My plan is to cut 2 notches with a diamond hole saw and then just score cut and cleanup between to make the notch.

My specific question is (and sorry for being so long winded here) The back panel if I went in 2 1/2 inches from the corner made the cut will the back panel be ok? Should I split it into 2 sections with a center piece left and put a brace over that? How deep should I make the cut? I'm thinking about an inch should be ok? I plan on running an Eheim 1262 return pump so I'm guessing after its all said and done it will flow 650 to 750 an hour. over that much of a notch it should be pretty quiet.

I have seen aquariums of this size with 3/8 glass rimless, mine will be eurobraced with 2 1/2 inch 3/8 braces but the back is concerning me.

jasont · 04/16/2013, 01:42 PM

I was looking at this thing further. I am just not comfortable cutting that close to the edge. My idea was to come 2 1/2 off the edge and run the brace straight back from the sides. I figured if water splashed it would just splash to the overflow. if I were to do it that way I think it would be better just to cut the back glass all the way across and silicone in 2 small spacers in the back corner so it could flex to some degree.
I'm now considering coming in 8 inches from the sides having 12 inches of weir on either side then 8 inches in the center as a center brace then putting the eurobrace over that. I'm still on the fence about how deep to make the cuts. Cutting glass that close to an edge is hard to do.

jasont · 04/17/2013, 04:09 PM

No responses. huh... oh well.

biodegraded · 04/17/2013, 04:26 PM

The external box you'll attach to the back will far more than make up the strength of the removed glass to create the weir. Think I-beam vs sheet.

Crooke · 04/17/2013, 04:55 PM

Is the tank already assembled? If not, cut the back pane down so it's shorter than the front and sides. Much less fuss.

jasont · 04/17/2013, 09:29 PM

biodegraded I think your right between the top brace and the back brace from the overflow it should be very strong. Just scares me drilling out glass because I know you create stress points.
crooke no its not together yet but I have successfully made all the cuts in the back glass. Your right about cutting it short, but I wanted the returns to the sides. I could have run them through the overflow, but this seems better plus the overflow will be less visible from where I will be sitting in reference to the tank.

I'm almost a little surprised I pulled off those cuts without breaking the thing. I wish I could figure out how to post a picture without a 3rd party to host, I would show you all my work. I'm slightly proud of myself. lol

biodegraded · 04/17/2013, 11:10 PM

Avoid sharp interior angles and you'll be fine.

Re: photos - you can create a gallery in your user account space and upload to there. It's then straight forward to add them to a post. I'm interested in seeing what you did.

jasont · 04/18/2013, 04:29 PM

Thanks. I hope this is right.

jasont · 04/18/2013, 04:49 PM

jasont · 04/18/2013, 07:48 PM

I'm really not sure why I cant see the pictures and why I cant edit posts. I did get them to load to an album on my profile.
On a side note I had a fairy wrasse jump out of my current tank yesterday. When my girlfriend finally noticed him on the carpet he had been there god knows how long. He was dried out and sticking to the carpet but still moving his gills a little. I scooped him up and stuck him back in the tank thinking he was a goner for sure. It took him awhile to get moving again and I had to ward off other fish to keep him from becoming dinner; but he is still alive today. He buried himself in the sand but came out and ate tonight. he is a bit beaten and bruised missing a couple of scales but alive. I don't know if he will make it long term but I'm quite surprised he is here now. We have changed his name to Evil Knievel.

biodegraded · 04/18/2013, 10:16 PM

In your album, click on a photo and at the bottom of the page there is a box titled 'Picture URL'. Click and copy that url to the clipboard (ctl-c).

We can only edit a post for a limited amount of time after posting it - like 1/2 hour or some such. You won't be able to put pics in an existing post in this thread.

So in a new post, where you want to insert the photo, click the 'Insert Image' icon in the message toolbar. It prompts you for the pic's url. Paste the one you copied (ctl-v) and it'll show up. You can test by previewing a post. Repeat for all photos you want to include.

I hope the wrasse makes it long term. Carpet surfing sucks.

jasont · 04/21/2013, 08:35 PM

jasont · 04/21/2013, 08:37 PM

jasont · 04/21/2013, 08:39 PM

jasont · 04/21/2013, 09:01 PM

So that's what I got. Cleaned up the cut with a glass grinding disk on a 5 inch disk sander.

I am working on the overflow box right now it will be 5x32. I'm debating on how deep to make it. Looks like it needs to be deep enough to house the plumbing and possibly a fish if one makes it over but shallow enough to keep it quiet and as light as possible. How deep that is I'm not sure. The research seems to differ.

biodegraded · 04/22/2013, 09:35 AM

Interesting. It's given me ideas...

jasont · 04/22/2013, 06:43 PM

It's a quicker way to make a notch, and can yield cleaner results than rotozip bits. It is a lot easier to break a pane of glass doing it this way also. Remember the cut out needs to be at least one inch deep and be very careful with sanding disks. They can get the glass hot quick so you need to take your time with them and pay special attention to edges. Smooth sweeps with the grinding disks is the ticket.

04/16/2013, 01:16 PM	#1
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14	120 gallon external overflow Hey folks, New here, This is my first post actually. I am working on a 120 right now that will be a reef at some point. This was a project that started off as a 90 that I picked up off craigs list. I decided to tear it down because I really didn't know how old it was and the bottom was drilled wrong anyway. I got to looking at it once it was apart and decided because of some scratches I wanted new viewing panels so I essentially flipped it on its side went 24x24x48 got 3 new panels at a local glass shop for about 180 and here I am. My question is with the overflow. I am going to do an external bean animal sort of an overflow system with a smooth weir. So I am going to cut a pass through in the back. The tank is all 3/8 glass. My plan is to cut 2 notches with a diamond hole saw and then just score cut and cleanup between to make the notch. My specific question is (and sorry for being so long winded here) The back panel if I went in 2 1/2 inches from the corner made the cut will the back panel be ok? Should I split it into 2 sections with a center piece left and put a brace over that? How deep should I make the cut? I'm thinking about an inch should be ok? I plan on running an Eheim 1262 return pump so I'm guessing after its all said and done it will flow 650 to 750 an hour. over that much of a notch it should be pretty quiet. I have seen aquariums of this size with 3/8 glass rimless, mine will be eurobraced with 2 1/2 inch 3/8 braces but the back is concerning me.

04/16/2013, 01:42 PM	#2
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14	I was looking at this thing further. I am just not comfortable cutting that close to the edge. My idea was to come 2 1/2 off the edge and run the brace straight back from the sides. I figured if water splashed it would just splash to the overflow. if I were to do it that way I think it would be better just to cut the back glass all the way across and silicone in 2 small spacers in the back corner so it could flex to some degree. I'm now considering coming in 8 inches from the sides having 12 inches of weir on either side then 8 inches in the center as a center brace then putting the eurobrace over that. I'm still on the fence about how deep to make the cuts. Cutting glass that close to an edge is hard to do.

04/17/2013, 04:09 PM	#3
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14	No responses. huh... oh well.

04/17/2013, 04:26 PM	#4
biodegraded Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Coast Range, Oregon Posts: 380	The external box you'll attach to the back will far more than make up the strength of the removed glass to create the weir. Think I-beam vs sheet.

04/17/2013, 04:55 PM	#5
Crooke Premium Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 106	Is the tank already assembled? If not, cut the back pane down so it's shorter than the front and sides. Much less fuss.

04/17/2013, 09:29 PM	#6
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14	biodegraded I think your right between the top brace and the back brace from the overflow it should be very strong. Just scares me drilling out glass because I know you create stress points. crooke no its not together yet but I have successfully made all the cuts in the back glass. Your right about cutting it short, but I wanted the returns to the sides. I could have run them through the overflow, but this seems better plus the overflow will be less visible from where I will be sitting in reference to the tank. I'm almost a little surprised I pulled off those cuts without breaking the thing. I wish I could figure out how to post a picture without a 3rd party to host, I would show you all my work. I'm slightly proud of myself. lol

04/17/2013, 11:10 PM	#7
biodegraded Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Coast Range, Oregon Posts: 380	Avoid sharp interior angles and you'll be fine. Re: photos - you can create a gallery in your user account space and upload to there. It's then straight forward to add them to a post. I'm interested in seeing what you did.

04/18/2013, 04:29 PM	#8
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14	Thanks. I hope this is right.

04/18/2013, 04:49 PM	#9
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14

04/18/2013, 07:48 PM	#10
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14	I'm really not sure why I cant see the pictures and why I cant edit posts. I did get them to load to an album on my profile. On a side note I had a fairy wrasse jump out of my current tank yesterday. When my girlfriend finally noticed him on the carpet he had been there god knows how long. He was dried out and sticking to the carpet but still moving his gills a little. I scooped him up and stuck him back in the tank thinking he was a goner for sure. It took him awhile to get moving again and I had to ward off other fish to keep him from becoming dinner; but he is still alive today. He buried himself in the sand but came out and ate tonight. he is a bit beaten and bruised missing a couple of scales but alive. I don't know if he will make it long term but I'm quite surprised he is here now. We have changed his name to Evil Knievel.

04/18/2013, 10:16 PM	#11
biodegraded Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Coast Range, Oregon Posts: 380	In your album, click on a photo and at the bottom of the page there is a box titled 'Picture URL'. Click and copy that url to the clipboard (ctl-c). We can only edit a post for a limited amount of time after posting it - like 1/2 hour or some such. You won't be able to put pics in an existing post in this thread. So in a new post, where you want to insert the photo, click the 'Insert Image' icon in the message toolbar. It prompts you for the pic's url. Paste the one you copied (ctl-v) and it'll show up. You can test by previewing a post. Repeat for all photos you want to include. I hope the wrasse makes it long term. Carpet surfing sucks.

04/21/2013, 08:35 PM	#12
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14

04/21/2013, 08:37 PM	#13
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14

04/21/2013, 08:39 PM	#14
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14

04/21/2013, 09:01 PM	#15
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14	So that's what I got. Cleaned up the cut with a glass grinding disk on a 5 inch disk sander. I am working on the overflow box right now it will be 5x32. I'm debating on how deep to make it. Looks like it needs to be deep enough to house the plumbing and possibly a fish if one makes it over but shallow enough to keep it quiet and as light as possible. How deep that is I'm not sure. The research seems to differ.

04/22/2013, 09:35 AM	#16
biodegraded Registered Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Coast Range, Oregon Posts: 380	Interesting. It's given me ideas...

04/22/2013, 06:43 PM	#17
jasont Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Posts: 14	It's a quicker way to make a notch, and can yield cleaner results than rotozip bits. It is a lot easier to break a pane of glass doing it this way also. Remember the cut out needs to be at least one inch deep and be very careful with sanding disks. They can get the glass hot quick so you need to take your time with them and pay special attention to edges. Smooth sweeps with the grinding disks is the ticket.