Ghost overflow DIY

N

Nromano1212

New member
Hey everyone. I'm having a 300gal tank built and need to figure out the hole position for an over flow system. I really like the ghost overflow design but is not available until late this year, early next year. I'm not really ready to wait that long so I found a website that sells precut acrylic pieces. I priced everything out with the dimensions I'd like. (24" overflow) A lot of pieces I could actually order extra for the same price so if I grab those id have to purchase a few extra pieces and I'd be able to make two complete units. The total would be roughly $144. Do you think it's easy enough to build this? Basically I'd just have to glue it together with acrylic cement and use the dremel to make the grate. I guess my question is there is nothing really too complicated with these right? It's basically two boxes with holes sandwiching the holes in the tank? Also this price would be all smoked 1/4" acrylic except for the sides on the outside part of the overflow. Thoughts?
 
Shouldn't be very difficult. Plenty of YouTube videos you could learn from. The obvious key is getting a perfect seal on the seams. WeldOn 4 will be your adhesive. I would skip trying to Dremel the teeth. You'll likely just mangle the project, which will lead to a cuss storm. A router would be a better tool, but you can use plastic rain gutter or egg crate instead. Ideally after the lip so you get a nice clean overflow. Also, remember you have to get a bulkhead in the there and be able to tighten down the nut, so be sure to compensate for that.
 
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A 24" overflow on a 300g tank is far too small. I would go as large as possible. The point of the overflow is to have a long edge to pull just the surface water from the display into the sump. This means that teeth or slots in the overflow totally defeat the purpose of the overflow and should be avoided.

To me that is a very simple construction. It is a small internal overflow with an external drain box. I built mine out of glass on a glass tank. Only for an acrylic tank would I build one out of acrylic otherwise I'll stick with the same method the tank is made from.
 
Thanks guys. I actually have a cousin that owns a glass company but he's in bottom and I live in Florida. With them shipping costs I was just thinking the acrylic would be easier and figured the glass would be substantially heavier with the water. Thanks jcato. I think that first link might be what I'm looking for. What length would you recommend for a 6 ft tank?
 
Since you're having the tank built, why not just have overflows cut into the back panel with an external supper box.
 
The ghost overflow is available today....a C2C overflow, with a Bean Animal drain system.....cutting the back of the tank, and using an external box is really a waste of time, these overflows (C2C) don't take up enough room to get excited over, and generally disappear into the back of the tank anyway....three holes (round) out the back, an L shaped box inside, and done. Costs more to have fancy work done, and there is little added value to it...
 
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Nromano1212 said:
Thanks guys. I actually have a cousin that owns a glass company but he's in bottom and I live in Florida. With them shipping costs I was just thinking the acrylic would be easier and figured the glass would be substantially heavier with the water. Thanks jcato. I think that first link might be what I'm looking for. What length would you recommend for a 6 ft tank?
Click to expand...

Acrylic, despite raving reviews is not really a good choice for aquariums. Its only advantage is weight, and it absorbs water, and ends up bowing after a period of time....abs is more suitable actually. But as RE said: acrylic for acrylic, glass for glass.

6 foot tank should have an overflow (internal) of 6 foot minus two times the panel thickness of the tank....e.g. the entire length of the back panel inside.
 
I built mine. Went to acrylics shop and got them to cut the pieces. I drilled the holes with a hole saw. In the process made a wood template for drilling the tank. The hardest part was drilling the holes in the overflow at the right level to get the tank water at the height I wanted. As long as the acrylic shop cuts the pieces square and puts a relatively smooth edge on the pieces it can be glued with weld on 4. You have to remember to put the bulkheads in the internal box before gluing. I was able to cut the length of the internal box in half by not using teeth and still get the same amount of flow by my estimate. The internal box is relatively small and still greatly out flows my fluval sp4 pump. C2C seems completely unnecessary to me and I don't like the look, but everyone has their own preference.
 

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Hi.Iwanna diy a ghost overflow for my 130G Tank. I wanna know, what is the best overflow dimension and drain pipe size is perfect for building it ?
 
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